Help me give my wife a break.

March 1, 2016 7:18 AM

I'm off to a stag do the weekend after next thus leaving my wife all alone with our small child. I'd like to arrange a relaxing weekend off for her this weekend (in advance of me going away). Some sort of hotel for the night, maybe a massage or something. The problem I'm finding is that all the spa break things in London require booking for 2 people.

So, what can I arrange for her from Friday to Sunday (or a subset thereof) in London, where she can have an uninterrupted nights sleep and some looking after and not just be left in a travel lodge room with nothing to do?

posted by Just this guy, y'know to Health & Fitness (15 answers total)

Does she have a sibling or close friend who she'd like to do it with? You could get in contact with them and see if they'd be up for going with her (with them paying for their half and you for your wife's half). Then she'd had a pal to chat with - being able to talk about grown-up stuff and not just babies babies babies is pretty good along with the relaxation stuff.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 7:52 AM on March 1, 2016 [4 favorites]

I'm sure you know your wife well. I know I personally did NOT want a night or weekend away from my small child (and still don't at 2.5yo) and would have much preferred regular hour-or-so opportunities for me to do yoga, go shopping for myself, or go get coffee with a friend. Making regular time for ME was what I want(ed) the most. So just putting that out there in case your wife is anything like me.
posted by jillithd at 8:19 AM on March 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Just a few more details:
The child is just shy of 2 years old. She has explicitly said that she would like a good nights sleep and a chance to be officially not on duty. She was supposed to go to a conference this coming weekend but while she was relishing the time away she was too tired to lose a weekend to more work.
We both try to ensure the other gets regular time away to relax, this is more of a special case to thank her for covering me for my weekend away.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 8:24 AM on March 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

I would love it if my husband did this for me. I also wish I lived in London for many reasons, but also so I could give you some suggestions!
I agree that it would be great if a friend could go with her. OR what if you took little one away for the weekend? Maybe you and baby go visit family or friend for the weekend? Wife can stay at home, get lots of sleep and relax. You could book spa services for her and maybe even a cleaning service to come clean the house while she's out getting massage and her nails done?
posted by areaperson at 8:47 AM on March 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Final thought: the "sitting alone in a hotel room" thing wouldn't bother me. But I'm an introvert. If your wife is the same way, a night or two in a nice hotel doesn't necessarily need to have spa services included. Some tv, books, room service, shopping or salon time all on my own? Sign me up.
posted by areaperson at 8:50 AM on March 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: The right hotel-with-spa will have no problem arranging the spa services off-the-rack, for one person. So, rather than browsing packages, try looking for the property first, then have a nice chat with the concierge or spa coordinator.

Additionally, my favorite spa nearby is not attached to a hotel, but it is adjacenet to one. So you could look for the day spa first, then find the hotel room, hopefully in an entertaining neighborhood.

I am hoping someone London-savvy will chime in with place recommendations soon. Kudos to you!!
posted by Rube R. Nekker at 8:53 AM on March 1, 2016 [5 favorites]

Best answer: I'm with the group that says find a nice hotel for her, find a day spa where she can select services off of a menu, and let her fill her days.

She can get half-price tickets to a show, or just order room service and read.

Honestly, that's a pretty great couple of days right there.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 9:40 AM on March 1, 2016 [4 favorites]

Is she a spa-going person? Is so, I guess it's a good idea however you work it out. OTOH, my wife, who is not, would have been just as happy with me taking the kids out of the house for a lot of the day plus meals she didn't have to prepare or clean up from.
posted by SemiSalt at 9:54 AM on March 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: This sounds like a great weekend to me, I would love to be gifted with this.

Any hotel will book her in as a single sleeping guest (this does not mean she gets a single bed!) and a spa package. Like book a room at the Mountcalm, throw on a spa package.

I have no idea what your price range is, so this is a spendy example but any hotel with a spa makes this easy.
posted by DarlingBri at 10:58 AM on March 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

Instead of a weekend away, you could do ALL the housework from now until you leave for your do.
posted by Carol Anne at 11:41 AM on March 1, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions so far.
I'm currently thinking of providing an envelope with details of booked hotel, nearby day spa if I can find one (probably for a massage, but flexible, in case she'd prefer something else) and a gift card for a nearby book shop.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 1:59 AM on March 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

The W Hotel in Leicester Sq has an amazing spa, with massages and steam room and such. It's very small and quite spendy, but has the added bonus of being right in the middle of town if she wants to take a wander. I got a cheap deal on Wahanda (which is now called Treatwell, according to their ads all over the buses), so even if the W doesn't suit you might find something else there?
posted by conkystconk at 3:59 AM on March 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Many hair salons/beauty parlors where I live have a full spa services menu, if that helps broaden your search.
posted by Rube R. Nekker at 9:26 AM on March 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks for the guidance all, it was very useful in helping me think about the best way to solve this.

I've booked a fancy hotel near a book shop and some peacocks, bought her some book tokens and printed out directions from home to the Hotel. Hotel to the Book Shop, Hotel to the nearest shop which sells Lime Doritos (and included a gift card to said shop) and Hotel to the relaxing peacock filled gardens.

I've set up a full account at the hotel so she can request anything and it will get charged straight to my card so she doesn't have to pay for anything from our joint expenses (and thus feel guilty about it).
The hotel has attached spa facilities which can be paid on the account, so she's not railroaded into any spa things but they're fully available.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 4:28 AM on March 4, 2016 [2 favorites]

That sounds wonderful! I hope she has a great time.
posted by areaperson at 7:17 AM on March 4, 2016