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Tag Results: Destination Spas
India’s Best Spa Retreats: 4 Splurge-Worthy and Great-Value Picks
The colorful and chaotic frenzy that is India can quickly frazzle even the most seasoned travel vet. Happily, remedies to recover from India’s assault on the senses are well within reach in a nation that’s served as a fountainhead for such ancient wellness traditions for as yoga, Ayurveda, and meditation. I survived my recent month on the road there by setting aside some much-needed downtime at a handful of the country’s superlative spa hotels. Put R&R on your radar at two splurge-worthy mountain spa oases, where the resorts are worthy destinations in and of themselves, or try two great-value hub-city hotels touting top-notch spas aimed at helping you reboot while you’re en route.
The Lodge at Woodloch in the Poconos Provides Welcoming Winter Retreat
December is a particularly joyful time to visit The Lodge at Woodloch, a destination spa resort situated in the rural Pocono Mountains region of eastern Pennsylvania. Spa Weekend readers can retreat here to work out, curl up by the fire, read in the library, or to hike or snowshoe. What’s more, epicureans will delight in a dining room that doles out healthy, hearty, and decidedly delicious fare, while the on-site bar is a lure, especially for its wine sommelier-led tastings.
The resort complex is anchored by the main grand lodge: Constructed of natural woods and regional stones, it boasts floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the lodge’s 75 acres of woodsy wonderland. It serves as the central core for the resort offerings, with a lobby, library, bar, restaurant, and spa boutique separating accommodations in the guestroom wing from the facilities in the spa wing. Read more
The BodyHoliday on St. Lucia Reopens after Renovation
Forget the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s holidays. ‘Tis the season for a new and improved BodyHoliday, and I was on a mission to celebrate it on a recent visit.
After being closed over the summer for a $20-million renovation, The BodyHoliday at LeSport in Castries, St. Lucia, is open again for business. But this time, there are significant improvements to public spaces and dining venues, including a new infinity-edge swimming pool and boardwalk (where morning yoga classes are held by the beach), and an expanded water sports center (where guests take free, daily waterskiing, windsurfing, and scuba lessons off of Cariblue Beach). There’s also free use of kayaks and hobiecats, plus tubing.
International Destination Spas on a Budget
As the New Year approaches, one resolution prevails: It’s time to jump-start a wellness campaign and get fit! Here are three delightful, family-founded destinations where you can spa like a pro at a guilt-free price-tag.
Adler Thermae Spa & Wellness Resort
Adler Thermae sits atop a verdant hillside in picturesque olive grove and vineyard studded Tuscany just a five-minute walk from the medieval town of Bagno Vignoni. Located two hours north of Rome and an hour south of Siena, the Val d’Orcia region is famous for Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino, which are produced nearby. Starting on Sundays through March 2012, the “Tuscan Nature” package ($1,300 per person) features four-night superior accommodations (with views from a balcony or terrace), breakfast and dinner in a glass-roofed dining room, afternoon snack, unlimited access to the indoor/outdoor pools, a grotto, a heated Watsu pool, fitness facility, and the serene relaxation room, even mountain bikes. Included in the price are a facial, a wine wrap, a milk and honey body treatment, and two massages: an olive and a grape! www.adler-thermae.com
Locally Sourced Treatments at Seattle’s Four Seasons and Salish Lodge Spas
Seattle’s Starbucks single-handedly kicked off the Americana coffee craze and has since birthed a very competitive barista culture where a perfect cuppa is comparable to reaching caffeinated Nirvana, another Seattle signature.
Whether it’s the grunge bands or the notorious Microsoft country, a cafe or a string of rainy days, Seattle has several city signatures, many of which have made their way into the city’s top spas. Don’t expect a Bill Gates blowout or a Nirvana neck massage, but rest assured that coffee and rain are prevalent on Seattle’s spa menus.
The Collective “Ahhhh” of Social Spa-ing
While many spa-goers want to channel a healthful, Zen vibe, there’s an entirely different group – group being the operative word – looking to turn up the volume a bit and raise more than just a glass of lemon water as they enjoy some pampering. Hence, the rise of the “social spa,” with public and/or private areas designed for pre- and post-treatment lounging, soaking, chitchatting, and sipping. They are ideal for girlfriends’ getaways and bachelorette parties, and here’s a small sampling:
Two Northeast Wellness Retreats Pair Fall Foliage With R&R
Combine the “oohs” of fall foliage with the “aahs” of some well-deserved R&R at a duo of Northeast wellness retreats, set up in the optimum fall foliage meccas of New York’s Hudson Valley and the Berkshires, Massachusetts – each primed for a perfect Spa Weekend getaway from NYC or Boston. Opt for the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York (just over a 2-hour drive from NYC, or 3.5 hours from Boston), or the Kripalu Center in Stockbridge, Massachusetts (about 2.5 hours from Boston or 3 hours from NYC) – both centers offer wellness “R&R” retreats or more specialized, educational and experiential workshops (led by notable spiritualists, authors, etc.), not to mention a peak fall foliage spectacle set to burst forth on the scene in the coming weeks.
Nine Spas for Water Lovers
If you have a thing for H2O – you love to be near it, in it, over it, or under it – here’s a sampling of some of the unique water-centric features of a variety of resort and cruise ship spas in the U.S. and around the globe. All are located on or near the ocean as well, so it’s water, water everywhere!
Deep Ocean Spa, Bora Bora: If you are planning a romantic getaway or honeymoon, consider the exotic South Pacific island of Bora Bora, where The Deep Ocean Spa at the InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa (shown above at left) is a water-lovers’ fantasy come true. Features include overwater treatment rooms with glass panels in the floor so you can spy on fish as your back is massaged, and an al fresco hydrotherapy circuit filled with mineral-rich sea water pumped from 3,000 feet below the Pacific. Rooms from $670, treatments from $108.
Discover Mental Nirvana in Mexico’s Riviera Maya
Slathered in green, cool mud and wearing nothing but a bathing suit, I bow at the entrance to the crimson-colored clay hut and prepare for the curative sweat of a lifetime. As the chaman leads a deep-throated chant, I settle cross-legged onto the adobe’s dusty floor, my feet inches from a fire pit that will house a mound of scalding lava stones for the next 90 minutes. This is sweat lodge detox deluxe – Mayan-style.
The Mesoamericans have been practicing the art of el temascal practically since the beginning of time, with the goal of not only ridding physical toxins from the body but also the kind that have a tendency to invade our mental well-being. Although spas throughout Mexico claim to offer the ancient treatment, only a couple of places provide guests with the authentic, old school version – which is how I find myself purging my soul to seven strangers in a barebones igloo at the Aventura Spa Palace, located on a rugged patch of coastline in the Riviera Maya.
Holistic and Spiritual Spas Emerge in Las Vegas
It’s easy to repent for one’s sins on the strip season. Though Las Vegas has long been known as one of the world’s top spa capitals, The Cosmopolitan, Caesars, and Encore are serving up a decidedly new twist: spas with Eastern, holistic, and spiritual influences, undisturbed by the surrounding decadence.
Cosmopolitan Las Vegas:
Cosmopolitan’s opening at the end of 2010 filled an unknown need, managing to sate a fickle, fashion-forward, and contemporary appetite, appealing to upmarket sophisticates while holding the attention and interest of twenty-something trendsetters.
