Spa review: I drove from Cork to Belfast to see if this spa resort is as good as it looks on Instagram

Is this the nicest spa resort in Ireland? Denise O’Donoghue drove from Cork to Armagh to see if reality was as good as the Insta image

Some of the spa facilities at The Rabbit in Antrim

We’ve all been there: images of a place or product saturate our social media feeds and, when we finally splurge on it, the reality just isn’t as good. It’s certainly made me more cynical of what I see online, and one such dreamy-looking spa hotel that frequently pops up on Instagram and TikTok for me is The Rabbit.

For a long time now, clips from the spa resort just outside Belfast have been creeping into my algorithm, and I’ve always taken them with a pinch of salt: surely it’s too good to be true? Outdoor pools and hot tubs, a little beach inside a glasshouse, a giant disco ball of immense proportions hanging over a Roman bath-style pool — it sounds far too nice to exist in drizzly Ireland, right?

So, when an invite arrived to stay overnight and experience it myself, I jumped at the chance. Finally, I can see for myself if it lives up to the hype.

Reader, it does.

Packing into the car with a pal one grey morning last week, we thanked our lucky stars we’d escaped the traffic nightmare of the previous few days of protests and blockades. However, as we moved up the motorway, bursts of heavy downpours threatened to dampen our experience. I didn’t recall seeing a roof over that outdoor pool on social media — would we regret everything?

We arrived at the hotel at 3pm, checked in, and went straight to our room, only to change into swimwear, don our robes, and head straight to the spa. The Rabbit embraces the spa resort lifestyle. Guests are reminded it’s okay to wear robes everywhere, whether it’s wandering from room to pool, or while sitting down to breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Comfortably wrapped in my robe, I was whisked away for a bespoke Elemis facial while Anna made a beeline for the pool. My therapist, Cristina, brought me to a subterranean spa room at the side of the pool area, where she used hot and cold techniques on me, with toners and masks soothing and reviving my skin.

Overlooking the heated pool and disco ball at The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat, Co Antrim

Blinking heavily post-treatment, she led me to a relaxation room overlooking the pool, complete with waterbeds, sorbet, and a hot tub with an amazing view. Often it’s hard to drag myself away from a relaxation room after a spa treatment, but with a heated pool calling to me, I ate my sorbet as quickly as possible without getting brain freeze and went straight in for a dip.

Steam billowed into the cold spring air, and it was blissful stepping into the warm waters. I found Anna sipping a cocktail in the water and quickly decided to follow suit. QR codes dotted around the pool bring up the drinks menu and a booking page, with staff turning up soon after with your drink of choice. Yes, we could get used to this life. Admittedly, the drinks are on the pricier side — think £12/€14 for a wine, a few pounds more for cocktails — but given our setting, we felt quite alright with treating ourselves.

Cocktails in hand, not even the sudden burst of heavy rains could move us towards shelter: it only added to the experience.

A view of the spa area at The Rabbit

From the pool, we sampled hot tubs and even an indoor beach before I made my way to an Elemis masterclass with skincare expert Keeley Aydin. Keeley is a font of knowledge and shared her insights into everything from dry body brushing to repairing the skin barrier, her love of the brand’s two new Pro Collagen products, and why she wouldn’t recommend retinol use for most people, which earned a few gasps.

We moved from the masterclass to dinner, with delicious courses in The Palm Room, just off the spa area, before heading to the bar for a nightcap, and then upstairs for a deep sleep.

The next morning, breakfast in The Restaurant featured a few eye-catching options, with the breakfast bap complete with pork and leek sausage, jalapeño relish, fried egg and cheddar cheese calling my name. Bellies full, we went straight to the spa once more for an early dip — of course, we wore our robes to breakfast.

A comfy room at The Rabbit 

Check out from The Rabbit is 11am so it was with extreme reluctance that we dragged ourselves from the heated waters that morning to pack up and hit the road home, not least because big beautiful blue skies had finally made an appearance. Belfast city is a 10-minute drive away, so it’s a great location to add on a shopping trip en route home, with shops like Sephora, recently opened in the Victoria Shopping Centre, sure to tempt many.

Not only did the Rabbit exceed my expectations, it left me wanting more. I plan to make a return for at least a two-night stay next time, whether it’s a gals’ getaway or a couple’s escape, and in the meantime, I’ll be wondering if I can install a giant disco ball over my back garden.

• Denise was a guest of The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat, Co Antrim