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Tags: Hotel Spas / Kempinksi Hotels / Bruges Hotels / Luxury Hotels / → All Tags

No More Creepy Couples Massages at the Kempinski Dukes Palace

Where: Prinsenhof 8, Bruges, Belgium, 8000

We’ve been itching to go to the fabulous-looking Kempinksi Dukes’ Palace in a 15th-century castle in Bruges since it opened, and every time we hear some more news about it, we get closer to opening up our wallets. This time it’s the new spa menu taking our fancy.

It’s using the French Thalgo line (nice) for some pretty well-priced treatments including a Detox (scrub, detox gel, sauna and massage, €85) for after you've gone overboard on the local chocolate, and the cozy-sounding Mother’s Cocoon (massage, facial and foot treatment, €140) for the preggers among you.

Best of all, they’re making an admirable break from the creepy couple’s massage – their Harmony for Two treatment (€120) is being sold to "mothers and daughters or friends".

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Tags: Belgium Hotels / Bruges Hotels / Monica Guy / Christmas Hotels / Movie Set Hotels / → All Tags

A Boxing Day Vow: Next Christmas, A Luxury Hotel in Bruges

Where: Wollestraat 41-47, Bruges, Belgium, 8000

Guess what Monica Guy was doing yesterday on Boxing Day? Yup. Fantasizing about hotels....

It's Boxing Day and you're wishing you'd gone away for Christmas. The turkey-smeared plates are piled up in the sink and you are feeling the after-effects of Aunty Jean's home-made concrete mince pies and knock-out Christmas pud. (Or is it just the English who inflict these Christmas "treats" upon each other?)

Either way, you've vowed you won't be messing around with Christmas at home again - you're on the internet checking out Christmas hotels for next year.

Bruges, Belgium is possibly the sweetest Christmas city in Europe. Okay, so it's cold...but you might get snow and at least it's small and cosy enough to stroll around. The Christmas market in the main square is a mulled wine and roasted chestnuts extravaganza. Perfect.

If you can spell the name, stay in the 4-star Hotel Relais Bourgondisch Cruyce.

It's not the most well-known hotel in Bruges or even the most classic - for that you'll want the equally bizarrely-spelt Hotel Tuilerieen. But that's about to change - the RBC's got a starring role in the forthcoming black comedy In Bruges featuring Ralph Fiennes and Colin Farrell. After March 2008, you'll be able to say, "Well, I was there before it was famous..."

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