You don’t have to be alone for the festive season. When being with family isn’t an option or we prefer to escape the stress and mayhem of Christmas and New Year, going on a retreat can be the perfect solution to do something that you love every day, go on an adventure, discover a new destination and meet new people.
Here’s your essential guide to help you find your perfect solo travel retreat at Christmas and New year in one of these five festive calling destinations.
Bali
Bliss Sanctuary is an ideal retreat for solo women travellers who want to experience total peace and relaxation. No couples, no kids and no schedules: you can create your own unique itinerary during your stay. Choose the Blissful Yoga package for unlimited yoga sessions and daily spa treatments; or immerse yourself in the Eat-Pray-Love experience, which includes a visit to a renowned Balinese spiritual healer. Either way, you’ll be guaranteed an unforgettable, magical holiday.
The Bliss Experience is designed to ensure a memorable Bali holiday in a beautiful sanctuary for women, recognizing the need to get away and take time out from the pressures of everyday life. It is a sanctuary of self love where you can experience, peace, tranquillity, rest, relaxation, as well as a sense of companionship and the knowledge that you are ‘not alone’.
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A Healing Retreat for Regeneration, Replenishment & Alignment. At Fivelements, Puri Ahimsa, we embrace holistic Balinese-inspired therapies administered by traditional Balinese healers using ancient wisdoms passed down through direct lineage.
Following the Balinese principal of Sekala-Niskala, which holds that we all live equally in two worlds; the seen or conscious world Sekala, and the unseen or psychic world Niskala, the Balinese healers engage the help of the divine source during each healing session.
Acknowledging and respecting your individuality, we collaborate with you through a personalised Guest Liaison programme, which guides and nurtures a healing path combining: Balinese-inspired healing rituals for purification, balancing and regeneration, Plant-based living foods cuisine for health, beauty and longevity, sacred arts practices for inner strength, alignment and dedication. Retreats are available in 3, 5, 7, 10, 14 & 21 nights’ stays.
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Award-winning AYANA Resort and Spa, BALI is a world–class destination resort located on 90 hectares of cliff-top land perched above Jimbaran Bay, just 10 kilometres from Bali airport. AYANA’s majestic sunsets and ocean-front views are complemented by a white-sand beach and shared facilities as Bali’s only integrated resort with RIMBA Jimbaran BALI. With full access to all dining and recreation at both AYANA and RIMBA and complimentary resort shuttle, guests enjoy the most extensive on-site facilities of any resort in Bali. There are 19 restaurants and bars including the iconic Rock Bar; exclusive private beach; 12 swimming pools; world-class spa with Aquatonic Seawater.
Nowhere better encapsulates heaven on earth than AYANA’s breath-taking Spa on the Rocks spa villas. Stunningly located on rocks amidst of the sparkling Indian Ocean, these two awe–inspiring spa villas are the pinnacle of our Bali luxury spa. Surrounded by the sea, each spa villa has been ingeniously designed to blend with the environment, highlighted in Indonesian ‘merbau’ wood, traditional Balinese ‘alang alang’ thatched roofs, and interiors enhanced by the natural contours of the rocks.
Set on Bali’s secluded southern coast, Anantara Uluwatu Bali Resort is an exceptional sanctuary of ingenious design and rugged natural beauty that offers a unique way to experience the Island of the Gods.
Cascading down the cliffside, luxurious suites, pool villas and duplex penthouses blend innovation and indulgence with priceless Indian Ocean views. Relish lazy days at the cliff edge infinity pool, revitalising yoga and the pampering world of Anantara Spa, where signature rituals are inspired by Indonesia’s Spice Islands. Play golf on world class fairways with breathtaking views, some of the best among Bali resorts. Discover the thrill of river rafting and elephant safaris, and delve into colourful local traditions as you watch the famous Kecak dance in Uluwatu’s seaside temple. Take the easy route to the beach with our complimentary transfer to Padang Padang Beach. A surfer’s paradise, Impossible Beach is renowned for its incredible waves, offering the challenge of a fast long ride along Impossible Break and the daring world famous Padang Padang Tube, as well as easy take-offs at the nearby surfing beaches of Bingin and Dreamland.
Tantalising your taste buds, the finest local, international and fusion cuisine is served in poolside bliss and on a rooftop with 360 degree views of the rolling ocean and Bali’s mesmerising sunsets. While Spice Spoons Culinary Journey invites you to step behind the island’s traditional culinary scene with richly interactive cooking classes that begin with a vibrant market tour.
Experience the perfect hideaway for romantic relaxation, or live the dream of a unique beach wedding with a ceremony in our glass fronted sea chapel at sunset, celebrations on the cliff edge lawn and the ultimate honeymoon in paradise.
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Thailand
Kamalaya Wellness Sanctuary, Thailand
Legend has it that this Koh Samui sanctuary draws its healing powers from a nearby ancient cave, which served as a retreat for Buddhist monks. For the ultimate yoga experience, check out Kamalaya’s Yoga Synergy programme. Perfect for beginners and more advanced yogis alike, each private yoga session is crafted according to your personal goals and skill level. The programme also includes essential oil massages and a wellness consultation. Warning: you might never want to leave!
At Kamalaya Koh Samui, Thailand`s award-winning Wellness Sanctuary and Holistic Spa resort, you can experience a life-enriching healthy holiday. Our wellness programs offer solutions for detox, stress and burnout, healthy lifestyle and yoga. If you are looking for a more personalised wellness experience, our team of international naturopaths can work with you to create your own health program from our extensive range of holistic medicine, spa and healing therapies.
Centred around a monk’s cave that once served Buddhist monks as a place of meditation and spiritual retreat, Kamalaya’s essence is expressed in its name, ‘Lotus (kamal) Realm (alaya)’, an ancient symbol for the growth and unfolding of the human spirit.
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Christmas and New Year Retreat in Koh Samui Thailand, 23 – 30 December/30 December – 6 January
Samahita Retreat has been a pioneer in healthy programming for the body, breath and mind for almost 15 years. Known as one of the most authentic yoga retreats & teaching locations worldwide while introducing a balance of practices and activities for both body and mind that includes meditation, Pranayama and breath work as well as full cardio and core strength fitness routines
This Christmas and New Year retreat in Koh Samui integrates yoga and fitness to give you a great way to escape the commercial onslaught of the holiday season. Paul and his team will share in the task of teaching and guiding all guests across the range of yoga practices, core strength work and cycle classes. Yoga and its techniques cover a number of practices that include sitting meditation forms, focused breath work that develops into a pranayama practice, and the physical yoga practice of asana.
There will be a Christmas Eve celebration with special gourmet feast and performances and fundraiser for our local charities. On New Year’s Eve there will be a special ceremony to acknowledge 2017 and welcome in 2018 as well as a feast and performances. The special ceremony will help you close and heal the past year, setting the energy and intention for the year coming with an impetus to follow through on it. Come and really enjoy a genuine holiday break from the ‘holidays’.
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India
Nestled in the Himalayan foothills, this retreat boasts an award-winning spa and a truly idyllic setting. Where else could you practice yoga in a majestic open-air amphitheatre? Enjoy an individually designed yoga and meditation programme, or choose from a mind-boggling range of wellness packages. Need a break from your Cat-Cow stretch? Whether you’re into white water rafting, golfing or cooking classes, you’ll find no shortage of activities at Ananda Spa.
In ancient India, holistic living was a way of life. People inherently understood the balance of nature, the ways of the Universe and how the elements affected not just their physical health, but their mental well-being. It was understood that if they achieved harmony within, they would be at peace with their surroundings. On the fast track to progress, our world changed as did we; but deep within us we have always understood and upheld the beliefs and principles of our ancestors. To seek harmony, to balance themselves again, to be one with their surroundings, Indians have been known to ‘retreat’ to the peace and quiet of the mountains… to the stillness of the hills and the natural flow of the rivers. This is the very philosophy which brought Ananda – In The Himalayas into being.
India is no foreign land, it’s the Mother Land. Every year she calls us, and we always answer. Except this time around, you’re invited. We’re taking along a few friends to re-create the Akasha experience. Join us on a transformational retreat in the beautiful region of South Goa.
Release the constraints held tightly in your being, and restart your system on this 6-night retreat that will leave you ready and open for the magic that 2018 has to offer. High expectations and daily stresses create negative emotions in our physical body which can then create an ongoing cycle of frustration and bad habits. Quite often, instead of taking more energy in, we first need to clear and release that which we are holding on to.
This rejuvenating retreat will give you the chance to gently detox the subtle body, then set a solid, unshakeable foundation for the year ahead.
Enjoy boutique luxury accommodation in a private home, not a hotel, not a retreat centre, an intimate home, just like Akasha. Our Goa home has air conditioning throughout, a gorgeous pool, lovely shaded terraces, lush gardens and outdoor spaces to relax and unwind surrounded by coconut trees and frangipani flowers. This is a true home away from home, Goa style.
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The Alps
New Year Detox Ski & Yoga Retreat in Meribel, 6th – 13th January
With a focus on you detoxing from the festive season our January retreat is a perfect time to realign your body, mind and intentions. Challenging your body on the ski slopes and on the mat daily you will feel strong, alert and more balance each day.
For way too long ski holidays have been about excess. Our New Year Detox Ski & Yoga Retreat in Meribel combines energising mountain time with clean, wholesome food, yoga and meditation. We are tipping the balance, on our ski retreats we want you to head out onto the hill bouncing in your ski boots. With the combination of three daily yoga sessions, delicious and energising food, mountain air and a cozy luxury chalet we will help to make this winter’s ski holiday something more than the run of the mill.
We want to help you to embrace the vitality that mountain life brings. Time in the mountains should be time to develop and grow, a Bodhi Adventure winter retreat is all about rekindling energy levels and allowing your mind to quiet itself in an environment of wellbeing. Join us in our beautiful, modern alpine chalet in the Three Valleys, deliciously designed for relaxation and calm. Salute the sun in the morning as it beams through our large picture windows and cosy up in front of the fire in the evening with tales of the days adventures.
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Book the Eurostar and train to Meribel
Late January and February is also an excellent time to travel to the alps with perfect ski conditions and breatingtaking scenery. For a luxury ski and spa experience stay at one of these hotels.
Iceland
Our day trips will allow us to experience the many unique landscapes and activities that this area has to offer. We will take a tour through Iceland’s famous Golden Circle which will include the main stops on the route, such as the waterfall Gullfoss (meaning “golden falls”), and the geothermally active valley of Haukadalur, which contains the geysers Geysir and Strokkur.
Though Geysir has been inactive for a long time, Strokkur, on the other hand, continues to erupt at every 5-10 minute intervals. We will also have time to explore our home for the week – the capital city of Reykjavik – to see some sites, take a walking tour, have some free-time to shop, see more of the Icelandic design, or relax before our dinner in town! A day in the village of Hveragerði will allow guests to see more of this thermal water capital and even visit various sites and thermal parks.
And a trip to Iceland wouldn’t be complete without a day at the Blue Lagoon with its healing waters, silica masks, unparalleled views, and overall spa experience! Each night we’ll stand watch for the glorious, and sometime elusive, Northern Lights – this natural phenomenon is on so many people’s bucket lists and it’s the perfect time to catch a sighting!
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Follow our wellness travel inspiration on instagram @soulseedtravel. Get in touch with one of our wellbeing travel advisors at [email protected] to enquire about any of our retreats.
