Scotsman Spa and Health Club

I became a member of the Scotsman spa and health club in October and I’ve really loved it! When I realised that the day rate is£25 and that the student rate is £30 per month (for a year contract) I thought I would treat myself and enjoy making use of the spa more frequently. The gym cardio machines are a bit sparce and there’s no way to plug in to listen to the four TVs, but the great thing is that it’s fairly quiet and I often have the cardio and weights area almost all to myself. The yoga classes are also great — I’ve tried FitYoga with Lyndsay which is really challenging on Tues and Thursdays, but the Sunday yoga is nicely timed at 11:30am and is nice and gentle. They also have boot camp and spinning and such too. What I love the most is of course the steel-​bottomed pool, jaccusi, steam room and sauna. What a great place to relax and unwind!
#underdog #underreviewed

We went today with a voucher for a massage, use of the spa facilities, and a glass of prosecco. Weaving our way down many staircases towards the spa, then having to take an elevator one floor up, we finally arrived at the spa. It seemed welcoming, if a little stuffy (no windows, no air circulation), and we got right to our relaxation.
The pool is large and in a dimmed setting, which was relaxing. The jacuzzi is ok, hot but without jets for the back, and every ~6 minutes it stops to clean (good) for which you have to vacate (sigh). The sauna and steam rooms are small (with only 8 people in the spa area there were still moments when these were crowded), but hot which was exactly what we wanted. After 2 hours we were so relaxed when we began the massages we could have fallen into sleep.
The massages were good. The ladies were both friendly, and there was a relaxing room afterwards with really comfy lounges and duvets, magazines, and we had our prosecco there. We stayed for about 30 min chatting and trying not to fall asleep– it was so inviting!
Not sure if we would go back. We want to try the One Spa, and for massage I see a sports therapist who is incredible.

In light of my experiences elsewhere I find this Scotsman Hotel Spa and Health Club lacking.
Getting there from the North Bridge is to take the ‘Scotsman Steps’ Down to Market Street level. There you enter into the the building and it looks like artist impression of Snakes & Ladders, Escher style. We eventually found the actual entrace (2 black non descriptive swing doors)
The facilities are clean and spacious enough. The check in was easy. You get handed a bathrobe, slippers and a towel. The changing rooms are sex separated. All of the Spa facilities are in one area.
You get into amply lit room where there is a 12 m stainless steel swimming pool, flanked by several loungers. The water is oxygenated, which makes for a pleasant swim without the chlorine harshness. There is an 8 seat Jacuzzi. A sauna that fits around 10 and a Turkish Steam room fit for 10. The tropicarium was out of order during our visit.
They also have 3 showers; Artic, Tropical and normal.
In addition to all this they have a massive well equipped gym — I guess the majority of what you pay is to do with that. However if you are not there to use the gym it is pretty limited.
The changing rooms are with lockers (you’ll need a £1 to operate those) — there are plenty of showers, with complimentary shower gels and shampoos and even a LCD screen showing a sports channel.
Their lounge has wicker seats and you can order any kind of drink you wish to consume there or indeed at the poolside. Their wifi is complimentary.
So why 3 stars only?
My wife and I have been visiting quite a few purpose build spa and health clubs all over Europe. In Holland we have Sauna Resorts which I used quite a bit. In Iceland we had full complement of steam, sauna & Jacuzzi and swimming pools. In Gran Canaria we have been going to exclusive 5 star hotel thalasso spa and 14(!) different facility treatment rooms and 4 pools. All of these were considerably cheaper and more equipped than the Scotsman. Because of the value for money we had at these places I cannot say that Scotsman S&H is worth more than 3.

The Scotsman Spa and Health Club is an oasis of calm in the middle of Edinburgh.
The fully equipped gym has all you would expect (weight machines, free weights, treadmills, cross trainers, rowing machines etc) plus TVs to keep you entertained whilst getting sweaty, there are also some mats for doing floor work. A number of classes run daily in the fitness studio led by friendly and professional instructors. My favourite is the group cycling which is a full-​on, high energy, fast paced workout on stationary bikes, definitely recommended if you want to burn the calories fast.
The thing that really makes this gym stand out is the swimming pool, it is stainless steel and oxygenated (which means they have to use less chlorine apparently) and generally a great place to chill after a strenuous workout. There is also a steam room, sauna, tropicarium (halfway between a steam room and a sauna) and a Jacuzzi.
The Scotsman offers a good number of beauty treatments and spa packages using Thalgo marine products. I have tried out the Balancing Act facial before and it was wonderfully relaxing. The beauty therapists are very professional and happy to discuss what treatment would be best suited to you.
This may not be the cheapest or largest gym in the city, but it is certainly one of the best. It manages to retain an air of exclusivity, whilst also being welcoming and friendly; I feel equally comfortable coming in here for a sweaty workout or a fancy facial.