Today’s traveller demands more than the latest hotel and a checklist of must-see attractions. Following years of forced alienation and disconnect, people are seeking holidays that boost their mental and physical wellness. A recent American Express survey, showed 76 per cent of respondents want to spend more on travel that improves their well-being. Rapidly emerging as a top destination for wellness retreats, Virginia is ready to deliver on that demand.
Eupepsia Wellness Resort, located in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, was recently voted the number one Best Health and Wellness Resort in the USA for 2022 in USA Today’s Readers’ Choice Awards. This is the second year in a row the Virginia-based resort has earned the top spot. Recently, Eupepsia has even further elevated its wellness experience, with new cutting-edge treatments and premium additions to its already-stellar facilities.
Sleep wellness is one of the foundational pillars at Eupepsia. To further enhance guests’ sleep, rooms are now furnished with a top-of-the-line bed exclusively designed for the resort by specialist sleep wellness company Bear, for the ultimate ‘zero-gravity’ cloud-nine experience.
Taking full advantage of its location, Eupepsia encourages guests to forest bathe, with daily hikes and mountain biking on one of seven trails connecting to the Appalachian Trail and nearby Jefferson National Forest. A lush, new labyrinth garden allows guests to experience walking meditation, to quiet the mind, calm anxieties, enhance creativity and encourage insight, self-reflection and stress reduction.
Grounded in Ayurveda, Eupepsia’s programmes are curated in real time to deliver optimal wellness aligned with each guest’s specific health condition and goals. The latest in the resort’s pioneering offerings is the Hocatt Infrared Ozone Sauna, offering exceptional preventative and management benefits for a wide variety of health conditions, including immunity boosting.
Yoga provides the perfect foundation for a spiritual journey and when practiced mindfully in the beautiful surroundings of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, the benefits to the soul are even more enhanced. Satchidananda Ashram–Yogaville offers sadhana intensive retreats under the guidance of skilled integral yoga practitioners. From programmes focused on the benefits of gratitude and giving back, to those highlighting self-discovery through silence, the teachings at Yogaville synthesize the various branches of yoga into a comprehensive lifestyle system, benefitting guests long after they depart Virginia.
Heading from the mountains to Virginia’s shore, Edgar Cayce’s A.R.E. Health Center and Spa in Virginia Beach has been helping individuals transform their lives with holistic healing, including massage therapy, bodywork, hydrotherapies, acupuncture and chiropractic care since 1967.
Treatments such as manual lymph drainage, craniosacral therapy and conscious breathing are just a few of the cutting-edge offerings provided. Programmes such as the Women’s Integrative Wellness Retreat, coming up in February of 2023, offer tailored treatments along with daily meditation, alkaline meals and dream work to enhance personal rejuvenation, while helping solo traveller’s connect with others for a shared wellness experience.
Located in beautiful Virginia horse and wine country, Salamander Resort and Spa recently received an AAA Five Diamond rating. Already, the only Forbes Five-Star hotel and spa in the capital region, Salamander is also only one of 24 US properties with individual Forbes Five-Star ratings for both the hotel and spa, and an AAA Five-Diamond rating for the hotel.
The resort’s Salamander Spa offers a unique health and wellness journey tailored to guests’ specific well-being needs featuring integrative and regionalised treatments as well as holistic and result-driven therapies, while the luxurious, nature-inspired location seamlessly balances both mind and body.
Salamander Resort and Spa also recently held its ground-breaking for the planned Residences at Salamander, with a target completion date of spring/summer 2023. Owners at Residences at Salamander will enjoy a variety of benefits and services at Salamander Resort and Spa including 24-hour concierge service, room service, overnight accommodation preferred rates, and member discounts on Salamander’s dining, spa and other resort activities.
Owners may also add their home to Salamander Resort’s luxury rental programme, the addition of which will further expand the luxury accommodations available for guests – especially beneficial to those looking for longer luxury stays without having to give up the many amenities of a wellness retreat.
Mere minutes from Washington Dulles International, in DC’s wine country, Lansdowne Resort, offers carefully curated wellness packages designed to bring guests closer to harmony in their daily life. In addition to therapeutic massage and wellness bodywork, the resort’s culinary team uses local, sustainably grown produce guided by the five elements – wood, fire, earth, metal, water. Channelling the principle that food is medicine, the menus deliver cuisine that enhances health and strengthens the body.
Extend a stay at Lansdowne and visit nearby Om Float for a rejuvenating REST treatment – Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy – then explore Cannabreeze CBD Hemp Farm and Co to discover the healing powers of CBD. Don’t forget a stop at Farmer John’s Market for some locally grown Misty Meadow Mushrooms to enhance the immune system.
Check here for more Virginia wellness retreats and spas throughout the state, each providing trailblazing treatments and unique offerings that go far beyond massages and diet advice, instead offering a true respite from physical and mental stress.
