Grotto Spa At Tigh

This is not a relaxing spa, its trying to be but its staff and the experience gives over priced public pool, served by staff who need hospitality training. For a $500 bill I will be telling my friends to go somewhere else because this wasnt worth it Grotto: 3.5/5 crowded, no privacy, not relaxing. Better for social groups than for a couple's romantic evening Grotto staff : 4/5 friendly and eager but when I asked a question about the dinning room robe thing to the hostess she replied "I dont know sorry, I havent worked there yet" Tapas menu: 3.5/5 good portions, fresh ingredients, safe and unoriginal. Dessert cake was dry. We did the grotto and tapas night for our anniversary, we didnt fully understand that the robes are a requirement for dinning and that they want everyone to eat naked in their robes. This was very strange to us, I was way more comfortable in my shirt instead of worried my robe was falling open or worse wearing a wet bathing suit through the tasting menu. I was going to leave a comment card about it but the final receptionist pulled a uno-reverso on me and complained I was the one making other guests uncomfortable because I took a photo of my dinner, she even asked me to delete it which i refused (It was super zoomed in portrait of the dish). My partner was upset during this interaction, and accidentally tipped on top of the auto gratuity which she didnt point out... The waiter had already scolded me for the photo, told me how the other guests were so uncomfortable because of it and when I looked around the other 3 tables were totally engrossed in their own thing - he was just enforcing the rules (I was told no phones in the spa, not the dinning room too but I guess I'm at fault for not studying the rule book before my anniversary surprise). I suspect the no photos thing is to keep the dinning thing "mysterious" because the room lacks ambience beyond the noisey bustle of their kitchen

I’ve been going to the Spa at Tigh Na Mara for many years and always enjoyed my time spent there, but this last visit a week ago, was so disappointing and overpriced. I left feeling scammed by the whole experience. My ‘Spa Experience’ was not relaxing and calming, instead it was more like a recreation centre pool and was noisy and PACKED with people. The hot tub was overly full of guests too and I waited an hour to be able to use it. I mentioned to one of the staff about how full and loud the grotto was that day and she said she’d talk to the manager, but didn’t return to me to tell me what her manager said. The cost is not in line with what you pay for and to top it off there’s a mandatory 15% gratuity for the spa experience included on your bill. Gouging at its finest. Is $115 not enough for a noisy pool area? The Tapas dining is a pale imitation of what it was in the past, and again is overpriced. The sponge cake for dessert tasted like it was brought at a supermarket and didn’t justify the cost. Overall, this isn’t the Tigh Na Mara I’ve experienced in my past visits and I won’t be returning or recommending it until improvements are made in the cost and quality of the experience. Judging by previous comments left by guests, I’m not the only one that feels this way…

I went here to years ago with my daughter. Booked a trip with my mom this time and read the reviews a few days before our trip and based on the reviews, almost cancelled the booking! I was pleasantly surprised that they have made so many improvements since I had last been. The 4 saunas are a big plus, as well and the outdoor seating and drink/snack service. The staff we ALL amazing and the changerooms are immaculate and have everything you need. We were both happy with our massages. The only thing was the dining experience. Very cool to just eat in your robes but the food was unimpressive. When I went with my daughter the kitchen was closed but they prepared amazing charcuterie, so I figured the tapas would be as good. Sorely disappointed. Everything was sweet. Kale salad with blueberry granola, leek and duck tart with a sweet pastry. They seem to focus more on being "fancy" than actually providing food that is delish. And it is expensive. We had a far better meal for less money at the Nanoose Bay Cafe the night before. I agree with others that it is ridoculous to charge an auto gratuity on the pools/sauna experience, and I don't understand why the gratuity is automatic for the massage either. It should be at your discretion. Apart from that, we had a great day!

Visited the grotto spa twice with my husband while staying at Tigh-Na-Mara. The good: The pool area is very pretty and the mineral pool is kept at a nice bath water temperature. We did the midweek dip and dine and the tapas experience was excellent. Best meal of our vacation. I had also had a great custom facial - loved it. The not-so-good: The “grotto” experience is $115 but the area is pretty small for the number of people they let it. As such, it gets quite loud. I’ve been to many Nordic spas for around the same price and typically you get more variety of pools/steams/saunas. This has only small barrel which you are not allowed to go in by yourself but also you’re not supposed to enter if a group is already in there? Not sure what a solo visitor is meant to do. There’s chairs to relax in but no loungers for lying down. Overall it’s fine and I would go again if I was staying at the resort but it does start to feel overpriced for what you get - especially since you can’t book treatments unless you also book the grotto experience.

Overall a really nice visit! The service was very pleasant, it was a peaceful and relaxing environment to enjoy. The refreshments were tasty, the garden walk was adorable & we had the opportunity to see little bunnies. It was confusingly difficult to reach someone to book. 2 inquiry emails & 2 phone calls before connecting with anyone. And while it wasn’t expected, it would have been nice to receive some level of acknowledgement for the milestone birthday that was being celebrated. We will have to see what other spas are in the area, but we’ll likely be back!