Rowhill Grange Hotel & Utopia Spa

This review is purely for the spa, not the hotel.

We got the package (85 minutes of body & face treatment and lunch or afternoon tea), and while we had a perfectly nice time, the package is VERY expensive, and sadly not great value for money.

We booked the package online and weren’t contacted by anyone to confirm arrangements. We called twice trying to confirm what time we could book our treatments for, only to be informed that we would find out on arrival. Oh, okay then. However then we were told we needed to choose whether we wanted lunch or afternoon tea now, because they have to make sure they have enough of each. If that’s the case… why didn’t someone contact us to confirm these details? So yeah, that all felt a bit clunky with too much effort put on the customer.

The facilities are over hyped on the website, making it all sound a lot bigger and more exciting than it actually is. The swimming pool is tiny (maybe 15m long, if that?), the heated pool with various water jets is nice, except one of the jets wasn't working, and at one point I made the mistake of looking up at the ceiling where four extractor fans directly above the water have been gathering dirt and dust and grease for a very long time, which kinda ruined the fun of being in that pool. The steam room is small, but functional. The dry sauna is *minuscule*, with a heated element that isnt covered and seems dangerous in the *very* small space.

The massage was excellent.
The facial sadly was underwhelming, and unlike in most places where I have had facials, it didn’t leave me wanting to purchase any of the products that got used during the treatment. And being handed a piece of paper with a list of products and no further effort is fine, cause the sales pitch can be quite annoying sometimes, but in this case it mostly came across like no one cared much for the products that were being used, which doesnt fill one with confidence.

The quiet room was fine. Two rows of loungers, a row of basket egg chairs, and a table with pyramid paper cups (pointed, so cannot he put down, but there also wasn’t an bin anywhere…) and a pitcher of tap water (not a cucumber slice in sight).

Lunch consisted of two courses, choice of 3 starters and 3 mains, and more or less all six courses being ‘salad, with…’
We had a 30 minute drive home afterwards and as soon as we got in made ourselves something to eat. Being hungry after a two course lunch is far from ideal, and once again, the food was fine. Perfectly palatable, if mostly due to how bland it was. After we had been served our mains, and finished them, and sat around for 15 minutes with our finished plates in front of us… I decided to go up to the bar to find out if the 2 soft drinks we had with lunch was included in our almost £450 spa package, because we quite wanted to leave, but no one had come to clear our table, ask us if we wished for anything else, or asked us to pay. Turns out no, our two apple juices were not included in the £220 we paid for this spa break.

And honestly that’s kind of the bottom line. Okay, there isnt much you can about the space. You can’t somehow fit an Olympic pool into the existing hotel grounds. But there are small things you can do that would make customers feel cared for and like they were getting a bit of a treat. Literally any spa facility I have been to, even the smallest and pretty cheap ones, offer water with some fruit in it. Is it necessary? No! Does it make you feel like you’ve arrived at a spa? Yes! Additionally most of them will also offer tea and some type of complimentary little snack foods in the relaxation area or the waiting area. This place did have a table with banana chips, apricots, and prunes. But it was opposite the manned reception desk, shunted into a corner, behind a pilot and next to the stair case, making it very easy to miss and also quite uncomfortable to get to and take things from. And again, paper pyramid cups, and no bins. Yes, paper is recyclable, but actual glasses can be washed and make you feel less like you’re giving a sample at the doctors.
Robes and towels were provided for a deposit, however no flip flops. Again, not a huge deal, but receiving some type of flip flop style shoe is pretty standard, so not providing it should be made clear in the booking confirmation or pre-visit information (if such a thing existed).
The staff were friendly enough on our arrival and welcoming us (to the spa, to the treatments, to the lunch), and as soon as whatever element they were in charge of had been delivered the staff immediately disappeared, with no follow up or additional friendly smiles or customer service.

So yeah, in conclusion, we had a perfectly fine day, with absolutely no intention to ever come back, sadly.

If you're looking for a high-end, luxury spa experience, this might fall a bit short. The facilities are perfectly nice but pretty small and lack a premium feel. Another downside is that they don’t give you your treatment time slot until arrival, which feels a bit disorganised. Lunch was also uninspiring with a very limited menu (I ended up with a salad followed by a salad).
The saving grace was the treatment, which was genuinely excellent. While we had a nice day overall, the price tag simply doesn't match the experience. Underwhelming for the cost.

To all of the team at Rowhill we would like to say a massive Thank you for all of your work to make our wedding day so perfect. All of the staff were amazing from start to finish, helping plan and execute all of our plans without any issues.. Nothing was too much and each and every staff member was an absolute credit to the business. So attentive and on the ball and took away any stress that may have been on the biggest day of our lives. The venue and grounds are absolutely stunning too, we got very lucky with the weather so was fortunate enough to be married outside. All of our guests made very positive comments on both the venue and the staff which absolutely reflected our thoughts.. The perfect venue! Also the rooms associated with the venue were amazing.. Really clean and modern and so spacious and the cleaning staff were lovely and so helpful in moving cots and bedding for the kids. The breakfast buffet is also amazing.. The food was also great and so tasty, every single guest enjoyed a beautiful wedding breakfast.

All in all Rowhill Grange was an unbelievable setting for such a beautiful day and we would not want to have done it anywhere else. If we could do it all again we would be back at Rowhill Grange in a heartbeat. Thank you so much for making our dream come true. Love Shane & Jem xx

Stunning escape in the Kent countryside! Just spent 3 nights at Rowhill with a small work group and got to experience the beautiful gardens and historic rooms. Excellent customer service - quick to resolved issues and lovely staff
Breakfast is wonderful!
Rooms are generous in size and beds are very comfy. My bathroom had an odd shower arrangement with an open design that meant water rather flooded the bathroom but it was manageable.
It was very hot (35degC) during our stay and the bedrooms don’t have AC - portable fans were provided in all the rooms which were adequate for most of us.
The pool and spa is like a Roman Baths! It’s pretty popular with guests and locals.
WiFi worked great throughout.
The Pavilion meeting space did have AC and worked great for a group of ~20.

stuff was very helpful everybody was very nice.very nice and relaxing

Very nice hotel near where I needed to be

What a wonderful place! From the staff who made our stay exceptional, our room was perfect, the spa amazing and the food out of this world. For me it’s all about first impressions and our greeting when we arrived was so lovely, I would highly recommend.

The staff were amazing and very helpful. It was a lovely stay and I felt very comfortable and relaxed. I had a complimentary upgrade which was so sweet and very grateful for. The shower was amazing in the room! I would definitely come back again :)

Very good customer service, but very over priced. Tea is unlimited (not tea leaves just tea bags) you can change your tea but tea menu is limited. Food refills all come at a cost. The menu on the website is not what we got which was disappointing. Sandwiches are ok nothing special, egg sandwich was very dry with barely any egg. Scones were quite dry. Cakes are nothing special, chocolate one was dry and lime flavour one was quite unpleasant.

My wife and I visited Rowhill Grange in June 26 for a weekend Spa break, opting for the Glow Getaway which included 2 nights accommodation, breakfast, £40 towards dinner both nights, and a 55 minute Spa treatment. Whilst the package wasn't cheap, it was competitively priced when benchmarked against alternatives.
The hotel itself is well located, set back in the countryside in a very peaceful setting with English gardens and grounds to the front, and a quintessentially English feel to the building and setting.
The accommodation is pleasant with generous space in the standard king rooms, including big comfortable beds and a decent size bathroom with a large shower space. The room was clean and we found the hotel to be very quiet, despite their being a wedding party on the Friday evening.
The atmosphere around the hotel is excellent, very relaxed and calming as you would hope to feel in a spa venue, but not always achieved at others we have visited.
Staff cannot do enough to be polite and helpful, they really are a credit to the hotel and management team. Every member of the team we encountered was extremely pleasant and helpful, which makes for a welcoming stay. The staff throughout including reception, the bar, the restaurant and the spa itself were excellent, which makes you feel a welcome and special guest.
Don't get me wrong, the hotel isn't perfect and some areas a a little tired, but that adds to the character and charm of this little gem of a venue. Maybe we were lucky, however the Spa facilities never had more than 10 people in during the times we used them, whereas other venues are often packed.
Overall, it was an extremely pleasant stay, and i wouldn't hesitate to come back or recommend to others. Yes, it's expensive, however all good things in life come at a cost and i found the value was reasonable given the experience and facilities.

Grace welcomed me in such a friendly way, there was already a fan in my room and I had been put in one of the rooms at the back as per my request. Dinner was really lovely (I had room service) and Breakfast the next day was genuinely exceptional. I love coming to this hotel as I know the staff look after it and me very well.