USP The Lowry is Manchester’s most fashionable hotel and has a central location on the River Irwell, five minute’s walk from the city’s shops and restaurants. The Calatrava bridge at the front of the hotel is a striking landmark, and when the modern developments around the hotel are completed it will be a trendy riverside district and a destination in its own right.

Ambience The spa is on the first floor, so unlike the many hotel spas that utilise basement space, it is light and airy. The corridor between the six treatment rooms is spacious and the lounge and relaxation rooms have large glass windows overlooking the river. Although these areas are used only before and after treatments, in a place that is designed for relaxation and invigoration, spending time in these serene rooms builds on the positive effects of a treatment.

The spa should retain this feeling of space when it moves to the site next door. While plans remain unconfirmed, the development is rumoured to include a three-floor spa with added treatment rooms a 25-metre pool, wet areas and gym.

Experience My Espa Life Saving Back Treatment is a perfect pre-summer treat. The cleansing, brushing and exfoliation is intended to clean the skin on your back and zap any blocked pores or spots. This is followed by a massage to relieve tension and mud pack to nourish the skin.

While you can’t enjoy the benefits of a back treatment as easily as you can a facial – by looking in the mirror at your glowing complexion – it leaves your skin radiant and ready to be exposed in a bikini/swimming trunks or backless dress. The skin on my back was smoother after the treatment, and it didn’t prompt any breakouts, as exfoliation can sometimes do. My tense shoulders were relaxed after a firm but not uncomfortable massage, and I enjoyed the leg and foot massage that I got from the therapist while the mud pack was sinking in.

Before the treatment started I was offered a choice of aromatherapy oils, and choose a lemon and peppermint scented oil that the therapist said was invigorating. Whether the oil that worked or whether it was because the massage wasn’t too soft and soporific, I didn’t feel drowsy at the end.

Before and after the treatment I helped myself to the lemon and cucumber-infused water and herbal teas, and read a newspaper in the lounge. I rarely spend time in spa relaxation rooms, conscious of wearing only a dressing gown in the company of men wearing the same, but the separate male and female relaxation rooms meant I felt the benefits of not rushing off straight after the treatment.

Food The River Restaurant, across the mezzanine from the spa does a two-course lunch for £20 and three courses for £25, and also offers gluten-free options. There are plenty of lighter dishes including fish and vegetable dishes and the bar does some fresh fruit juices.

In crowd Men and women in Manchester take their appearance seriously – visit even a fairly informal restaurant in the city and its diners will be immaculately turned out – a look that requires copious maintenance and keeps spas like the Lowry’s full of well-groomed spa goers of both sexes and all ages.

Wallet watch The Life Saving Back Treatment lasts 45 minutes and costs £45. The spa also has facials from £50 for 55 minutes, massages from £30 for 25 minutes and other treatments including wraps, scrubs, slimming treatments, colonic irrigation, waxing, tints, manicures and pedicures. There are also treatments catered to men and various spa packages.

Need to know The Lowry Spa, The Lowry Hotel, 50 Dearman Place, Chapel Wharf, Salford, M3 5LH, tel. 0161 827 4034; www.thelowryhotel.com; thespa@roccofortehotels.com

For more than 200 reviews of spas worldwide visit Times Online's Good Spa Guide

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