The Best Wellness Retreat for Resetting in New Zealand
Check in for a clean break at Aro Ha, a celebrated wellness retreat near Glenorchy on New Zealand's South Island.
“I think subconsciously we’re all craving a bit of quiet,” says Californian “wellness architect” Damian Chaparro.
In an alpine valley on New Zealand’s South Island, beside the mirrored surface of turquoise Lake Wakatipu, Chaparro’s retreat, Aro Ha (aro-ha.com), redefines serenity. The 20-room property, founded seven years ago, is a utopian community in one of the planet’s most peaceable nations.
Stays at Aro Ha, which is located about 40 minutes from the adventure capital of Queenstown, typically last six days and include a roster of worthy pursuits, such as yoga, Pilates, barre, interval training and subalpine hikes. Daily massages and homegrown produce are an easy sell.
There’s also a focus on the most important practice: mindfulness.
Wake to the sound of a Tibetan singing bowl or salute the sunrise from the yoga studio overlooking beautiful islands and valleys.
Every guest is encouraged to ditch their devices and spend 20 minutes a day walking in silence. “We have to slow down enough to get out of the rush of life in order to even feel who we are,” says Chaparro. “Silence gives you perspective.”
Best Places to Reset in Australia
Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa, VIC
The Hepburn Bathhouse dates from 1895 but the curative waters of Victoria’s Central Highlands were first discovered by Indigenous Australians. More than 140 springs burst from the volcanic soils laden with purportedly health-giving minerals such as potassium (for mental health), liver-cleansing silica and stressrelieving, immune-boosting magnesium. A waterpark of baths, shared and private, offers restorative spa sessions, while onsite villas with double spa baths and gas-log fires encourage hedonistic weekends.
Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat, QLD
Just half an hour from Coolangatta airport on the Gold Coast, Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat’s charmed location above tranquil Tallebudgera Valley puts it a thousand miles from care. Guests have the option to wind down or take the opportunity to “re-evaluate lifestyle habits”. Translation? No caffeine, alcohol or sugar; lots of exercise and stress management. Themed programs target detox, stress, sleep, mindfulness and more. The curious can stay for a long weekend to decide if they want to return for five or seven nights of transformation.
Eden Health Retreat, QLD
You might expect to forgo caffeine and alcohol at a health retreat but phone and wi-fi, too? Technology’s off the menu at Eden Health Retreat in Queensland’s Currumbin Valley, where the focus is on personalised programs to heal whatever ails you. Therapies range from massage and kinesiology to meditation and colon hydrotherapy. Add to that more than 150 hectares of rainforest and walking tracks (their own kind of therapy), boxing classes, dawn qi gong, swims at Currumbin Beach and even a flying fox.
Soma, NSW
Nine hectares dotted with bamboo and rainforest. Glass, timber and polished-concrete guestrooms and a freshwater pool. Organic Ayurvedic meals. Oh, and Nicole Kidman’s tick of approval – her latest miniseries, Nine Perfect Strangers, was partly shot here. Don’t expect patchouli oil and mung beans at Soma in Byron Bay on NSW’s North Coast. Guests can choose from two-, three- or four-night itineraries that include yoga, optional treatments such as sound healing, massage and meditation with master practitioner Gary Gorrow.
Image credit: Paul A. Broben, Romello Pereira, Clare Plumer.
