Leinster

Spa hotels in Leinster for a weekend of R&R

Spa hotels in Leinster are prime spots for getting away from it all, so we've narrowed down the top options to help you book your next weekend break.

All these picks feature outstanding spa facilities, ranging from treatments that use luxurious brands like ESPA to thermal suites with deeply soothing hydrotherapy baths. A fair few surprises are thrown into the mix, too – like a rural retreat with alpacas in its grounds!

When you’re not blissed out in your spa of choice, there’s also plenty to explore in this varied region, whether you’re drawn towards the walled town of Athy, the ancient architecture of Kilkenny or the lively streets of Dublin.

A Leinster spa hotel with a range of wellbeing rituals

1/4
A 30-minute drive from Dublin, The K Club is easy to get to, but feels a world away from the buzzing city. Originally built in the 1830s, its interiors reveal a glimpse of its past (though its facilities have been thoroughly updated). Rooms here are decorated in nature-inspired printed wallpapers, wide wooden headboards and duck-down duvets, but also feature mod cons such as flatscreen TVs. Once you’ve settled in, tantalise your tastebuds with an evening in the refined Byerley Turk restaurant. The menu fuses traditional Irish cuisine with modern international tastes, using locally sourced ingredients – including some from the hotel’s kitchen gardens. Dishes such as succulent loin of suckling pig and whole black sole meunière are memorable meals.
Soak in the serene outdoor wooden hot tub set below the boughs of old trees, or head indoors for a leisurely dip in the 50 ft pool and Jacuzzi. When a facial, massage, wrap or scrub’s on the cards, a therapist will treat you with luxury Carita Paris and Natura Bissé products. There are rituals to pick from too, including Rasul mud baths, Vichy showers and hydrotherapy. Alternative therapies like reflexology target health, helping to get you feeling fit for a round on the hotel’s Ryder Cup golf course.
A range of workshops means you can continue your wellness journey at home. Choose from skincare seminars, hatha yoga and mindfulness sessions and shamanic meditation. For the ultimate indulgence, book out a treatment suite with facilities including saunas, showers, steam rooms and Jacuzzis for your own exclusive use. Top it all off with beauty treatments such as brow and lash care, manicures and waxes to return home looking both groomed and rested!

The K Club

Top rated
Straffan
9.2 Excellent (546 reviews)

A spa hotel in Leinster with a 7,000-square-foot thermal suite

1/3

The spa at The Heritage Hotel and Spa is a stunning, marble-clad space with no less than 20 treatment rooms where therapies use products by ESPA and Voya. Pick out a massage and facial or indulge in a wrap using hand-harvested seaweed. The pool’s set in a glass-fronted space overlooking the natural scenery. Lounge on one of the sunbeds after a dip, then visit the spacious thermal suite. Here, you’ll cleanse body and soul in the steam-infused timber sanarium, Roman-inspired tepidarium and pore-opening caldarium. There’s also an essential oil-filled steam bath plus a Finnish sauna cabin, and you can use the hydropool with its massaging jets and super-soothing footbaths. Cool off with a refreshing stint in the ice fountain and experience showers for a wellness-boosting finish.

Mouthwatering cuisine is a key factor during a luxurious weekend, and it’s definitely on the menu here. The Arlington Restaurant serves rich dishes like a wild Irish mixed grill made up of game birds, from pigeon to quail. Its elegant decor adds to the sense of occasion with its old-world glamour feel: think patterned baroque-style chairs and draped curtains in monochrome shades.

Rooms correspond with the rest of the hotel’s interior design, with floral prints and dark-wood furniture creating a sense of a stately home. Private balconies overlooking the majestic Slieve Bloom Mountains, freshly pressed bedding and freestanding bathtubs all add to the appeal.

The Heritage

Top rated
Killenard
9.2 Excellent (910 reviews)

An award-winning Leinster spa hotel with luxurious treatments

1/4

Ancient Kilkenny’s Hotel Lyrath Estate has won multiple awards for its spa, which has treatment rooms decorated in glossy dark brown woods and bright pink orchids. Sink into a herbal bath then opt for a facial – alongside a body treatment and massage – applied using Elemis and Kerstin Florian products. The thermal suite looks out over the cherry trees in the garden from its wall-to-wall windows. Make your way round the circuit, stopping by the hydrotherapy pool, saunas, steam rooms and tropical showers for optimum results. Unwind in the relaxation suites and refreshment area, then select a beauty treatment such as a manicure, pedicure, wax or brow and lash care.

All that pampering is hungry work, so head for dinner in the ballroom-esque Yew Restaurant. This place has an alcove ceiling crowned by an impressive contemporary chandelier and is lined with windows for a brightly lit finish. Order organic meat such as Gressingham duck or Donegal salmon, pepped up by a sorrel and mint risotto and peppercorn jus.

Rooms here are decorated in refined dark and neutral shades with pops of colour for a fun twist. The Deluxe Balcony Rooms have views over the gardens, parkland or lake. They also include bathrooms with underfloor heating, products by the Irish Handmade Soap Company and a Nespresso machine – so your caffeine fix is unlimited!

Hotel Lyrath Estate

Top rated
Kilkenny
9.2 Excellent (3937 reviews)

Leinster spa hotel in Dublin's fair city with outdoor copper baths

1/3
With its towering glass and metal front, The Gibson Hotel in Dublin is a contemporary choice. Inside, it’s as modern as its exterior promises, with bedrooms designed in a hip, bright white palette. Splash out on a suite for a little urban luxury: these feature balconies looking out over Point Square and the 3 Arena. You’ll also have ‘his and hers’ sinks, as well as a spacious tub just made for bubble baths.
The restaurant, Coda Eatery, is known by First Dates fans as the setting for the show. It’s a laidback space where you can order indulgent mains like rib-eye steak with a bloody Mary plum, pepper and cream sauce, with health-approved accompaniments like kale chips. If it’s still early, have an after-dinner drink – perhaps a cherry blossom G&T made with Irish gin – on the basket chairs in Hemi Bar.
Hen parties are welcome, so if you’re organising a bash for a bride-to-be, activities can include Sing Factory recording sessions and cocktail-making classes. The girls can also be treated to free entrance and a ride to Everleigh Garden nightclub. Handily, the hotel has a sauna and steam room to counteract the effects of the night before. Dip into one of the Japanese copper baths out on the terrace against a backdrop of the city, offset by the faraway Wicklow mountains.

Hotel The Gibson

Top rated
Dublin
8.9 Excellent (2726 reviews)

A spa hotel in Leinster with alpacas roaming the grounds

1/3
At Clanard Court Hotel, rooms have a cosy feel thanks to their thick duvets – great for snuggling under while watching the smart TV. They’re decorated in soothing muted pastels with country-style floral bedspreads and feature little luxuries like aromatherapy bath products and Nespresso pod coffee machines.
The hotel itself has a rustic interior design, including in the Baileys Bistro with its white wood-panelled walls and padded leather booth seating. Food is kept simple and sustainable: meat sourced from local butchers, cheese from free-range cows and seafood from Dublin Bay and Kilmore Quay. Even the signature tomato chutney is crafted on-site from vegetables grown nearby!
If you fancy a wander around the fields and an encounter with some furry friends, head out to see the hotel’s resident alpacas. Up for laidback adventure? Borrow a bike from the hotel for a leisurely ride to the historic walled Athy Town, about a kilometre away. Here, you can use the K-Leisure swimming pool, sauna and steam room, included in your stay. Test your skills on a local golf course – guests get discounts – and book a therapy at the hotel’s Revive Treatment Rooms. These range from facials using Dermalogica products to nail care applied with Gelish formulas. Spray tans come courtesy of WOW Brown, while your makeup will be done with Inglot cosmetics. There’s waxing and brow care too, or you could simply unwind with a massage.

Clanard Court Hotel

Top rated
Athy
9.2 Excellent (571 reviews)

A spa hotel in Leinster with a eucalyptus steam room

1/3
The sought-after Solas Croí Spa at Brandon House features heaps of health-boosting facilities. They include a sauna and sanarium, a eucalyptus steam room and alphasphere beds, which smooth skin and cleanse pores. All work wonders on your immune system, especially when interspersed with a dip in the plunge pool. Prefer the warmth? Jump in the Jacuzzi. Or treat your whole body on a Via Sensus Reflexology Walk that targets areas of the foot said to correspond with different body organs and improves blood flow.
Finish unwinding in the Relaxation Room, set inside a curvaceous, orb-like structure, or extend the experience by booking a treatment. You can go for holistic options such as Indian-inspired Ayurvedic picks and indulge in facials, massages, scrubs and wraps that use organic products by Elemis. There are also treatments targeting cellulite with skincare specialist Mama Mio – some especially for mums-to-be – plus indulgent hydrotherapy baths. Polish your look in time for dinner with finishing touches including manicures, waxing and eye enhancement.
With its stripped-wood flooring, white tablecloths and table d’hôte menu, the Gallery Restaurant is an upscale dining experience. Try classic dishes like Wicklow lamb or Irish beef, followed by a rum-infused Jamaican coffee. The contemporary rooms are smartly furnished, with velvet accents adding to their elegant feel. Sleep easy on a king-sized bed – plump for an option with a view and you can look out across the gardens with your morning cup of tea.

Personal putting greens at this spa hotel in Leinster

1/4
With four venues for eating and drinking, foodies have it made at Knightsbrook Spa & Golf. In this large Trim-based hotel, you can experience fine dining under the chandeliers at Rococo Restaurant, enjoy views over the grounds at The Terrace Lounge and sip cognac at Gulliver’s Lounge. Menu choices include a refined take on Irish classics, like fillet of sea bass served with leeks and chorizo.
Rooms at Knightsbrook are individually designed for a bespoke feel. Pick an Executive option to gaze over field and hill views from your balcony, or upgrade to a Junior Suite for a Jacuzzi bathtub and evening turndown service. For extra space when travelling with a group of friends, book a courtyard house with three en-suite guest rooms and its very own putting green. Spend lazy afternoons chatting beside the 55 ft deck-level swimming pool.
The hotel’s River Spa is a decadent space, decorated in atmospheric inky shades. It has a Rasul chamber for skin-softening mud treatments, as well as a thermal suite so you can fully relax in warm water before a treatment. The therapy list’s extensive, ranging from brightening facials and muscle-soothing massages to makeup application and waxing. There are also body treatments, as well as foot, nail, brow and lash care.

Knightsbrook Hotel Spa & Golf Resort

Top rated
Trim
8.8 Excellent (971 reviews)