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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
In Greece, ancient remedies and state-of-the-art medicine
Euphoria Retreat sits high in the rugged mountains of the Peloponnese, adjacent to the archaeological site at Mystras. Its wellness puts together elements of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Greek philosophy; next month, however, it will add a new, comprehensive diagnostics programming. Called Euphoria Holistic Health and Longevity and based on Euphoria’s Holon Methodos (“holon” is Greek for whole), it’s a holistic and transformative approach to health and longevity whose focus is cellular metabolic health – how the body detoxes, handles stress, fights disease and regenerates.
With both pre-testing and on-site analyses, including 23 discrete biomarkers it’s a fairly serious commitment; but every element of the resulting programme, whether the “basic” version at seven days (the recommended stay is 10) or the extended one of three weeks, is tailored to specific metabolic and microbiome needs. The treatments themselves range from the fairly straightforward (private fitness, Five Elements therapies) to bespoke IV infusions and “body charging” sessions that use NanoVi technology – originally designed for cancer treatment – to reduce cellular inflammation and encourage regeneration.
The Swiss Alps’ active all-women escape
Chalet Mélèzes, in Chamonix, is home to Girl Powder Mountain Retreats, an all-women adventure community that exploits the area’s skiing in winter and its mountain trails and late light nights in summer.
On 16 September they’ll run their last Girl Summer retreat of 2024 – a four-night itinerary that includes en suite accommodation at the Chalet (think private terraces, a full-service gym and spa with sauna, gym and yoga studio), all the quality mountain and e-bikes and walking kit required for the activities, breakfast, tea with healthy smoothies, and three multi-course dinners with wine pairings. Every day there’s a walk to a buvette or forest for wild lunches, then group yoga or swim-spa activities; extra outdoor time can take the form of guided climbing, canyoning or wild swimming – and if you want to get airborne, there’s a parapenting experience as well.
A new chalet hotel in Austria
Eriro is the buzzy newcomer to the Austrian Alps: the nine-room hotel incorporates wellness and fitness so fully into its offering and environment that basically any length of stay here can be a sort of retreat. You can only reach it by cable car, to start; a journey that takes you up to 1,550m, where the chalet – almost entirely constructed from local found wood – sits. Once you’re ensconced, the emphasis is on the outdoors.
Three full-time guides craft experiences for guests that range from barefoot walks in the nearby moss-floored forest to workshops in the local handcraft traditions, exploring the meditative power of working with stone and wood. In the spa are spruce-infused sauna rooms, an indoor meditation pool, and in-room Alpine herb massages. Private yoga and meditation are add-ons too.
Elemental energy (and biodynamic grazing) in central Italy
Regular readers will know I’m a fan of central Italy’s Tuscia region, where mystical 2,000-year-old forests crown hilltops and Etruscan tombs are almost as common as petrol stations along the roadsides. Tenuta di Paternostro, just outside the town of Vetralla, offers nourishment at all levels through its beautifully curated interiors, wholesome food, and 31 hectares of olive grove and alfalfa fields across which horses roam freely. Recently Paternostro became a member of Healing Hotels of the World, and has been making a name for itself as home to compelling educational wellness programmes, from equine therapy to vegan cooking.
Tenuta di Paternostro
From €540pp sharing a double or €620 single
email info@tenutadipaternostro.com or DM @tenutadipaternostro
This September is bookended by two long-weekend retreats: from 6th to 8th, Julia Ingersoll – whose roving retreats in Bali, Puglia and beyond incorporate nature excursions with cultural immersions – will lead the Bliss Station retreat, combining lots of active yoga and meditation with abundant, beautifully presented feasts. Then, from 27th to 29th, the Inner Glow weekend, hosted by instructor Alessia Piccininno, will take in somatic movement, fire-circle sound baths, meditation under the stars, visits to sacred Etruscan sites and food workshops in the Tenuta’s own biodynamic kitchen gardens.
The Mayr upgrade in Austria
The Original Mayr is still many people’s go-to for a metabolic/gut-health reset. The ultra-committed among them now have two new and more progressive programmes of which they can partake.
Mayr Med Diagnostics is a deep-dive version of what it says, involving extensive blood testing and gastrointestinal, metabolic and urine analyses throughout the programme, for a comprehensive understanding of the state of your metabolic system; the abdominal massages and hay flower detox that are Mayr standards are administered throughout the week. The Mayr Med Detox programme touches instead on fitness testing and bioelectrical impedance analysis, and layers in the salt scrubs and draining wraps around an active regimen. The promise: you leave with a spring in your step, a clearer head, and very possibly a centimetre or two of diameter off a couple of your bits.
