amanda weeks

Norton House is a five-mintute drive from Edinburgh airport, yet you'd think you were out in the countryside. It's set in acres of beautiful grounds, mostly manicured lawn areas and a contemporary courtyards. The main building is hundreds of years old and was a country retreat belonging to the Ushers brewing family. The original features remain - oak panelling, corniced ceilings, huge wooden ornate staircases etc - but it has the contemporary twists that make it vibrant and comfortable. We stayed in a "classic" room which had a superking bed, balcony, huge plasma screen, DVD player etc. It was very attractive and comfortable.
We spent most of the first day in the spa and ate at the cafe bar there. The spa is quite new, having only been built in 2007. We stayed midweek so it was very quiet. It boasts a heated 18 metre pool with nice loungers all around it and lovely views of the garden area and pond. There is a seperate hydrotherapy pool which is quite large. There is also the lovely "experience shower" with special lighting and fragrance, plus a mosiac tiled steam room with ambient lighting and a large yet cosy sauna. The cafe serves nice meals and snacks, wines etc - we had jacket potatoes and capuccinos with homemade shortbread - yum. There is also a shop selling ESPA products.
In the evening we dined in the Brasserie (gorgeous), then had drinks in the Red Room. The Caesar Salad with anchovies there was the best I'd ever had. We both had salmon with saffron mash for our main which was also great. The atmosphere is Mediterranean and contemporary.
The following morning after a beautiful breakfast (poached haddock and eggs) in the Brasserie, we went for a lovely walk around the grounds before heading to the spa. Louise was the lady assigned to look after us, which she did perfectly. We were given fluffy robes and slippers to wear before being taken to the Amber Room to chill before our Aromatherapy body massages. The atmosphere at the Amber Room was tranquil. There was a range of complimentary fruit juices and herbal teas on offer as well as lots of magazines to read. Our massages were excellent, in an ambiently lit room with tranquil music as you'd expect. After that, we went to the Relax Room for a nice herbal tea before heading to the hydrotherapy room to reflect upon the experience and wish that we could stay longer.
I would recommend this lovely hotel to anyone who likes excellent food, beautiful surroundings, staff who are very friendly and helpful, and peace and quiet.

If you haven't been to Ragdale Hall, please go. You will be doing yourself a huge favour. So many of us forget to spend time on ourselves and our bodies. But if you work hard, you owe it to unwind from time to time, and Ragdale Hall is the place to do it.
Ragdale has something for everyone and your break can be as active or as relaxing as you want. You can work your body with step aerobics or unwind with Yoqua, which is a lovely Yoga workout in one of Ragdale's many pools. Really, the activities are too numerous to mention.
The facilities can only be described as fabulous - from scented steam rooms, underground grotto-style spa baths and outdoor heated pools with waterfalls, it truly is magical. For the first time in my life I actually relaxed.
The cuisine is fabulous and plentiful, and breakfast in bed is superb. The rooms are gorgeously comfortable. The building and grounds are beautiful and superbly kept. And with great staff to boot, I simply can't fault this place. Go now!

Maryem was the lady assigned to "look after me". She was lovely - chatty, friendly and natural. She wasn't plastic like a lot of beauty professionals are. My package was a Fashion Photoshoot package, comprising a manicure, facial, makeup and hairstyling, followed by a photoshoot. One image was included in the package and others could be purchased at a cost of £50 each. Maryem didn't make me feel pressured at all, but I noticed the lady having a makeover next to me being given the "hard sell" whilst having her makeup done, and spent ridiculous amounts on face products. I was very happy with my hair and makeup.
The photoshoot was professional and fun. My photographer, Matt, was friendly and professional.
Afterwards, I was shown the images on the screen - it was hard to pick just one as there were lots of lovely ones there. I felt pressured into buying more, but resisted. It's easy to spend a couple of hundred quid here - a young girl who went in after me spent £300 on photos and bought make-up too! I finally chose one - but still it wasn't free as I paid extra to have some wrinkles airbrushed and an effect put on the picture - things which a literally a click of a button once you know how, so I found that a bit of a rip-off! Even postage costs £5. Still, my "free" picture (which cost £25) looked very nice on the screen. How it will look on my wall remains to be seen as, after 10 days, I'm still waiting. . . . . . .