The recognition, announced on 24 November 2025, is a fantastic way to round off an extraordinary year for the luxury wellness destination, following its remarkable £6 million transformation and reopening earlier this year after a devastating fire in June 2023.
The Good Spa Guide Awards are among the most coveted accolades in the UK spa industry, celebrating excellence, innovation and standout spa experiences. Known for their rigorous review process and expert ‘Spa Spies,’ the Good Spa Guide champions only the most exceptional spas across the country. Its mission is simple: to help people choose the right spa experience – one that delivers exceptional quality, value, and rejuvenation.
Debbie Lawes, Spa Manager at Riverhills, attended the Afternoon Tea awards ceremony at the L’oscar, London and said; “We are absolutely thrilled to have been shortlisted for Best New Spa. This recognition means so much to our team after everything we have worked through over the past two years. To stand alongside some of the best spas in the country is an honour in itself. It reflects the passion, care, and commitment that our entire team bring to creating an exceptional experience for our guests every day.”
Riverhills’ shortlisting in the Best New Spa category highlights the success of its visionary redevelopment, which has reinvented the health club and spa into a luxury retreat. The transformed spa now features a modern 16m swimming pool, a stunning vitality pool, SnowSky snow shower, aroma steam room, a volcanic sauna, state-of-the-art HaloSauna™, nine luxurious treatment rooms, and a tranquil sensory spa garden, alongside expanded fitness facilities and beautifully renovated dining spaces.
Good Spa Guide’s Spa Spy feedback, from Stylish Spa Jo; “Sometimes a fire can cast a shadow on the future of a business; but – as the team at Riverhills discovered – it can also be an opportunity to breathe new life into something and make it better than ever. Remaining in its ornate Victorian building – with its original stained-glass windows and grand staircase – the sympathetic, modern internal refit of Riverhills Health Club & Spa has doubtless secured its future as the place to go in Ipswich for spa and wellness.”
