An Inspector Calls
Oxford is a beautiful city of stunning architecture, history and culture. Its ancient and modern colleges, fascinating museums and galleries, parks, gardens and open spaces make it a great choice for a city break. Alison and Jonathan made a fleeting visit and discovered a bijou spa in Oxford’s finest hotel – made famous by a popular television series.
It was our first visit to the historic city of Oxford, yet arriving at the MacDonald Randolph Hotel in the bustling city centre, everything felt vaguely familiar. We soon realised why – the Randolph was the elegant hotel that featured regularly in the classic Inspector Morse television series.
Originally built in 1864, the five star hotel takes its name from the Randolph Gallery in the famous Ashmolean Museum across the road. It offers 151 luxurious rooms and suites and a convenient central location. Most of the city’s attractions are within easy reach and several colleges and a busy shopping centre are just minutes away.
We found the Randolph equally as gracious as depicted in the Morse episodes. It is romantic but does not overwhelm, with its familiar and elegant entrance, impressive lobby, grand winding staircase and magnificent neo-Gothic stained glass windows. Service is friendly and efficient – no sooner had we arrived than our car was whisked away to be valet parked (secure parking is limited in the city centre). After settling into our spacious and contemporary executive room, we changed into the bathrobes and slippers provided and made our way down to the spa for our pre-booked treatments. The thoroughly modern spa (a welcome addition since Morse’s time) has been created in the vaulted cellars on the lower ground floor. Accessing it wearing bathrobes and slippers via the busy reception lobby felt a little awkward, but was soon forgotten once we were ensconced in the tranquil environment. With the lantern-lit walkways, iconic Buddhist décor and calming music, it was hard to believe we were the middle of a busy city. We waited for our treatments in a pleasant relaxation room where an array of herbal teas and a selection of the latest magazines were available for us to enjoy while listening to soothing background music.
The spa offers a wide range of treatments, many using Decléor products. Alison chose the 75-minute Decléor Aroma Expert Purifying Facial, a balancing treatment for oily and combination skin that came with a choice of three balms each with its own uniquely beneficial properties. After opting for the Aroma essence balm for her skin type and sensitivity, Alison’s treatment started with a relaxing back massage. A thorough cleansing, exfoliation and moisturising of the face and neck followed, and then a nourishing mask was applied. Alison was left to relax for 15 minutes while the mask worked its magic. This relaxing facial left her skin feeling smooth, soft and refreshed.
I decided to have the 60-minute Intensive Energising Body Treatment Massage, which was described on the spa menu as ‘a revitalising treatment for a pure sensation of energy and deep relaxation to detoxify, refresh and energise.’ I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and felt refreshed and energised afterwards.
The spa has four treatment rooms appropriately named Escape, Rebalance, Tranquillity and Rejuvenation. A smart and extensive thermal suite offers two steam rooms, one with essence of eucalyptus heated to 65°C and a slightly cooler aromatherapy steam room with essence of rose, heated to 45°C. There’s also a bio-sauna, that combines steam with dry heat, fragranced with essence of sandalwood and heated to 85°C, and a 95°C hot rock sauna. After a session you can cool off in the ‘user friendly’ ice room or use the sensation showers which have three different modes; Drench – hot water with green lights; Fragrance – warm water with essence of spiced fire with red lights; and Cold – cold water with essence of a sea breeze with blue lights. The thermal suite also boasts a hydrotherapy bath with high pressure under water massage jets. Other spa facilities include a mini gym with a treadmill, rowing machine, cross trainer, exercise bike and free weights and a shop selling spa products used during treatments.
 |
 |
After our revitalising experience in the spa, we went back to our room to relax before having dinner in the hotel’s 2 AA Rosette-rated restaurant. The décor of this grand Victorian room is warmly autumnal; opulent architectural features, university crests and oil paintings contrast perfectly with the crisp white table linen and double aspect full-length windows. Table d’hôte and à la carte menus are available, prepared by award winning chefs and accompanied by a comprehensive wine list. We lingered over a delicious three-course meal with friendly staff providing professional service with a smile. 
After dinner, we had cocktails in the cosy wood panelled Morse Bar – named after Colin Dexter’s fictional detective and also regularly used as a film set. We learned that the hotel is still a favourite with the film crew who have been back to film the sequel Lewis with Kevin Whatley. The bar and dining room have interesting displays of memorabilia and photos from the famous series, along with an extensive choice of cocktails. It was a great way to round off a relaxing day.
We enjoyed our visit to this fine hotel and plan a longer stay soon. Next time we’ll see more of the historic city and the famous colleges and perhaps take a punt on the river. Then we’ll ease away the stresses of the day in the Randolph’s lovely spa, a pleasure that Inspector Morse would surely have enjoyed.
|
Macdonald Randolph Hotel
Beaumont Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX1 2LN, GB Tel 0844 879 9132 (dialling within the UK) International Tel: +44 1865 256 400 www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/randolph A one-night spa break for two costs from £351 per couple. Price includes accommodation, three-course dinner, breakfast, use of the spa and a 60-minute treatment each. Package is subject to availability – visit website for other offers and packages |
