New in WELLNESS GETAWAYS
Soak up the views at these destinations across Canada
For spa-ing at a countryside manor Manoir Hovey in North Hatley, Que.
A historic retreat in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, Manoir Hovey still has the feel of its original incarnation as a grand summer manse, built in 1900, all white wood, wraparound verandas and English gardens. As of this summer, guests at the Relais & Châteaux property, ensconced amid birch trees on a 30acre estate overlooking Lac Massawippi, will have another way to soak up the setting: loafing at the new, 9,000-square-foot, three-level spa. The thermal circuit will include an all-season outdoor infinity pool, a dry sauna, a hammam, a cold plunge basin, a whirlpool, a Himalayan salt shower, and assorted treatment and relaxation rooms. Also in the works: an upcoming pavilion, which will add nine lakeview spa suites.
For a little island escape Mysa Nordic Spa & Resort in St. Peters Bay, P.E.I.
St. Peters Bay is noted for being the gateway to Greenwich, part of the PEI National Park (currently in post-Hurricane Fiona recovery). Now, the small, rural village is home to the province’s first Nordic spa, about a 40-minute drive from Charlottetown. Mysa Nordic Spa & Resort opened in December on the waterfront, where you can cycle through the hot, cold, rest circuit. Expect a thermal bath, essential-oil steam rooms, a Finnish sauna, a barrel sauna, cold water plunges, and comfy spaces to commune with nature. Extras on offer include massage treatments and locally sourced fare at the on-site restaurant. While you can simply come for a day of spa-ing, you can also book one of the freshly renovated cottages overlooking the bay for a more leisurely immersion.
For hydrotherapy in the harbour Havn Saunas in Victoria, B.C.
Montreal has the popular Bota Bota, the historic ferry turned spa-surl’eau in the Old Port; and now, Victoria has its own (smaller) version of a floating oasis. Opened June 1, Havn has repurposed a 1943-built, 144-foot-long marine barge, which was once used as a wartime workshop for tradesmen. The new sauna boat has a particularly picturesque location, docked at Ship Point in the city’s Inner Harbour, where you’ll find three hand-built saunas, two cold pools, two hot tubs, outdoor showers, a relaxation cabin, a sea-salt exfoliation shower and a garden patio. Beyond reviving an old vessel, the spa was also largely constructed with recycled materials, like locally salvaged cedar logs — used for the sauna interiors, siding and other elements — so no old-growth trees were cut down for the build.
For seaside serenity Oceanstone Seaside Resort in Peggy’s Cove, N.S.
Come summer, Oceanstone Seaside Resort — five minutes from one of the province’s most famous attractions, Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse — will open a new Nordicmeets-Nova-Scotia hydrothermal spa. The destination will have two warm pools, an arctic plunge pool, an aromatherapy sauna, a salt-inhalation hammam and a whole menu of holistic spa services, including facials, body treatments and massages (one signature ritual uses warmed ocean stones said to be “charged with the energies of the most recent full moon”). Those wanting to hide out a little longer can reserve a room or suite at the inn, or one of the fully equipped coastal cottages.