Travel2015

THE WELLNESS industry is, according to the Global Spa & Wellness Summit, worth more than £2 trillion (R35 trillion). Even if you regard this as far-fetched, there is no argument about the increasing array of treatments available in ever more luxurious surrounds.

From Kamalaya on the Thai island of Koh Samui ( kamalaya. com), which opens a new state-of-the-art fitness centre this year, to SwaSwara ( swaswara. com), an authentic Ayurvedic experience in Karnataka, India, spas spend huge amounts of time and money creating the right look and feel to soothe minds, while their holistic programmes take care of our bodies.

Get the therapist right, however, and a simple room can be all you need for a transforming experience. For example, the sole treatment room at Hotel Tresanton (tresanton.com) in Cornwall is home to respected facial reflexologist Graham Sluter, who treats insomnia, stress and hormonal imbalances as well as making your skin look good.

Among group retreats, the most successful ensure they offer tasty cleansing meals, rather than predictable “brown” veggie fare, and that healthy cooking workshops can help us learn how to eat well at home.

Last year, there was much discussion in the media over whether sugar or fat is worse for us.

While cutting out fatty foods is comparatively straightforward to plan – if not to execute – knowing just how to eliminate or regulate our intake of the sweet stuff is more complex.

Boutique holistic holiday company in: spa ( inspa- retreats. com) now has a sugar-detox option on its weeks in Morocco, France and Spain.

We may want less sugar, but what we need more of is silence, especially when, according to Ofcom, we spend more time on digital devices (eight hours and 41 minutes a day) than we do asleep (eight hours, 21 minutes).

There are a wide variety of retreats, here in Cape Town, or a plane trip away to exotic locations in Thailand or India.

These retreats usually combine yoga and healthy eating with mindfulness and talks on how to manage your online life.

But be warned: introductory meditation weekends at Buddhist retreats get booked out well ahead.

There are also an increasing number of options for those recovering from serious illnesses and conditions.

Long-stay support is available in the tropics at The Farm at San Benito ( thefarmatsan benito. com) in the Philippines, where recuperating guests can bring their children.

Puyssentut ( puyssentut. org) offers week- long post- cancer retreats at a resort/ chateau in the countryside of south-west France.

Whether your motivation is health, fitness or peace of mind, there is sure to be a spa or holiday out there for you. With a soothingly hot climate and the world’s most unflappable therapists, Asia remains a favourite escape for travellers in search of relaxation.

You can learn tai chi in China, soak your cares away in an onsen (Japanese thermal hot spring) or meditate in the unpopulated landscapes of Mongolia.

The new kid on the luxury block is Vana (vanaretreats.com), a wellness retreat with an ayurveda centre and a peaceful vibe, which opened last year on a 21-acre estate in Dehradun, northern India.

Ampersand Travel (ampersandtravel.com) is offering 11 days from £2 897pp including flights, transfers, use of all resort facilities and two spa treatments.

Also in India, the serene Ananda in the Himalayas (00 91 124 451 6650; anandaspa. com) near Rishikesh has started up a dedicated Yogic Cleanse programme that uses ancient techniques to detoxify both your body and mind.

Absolute Sanctuary (absolutesanctuary.com) on Koh Samui in Thailand now runs Pilates Reformer Bootcamps to help tone and strengthen your body.

A spa break doesn’t have to mean sticking to the tourist trail. There is a Jivamukti yoga retreats in the Mongolian desert in July (from £1 500pp for six nights, allinclusive, except flights). A lovely warm climate, Morocco continues to sprout new healthy holidays. Enjoy a meditation week at La Pause in the Marrakech Stone Desert with Mindfulness Journeys (mindfulnessjourneys.com), go on a Wellbeing Weekend in a Marrakesh riad or take a fitness break at yoga and spa resort Paradis Plage, just outside Agadir.

Elsewhere, The Four Seasons Resort Maldives, at Landaa Giraavaru, has built a yoga pavilion in a jungle clearing dedicated to Christopher Harrison’s therapeutic AntiGravity Yoga.

Over in Bali, the School of Life programmes at Spa Village Tembok ( spavillageresort. com) include daily creativity classes as well as yoga and treatments. Prices from $364 (R4 186) per room per night for a four-night retreat. Europe is graced by a number of classy retreats, particularly in Spain. Olive (oliveretreat.com) in Andalucia runs gentle weeks of cleansing food and relaxation in a converted farmhouse.

For high-tech rejuvenation, the sleek macrobiotic clinic SHA ( shawellnessclinic. com), in Alicante, has doubled in size to feature all sorts of wizardry including an Alzheimer’s Prevention and Cognitive Function Stimulation Unit; while on Ibiza, 38 Degrees North ( thirtyeightdegreesnorth. com) launches DNA Fit Ibiza in April. It tests a client’s DNA before arrival Take your pick from surfing and yoga in Costa Rica, dancing in the Caribbean or detoxing on Brazil’s Costa Verde. In Pagatonia, head to Peuma Hue (peuma-hue.com), a rural estate that offers yoga, tango classes, bodywork and a fire-heated hot-tub as well as kayaking and hiking.

For high-altitude wellbeing, take a trip to Peru where you can experience a traditional ceremony with an Andean shaman and spa retreat.

For weight loss, sign up for the gruelling schedule at The Ashram in the Santa Monica Mountains of California ( theashram.com), or get an all-over MOT at the Rancho La Puerta (rancholapuerta.com) near San Diego This month sees the opening of Villa Stéphanie in the grounds of Brenners Park Hotel and Spa in Baden-Baden ( villastephanie.com). It describes itself as “dedicated to the world of spa”, and will have 12 guest rooms and suites.

On the isles of Scilly, Karma St Martin’s resort (karmaresorts.com) will bring the holistic Karma Spa brand from Bali to UK shores in March.

Guests can expect Asianinspired treatments and cottagelike rooms. – The Independent