10 incredible travel ideas for wellness lovers
Get ready to relax and recharge with these holiday suggestions
The new year is fast approaching, and it’s a great opportunity to indulge in some much needed ‘you time’ after the busy festive period.
We’ve rounded up some of the best travel and wellness experiences to book in 2024, from luxury spa hotels to Europe’s largest wellness centre. You’ll want to book these up, ASAP.
Set sail on a culinary adventure
For over 30 years, Crystal has been creating memorable moments at sea, going above and beyond any other cruise brand. Dining with Crystal is the ultimate culinary experience, with four exceptional fine-dining restaurants onboard its cruise ships, including the only Nobu at sea.
Master Chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa brings UMI UMA, his exclusive Japanese-Peruvian fusion restaurant and sushi bar concept, back to Crystal with a menu packed with iconic signatures including his celebrated miso black cod.
At Osteria d’Ovidio, authentic Italian dishes created in collaboration with celebrated chef Stefano Di Gennaro are on the menu. Designed to blend the best of north and south, expect mouthwatering seafood, agnolotti and osso buco, alongside a classic tiramisu.
With beautiful ocean views and a daily-changing menu, Waterside Restaurant is a firm favourite for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And if you’re in the mood for something more intimate, The Vintage Room offers private gourmet food and wine-pairing experiences with the head sommelier and access to the vast collection in the ship’s onboard cellar.
Embark on a luxury Austrian adventure
Das Edelweiss Salzburg Mountain Resort comprises a mountain spa on 5 floors, featuring an indoor water park with 5 water slides, two outdoor pools, numerous saunas and huge separate areas for families and adults only.
Guests can enjoy award-winning cuisine focused on local ingredients. Being in the scenic Grossarl Valley, Das Edelweiss Salzburg Mountain Resort is surrounded by spectacular views and serves as an ideal starting point for activities.
The five-star ski-in ski-out-resort is located just a few steps from the gondola station, providing direct access to Austria’s famed Ski Amadé winter sports area, with a direct connection of 50 miles of slopes. If you’re a history-lover, the historic city of Salzburg — the former home of Mozart — is located just over 40 miles north of Grossarl, perfect for a day trip.
Reset in a tropical wellness retreat
Set in a lush tropical rainforest where 200-year-old trees have been carefully preserved, the One&Only Mandarina in Mexico is known for its wellness rituals and commitment to sustainable development.
With the resort dedicated to keeping its surroundings undisturbed, you can stay in treehouses perched amid the canopies, accompanied by private terraces and plunge pools.
Inspired by both progressive and ancient healing practices, the One&Only Spa offers mindfulness and yoga classes that have been designed to put your inner self first, as well as guided outdoor meditation classes and early morning jungle hikes.
Head to oneandonlyresorts.com to embark on a one-of-a-kind wellness escape
Unwind in the Swiss Alps
The luxurious Gstaad Palace, owned by the third generation of the Scherz family, first opened its doors in 1913. Today, guests from near and far are invited to experience first-class culture and hospitality.
The seasonal hotel (open December-March and June-September) contains 90 opulently decorated rooms and suites, and guests are spoilt for choice with a myriad of activities and experiences on offer. Dine on Swiss and Italian delicacies at one of five restaurants, dance the night away at the legendary GreenGo Club nightclub, famous for its illustrious clientele, or enjoy exceptional panoramic views over the Bernese Oberland.
For those looking to relax and unwind, the Palace Spa, with its nine treatment rooms, Hammam, indoor and outdoor pools and private spa suite, is the perfect option. Experience true luxury with Augustinus Bader products and put your best face forward with LED therapy and oxygenation. You’ll leave feeling totally rejuvenated.
Get a taste of Palm Springs in Stockholm
Stockholm might not be the first destination that springs to mind if you’re looking for a beach resort. Enter Ellery Beach House, created by the ESS Group. The group is well known for producing memorable, stylish, home-away-from-home resort destinations in Sweden, Norway and Denmark, and Ellery Beach House is no exception.
Having opened in September 2020, the property is inspired by the Palm Springs of the 1960s and ’70s, combining pastel colours and industrial touches with a laid-back beach vibe. Invite your taste buds on a culinary journey at Restaurant Palmers, which displays influences from Tel Aviv and the Greek islands — and, unsurprisingly, serves the best hummus in town.
Or opt for a table at Restaurant Coco, where sado y ceviche meets Scandinavian simplicity. A stay at this hotel wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Coco Beach Club, where guests can enjoy four warm pools, a sauna overlooking the ocean and stunning archipelagic scenery. Benefit from an exclusive discount for stays between 1 January and 11 August 2024.
Head to a retreat in the Italian Dolomites
Wherever you are, at whatever stage of life, Preidlhof Luxury DolceVita Resort’s award-winning Transformational Wellness Retreats will reconnect you to your path and leave you feeling like the best version of yourself.
Be stimulated, moved, engaged and inspired on all levels of awareness: physical, energetic, mental, emotional and spiritual. This is ‘The Preidlhof Way’: a balance of the joyous and hedonic with the more meaningful and spiritual for optimum health. Immerse yourself in nature’s wonders and discover the enchanting Trentino region and Dolomite Mountains.
Book your Transformational Wellness Retreat
Discover Majorca’s breathtaking countryside
Nestled in the tranquil Valley of Canyamel in Mallorca, Cap Vermell Grand Hotel is a haven of calm and serenity, only a 15-minute walk from Canyamel and its heavenly beach. The hotel, which is designed to reflect the style of a traditional Majorcan hilltop village, is nestled on a hill with views of the Mediterranean Sea to one side and pastel-toned sunsets over the valley’s rolling hills to the other.
Its one-of-a-kind design and exquisite culinary experiences, alongside breathtaking scenery, marks the five-star Cap Vermell Grand Hotel as a true luxury retreat in the Mediterranean. The landscaped poolside terrace features two swimming pools plus an exterior whirlpool bath.
The Serenitas Spa is a veritable sanctuary of calm. Guests can choose from four restaurants to dine at, including two-Michelin-star VORO. And if you want to pick up the pace a bit, choose from a seemingly never-ending list of activities, including horse-riding, mountain biking and golfing, all set in Majorca’s rugged yet beautiful countryside.
Reap the benefits of rice at this Portuguese wellness resort
Nestled in the idyllic village of Carvalhal in Comporta, just an hour outside Lisbon, Quinta da Comporta is a boutique wellness resort designed by Portuguese architect Miguel Câncio Martins. The understated traditional and contemporary elegance of the estate beckons guests for a blissfully relaxing retreat.
Its solar-heated 40-metre infinity pool overlooking the rice fields, two barn-like 800sq-metre structures (housing the Oryza Spa on one side of the Eira Bar, and the restaurant Mar d’Arrozal on the other), townhouses, pool villas, guest rooms and suites provide the ideal resort setting for a deeply rewarding journey.
Quinta da Comporta invites guests to elevate their wellbeing and savour the enriching properties of its exquisite natural ingredients, including the nourishing essence of rice, as part of the Oryza Lab ritual at the Oryza Spa.
Reconnect with nature and indulge in a unique wellness experience complete with a skin diagnosis, treatments and product offering tailored to your needs. You’ll leave glowing from the inside out.
Set your own pace at a world-class resort
Club La Santa is a world-class sports and wellness resort situated on the sun-soaked island of Lanzarote. Connect body and mind with state-of-the-art fitness facilities, a choice of over 80 different sports and 500 weekly activities.
The resort includes three 50-metre swimming pools, a running track, saltwater lagoon, eight tennis courts and a luxury wellness centre. Unwind and recover from an active day with a rejuvenating hydrotherapy session or indulge in a range of holistic treatments.
Club La Santa is an idyllic active retreat and the perfect destination to reset and recover next to nature. Home to breathtaking views of Lanzarote’s volcanic landscape and rugged Atlantic coast, this island paradise has something for the whole family.
Visit for the latest offers, including for summer 2024
Experience Europe’s largest relaxation centre
In Romania, just north of Bucharest and only 10 minutes away from the city by car, you’ll find Therme Bucuresti, the largest relaxation and entertainment centre in Europe. Dedicated to wellbeing and with a concept centred around wellness for the modern lifestyle, Therme Bucuresti offers luxury ambiance at affordable prices.
The centre comes with three areas and over 40 daily activities included in the access fee, and attractions such as six dry saunas, four wet saunas, 10 thermal pools, and a 1.6-kilometre waterslide system
Using over 70 types of essential oils and various peeling and facemask treatments, Therme is turning a former luxury into an accessible, all-year-round experience for the public while improving health and the quality of life for all visitors.
Kids will love the Galaxy area, filled with slides and a wave pool, while adults will enjoy the panoramic indoor pool, complete with a bar and a la carte restaurant in the Elysium area.
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