Swimming in the rain: Spas with outdoor pools for warm swims in cold weather

Have you ever been swimming in the rain? What about taking a dip on a cool autumn morning as the steam rises off the surface of an undisturbed pool? Outdoor spa facilities are not just for summer - they're one of the best kept secrets of autumn wellness retreats.

Swim from the inside out at Pennyhill Park, Surrey

Pennyhill Park offers luxury on another level, spanning 45,000 sq. ft and offering a wealth of both indoor and outdoor experiences. You can swim from undercover spaces into the fresh air without ever having to get out of the water, enjoying a world of hot tubs, saunas, steam rooms, a mud room, foot spas, and a dedicated spa cafe with the most beautiful menu. The outdoor pool is open all year round, and the indoor ballroom pool has underwater music. The garden also features private cabanas to relax in semi-privacy as you look out across 123 acres of grounds.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• An outdoor swimming pool
• Thermal pools
• Private cabanas with a copper bath, loungers, a fridge filled with drinks, tea and coffee facilities, and the option to order food

Swim up to the bar at Manor House Hotel - Alsager, Cheshire

In the Cheshire countryside, Manor House Hotel - Alsager has earned a well-deserved reputation for excellence. In a purpose-built addition to a historic farmhouse hotel, the adult-only spa combines indoor and outdoor experiences. It includes a unique English Country Spa Garden, with an all-season outdoor spa, there are two swim-up bars, a hydrotherapy pool, a cold water plunge pool, and more. The Herb Garden is a unique sensory space where a water feature gently sets the scene, and raised beds are filled with a hand-picked selection of herbs and flowers that scent the air and offer natural beauty.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• An all-season outdoor pool
• Two swim-up bars
• A hydrotherapy pool
• A cold water plunge pool

A clifftop hot tub at Scarlet Hotel, Cornwall

The Scarlet Hotel is perhaps the UK's most famous eco sanctuary, and a pioneer in sustainable, luxury wellness. An adult-only retreat on the rugged Cornish cliff tops of Mawgan Porth, wellbeing is built into every aspect of your retreat, from your room to the suite of pools, where you can sit back and listen to the Atlantic. Amongst the experiences, there's a spectacular indoor pool, outdoor natural reed pool (cleansed with reeds and algae), clifftop cedar wood sauna, restorative steam room and wide views of the sea.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• An outdoor natural reed pool
• Cedar wood sauna
• Clifftop hot tub

A rooftop pool at The Roseate Villa, Bath

A boutique, five-star hotel in Bath, The Roseate Villa is an ultra stylish and luxurious destination, perfect for romantic getaways. It's within walking distance of Bath's most prized attractions, which includes the world-famous Thermae Bath Spa, which guests have access to in lieu of the hotel's own spa. Thermae Bath Spa is a feast of thermal experiences, built on 8,000 years of tradition and fed by the site's natural thermal, mineral-rich, springs. Amongst its many facilities and pools, the rooftop thermal pool stands out as especially impressive, with views across the city as you bathe.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• A rooftop thermal pool

Wood-fired hot tubs at The Signet Spa at The Barnsdale, Rutland

On the edge of the breathtaking Rutland Water, The Barnsdale is a luxurious, rural retreat, offering sophistication, style, and a warm welcome. The site is also home to The Signet Spa, set within the grounds, and offering space to unwind. It features a sauna pod, outdoor heated pool, and wood fire hot tubs, helping you make the most of the natural surroundings before enjoying one of their beautiful treatments.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• Outdoor heated pool
• Wood-fired hot tubs

A courtyard pool at Hope Street Hotel, Liverpool

In Liverpool’s Georgian neighbourhood, Hope Street Hotel is a four-star destination surrounded by some of the most inspiring institutions that the city has to offer. Its impressive architecture combined with contemporary interiors gives it a unique edge for a chic retreat with a friend or a partner. Its spa is contemporary and holistic, revolving around a thermal journey, which includes a herbal sauna, Himalayan salt sauna, aroma steam room, experience showers complete with lights, music and fragrance, a tepidarium with heated beds, and a 15-metre pool with underwater music. There's also a beautiful, hidden courtyard pool, which is perfect for spending time in while you chat and put the world to rights.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• A courtyard pool

Outdoor infinity pool at Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa, Cumbria

Set within the breathtaking Borrowdale Valley in the northern Lake District, Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa is a luxurious lakeside retreat surrounded by dramatic fells and peaceful woodlands. If you've ever dreamed of swimming towards the horizon, this is the place to do it. While the hotel blends classic contemporary interiors with warm, welcoming hospitality and award-winning dining, the spa is really something else. Overlooking Derwentwater and the Catbells mountain range, the purpose-built space offers a wealth of facilities, from a 16-metre outdoor hydrotherapy infinity pool to a glass-fronted Finnish sauna and open-air drench bucket, a laconium, aroma steam room, Everywhere you go, those views follow you, when you swim you feel yourself reconnecting with nature even (or perhaps especially) when it rains.

Outdoor spa facilities include:

• A 16-metre outdoor hydrotherapy infinity pool with neck massage jets, underwater loungers, and an overflow hot tub
• Open-air drench bucket
• Glass-fronted Finnish sauna