Client Review of Almar Jesolo Resort & Spa in Italy

After a hectic year of long-haul business travel, the last thing I felt like doing for my well overdue summer holiday was to subject myself to further sonic radiation and jetlag. So I put a call into the friendly people at Wellbeing Escapes and gave them my ‘wish list’. Short haul, on a beach with soft sand, where I can swim in the sea, nice weather, an exercise programme and, most importantly of all, a luxury spa.

I thought I might be pushing it a bit with the soft sand but not only did they deliver on all of my criteria, but they also came up trumps with the location. I could tie in a visit to the beautiful city of Venice, a city that had been on my bucket list for far too long.

The team recommended Almar Jesolo Resort & Spa, an upscale resort on the Lido de Jesolo, the Adriatic coast of Italy. The resort and luxury spa is located on a long stretch of a soft sandy beach so you get the feel of being away on a beach resort with all the facilities of a top spa on hand. A short 30 minute taxi ride from Venice Marco Polo airport and I was soon experiencing first-hand the warmest of welcomes complete with tiny, sweet individual meringues.

There’s 8 categories of rooms at Almar Jesolo. I was lucky to have a deluxe seafront room, with a large furnished balcony, so if I wanted complete privacy I could just stay up there and enjoy the view and catch the morning sun. The rooms are contemporary, spacious and the some of the cleanest I’ve ever stayed in (the housekeeping here is really something else!) The warm hospitality continued both upon my welcome and throughout my stay. Each evening, a little treat would appear, from homemade biscuits to little wooden boxes packed with dried fruit, and it was always a charm to see what the ‘treat fairies’ had left each evening!

The jewel in the crown of Almar Jesolo is the sumptuous spa, a haven of pampering with a range of saunas, steam baths, multi-sensory showers, hot and cold plunge pools and a huge Jacuzzi. The spa joins via a glass walk-way to a 70 meter swimming pool which ingeniously is heated to three different temperatures taking you from indoor to outdoor where there is a further outdoor hot-tub. There’s a good sized gym overlooking out over to the sea and an exercise studio with a full programme of classes such as Hatha Yoga, Ashstanga, Pilates, Tai Chi and postural training.

I opted to start my week with a three-day Wellbeing Booster programme which concentrates on improving sleep quality, something of which I had been seriously deprived in the previous months. The programme includes a specially adapted reflexology treatment ‘At the Foot of Mount Olympus’ which concentrates on the plantar area of the feet which is connected to the parts that restore harmony and serenity. Next was a 50 minute ‘Warrior’s Rest’ massage which concentrates on the flow of energy between the body and the head and is perfect stress relief. Within minutes of both treatments I was already sleeping blissfully and there was a marked improvement in how many hours I managed to stay asleep in the days after the treatments. The programme discounts on further treatments and includes a private Pilates class and a complimentary Almablu product. The Almablu product line has been developed exclusively for the Almar Jesolo and is teeming with natural ingredients such as maritime pine and seaweed.

I topped up my treatments with a much needed facial - I wanted something that was equally gentle, lifting and brightening with a relaxing facial massage. I was recommended the 'Caresses of the Sea, Dune Firming Ritual'. Within minutes the warm oil facial massage had me drifting off to sleep before waking up to find a visibly lifted face and a significant reduction in fine lines.

There’s a further hidden gem at Almar Jesolo, the private spa, complete with double Jacuzzi, hammam and two massage beds, perfect for private use and perfect for treatments taken as a couple. The entire spa experience is absolutely top class from the quality of the facilities, the effectiveness of the treatments and the expertise and professionalism of the therapists.

As I only really feel like I’ve had a holiday if I’ve taken a swim in the sea, any spare time I had when I wasn’t being pampered in the spa, I could be found lounging on the private beach, tucking into a good book. The restaurant service is extended to the waterfront so waiter service is never far away from your lounger, where you can order a bottle of something cool and refreshing or a nice Caesar Salad. The beach stretches for 15 kms and is perfect for a stroll, power walk or run either at the waters edge or on the adjacent promenade and it was an easy 20 minute walk into the seaside town of Jesolo where you can pick up a nice piece of the local glass jewellery or ponder over which flavour of gelato to try next.

If you want to venture further afield of course, it’s very easy to pop into Venice. I took the luxury/lazy route which was a taxi to Punta Sabbioni and then the ACTV ferry across to St Marks Square but you can easily pick up a bus to take you to the port. The entire journey takes less than an hour and with the boat running until shortly after midnight, it’s entirely feasible to stay in the city for dinner. My top recommendations include a visit to Café Florian, the oldest café in the world having opened in the 1720’s, pay a visit to Harry’s Bar where the Bellini was invented and of course no trip to Venice is complete without the obligatory and overpriced Gondola ride! There’s much to be seen though by just losing yourself and strolling along the pretty canals over many of the 400 bridges.

There’s really so much to say about Almar Jesolo but the cuisine is entirely worthy of its own mention. Breakfast – literally a feast is served between 7.30 and 11.00 am and consists of a hot and cold buffet but there’s also an a la carte menu through which you can order delights such as crepes, egg Florentine or typical Asian or Russian breakfasts. What I soon discovered was that the kitchen is very obliging in concocting a range of fresh fruit and vegetable juices on request, so nice and fresh and full of goodness.

I chose to take half-board which meant that dinner was fully included. It commences with a typical Italian style buffet then guests can choose from a selection of first and main plates followed by either an a la carte dessert or again, a selection from the dessert buffet. There is an extensive a la carte menu with daily specials but I soon discovered the pièce de résistance (or at least the Italian equivalent), the Play of Lights wellbeing menu. This incredible menu changes every day and starts with a fresh pressed fruit and or vegetable combination followed by a stunningly presented entrée which has been perfectly nutritionally balanced to include light protein and a range of clean or raw ingredients. My personal favourite was the asparagus, mango and goji berry smoothie, followed by a beautifully presented dish of salt cod with black rice, mango, red lentils and avocado. This particular dish comes in at a light 398 Kcal leaving leeway if you so wish for a cheeky glass of pink prosecco or perhaps a traditional Aperol Spritz.

Throughout my stay at Almar Jesolo, I was genuinely blown away by the wonderful warmth and generosity and attentiveness of the team, always respectful and very caring. It was a delight to retreat to this special place, alone but never lonely.

For personalised advice, please call our expert wellness team on 020 3735 7555.