Wellness-inspired retreats in the tropics
In addition to escaping the everyday grind (or the dreary weather back home!), vacations are a great way to relax and rejuvenate. From unique spa treatments to expert fitness classes and healthy dining options, we rounded up some of our favourite wellness-inspired retreats in the tropics that will leave you feeling refreshed and renewed when you return home.
Book a rejuvenating getaway at BodyHoliday Saint Lucia, a unique resort in Saint Lucia focused on wellness, therapy and health. The resort offers Ayurveda treatments; lifestyle-focused practices from India that have been used for more than 5,000 years. These practices incorporate components of massages, yoga and healthy eating. When you arrive at the resort, you can book an Ayuverda consultation at the Ayuverdic Temple. The Temple practitioner will help personalize your lifestyle and routines to restore your mind, body and soul with custom dietary plans, daily meditation practices and exercise recommendations.
Just because you’re on vacation doesn’t mean your fitness regime has to go out the window! Try out a host of unique fitness classes at one of Cancun’s hottest new luxury resorts, Royalton Suites Cancun Resort and Spa. This central Hotel Zone resort features the Royalton Fit program, an exercise program designed by fitness professionals, George and Belinda Kiriakou. Royalton Fit hosts approximately 120 fitness classes a week at Royalton Suites Cancun, with classes for all workout levels. You can try different workouts like kickboxing, Zumba, aqua fit, Pilates and yoga classes including sunrise yoga by the sea and unique surfboard yoga. After your workout session, you can look forward to a range of healthy dining options with Royalton’s All-In Luxury® concept offering unlimited reservation-free dining.
Treat yourself to a pampering salt room treatment at Jewel Grande Montego Bay’s sprawling spa. With 14 elegant treatment rooms and unique therapies that incorporate local Jamaican remedies, the Grande Spa has received numerous awards including the Caribbean Journal’s “Spa of the Year” award. The spa is also home to one of the only Himalayan salt rooms in Jamaica, where you can relax in a room made of pink and white Himalayan salt bricks. Spending just one hour in the Himalayan Salt Lounge can help to reduce inflammation, enhance your mood, boost your energy and even strengthen your immune system.
Learn how to cook “greener” at the adults only El Dorado Seaside Suites, A Spa Resort by Karisma in Riviera Maya. This luxury resort is home to its very own 100,000 square-foot greenhouse on-site that grows fresh produce. The chefs at the resort use the freshest local ingredients from the greenhouse to prepare gourmet dishes ranging from Latin fusion to Italian specialties and authentic Mexican cuisine. With Karisma’s Gourmet Inclusive® experience, you can learn how to make some of these fresh recipes yourself, with ingredients grown in the greenhouse through the resort’s communal cooking classes – you can even enjoy your culinary creations after you make them! For an extra health kick, start your day with a green juice or healthy smoothie from the Guacamayas bar.
Start your day the right way by finding your Zen at Hard Rock Hotel Los Cabos. This new Los Cabos retreat offers the invigorating Rock Om® program, in-room yoga videos that you can stream right from your room or on your personal device. Both beginners and experts can practice their child’s pose, downward dog and other moves with these relaxing virtual yoga sessions. Didn’t bring your own mat? You can have a Rock Om® yoga kit with a Manduka PROlite yoga mat delivered right to your room. To step it up a notch, you can also try out one of the resort’s invigorating Body Rock® classes in the state-of-the-art fitness centre.