Seaham Hall Hotel and Serenity Spa, Seaham

Seaham is an incongruous location for what is billed as one of the most exclusive hotels and health spas in the North East of England, if not the country.

It's unfair to knock the town of Seaham itself, devastated by the closure of three coal pits, but to be honest, the approach and surroundings of Seaham Hall are pretty ugly, in an industrial way.

Those expecting the timeless beauty and surroundings of Tom's Companies ...
...health club part of the Seaham experience, while modern, is tastefully hidden away behind well-placed bunding.

With the carpark behind you, physically and metaphorically, you can appreciate the historic building itself, complete with inventive and fascinating water fountain in front of the main entrance.
Inside you're greeted by a sumptuous hall and reception, warmly wood panelled and with the first examples of the impressive ... more

Seaham is an incongruous location for what is billed as one of the most exclusive hotels and health spas in the North East of England, if not the country.

It's unfair to knock the town of Seaham itself, devastated by the closure of three coal pits, but to be honest, the approach and surroundings of Seaham Hall are pretty ugly, in an industrial way.

Those expecting the timeless beauty and surroundings of Tom's Companies other famous hotel, The Samling, will be slightly disappointed, despite the romantic sounding address - Lord Byron's Walk. The ugliness extends to the immediate approach to the Hall itself. While the old part of the hotel, in the hall where Byron married in 1815, is classically beautiful, it's impact against the wind-swept coastal landscape has been significantly marred by the expanse of horribly modern car-park which greets all arrivals and wouldn't look out of place in front of a Travel Inn or motorway service station.

Thankfully the new part of the hotel, which houses the Serenity Spa health club part of the Seaham experience, while modern, is tastefully hidden away behind well-placed bunding.

With the carpark behind you, physically and metaphorically, you can appreciate the historic building itself, complete with inventive and fascinating water fountain in front of the main entrance.
Inside you're greeted by a sumptuous hall and reception, warmly wood panelled and with the first examples of the impressive art and sculpture collection owned by the hotel chain - which decorates the walls and stands in the hotel gardens.
Service from the outset was exemplary, when we visited in 2005. The reception desk is efficient and friendly and you are passed into the helpful hands of one of the many porters, who guides you to your room - the majority of which are accessed off a light and airy two-storey atrium in the heart of the building.

The porter will also talk you through the lighting and audio-visual features of your room, which while impressive, seem to require a elephantine memory and technical background to stand a hope of understanding first time. The light switch panel alone resembles the master control panel of the space-shuttle, and while we were assured we could control the light levels in all the "zones" in our bedroom suite - we never mastered switching lights on and off.

All the rooms are fitted with an audiophile's dream in terms of Bang & Olufsen television and surround sound speaker systems, which again, requires an impressive touch-screen remote and degree in electronics to fully utilise. We did however get as far as choosing from the wide range of music in the "on line" library.

The suites are huge, with luxurious bathrooms, big comfortable beds and full room service if required. Those on the ground floor, at the rear of the building, are advertised as "garden rooms", with French windows onto what is essentially a small patch of grass bounded by low hedges. With the wind whipping from the sea and little view, it's unlikely you'll appreciate this as a benefit on anything but the stillest of days.

Room complexities and slightly disappointing surrounds aside, it's the spa you come to Seaham for.
The underground tunnel linking the hotel with the spa is magical and through its soft lighting, gurgling water and no doubt fully Fen Shui-ed statues, you already feel your worries lifting by simply walking through it.

You emerge into what at times feels a little like a James Bond villian's HQ, with fit and gorgeous, identically attired in oriental inspired black "kimono", staff tending to similarly serene looking, identically attired in oriental inspired white "kimono and slippers", guests.

The spa is centred round the pool, which while not ideal for swimming lengths, is designed for lazing on loungers, invigorating yourself with the many water massage stations, or simply slowly floating your troubles away.

Included in the room price is unlimited use of all the pool treatment facilities which includes saunas of varying heat, steam rooms, whirlpool baths and much more. Drinks menus lie all around the pool and you can order a beverage of choice from one of the wandering staff members, to drink poolside. The ultimate indulgence must be a glass of champagne as you lounge in one of the outdoor hot tubs - but watch your wallet, the drinks are pricey, added direct to your room bill and its easy to rack up a tab of mortgage proportions without realising it!

For those requiring a little more TLC, there is a range of alternative therapies and experiences to try, from simple massage (which can be done in a socialable shared session if you wish), to the application of hot rocks to pressure points, to head massages, to candle therapies to the outstanding and sensual Rasul experience (a steamy-in-every-sense, mud massage for you and your partner in a private chamber).

Again, these treatments can be booked when you arrive at the spa and added direct to the hotel bill - again, they're pricey, but no more so than similar treatments at any top spa countrywide.
If you prefer your destressing to be a little more active, the spa also features a fully equipped gym. Again the desire to have the latest technology gets slightly in the way, with a range of machines which are quite terrifying in their complexity and requires a good 10 minute briefing from the instructor before you can even begin.

Relaxing is hungry work and the spa features an Asian restaurant which you can pad into in your slippers and kimono, to order from the range of healthy and tasty smoothies and juices, and try some of the selection of healthy and mouth watering menu items - which are served in Tapas sized potions, allowing you to pick and choose numerous treats.

Less healthy is the hotel restaurant itself - which tempts you to undo all your good work, firstly in the classic drawing room, where cocktails and amuse bouche are served to guests, and then in the dining room - where the menu will entice and delight you. We were especially impressed by the cheese board, more a cheese sideboard, which is wheeled to your table. Showing the value of training and engaging staff in what they are serving, our waitress showed herself to possess a fantastic knowledge of every cheese available and it was clear she had been encouraged to try every one of them, in order to be able to give guests a true guide to their strength and taste.

As you'd expect in an establishment run by the same people as Treacle Moon and the Fisherman's Lodge in not-so-far away Newcastle, prices are steep and wine prices are especially so. Come prepared to enjoy yourself and damn the cost!
Take out a second mortgage, ignore the surroundings and approach to the hotel, because once you're ensconced in the luxury of Seaham Hall, you will forget the outside world and not want to leave.

 

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