The Headland unveils £10m beachfront wellbeing and hydrotherapy centre

A new £10m (€11,1m, US$13) wellbeing and swimming centre has opened at Cornwall’s only double five-star hotel – The Headland.

Lilly Lewarne Architects designed the new Aqua Club at the beachfront hotel, which includes six pools, a sun terrace overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant.

With interior design by Matt Hulme from Dynargh Design, the facility has been designed with cool blues and natural tones to reflect the local Cornish landscape. It houses six indoor and outdoor pools, including an indoor hydrotherapy pool and 25-metre swimming pool.

Outside on the sun terrace, there is a heated sunset spa encircled by an oceanfront edge pool and a vitality pool with a Cornish granite menhir as a central focal point.

The opening of the new centre marks the end of a further phase of investment for The Headland’s owners, John and Carolyn Armstrong, who have spent in excess of £40m (€44.2m, US$52.2) renovating and improving the destination over a 40-year-period.

Both owners, as well as the wider operations team, played a pivotal role in realising The Aqua Club from the offset, with Aqua Platinum designing and installing the six indoor and outdoor pools.

Situated between the hotel and self-catering cottages, The Aqua Club makes use of natural stone, and features a living roof and natural planting on stone hedging to provide a habitat for the flora and fauna found around The Headland’s peninsula.

“Combined with our five-star facilities and enviable location on the north Cornwall coast, The Aqua Club provides our guests with some much-needed relaxation – and a place to escape and recharge – following a turbulent few months in lockdown," said Carolyn Armstrong.

The Headland’s facilities also include a five-bubble rated spa and gym, luxury bedrooms and suites, self-catering cottages, two award-winning restaurants and a surf school.

Complimentary use of The Aqua Club and The Headland Spa is included for hotel and cottage guests as part of their stay, with details about membership options for non-residents being released in autumn.

The adults-only Headland Spa includes seven treatment rooms along with a hydrotherapy pool complete with bubble seats and swan neck jet, a Cornish salt steamroom, Swedish sauna, hot tub and aromatherapy showers.

All spa treatments on offer at The Headland are supplied by British product house Elemis.