review: 'so magnifique' spa day, sofitel so spa, london

Wahanda is a revelation of epic magnitude. It is basically spa version of Groupon. In order to chase away those mid-term blues, I bought a coupon for the So Magnifique spa day at Sofitel Hotel St James's So Spa, which is an absolute bargain at £155 for two people.

My boyfriend and I arrived at Sofitel rather out of breath after a mad dash thanks to the outrageous traffic on the Strand at 11am on a Thursday afternoon. Sofitel is one of those swanky five-star hotels just a staircase away from St James's Park. The easiest way of getting there is to take the tube to Piccadilly, walk down Haymarket, and turn right. It's on the corner of Waterloo Place and Pall Mall.

After filling out a form asking anything from allergies to how you like your music, we were presently shown the dressing rooms and facilities, which were thankfully empty. The ladies' room is very well-equipped with elaborate showers, fluffy towels and most importantly, a hair-dryer. (According to my boyfriend the men's room was rather cramped though.)

You have an hour to lounge about a private jacuzzi (amazing!) and a steam room, so make sure you're not late like we were. The facilities were top notch, spotlessly clean and very well maintained. The jacuzzi was wonderfully romantic - I've decided that I want a hot tub some point in the future.

Every couple has their own room with a private jaccuzi

The setting and lighting of the room alludes to a Balinese villa with an outdoor pool

The highlight of the day was, however, the 60-minute treatment itself. We signed up for the 'In-Deep Relaxing massage', and good God was it relaxing. We had our massage in a beautiful treatment room, with a glowing bathtub which we unfortunately were not invited to take a dip in. The music, aroma and bed temperature were all configured to our preferences, and the massage was the best I have ever had. Both our masseuses were professional, discrete and just incredibly talented at what they do. I literally had to be peeled off the bed at the end of the hour.

As if the two hours worth of pampering were not enough, the spa day also includes a generous afternoon tea in the beautiful and rather eclectic lobby. The desserts in particular were a delight. I swear we were literally glowing when we left So Spa in a dream-like trance at 3pm. Not a bad place to be on a Thursday afternoon.

All photos are my property.