If you’re looking to escape the stress of everyday life and indulge in some proper rest and relaxation during your next holiday, then a wellness retreat and some top-quality spa treatments might be just what you need. So, whether you like massages, traditional temazcal rituals or just some good old downward dog yoga posing, these are the best spas and wellness retreats in Mexico.
Situated just a five-minute drive from the popular hippie beach town of Sayulita, Nayarit, Haramara Retreat focuses on yoga as a means by which to detox and relax and literally translates as ‘Mother Sea’. Here you can truly disconnect from the outside world as you wile away the hours in one of the hand-constructed, environmentally friendly palapahuts, or take a cooling dip in the infinity pool, before heading to a yoga class or popping to the open-air spa, especially as there’s no electricity outside of the yoga studio and restaurant.
If you’d rather detox through diet, then Baja Cleanse in Baja California Sur is the best option. Located in a massive beachfront home, roughly midway between popular destinations Los Cabos and La Paz, Baja Cleanse’s seven-day programme includes raw-food, organic and fresh meals daily, but you won’t just cleanse your body at Baja Cleanse. You’ll also get the chance to cleanse your aura with the acupuncturists and trained therapists, or practice yoga and deep relaxation breathing techniques.
The traditional temazcal rituals were introduced to Mexico by the Mesoamericans and these pre-Hispanic steam lodges continue to enjoy popularity as both a physical and emotional cleansing activity to this day. At Cancún Temazcal, situated just ten minutes from downtown Cancún in the heart of the jungle, it’s this tradition which takes centre stage – you’ll take part in the precursory campfire ritual, before moving into the temazcal session itself and enjoying a post-ritual shower and mud facial. If you want a retreat that allows you to experience real Mexican culture, this is the one.
At Mar de Jade, in the Chacala area of Nayarit, you can indulge in a couple of different wellness packages, although they typically have limited availability and only run a few times a year. Either sign up for the seven-day Wellness Retreat, which includes nutritious meal options, massage, meditation, yoga and a temazcal ceremony, as well as spa access, or keep your eyes peeled for the Silent Zen Meditation Retreat, led by Buddhist priest Zoketsu Norman Fisher. Only offered biannually, it’s run bilingually and the next session is scheduled for December 2017.
Baja California’s 80-something year old Rancho La Puerta isn’t one of Mexico’s most reputable wellness retreats for nothing. Situated in the pueblo mágicoof Tecate (yes, like the beer), Rancho La Puerta runs annual fitness classes, workshops and holistic therapy sessions alongside some more niche options; take, for example, the biodynamic craniosacral therapy. This place was quite the pioneer of New Age wellness methods in Mexico and many people’s week-long visits eventually turn into annual events. Prepare to be hooked.
Misión del Sol is one of the best eco-friendly hotels in Mexico, and the attached spa is also one of the country’s top wellness escapes. Located conveniently close to Mexico City, in the state of Morelos, Misión Del Sol offers a range of thoughtfully designed features that will calm your soul and soothe your aching body – indulge in the vegetarian cooking, bathe in reflexology showers and make the most of the meditation rooms. Use of the fitness rooms and spa come included.
If you’d like to get a bit off the grid, and head somewhere that isn’t constantly overrun with tourists, then consider Present Moment Retreat in Troncones, Guerrero (which is incidentally also a great surfing town). A private boutique, Present Moment Retreat is a year-round haven for anyone needing some time to themselves, where you can take part in yoga, chakra balancing, and meditation. They also have a monthly self-care for women course and you can do your yoga teacher training course there too.
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Sanará Tulum
Spa, Health Spa
Back over to backpacker heaven now, with socially-conscious Sanará Tulum on the Caribbean coastline of Mexico. Actually a hotel, it’s the wellness centre that really deserves the attention, given that it offers up a number of world class and comprehensive healing treatments like the flagship three-to-seven-day Cleanse & Heal. Whether you need an energy boost or a relaxing escape, there will be a programme at Sanará Tulum which caters to your every need, or you can just choose to treat yourself to spa treatments instead.
Is there a better place to situate a cleansing wellness resort than at the foot of a quartz mountain? If there is, we can’t think of it and that’s exactly where you’ll find yourself at the State of Mexico’s El Santuario Resort & Spa, which is actually located in the pueblo mágicoof Valle de Bravo. Views of the iconic Valle de Bravo lake are the backdrop to your stay here, which can include any combination of Pilates, yoga, Tai Chi and meditation classes, among other choice therapies and activities.
Finally, if you just can’t be torn away from the coast, check out Yaan Wellness in Tulum, a resort which primarily focuses on Mayan rituals and pre-Hispanic temazcal sessions. In fact, they host monthly Open Moon Temazcal Ceremonies based on the moon cycles, which are all led by a Mayan healer. If the sound of a sweat lodge doesn’t take your fancy, then maybe the fascinating sounding treetop yoga classes or Aztec chakra massages will. Just don’t skip the purified crystalline water pools and copper bathtubs!
