Girly weekend of indulgence in New York

In these depressing economic times, what could be better than a weekend away in a spa? Especially if it's in New York.

VacationRentals.com is giving away a spa weekend in New York at the high-end Cornelia Day Spa. The prize is for up to two people and will be an all-day spa pass.

If you win, your prize will include manicures, pedicures (a pedicure alone is normally over $75), body wrap and massages at one of the ritziest spas in Manhattan, which has been featured in every publication from Cosmopolitan to the New York Times.

The prize also includes money towards airfare and staying in a plus home, one of Vacation Rentals New York vacation rentals which enable you to stay in an apartment in the city rather than a hotel.

Oh, I wish...

Back in the day, the DH bought me membership of a spa in London's Covent Garden for a year - one of the most fabulous presents I've ever received. I'd enter the place strung out and wired, but after 30 seconds in the hot tub I could barely remember my name, much less what my problems were. 

For most women there's not much we'd like better than a weekend in a spa with no-one but ourselves to indulge, and the Cornelia Day Spa is what you'd call seriously high-end. Two-storey and around 22,000 square feet, with Moroccan tiles, Venetian plaster and Florentine robes, each room in the place has its individual sound system or you can loan an IPod if you prefer. The top storey has treatment rooms, a Watsu pool (this is where you float in a pool heated to exactly your body temperature, while a shiatsu therapist works on you under the water) and 3,000 square feet of outdoor garden that overlooks the city.

The only snag for me is that to be eligible to win, you have to be living in the US or Canada. Oh la. Well, at least, sitting here in rural Normandy, a girl can dream...