USP Staff and facilities at Grayshott are excellent.

AMBIENCE The spa area is clinical and frighteningly modern, but there are lots of facilities — tennis courts, nine-hole golf course, indoor and outdoor pool, whirlpool, cinema.

EXPERIENCE The therapists are very good and professional; most of them have been there for years. Gone are the details which made Grayshott stand out from other health spas: the jugs of ice-cold water and lemon; the wide variety of free herbal tea and Bovril; the all-day long steam cabinets (now you have to book); the health check on arrival and departure; and most sadly, the free massage that came with every night of your stay.

FOOD Nice, but not enough of it. The dining room looked like that scene in Oliver Twist, with guests stealing hungry glances at one another’s plates.

IN CROWD Mainly ladies who lunch — one told me that the reason I didn’t have a husband was because I didn’t play bridge.

WALLET WATCH A two-night pamper package, including a refresher facial, manicure and back massage, costs £425 for a single room.

NEED TO KNOW Grayshott Spa, Headley Road, Grayshott, Near Hindhead, Surrey (01428 602020; www.grayshottspa.com)

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