Our Product Director, Helen, visits Marbella Club in Spain and gives us her thoughts on her stay:
What were your first impressions when you arrived?
Apart from how easy it is to get to from Malaga airport (just over half an hour), I was impressed by the location; bang on the beach with rolling Andalucian hills far behind the hotel. Before the Marbella Club was created, Marbella was a sleepy fishing village so this hotel really pioneered tourism to the area, and helped to create the chi-chi resort that Marbella now is, much loved by the jet-set. So, arriving at the iconic Marbella Club felt very much like following in Miss Hepburn’s footsteps.
What do you think makes the resort so special?
Its history is certainly special – thanks to Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe inviting the glitterati as his guests at his beach villa, the property grew into an exclusive beach club playground and then into the luxury hotel it is today. The architecture is low rise and typically Spanish, with lush Mediterranean gardens leading towards the spa and beach club restaurant, overlooking the beach. Even though the hotel has an impressive history, I like the fact that it moves with the times and isn’t too grand to be flexible, hence the addition of their new wellness and fitness programmes, overseen by their resident doctor, life coach and nutritionist, as well as their top notch fitness team. The children’s club is arguably the best I’ve seen (with cute cabins dedicated to dancing, cookery, IT, art or fancy dress amongst others, as well as outdoor activities, all contained within the gardens) and I also love the long beachside promenade in front of the hotel, which is perfect for jogging, power walking or people watching!
What was your favourite treatment?
I particularly loved a Thalasso treatment in the spa, which was re-mineralising and deeply relaxing. Their Thalasso pool is also well worth making time to relax in each day, and what’s more, guests of Wellbeing Escapes can access this daily without paying the fee that hotel guests usually pay, as we know our guests love their time in the spa.
What was your favourite activity?
Hats off to the personal trainer! I joined a group power walk along the promenade in front of the hotel, which was a great way to kick-start the day, and during this session, I learned that he was a professional running coach, so he was able to assess my gait as we walked to give me a few tips. The yoga class was also very good.
How was the food?
A real highlight! I love that Marbella Club caters for all – they have gourmet decadent food as you would expect at a leading luxury hotel (with seamless service of course) but they have also recently introduced healthy options in all restaurants and in all meal plans (half board and full board), under the careful guidance of the leading nutritionist, Amanda Hamilton. So, guests can dine as they wish, or select regular half or full board options or indeed the healthy half or full board options. On top of this, there is also the option of arranging fully personalised Amanda-Hamilton-designed meal plans on a full board basis at a daily supplement fee, if guests have a specific health goal in mind. What was noticeable too was that many of the staff members in the restaurants have worked at Marbella Club for many, many years, recognising and welcoming back repeat guests like old friends.
What was your favourite aspect of the resort?
It’s so hard to say - the location on the ‘golden mile’ in Marbella is superb (easy to talk to the marina, the shops and the beach), the staff are welcoming and discreet, the gardens are beautiful and the rooms and suites are elegant and traditional, with a newly revamped Thalasso spa and very good quality complimentary daily activity classes. On top of this, there is the air of refined European elegance running throughout the resort without being stuffy, overly formal or pretentious – this is relaxed luxury at its best. If I had to choose, I would say my favourite aspect is the fact that everything’s possible here – eat indulgently or be healthy, work out or laze on the beach, study the hotel’s history or hit the shops – this isn’t a focused wellness resort, but effective health programmes are very much on offer.
Who would you recommend the hotel to?
It's perfect for independent solo travellers, couples, small groups of friends and families – plus we have an exclusive offer of free private airport transfers for all guests booking to stay at Marbella Club through Wellbeing Escapes, which makes getting there even easier.
Why Wellbeing Escapes?
