I guess I just love to hate internet memes. And there’s one floating about cyberspace that does strike a chord: it’s the 80s mom winning in life as long as her child is happy and healthy versus the frazzled modern variety, heavily influenced by nonsense on social media whether she realises it or not.
She’s worried that her child is either over stimulated or under stimulated, watching too much Bluey, not talking enough or worse, sounding too much like Miss Rachel.
The absolute fear that they might have a toxic overload because they ate some chicken dinosaurs at grandad’s house or picked up a piece of non-organic chalk…it goes something like that anyway.
Is it any wonder that we find it hard to switch off? However most writings about wellbeing and good mental health say that we must learn to relax and be kind to ourselves.
With that in mind, everyone ought to make some “me time” in Co Meath and at the absolutely resplendent Bellinter House Hotel and Spa. This countryside retreat and 18th century Georgian house offers an exceptionally soothing escape for the senses in the very heart of the naturally and historically vibrant Boyne Valley.
My stay coincided with the first few days of autumn and the hotel’s grounds were peppered with the first leaves from the many trees that adorn this splendid hidden getaway. You’ll not find row after row of manicured planting and orderly hedgerows, but rather a symphony of beech left in their natural state and in perfect keeping with the richness of this ancient part of Ireland. Its crowning jewel – the “Weeping Beech Tree”, pictured below – has become the instantly iconic logo of Bellinter House. My dash across the wet grass in my newish and desperately uncomfortable leather boots was a small price to pay to witness its majesty coinciding with the setting sun – of course if I had just waited until after check-in, I would have figured that hotel guests can always borrow a pair of wellies from reception, underneath a magnificent piano to be precise – there’s lots of charming surprises here.
Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz, Game of Thrones. . . Greenclaws – all the greats feature these whimsical, soul stirring trees. You could almost imagine this weeping beech scoop you up like Treebeard to carry you back across the lawn like a hobbit. Alas, back to reality and scraping the grass off my murderous boots before entering the opulent surroundings of the main house.
After a wonderfully warm welcome at reception – we chewed about the unseasonably warm weather and the easy one-and-a-half hour “toll free” jaunt to Meath through Collon and Slane – it was off to our room which was located in “The Ruins” which also hosts the Bathhouse Spa treatment rooms. Navigating this labyrinth of passages, original wooden floors and old stone walls infused with the aroma of a Voya Cedarwood and Bergamot candle was blissfully worlds away from the slides and smelly socks of my typical Friday excursion to soft play.
There’s no “swipey” cards or “bleepy” things here, just a good old fashioned key and I think this is one of the hotel’s many unique selling points. It’s not overdone, but brimming with original character and charm from a period in time that we just don’t get to experience every day. It lends itself perfectly to a complete feeling of relaxation and abandonment of 21st Century stresses. Our room was magnificently spacious and opulent with relaxing hues of burnt orange, blues and a rather magically painted wardrobe that brought some of that wonderful outdoors back inside.
Sleeping just above the spa does have quite a few advantages, including being able to shuffle down for your treatment dressed in your best flip flops and robe ensemble nice and discreetly. Or of course out to while away time in the outdoor hot tub.
Back inside for my Voya facial where consummate professional Denise used lashings of beautifully organically sourced products – inspired by the Atlantic Ocean and the ancient Irish tradition of seaweed bathing, which she advised was the spa’s most popular treatment given its many documented skin health benefits – for a much welcomed plumped up and dewy skin result. The treatment menu has everything you could dream of from “Elemis Deep Tissue Massages” to the rather enticing sounding “Organic Muslin Bag Massage” and “Christmas Specials”. Well it is be good to yourself season, so why not?
Glowing skin perfected, it was off to the main house where Afternoon Tea proved a delight they could only dream of in Bridgerton. We devoured ours in the Library where delicate macaroons, scones, finger sandwiches, fruit loaves and any amount of traditional or herbal teas and coffees were complemented with unceasing views of the grounds from original sash windows.
Another quick dash about the lawns help to ease guilt about overindulgence, a little bit anyway. But again, stress tends to evaporate here rather well as you potter about quite nicely marvelling at the plants and trees and imagining what it must have been like to live here over 200 years ago. And although we didn’t have much time to explore nearby, other than a quick pit stop at the most mythological Hill of Tara, the many wonders of the Boyne Valley, are achingly close by.
Dining at Bellinter’s AA Rosette awarded Preston’s Restaurant was a truly exquisite and unforgettable affair. Not only for its opulent setting on the lower floor of the main house which was enriched by navy blue velvets and Art Deco style lighting, but also of course for the quality and creativity of its food and the attentiveness of its staff. A cook your own “Steak on Stone” is just one of the many innovations awaiting. But not wanting to ruin a good steak – I once set a biscuit on fire in the microwave – the chef was thankfully more than happy to cook mine to perfection. Meanwhile their “Chocolate Sphere” with “Kahula Mini Baba” was quite frankly…the bomb!
Bellinter House offers a space to celebrate, a place to relax and a base from which to explore the jewels of the Boyne Valley. Is has the perfect antidote for stress while many of your worries and cares, will likely evaporate – for a blissful little while anyway – in this corner of almost other-worldly natural beauty.
