USP In the style of a London gentleman’s club, this five-star hotel, which incorporates a small spa, offers soothing luxury and the latest Elemis and Eve Lom treatments in the heart of some gorgeous golf country. The idea being that, when couples come to stay, he can go out bashing balls on one of the many spectacular local golf courses, while she wallows in the spa, getting pampered to a pulp. What could be better for marital harmony on a weekend break?

AMBIENCE The spa has a fairly minimalist feel, slightly softened with low lighting and pastel colours. Between treatments you hang out in the relaxation room – which is cosy, full of comfy chairs, and mercifully without the annoying tinkly-tinkly New Age music so prevalent in other places. And the spa staff who take you through to the intimate treatment rooms are smartly dressed and always smiling. They have the wonderful gift of silence, too: no banal chit-chat about my future holiday plans; no intrusive questions about my family life; just blissful quiet unless you ask about a specific treatment and then they demonstrate their knowledge. As well as relaxation and treatment rooms there is also a caldarium – a hot room where you can sit between treatments and gently sweat the toxins out. There’s also a smart, modern health and fitness club and a spotlessly clean 20m indoor heated swimming pool.

EXPERIENCE After a blazing day out in the spectacular Kerry countryside, I was ready for the cool of the spa. I had the hydrotherapy – basically you sit in a converted bath and are pummelled for 20 minutes with jets of hot water. And it was both relaxing and invigorating. My wife Mary had hydrotherapy, too, but said she preferred the outdoor hot-tub that looks out on to the garden. She also had an Elemis facial which she said was wondefully rejuvenating and left her feeling like a 19-year-old. After hydrotherapy, I had the deep-tissue massage which lasted for an hour – but seemed like ten minutes. The massage was just on the right side of painful. No namby-pamby fondling but a good brisk rub-down that kneaded the deepest muscle knots into submission. Afterwards, I wafted out of the spa on a magic-carpet of endorphines. One small criticism: the robes and slippers provided were a little on the small side for a strapping 6ft, 16st man such as myself. I felt rather like a sumo-wrestler with gross, flipper feet, as a result of the Lilliputian proportions of the spa garb. For golfers, I’d particularly recommend the Ring of Kerry Golf & Country Club (near Templenoe). As you stroll round the delightfully fiendish course, you are treated to some of the most spectacular scenery in Europe - purple mountains, lush green pastures and a white-flecked inlet of the blue Atlantic. If you don’t fancy golf – or it is raining (this is Ireland after all) - the Killarney Park Hotel is perfect for pottering about in between spa sessions. It has a beautifully light, chintzy morning room with a wood-burning fire; and a wonderful tweedy drawing room (wood panels, old books, leather armchairs) where you can retire after a good lunch on a damp afternoon and read the paper - or snooze under it, if you prefer. If you feel a little more active, there is a snooker room: the perfect place to enjoy a post-prandial brandy and the soft click of balls on green baise.

FOOD In the spa itself, the refreshments are limited to fruit juices and mineral water but the hotel has a fabulous restaurant on the floor below and a garden bar where posh pub food is served. I had two terrific full Irish breakfasts - on different days - in the Park Restaurant but it is not until the evening that the restaurant shows its true quality. At dinner, Mary and I had a delicious shredded crab starter and then a tender fillet of Irish beef at a candle-lit table with crisp white napery; meanwhile the resident pianist played a selection of hymns – a bit odd, perhaps, but beautiful nonetheless. And the service was superb – unobtrusive but always there when you required something.

IN CROWD I was told by the staff that the usual clientele was American golfers and their wives in summer and, in winter, Irish folk holidaying in their own back yard. However, when we visited in June we heard only the soft Irish lilt from guests.

WALLET WATCH Not cheap – the rooms start at E400 (£280) per night, a signature Eve Lom facial at the spa costs E145 for 90 minutes and the deep tissue massage is E100 for 55 minutes - but for a fabulous weekend treat, it’s very much worth it. And, as Ryanair fly directly to Kerry Airport (20 minutes drive from the Killarney Park Hotel) from London Stansted in just over an hour it makes it extremely easy to pop over for a weekend spa and golf break.

NEED TO KNOW For more information, contact The Killarney Park Hotel, Town Centre, Killarney, Co Kerry, Ireland (353 64 35555; www.killarneyparkhotel.ie). The Ring of Kerry Golf and Country Club (353 64 42000; www.ringofkerrygolf.com). For flight information, visit www.ryanair.com

For more information contact Tourism Ireland at www.tourismireland.com or call 0800 039 7000

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