Days Out NI
Spas & wellness Templepatrick

The Spa at The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat

A design-led open-air spa built around a disco-ball Roman bath, lakeside hot tubs and a heated pebble beach.

5 photos
Open dailySpa 8am–9pm (Sat to 8pm). Book ahead.
Day packagesFrom £79pp
TemplepatrickSpas & wellness
Get directionsOfficial website
Half a day for most packages; longer if you make an afternoon of the lunchHow long
From £79ppDay packages
Over-18sBest for
Mostly outdoorSetting
FreeParking

The Spa at The Rabbit — an open-air retreat where you soak in a Roman bath under a two-metre disco ball, drift between hot tubs, sauna and salt room, and finish with lunch under glass.

  • What you'll enjoy: a disco-ball Roman bath, lakeside hot tubs, a Swedish sauna, an aroma steam room, a halotherapy salt room, a heated pebble beach (said to be the only one of its kind in Ireland), a chill-out lounge with waterbeds, and treatments in a handful of lakeside rooms.
  • Book ahead: this is not a walk-in leisure centre — day spa experiences and treatments are pre-booked, and popular dates fill up. Reserve online or by phone before you travel, and check the current package and price.
  • Who it's for: adults. Day spa packages that include a treatment are not suitable for guests under 18. If you're planning a group, everyone needs to be over 18.
  • How long: most day packages run a good half-day, with spa access from 8am (or a shorter twilight session in the evening). Easy to stretch into a full, unhurried day if you add the lunch.
  • Cost & food: day packages from around £79pp; individual treatments from around £95pp. Most day packages include a one-course spa lunch in the Palm House. Confirm the exact package and price when you book.
  • When: spa open daily — 8am to 9pm Sunday to Friday, 8am to 8pm Saturday. Times can change, so confirm on the day.
Plan your visit

What a day here is actually like

The spa sits outdoors, tucked into an old walled garden with palm trees, brick chimneys and a glasshouse — more secret-garden than clinical wellness centre. The centrepiece is the Roman bath, a warm bathing pool with a giant mirrored disco ball hanging over it (this is a spa for soaking and relaxing, not for swimming lengths — there's no lap pool). Around it you move between two lakeside hot tubs, a Swedish sauna, an aroma steam room and a halotherapy salt room, with a heated pebble beach and a waterbed chill-out lounge for the in-between moments. Treatments — facials and massages using Germaine de Capuccini products — happen in a small set of lakeside rooms, so you book those on top of your spa access. Most people build the day around a package: spa time, a treatment or two, and a one-course lunch in the glass Palm House. The honest steer from guests is that the spa itself and the staff earn their praise; the changing area is on the small side and it can feel busy on peak dates, so an off-peak or weekday slot is the calmer choice.

Roman bath with its signature two-metre disco ball Two lakeside hot tubs, open-air Swedish sauna, aroma steam room and salt room Heated pebble beach and waterbed lounge Treatments in lakeside rooms (book separately) Spa lunch in the glass Palm House
Good to know before you go:

The packages change through the year (seasonal names, seasonal prices), and treatment slots are limited. Book both your spa access and any treatment in advance, and check the current package on the official site before you travel.

Before you set off

What to bring

  • 🩱SwimwearYou'll be in and out of the bath and hot tubs all day — pack a costume you're comfy in.
  • 🥿Flip-flopsHandy for padding between the outdoor pools, sauna and lounge.
  • 🧴Robe & towel — check firstMany packages provide a robe, slippers and towels; confirm what's included so you know what to pack.
  • 🧥A cover-up for the airThe spa is open-air, so a walk between pools in the fresh breeze is part of the charm — a robe keeps it cosy whatever the weather.
Good to know

Everything before you go

Cost
Day spa packages from around £79pp (a twilight session), most others in the £89–£165pp range; individual treatments from around £95pp. Most day packages include a one-course spa lunch. Gift vouchers available. Prices change with the season — confirm the current package when you book.
Booking
Pre-booking is essential for both spa access and treatments — this isn't a walk-in facility. Book online or by phone, and popular dates go early.
Opening hours
Spa open daily: 8am–9pm Sunday to Friday, 8am–8pm Saturday. Session start times depend on the package. Times can change — confirm on the day.
Best for ages
Adults. Day spa packages that include a treatment are not suitable for guests under 18.
What you'll enjoy
Roman bath with a two-metre disco ball, two lakeside hot tubs, Swedish sauna, aroma steam room, halotherapy salt room, heated pebble beach, a waterbed chill-out lounge, and face and body treatments using Germaine de Capuccini products.
Pool
No swimming pool for lengths. The Roman bath and hot tubs are for warm bathing and relaxing, not lap swimming.
Food
Most day packages include a one-course spa lunch in the Palm House. The hotel also has the AA-Rosette restaurant and Hunter's Bar for dining beyond the spa.
Parking
Free on-site parking at the hotel.
Accessibility
The spa is outdoors across a garden with steps and level changes between the pools; the changing area is compact. If step-free access matters, call ahead to check what's workable for your visit.
How long to allow
A good half-day for most packages, with spa access typically from 8am; easy to make a relaxed full day of it with the lunch.
Contact
The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat, 028 9443 2984 — rabbithotel.com/the-spa
Address
882 Antrim Road, Templepatrick, County Antrim, BT39 0AH
Questions

Before you go

Can I turn up without booking?
No — spa access and treatments are pre-booked. Reserve online or by phone before you travel, as popular dates fill up.
Is there an age limit?
Yes. Day spa packages that include a treatment are not suitable for guests under 18. It's an adults' spa day.
Is there a swimming pool?
Not for swimming lengths. The centrepiece is a warm Roman bath (with the signature two-metre disco ball), plus two lakeside hot tubs — all for relaxing bathing rather than lap swimming.
What does it cost, and is lunch included?
Day packages start from around £79pp and most include a one-course spa lunch in the Palm House; individual treatments start from around £95pp. Prices change with the season, so check the current package when you book.
What should I bring?
Swimwear and flip-flops for certain. Many packages provide a robe, slippers and towels — confirm what's included so you know what to pack. The spa is outdoors, so a robe keeps you cosy between the pools.
Getting there

The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat is at 882 Antrim Road, Templepatrick, County Antrim, BT39 0AH — about 20 minutes from Belfast and 10 minutes from Belfast International Airport. There's free on-site parking. Book your spa day in advance, then tap below for directions.

Directions on Google MapsBook at the spa See it on our map

Prefer to phone? Call the hotel on 028 9443 2984.

Nearby

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The story

From the Templeton to The Rabbit

For years the building on the Antrim Road was the Templeton Hotel — a familiar Templepatrick landmark that, before that, is said to have started life as a village pub known as the Pig and Chicken. By the 2010s it had run its course, and it took a change of hands to reinvent it.

The Galgorm Collection — the group behind the well-known Galgorm resort near Ballymena — took the site on in 2018 and poured a reported £10 million into a top-to-bottom transformation, reopening it as The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat. The name and the whimsy are deliberate: every bedroom carries a different hand-painted rabbit, there's Belfast-designed wallpaper, wrought-iron beds, a popcorn cart in the lobby and a resident hotel dog called Florence. It leans into personality rather than polish, and it has been described as Galgorm's laid-back little sister.

The spa is the heart of the reinvention — an outdoor wellness garden built into the old walled grounds, with the Roman bath and its disco ball, lakeside hot tubs and the glass Palm House. The reinvention landed: The Times named it among the best places to stay in Northern Ireland in 2024. Like anywhere characterful it divides opinion on the finer points, but as a design-led spa day with a genuine sense of fun, there's little else quite like it in the area.