Pamper Day for Two at Waterfall Spa

Unlike some city centre spas, Waterfall is not short on amenities and easily slots into the category of designer spa. But despite its boutique feel and luxury treatments, the staff are anything but hoity-toity! On hand to help, they were eager to find out exactly what we wanted to get out of our spa experience and based on that recommended some specific treatments we should try - great for my companion who was something of a spa virgin!

We eventually opted for a facial, a manicure and their signature treatment, the Rasul Deluxe. After a coconut body polish (in separate rooms) my friend and I reconvened back in the Turkish Rasul mud chamber where we were greeted with bowls of various muds. The therapist explained which muds went where and we were left to it! It's a good job we were close friends as without a therapist present, it's useful to have a helping hand when it comes to tackling those tricky to reach areas! Once the mud was applied we sat in the steam room admiring its shimmering mosaic tiles while the mud worked its magic. Then, before we knew it, the tropical rain shower kicked in and washed away the grime. Although a little dubious, our skin immediately felt softer and it lasted for a good week and a half - this would be an ideal pre-holiday treatment.

A women-only spa, I had never really considered why you would want to exclude men from such a thing, but I felt surprisingly more comfortable wandering around in my bikini, dressing gown and fluffy slippers than I thought. Even though you leave the spa looking glamourous, after you've been in a steam room, covered in mud and have had a facial, your hair can be left somewhat straggly and your skin a little greasy, but with only women there, you really don't care as much.

Another nice touch was the ambience of the treatment rooms. Warm and cosy, they all had their very own iPod playing a combination on relaxing mixes alongside our favourite tunes, a welcome change to the whale choruses or chanting that you're often subjected to in a spa!

One last thing to mention would have to be the special offers they have as it makes it an affordable activity to indulge in. From two-for-one offers to special evening deals, they go out of their way to make it accessible to women of all ages.


The one area I find spas struggle to get right is the cafe and restaurant areas. Although Waterfall had a fantastic chocolate fountain on offer and the lunch menu looked good, the portions were super small and I'd definitely recommend choosing something more substantial than a salad. It was also the only area of the spa that lacked ambience, but that could have been because we visited mid-week and there were fewer people using the facilities.