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The secret London spa that will 'make your heart sing'

What makes your heart sing? It was a question on the consultation form. I think I scribbled down something like: 'compliments, a good playlist, and the way the light shines through the trees on a sunny day'. Or something. But the question stuck with me as I had my treatment, went home, and then went to work. It sort of sums up bhuti[sic], the sister wellness centre to Richmond's Bingham Riverhouse, in its entirety.

Not all hotel spas and wellness centres come with marble foyers, Romanesque atriums, hydrotherapy pools, solariums, and so on. Dig a little further, and you can find a real gem in an unassuming boutique hotel – and bhuti is just that.

I remember feeling pleasantly surprised when I stayed at the Hotel Mondial am Dom Cologne, in Germany. A fairly standard hotel, yes, mainly geared towards business visitors, but when my partner and I ventured down to the spa (something it didn’t really shout about) my low expectations quickly evaporated.

It wasn’t particularly big or stylish, or brimming with complimentary refreshments, but it had a sauna, steam room, drench showers, and a fresh array of towels. It was quiet. It was smart and clean. It was just what I wanted after a day of sightseeing. Similarly, I’ve stayed in luxury five star hotels with wet towel-strewn loungers, cramped facilities, and faddy treatments. Very disappointing.

One of my unexpected favourite spa experiences was at The Beaumont in London; I didn’t even have a treatment, but their small mosaic-tiled and chrome-trimmed facilities were pristine and well looked after. The open layout included a sauna and steam room guarding an ice-cold plunge pool – plus luxurious loungers, glossy magazines and fresh fruit.

bhuti, Richmond
A short walk from Bingham Riverside hotel is bhuti – a holistic centre with a focus on inner happiness

It was the same at Bingham Riverside. This hotel's 15 rooms are quiet havens of solitude: some overlooking the river, some with beautiful big copper tubs – and all with individual layouts but similar décor in mauve carpets and woolly throws. The restaurant and bar are very charismatic; think country-kitchen meets library full of dog-eared books, in dusty hues of pink and orange. A beautiful garden overlooks the river, and it’s a few minutes’ walk into Richmond.

But the hotel's wellness centre remains woefully under the radar. A yoga mat’s throw from the hotel is bhuti, owned by Samantha Trinder, whose mother Ruth bought the Bingham in 1984 and turned it into a b&b (Samantha and Ruth now co-own the hotel). Bhuti (pronounced ‘beauty’: an already brilliant name) is a Sanskrit word with no direct translation other than its reference to 'the inner voice that tells you when you’re happy'. Like the feeling you get when you’re doing something you really love.

It's all about mindfulness and relaxation, with an array of yoga classes (vinyasa, yin, iyengar, dynamic hatha, ashtanga, jivamukti), pilates, barre, and 'bhuti burn' HIIT in their two studios.

A series of rooms upstairs offer the usual staple of facials and full-body massages, plus beauty treatments such as mani-pedis and waxing. Alternative therapies range from oncology holistic facials and craniosacral therapy, to colonic hydrotherapy and crystal sonic rejuvenation. I opted for a 60-minute Bliss massage, bhuti’s signature treatment which is tailored to each guest.

bhuti, Richmond - Credit: Barney James / Timeless Pictures
Within bhuti you'll find a small shop and organic vegan café Credit: Barney James / Timeless Pictures

My therapist Gurvinder used an earthy cedarwood-infused oil by Elemental Herbology (a natural skincare range based around the five elements used in Chinese Medicine) and a blend of Swedish hand strokes, acupressure, and even a dose of trigger point therapy. It began with a foot massage that knocked my socks off, and ended with an Indian head massage.

The relaxation area is a good spot to take a bit of time out pre- and post-treatment, class or workshop. It’s a members’ club (that welcomes drop-ins), but Samantha says that quite a few hotel guests make their way over. You feel part of the crowd before you’ve even said 'hi'; people are engaging and happy to chat, but there's also no pressure to socialise. Whether you have a session booked or not, the vegan café – one of a couple in Richmond – is an incense-infused spot for a quinoa bowl, shiva hemp smoothie, or slice of raw vegan cake.

In my opinion, a good wellness experience often comes down to how it makes you feel – rather than the array of treatments on offer, or how flashy the spa looks. You can splurge on treatments at a fancy country house hotel or a slick city retreat, yet feel like a fish out of water. But this 15-room boutique hotel has river views, pretty gardens, a wonderful restaurant and bar – and a fantastic wellness centre. It's the stuff that makes your heart sing. A real thing of, well, bhuti.

Read the full hotel review: Bingham Riverhouse, Richmond, London