While spa brochures tempt visitors with tranquil images of nurturing and pampering, many destination spas and wellness retreat centers also address the mindful aspect of well-being. Groups can find a wealth of options at spa resorts worldwide, offering everything from meeting break meditation sessions to customized wellness escapes.
“For many of our clients, wellness is the main focus of their event, while others are just looking to enhance a program with healthful aspects for their attendees,” says Lindsay Curry, director of sales for Enchantment Resort in Sedona, Ariz., home to Mii amo, an all-inclusive destination spa set in Boynton Canyon.
Mii amo offers access to skilled therapists and staff, according to Curry, allowing the resort to customize all group events, such as walking yoga (dubbed WOGA) breakouts, communications courses and group meditation in the Crystal Grotto.
Groups can arrange a private session at the on-site labyrinth, including an introduction on how to walk it and what to focus on while meandering through it. Another activity, vision board collage making, can be customized for a group and entails putting your vision or goals onto paper with pictures, words and colors.
For pure relaxation, Mii amo offers a dedicated Watsu (water Shiatsu) pool, as well as a hydrotherapy tub with a large window overlooking the private canyon. Workshops bear titles such as Learn to Meditate, Stress Management and the Power of Touch, which explores the physical and mental benefits of the human touch.
Also in Arizona, Tucson’s Miraval Resort & Spa caters to groups with a host of programs.
“At Miraval our group programming is designed to motivate individuals to form a team that achieves together,” says Michael Aylmer, vice president of sales. “This means offering programs that not only motivate the team but also help the group and individuals within it address and work through obstacles that hold them back.”
Some of the programs include the Miraval Equine Experience, during which groups work with specially selected horses as an exercise in individual and team communication. Meanwhile, Mindful Stress Mastery teaches how to guide the mind toward less negative patterns and balance the emotions.
Other programs include Digital Detox, to learn how to use devices more productively, and the Native American-inspired Talking Circle, which focuses on finding a balance between talking and listening.
Groups can also choose the Mindful Meetings package, including spa treatments, meditation breaks, yoga, wellness lectures, cooking classes and healthy refreshments.
Among the spa treatments, Spirit Flight combines a massage with the healing practices of shamanism and drumming, plus acupuncture, craniosacral therapy and spinal alignment.
At the renowned Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Mass., as well as at its sister property in Tucson, Ariz., wellness options run the gamut from Eastern-based meditative exercises like Qigong and tai chi to ayurvedic yoga. Attendees can also partake in a private talk with a staff physician on stress-reduction strategies.
“Canyon Ranch has always embraced an integrative approach to wellness,” says Tracey Latkovic, corporate sales vice president at Canyon Ranch. “Our programs are based on a holistic model that values health on all levels: mind, body and spirit.
“While most people are aware of the lifestyle habits needed to lead a healthier life,” Latkovic continues, “there’s little focus on the importance of emotional and spiritual well-being.”
In response, Canyon Ranch offers programming for corporate groups that examines topics such as mindfulness and spiritual wellness. Either property can organize private group classes such as the Art of Mindfulness and Breathing for Health and Vitality, as well as creativity stimulating classes such as watercolor painting.
Group meditation and group yoga are two of the many stress-relieving classes for groups at Hawaii’s Four Seasons Resort Hualalai on the Big Island.
“Our group guests are often looking for very tailored experiences, inclusive of wellness offerings,” says Robert Whitfield, regional vice president and general manager for the resort. “We work very closely with meeting planners, to ensure we provide really interesting and mindful options for them to choose from.”
One of the more unique experiences is an off-site drive to an ancient Hawaiian forest, according to Whitfield, where the group can plant a legacy forest of native koa trees in an attempt to help bring back endangered wildlife and offset carbon emissions.
Groups can also participate in Hawaiian history and culture programs and nutritional workshop demonstrations. Spa treatments include sound energy healing and yoga therapy.
Sound healing using crystal bowls is also an option at Rancho La Puerta, near the San Diego border in Tecate, Mexico. The resort offers specialty weeks that are open to groups, such as Mindful Sleep, Mindful Dreams and Meditation and the Art of Happiness.
As another signature wellness component, Rancho La Puerta offers therapeutic nighttime Watsu treatments, letting guests float outdoors under the stars, gently supported in a 96 degree pool.
The resort has partnered with San Diego’s Lifewellness Institute for its Executive Wellness program, which focuses over the course of a week on evaluating an individual’s health status and creating a custom wellness and nutrition program.
Groups can start the day at Travaasa Austin in Texas with a sunrise hike or yoga with views of Hill Country and finish the day with a stargazing session.
“Our goal is always to identify what individuals and groups are hoping to achieve during their time here and create itineraries that will take them on that journey,” says Brian Bastress, guest services manager. “For 2015, our experiences are centered around different forms of focus—whether that be health, fitness, wellness, focus on the individual or focus for a group.”
Itineraries for groups can include meditation workshops at the resort’s tranquil Solidago Garden and mini breaks such as the Serenity Stretch, during which instructors lead a slow restorative sequence of moves.
PageBreakSpa Eastman, set on 326 acres outside Montreal, melds naturopathy, thermotherapy and kinesiology in a natural setting at the foothills of Mont Orford.
The property offers Eastman-les-Bains, tapping into natural springs on the property. The experience entails Finnish and infrared saunas, a Turkish hammam (steam bath) and an icy shower in an aromatherapy “igloo,” all in an attempt to stimulate the body’s immune system.
Groups can start the day with guided walks in the woods, emphasizing proper breathing, meditation and movement, and at midday make use of the power nap station featuring calming music and gentle vibrations.
Blue Heaven Spa at the Art of Living Retreat Center in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains offers holistic and specialty ayurvedic treatments as well as balanced vegetarian meals, meditation and yoga.
“The resort strives to promote mindful meetings and offers an outdoor walking labyrinth for solo or group exploration, meditation sessions, group yoga practice and nature walks,” says Andrew Keaveney, manager of marketing at the center.
“We also offer certain therapies that can be done in groups,” he adds. “One such therapeutic treatment from the ancient tradition of ayurveda is marma, where energy points in the body are stimulated, promoting relaxation, vitality, well-being and presence of mind in participants.”
At the French country-style Raj Ayurveda Center in Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa, the focus is on helping guests detoxify by using ayurvedic treatments designed to holistically rejuvenate the mind, body and spirit. Options include ayurvedic yoga, ayurvedic massages, meditation, light therapy and individually designed ayurvedic treatments for specific health issues.
Wellness spas span the globe, especially in Southeast Asia. COMO Shambhala Estate in Bali offers themed weeks such as yoga retreats, as well as a daily schedule of guided morning walks, yoga classes, Pilates, meditation and other health-related group activities.
“When guests leave, either as an individual or part of a group, our goal is for them to have achieved lasting physical and spiritual harmony that continues on into their daily lives,” says Monica Barter, group operations director at COMO Shambhala Estate.
Classes include aqua therapy, Balinese wisdom and meditation, walking meditation, intuitive eating and the art of living, focusing on relieving stress.
The Shambhala Estate is located near the Ayung River, which boasts its own sacred spring revered by locals for its healing properties. River water fills Kedara, the property’s water garden, making hydrotherapy treatments popular with visitors.
Groups can also arrange a water purification ceremony at Tirta Empul Temple, which includes a spiritual cleansing and blessing from a holy priest.
