What can you expect from an entire week in the top health resorts?
The new year comes with the option of a pre-designed reset button. The flip of the calendar is an ideal demarcation line; however, there are more reasons to rejoice in the possibility of the coming year when the pandemic is less severe. Many people find that January is the time to make resolutions to improve their health and fitness, and there’s no better way to start the year in the right direction than with a wellness resort retreat. It doesn’t need to be fitness classes and sweating off the recent indulgences or addictions to high-bpm music. Miraval Resorts & Spas, for instance, is focused on making a difference by making guests feel more connected to their surroundings and with the world around the world. It could be via the core classes or aqua cardio; however, it’s also about relaxing outdoors, adventure, food nutrition, or a customized mixture with more than 200 spa services and 600 wellness classes in Miraval’s Arizona, Texas, and Massachusetts getaways.
“We offer hundreds of life-enriching experiences, ranging from exercise physiology, wellness counseling, and outdoor adventures to sound bathing, chakra balancing, and meditation,” says Simon Marxer, the brand’s wellness and spa vice president. The staff at the resort tailor each experience to each guest, whether it’s a newbie or a fitness expert returning to an annual retreat. Miraval’s philosophy is based on helping guests go from stagnation to thriving, Marxer explains. “A central tenet of mindfulness is the capacity to see through a beginner’s eye,” Marxer explains. Here’s how you can recharge for the coming year.
Unwind in the Sonoran Desert.
Tucson Tune-up
The property is situated on 400 acres in the foothills of Santa Catalina Mountains; Miraval, Arizona, is the location of the birthplace of the wellness brand and recently had its 25th-anniversary celebration. “It’s influenced by an intimate connection with the surrounding Sonoran Desert,” Marxer explains. Marxer. Visitors can experience that distinctive spirit and soul in the casita-style accommodations. Each guestroom is equipped with an encasement of a Tibetan singing bowl, a meditation cushion, and experiences ranging from meditation to music to sampling the flavors of southern Arizona during a cocktail class. Don an outfit of a beekeeper and join the beekeeper for a close experience with pollinators. Or walk horses through obstacles that symbolize life’s struggles and victories.
“The equine experience is quite unique in interacting with a horse,” says Fran Fishman, a Virtuoso adviser who has tried equine therapy in the hotel’s Purple Sage Ranch. “Well-being at Miraval is about trying new activities and challenging oneself.”
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Poolside bliss at Miraval Austin.
Hill Country Hit
With a view of Lake Travis amid bluebonnet fields that bloom every spring in the Texas Hill Country, the 280-acre Miraval Austin – just like the state it is based in can do things differently. A typical day at Miraval Austin could begin with yin yoga, reiki at the yoga Barn,” followed by an excursion to an organic farm, a walk through the nearby Balcones Canyonland Preserve, and the throwing of a hatchet. Virtuoso Travel Agency is co-owned by owner Amanda Klimak came here to relax and disconnect (public areas of the 3 Miraval resorts are entirely free of technology) and engaged in a series of harmonic practice of meditation, took long walks through the labyrinth and discovered new appreciation for the delicious vegetarian and vegan dishes.
“I slowly unwrapped the layers of stress and anxiety that had built up over the past 20 months,” says Klimak. “The difference in my stress level and feeling of well-being from the time I arrived to the time I left was nothing but miraculous.”
There are many water therapies available in Miraval Resorts.
Back to Basics in the Berkshires
The idyllic Berkshires have been a popular East Coasters’ restorative playground since the time of Norman Rockwell. Today more than 380 acres of the area are the backyard of Miraval Berkshires and comprise the Tudor-style Wyndhurst Mansion designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the legendary landscaping architect from New York’s Central Park. Outdoor adventures here take various forms, ranging from snowshoeing to skiing cross-country to hiking and a course of challenges consisting of 20 honeycomb-like platforms suspended within the trees.
You can channel your inner warrior throughout the year through programs like the forthcoming Cold Immersion program to Build Resilience which is a scientifically-informed physical activity that teaches you to lean into discomfort to unleash the potential that has been buried. You can also give those chills a stiff shoulder and accept weightlessness instead, as Fishman did. She says, “My husband and I tried the Floating Meditation and felt renewed!” Another popular activity at the resort is its two-hour excursion up to Pikes Pond, which educated her about beavers and their lives in the woods. “Never gave beavers much thought before,” she explains. This fresh outlook is a part of the journey.
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New year New possibilities, new opportunities.
Bespoke Bliss
Miraval plans its activities to reflect each resort’s unique environment and its staff’s passions, whether the focus is apiculture or Kintsugi(the Japanese practice of repairing broken pottery using gold). Because well-being is an individual thing, it is not a prescriptive mix, regardless of whether you like interacting with horses at Tucson, following beavers on trails in the Berkshires, or finding your way through a maze in the suburbs of Austin. You should explore the outdoors, get closer to home, recover, learn to meditate, or even attempt yoga.
Fishman states that she refocused herself through new activities and a yoga class and decided to get back into yoga. Klimak sought a digital cleanse and relaxation with programs and activities that let her recharge their batteries. This is the goal that Miraval Resorts and Spas will inspire all guests at their retreats: Allow yourself to disconnect. Reconnect freshly and more robustly.
