Whether you’re looking to press reset on your life, perfect your downward dog, or just generally feel a bit more zen, healthy holidays are a growing trend. Wellness tourism is now worth $639bn globally, and is growing twice as fast as general travel. But you don’t have to jet off to an ashram in India to get that glow. Here are the UK’s top spots to soothe your body and mind ...
Forest bathing at the Spread Eagle
Woodland at the Spread Eagle; Helena Skoog; inside the hotel
Shinrin-yoku, the Japanese art of “nature bathing”, has really taken root in the UK, even if most of us are more likely to call it “just going for a walk”. The Spread Eagle hotel and spa in Sussex is branching out (sorry, enough of the tree puns) with a touch of forest bathing, for anyone lucky enough to have tacked Monday on to their weekend away. Swedish forester Helena Skoog guides participants through a series of sensory activities to encourage a deeper connection with the woodland, then guests are treated to a two-course lunch in the hotel restaurant. Tree-mendous. OK, that really is the last one. £25 per person; hshotels.co.uk/spread-eagle
Nearest station: Haslemere; from here, it’s a 20-minute taxi ride.
Bournemouth to Haslemere costs £28.05 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £14.45).*
Crystal healing at Sopwell House
The retreat at Sopwell
Nestled in the rolling Hertfordshire countryside – but only an hour from St Pancras station – boutique hotel Sopwell House has just opened a three-storey spa, following a £14m development. It’s one of only a few places in the UK that offers treatments on an amber and quartz crystal bed, where thermal therapy is delivered by immersing the body in hot sand, and then tension is eased through crystal vibrations. If you don’t fancy getting your rocks on, try a water massage in the Vichy hydrotherapy shower, and then chill out in the Rose Relaxation Room, where the walls are lined with acoustic petals and there are rose-tinted screens for total privacy. Be warned: leaving will be nearly impossible. Rooms from £154 per night; sopwellhouse.co.uk
Nearest stations: St Albans Abbey; from here, it’s a swift 20-minute walk.
London to St Albans costs £9 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £4.60).*
Healing retreats at West Lexham estate
The retreat at Lexham
Stay in a barn or a treehouse on the West Lexham estate in Norfolk, where pretty much everything runs on renewable energy. There’s a boating lake and an outdoor pool should you feel active, and a massage room and bonsai garden for chill. Retreats run throughout the year, and range from singing to meditation to acupuncture. From £500 per person; westlexham.org
Nearest station: Downham Market; from here, it’s half an hour in a taxi.
London to Downham Market costs £17.30 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £8.90).*
Camping at Trill Farm
Eat alfresco with hand-picked food at Trill Farm
Refresh your mind, not your Twitter feed, at the eco-campsite Trill Farm on the Devon/Dorset border. Set up by Romy Fraser, the founder of Neal’s Yard Remedies, it has courses in beekeeping, foraging and food preserving. The campsite has no electricity, and you can pick your own food from the gardens, collect eggs from the chickens and cook over the campfire. Breakfast will never be the same again. £12 per person, per night. trillfarm.co.uk
Nearest station: Axminster; from here, it’s 15 minutes by bicycle.
Salisbury to Axminster costs £15.70 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £8.10).*
Yoga at 42 Acres
42 Acres
Set in a luxury farmhouse in Somerset surrounded by 42 acres of ancient forest, these weekend retreats cover yoga, meditation, sound baths, guided walks, educational talks, and workshops on topics such as self-care and nutrition. Private chefs are on hand to cook nourishing yet indulgent meals, alongside daily protein shakes, cakes and teas. Plus, there’s plenty of downtime to relax on the lawn or in a roll-top bath with a book. We feel more chilled out just thinking about it. And did we mention the cakes? From £400; 42acressomerset.com
Nearest stations: Frome; from here, it’s a 20-minute taxi ride.
Bristol to Frome costs £7.90 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £4.10).*
Wild swimming at Thera-Sea
Thera-Sea offers muddy walks, barbeques and canoeing
There’s nothing like the great outdoors (and plunging into a freezing cold sea) to make you forget that niggling work stress. Thera-Sea in Cornwall is a two-day “microadventure” in the isolated surroundings of a 300-year-old stone cottage on the banks of the River Fal. Expect canoeing, wild swimming, foraging, bushcraft, stress-management classes, night walks, barbecues and then bedding down in a communal barn. Or you could camp out in a hammock under the stars for maximum adventurer points. £575 per person for two nights, including all food, accommodation and activities; thera-sea.co.uk
Nearest station: Truro; from there it’s a 10-minute taxi ride, a short (free) ferry and a 15-minute walk.
Plymouth to Truro costs £7.35 for one adult with a 26-30 Railcard (save £3.75).*
To find out more about getting a third off your train travel with a Railcard, visit railcard.co.uk
* Price based on return standard travel off-peak on the weekend of the 31 August, as checked on 4 August.
