Cliveden House Spa

Not many spas feature a swimming pool that helped bring down a government – but then again, there aren’t many places like Cliveden. 

In 1893, the American millionaire, William Waldorf Astor (1848–1919) purchased this luxury country home in Berkshire for $1.3 million. This historic house then became home to the ‘Cliveden Set’, which included Nancy Astor, the first woman Member of Parliament in Britain. Today it’s a five-star hotel. 

Cliveden’s spa is equally historic. It is home to the only listed outdoor pool in the UK; set inside a walled garden, here you can swim where Christine Keeler reportedly swam naked during her affairs with Britain’s married minister for war, John Profumo, in a scandal that eventually brought down the Government. 

Treatments are far more soporific than scandalous, however. Massages take place on heated waterbeds, which are nothing short of otherworldly, and the indoor pool is perfect for getting some lengths in. Scented oils are named after Nancy Astor and Lady Anna Maria, who founded Cliveden with the Duke of Buckingham in the late 1600s, and accompany each treatment.

This is for you if you like your spa time to come with a side of British history.