A Couple on the Ninth Floor

A good number of the couples who stay in airport hotels are at the end of a trip, not the start. They have spent a week somewhere, taken the train back to the airport the evening before a morning flight, and checked into a room ten minutes from departures. The suitcases are full, the city is behind them, and there is one more evening before the long flight home. For many, a session in the room is a way to make that last night feel like part of the holiday rather than the start of the journey back.

One therapist or two

The first question is the format. A couple can share one therapist, taking turns or in whatever way she proposes, or book a therapist each and have two sessions side by side. The figures are EUR 360 an hour for a couple with one therapist and EUR 720 an hour for a couple with a therapist each. For ninety minutes, that is EUR 540 and EUR 1,080; for two hours, EUR 720 and EUR 1,440.

Which suits a couple depends partly on preference and partly on the room.

The room

A couple with one therapist can use any room that works for a single guest: one side of the bed clear, a warm room, a lamp. A couple with a therapist each needs more. Two sessions side by side need two surfaces, which in an airport hotel usually means a twin room with two beds, a suite with a sofa bed, or a large double where one guest uses the bed and the other a folded-out alternative.

A standard double with one bed rarely works for two therapists at once. If that is what you have and you want a therapist each, ask reception whether a twin or a larger room is available. On the last night of a trip it is often worth the small extra cost.

Timing on the last night

The last night before a long-haul flight has its own rhythm. Packing takes longer than expected. Dinner is often in the hotel. The alarm is early. A session placed at eight or half past eight usually works: bags packed beforehand, a quick dinner downstairs, the session, then sleep.

Two hours is a popular length for couples on this night. It gives time for both without anyone feeling hurried, and it still leaves room before lights-out.

Before she arrives

Decide in advance which of you goes down to the lobby if the lifts need a key card, and which of you stays in the room. It sounds trivial. It prevents the situation where both of you are halfway through a shower when the message comes.

Agree between yourselves what you would like from the evening, so it can be said simply at the start. Your therapist will then say what the session includes and where her limits are. That is hers to decide, and couples find it easier when they have talked beforehand than when they try to work it out in the room.

Twenty-one or over

Both guests must be twenty-one or over, and she may ask to see a document for each of you at the door. Have both passports within reach. She reads the date of birth and hands each one straight back.

The deposit

A couple's booking at an airport hotel carries a deposit of half, as all airport bookings do. On a couple's two hours with one therapist, that is EUR 360 before and EUR 360 at the door. The cancellation policy covers what happens if the flight home changes.

Sharing one therapist

With one therapist for a couple, the session is shaped by her. Some couples imagine it as two separate half-sessions, one after the other; others picture shorter turns that alternate. What happens is hers to propose, and it is set out at the start, not decided halfway through. Couples who arrive with a fixed picture of how it will go sometimes find the reality is different, and usually better, because it was arranged by the person who does this for a living.

Afterwards

The last hour before sleep on the last night of a trip is often the quietest of the whole holiday. Guests describe it as the moment the trip felt finished. The page on a room for two and the couples massage page cover the formats in more detail.