Balance your body and mind after a long flight, or a busy week at Amburaya Spa. The spa’s charming, natural setting complements the ancient holistic techniques offered, while organic botanicals, oils and spices are used for facial and body treatments.
Situated within the bustling Mall of Asia Complex, Conrad Manila is the premier haven for smart luxury amid panoramic views of Manila Bay and its famed sunsets while being just minutes away from the domestic and international airports, business and leisure districts.
Amburaya Spa offers six private treatment suites available for couples and individual customers and also a sauna for those looking to sneak in a quick rejuvenating experience. With over thirty treatments on the menu, the spa provides Thai heritage therapies, ancient Asian practices, classical Western treatments, among other great spa promotions.
The signature treatments include Amburaya Embrace, which is a combination of five different massage techniques, and the Solar Triumph, a two-hour body wrap and massage package designed especially for sun-kissed skin.
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Nestled on the banks of the sacred Ayung River, Fivelements Retreat Bali is an award-winning eco-conscious wellness destination deeply rooted in the ancient traditions of Bali.
The retreat offers a peaceful sanctuary to embrace authentic Balinese healing, epicurean plant-based cuisine, and transformative sacred arts practices. The 20 Luxury eco-luxury Sleeping Suites were inspired by the beauty of Bali and blends harmoniously with nature. The soothing river and vibrant jungle offer an inspiring and intimate connection with nature.
Provided By Makumu Private Game LodgeFivelements Beauty Sanctuary leads the way back to nature by capturing the healing powers of plants and preserving village remedies. All-natural and superfood ingredients are combined with a comprehensive range of authentic beauty rituals, fresh organic bathing and skin care, and the deeply relaxing touch of healing massages from dedicated therapists.
The team of healers and certified therapists have been trained and are accredited by Wellness for Cancer to work with individuals touched by cancer. If you have been touched by cancer, let our team tailor a treatment specifically for you.
The Healing & Wellness Sanctuary features a signature collection of therapies administered by specialists in massage and bodywork, intuitive healing and energy, and beauty spa wellness to complement your well-being intentions.
Revive your radiance with the force of nature within the spiritually restful environment of Fivelements Healing & Wellness Sanctuary.
Fivelements Retreat was founded and opened in 2010 as a holistic wellness retreat using the foundations and philosophy of Tri-Hita-Karna as the guiding vision. This has never changed, but as we have developed we have kept looking beyond the original concept and will keep exploring new opportunities, but always use Tri-Hita-Karana as our vision. Since the re-opening of Bali in March 2022 and with demand growing for wellness retreats we have continued to develop the retreats ranging from more introductory 3-day style retreats to 10-days, but always focusing on nutrition, health and fitness and the spiritual aspects of retreats in Bali.
How do you prioritize guest experience and ensure that all spa treatments and services are delivered with exceptional quality, incorporating traditional Balinese healing techniques and practices?
Can you share your experience in managing a spa at a wellness retreat, specifically in Bali, and how you have implemented unique and holistic spa programs to align with the retreat's overall philosophy? Provided By Rakas
The most important point is we know what it is our guests are looking for, and we have regular refresher training for the team, which includes upgrading on knowledge, educating all the team members with our guiding philosophy (Tri Hita Karana, respecting humans, nature and the Gods) and making sure that their experience is very personalized and treatments deliver what guests are paying and expecting. A key point is also not to overbook the treatment rooms, as this will just cause stress for our guests and staff, putting pressure on the treatments and that special time they are seeking.
Tell us about your approach to developing and leading a team of spa therapists, ensuring they are trained in Balinese healing traditions, and fostering a positive and collaborative work environment.
Ibu Nyoman says that “my most important objective is to ensure that our current and future spa therapists understand the deep philosophies that our team of Healers have been taught as part of their family heritage. We have six Healers who are a core part of the team and offer wonderful treatments. They are in many ways like specialists or Doctors as their “education” is from generations of their parents. Teaching this to the next generation of therapists is key as part of their education and ensuring the quality levels at the Healing and Wellness Sanctuary remain high.”
The wonderful deep Hindu philosophy of Tri-Hita-Karana and of course the stunning location of being on the banks of the sacred Ayung River, where the flowing river and jungle are natures music for our guests. The stunning volcanic river stone baths are often highlighted by our guests, but it’s really about the team of Healers and Therapists who have a heart of gold and always keep the staff and guests as their main focus.
What are your favourite aspects of Healing & Wellness Sanctuary at Fivelements Retreat Bali?
As the Leader of the Healing & Wellness team and having worked here for over 10-years, I love that we have a holistic philosophy that is linked to my Hindu values and as Priest I am a key part of teaching these values to our team and future therapists. Coming to work every day and listening to the sounds of nature and working with a team of passionate therapists and Healers. It is hard to describe the natural beauty of the Healing & Wellness Sanctuary, but when guests visit we see their reaction of being one with nature.
How do you create and implement wellness and sustainability initiatives within the spa, such as eco-friendly practices, waste reduction, and energy conservation, in alignment with the Fivelements Retreat Bali's ethos of sustainability and holistic wellness?
It’s really about looking closely at all aspects of the treatments and the products we use. In general all of our products are made from local ingredients sourced in and around Ubud. All our herbs, such as ginger, wild-flowers and fruits come from the local Mambal market and from our new organic 3800 sq. metre garden at Fivelements Retreat. The treatment rooms are open and have no air condition nor is there music, just the sounds of the Ayung River and jungle. Our gardens are all watered by nature or using the subak irrigation system from the flowing river. All these efforts keep our footprint small ensuring we follow the philosophies.
What made you decide to pursue a career in hospitality?
Growing up in Denmark I was fortunate to have parents who loved to travel and I was invited a few times to stay and experience great hotels in southern Europe. My personality is well suited to the industry and my love of travel matched that. I entered the travel industry on the island of Madeira and after went the more traditional route via a Swiss Hotel School in Switzerland to Australia and Asia including the wonderful cities of Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai and Melbourne, where I was part of many great hotels and even spent four years managing the famed hotels schools, Les Roches and Blue Mountains Hotel Management School in Shanghai. I loved running the hotels schools and giving back to the industry and seeing young future hoteliers grow into leaders.
How do you stay updated on the latest trends and developments in the spa and wellness industry, particularly in Bali and Southeast Asia, and how do you leverage that knowledge to continuously innovate and elevate the spa offerings at Fivelements Retreat Bali?
As the General Manager I wear a number of “hats”, one as the Ambassador of the global movement the World Wellness Weekend
https://world-wellness-weekend.org – two as a Board Member of the Wellness Tourism Association https://wellnesstourismassociation.org and lastly as a Judge at the World Spa and Wellness Awards. Being part of these movements places me at the heart of wellness industry and the many developments that continue to see wellness grow from a niche travel segment into a mature and wonderful experience based segment. Being in touch every week with wellness leaders gives us great insights and we use these insights to keep Fivelements Retreat “moving and changing” to ensure that we offer new and exciting options for our guests.
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KAILO's mission is to offer guests everything they need to feel and look their best. With a passion for results-driven, high-quality products and services, KAILO has been involved in the beauty, health and wellness industry since 2018. Using the World’s leading treatments and products, KAILO sets a new benchmark for wellness and beauty offerings.
The Wellness Village at Furaveri Maldives is built around a unique local village concept and traditional Asian holistic health care which will create balance for your Body, Mind & Spirit.
You will find yourself in a serene world of delicate scents with a comprehensive range of facilities set in a beautiful rustic looking Wooden & Bamboo interior. Each Village Signature Experience is unique and authentic.
Every treatment is considered a powerful healing tool in ancient practices focusing on rejuvenation, relaxation and fun. Enjoy a carefully combined selection of Ayurvedic Treatments, Yoga Sessions and Tai Chi to fully feel the effect this ancient art can have when practiced according to tradition.
White River Manor is a premium rehab and wellness centre located in the heart of South Africa. White River offers a one-of-a-kind luxury experience for individuals seeking to overcome addiction, burnout, depression, anxiety, stress or trauma.
The centre is located in a five-star lodge, surrounded by breathtaking 100-year-old gardens along the White River, providing a serene environment that is perfect for restoring balance to the mind, body and soul.
At White River Manor, the experienced and professional multi-disciplinary team is dedicated to providing clients with the highest standards of therapeutic treatment and techniques. The White River Manor Team is committed to getting to the root of the problem - psychologically, emotionally, physically and spiritually.
They also understand that everyone’s needs are unique, and as such, create personalised treatment plans that consider every aspect of the individual.
If you’re seeking a luxurious and rejuvenating experience while overcoming addiction, burnout, depression, anxiety, stress or trauma, White River Manor is the place to be.
The focus is on giving patients the best chance for recovery and wellness in a luxurious and rejuvenating environment, making the healing process more comfortable and enjoyable. The White River Manor Team promise to offer thier clients a life changing experience.
What does wellness mean to you?
First and foremost, for us wellness is a state of mind. We so often focus on the physical when it comes to our well-being but we know how important our mental health is, to feel “well”. We feel our best when we feel at peace. In our line of work (travel-based content creation) it’s easy for us to get stressed, feel time crunched, and out of rhythm with a routine. So, we use mediation, calming music, and journaling as a means to maintain our mental wellness on the road and at home.
Wellness for us, is also nurturing our physical body. In order to do that, we like to work out, do yoga, spend time in nature, visit a spa, travel to wellness resorts for holidays, and eat healthy. Again, this can be tough when you’re on the road so we try to pack our own food, yoga mats, and exercise outfits when we’re traveling for work. We also love to work with wellness based resorts, hotels, and rentals so that we can use the wellness facilities that we’re promoting. A nice perk to our business!
At the end of the day, wellness is all about balance. We aren’t perfect when it comes to prioritizing our wellness, as life can sometimes get in the way. But, we always try to strike a balance whenever we’re at home and on the road.
How did you get into wellness and travel?
Years ago, we were both working very busy corporate jobs. Christine worked a stressful job in advertising and Sarah was a travel agent. Whenever we had time off, we would travel to destinations that would allow us to “reset” our body and mind. We loved going to all-inclusive destinations because they often have a ton of physical activities, yoga, and spas. Plus, we found the most relaxation on a beach. We also love to travel to destinations that allowed for ample time in nature, like Costa Rica and Belize.
For us, being in nature helps us maintain our wellness and there are many studies that show the health benefits of spending time in nature. We started sharing our wellness travels on Instagram as a hobby, and one day it really started to take off. During the pandemic there was a huge shift in our 9-5 jobs, and it gave us more time to dedicate to our Instagram and blog (wellnesstravelled.com). We even started posting on TikTok and launched our own ebooks (wellnesstravelledshop.com). The more we shared, the faster our following - and brand deals - grew. Now in 2023 we have quit our jobs and run @wellnesstravelled as a full time business. It’s an exciting new chapter for us, and we are excited for what the future has to hold.
Focusing on wellness this month, can you tell us about some of your best experiences you have had and where they were?
1. BlueSpirit Yoga retreat in Costa Rica. BlueSpirit is set up solely for retreats and we were fortunate to do a yoga retreat there right before the pandemic happened. It was one of our top wellness experiences to date. BlueSpirit is located in Nosara, which is a Blue Zone. Blue Zones are were the most amount of centenarians live. While we were there, we had daily local plant-based foods (with fish twice in the week), daily yoga, and daily meditation. Christine also had a spiritual massage and was able to focus on her emotional well-being while there. We left the retreat feeling like a whole new person! We would highly recommend doing a retreat at BlueSpirit!
2. Home Stay with NextStep Tours, Doi Inthanon Mountain, Northern Thailand. While we love staying at resorts and hotels, sometimes getting off the beaten path will give you a unique experience that can only be found with a local home stay. We spent New Years in 2018 with a tour guide and family from the Karen Villages in Northern Thailand. We hiked the mountains, learned about how they live off the land, and cooked a big meal together. It was a cultural experience that we would recommend to anyone visiting Thailand.
3. The BodyHoliday Saint Lucia. The all-inclusive resort focuses on your body, mind and spirit. We call it “summer camp for adults”. It’s an incredible concept that lets your vacation centre on wellness with dozens of daily activities, daily spa service, and daily yoga and mediation. We love the Wellness Bar that serves smoothies, juices, and turmeric shots all day long. We also appreciated that it was “strict” so not-so-healthy food and drinks were also available for those who wanted some balance on their vacation.
Our favourite part of our job is working for ourselves. When you work for yourself, it feels like you have limitless potential and all the freedom to do so. After working for so many years in an office, Christine specifically was craving freedom. Freedom to not have to ask someone else for time off for a vacation, for example. Now we can work from wherever, make our own hours, and take on only the projects and brands that align with us.
Of course, the flip side is that you always have to be looking into the future to ensure we’re securing business to maintain a steady income. Because of this we sometimes take on too much work and our hours become more irregular. We love to travel but we do miss home, our partners, friends, family and our dogs being on the road so much.
There is always a trade off but we are happy with our decision to run our own content business as we see lots of ways to find more passive income in the future to find a better balance between travel and home life.
Bali - People are always shocked when we say we haven’t been to Bali. It’s a wellness mecca so it’s been high our our bucket list for quite some time. However, being that it’s 1/2 way around the world from Canada it takes a lot of time and planning but we think 2024 might be our year to finally visit Bali.
Tell us why you love what you do.
We love what we do because we get to be creative for a living! We also get to create content about topics and brands we love from travel to wellness to sustainability. We also love that we’ve been able to create a small content creator community online. We love connecting with others in the same industry and helping each other out. We also love working for ourselves, and the freedom that comes with it.
What does your daily work routine look like?
Most often, our work day starts at 9am. Before that we have our morning routines and try not to disrupt that with work. We have a morning meeting at 9:30 and then at 10 we loop in our brand manager. We then work on our own (anything from creating content to emailing). We connect throughout the day and usually have 2-3 meetings with clients per week that happen on video chat.
When we’re shooting, that routine varies. We often start at 8am or earlier. Our shoots can last anywhere from 8-12 hours! On these long days we are off our computers and focus on the shoot, with breaks for food and checking in on emails on our phones.
How do you handle working together as siblings?
It’s very unique to be business partners with a sibling. You often don’t have the same filter you would with a co-worker you’re not related to. On the flip side we can be totally honest with each other, which helps us to often find solutions to problems quicker.
We also try to ensure that outside of work we maintain a “sister relationship” where we talk about life, and not just work. Our relationship as sisters is very important to us so if we ever disagree, we always try to rectify the situation and move on - which in our case usually means saying “I’m sorry, I love you, lets hug it out!”.
Do you have any exciting trips coming up and could you tell us more?
We just got back from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic where we stayed at the Coral Level Iberostar Selection Bavaro. They recently renovated their spa, which was stunning. The massage therapists were incredible as well. The food was amazing, they serve sustainable seafood and had a lot of healthy food options at the buffet from salads to green juices. We also utilized their state-of-the-art gym; we loved the spin class and bootcamp. The beach yoga everyday at 10am was a highlight.
We don’t have any other international destinations planned at the moment but we’re looking forward to a local Ontario destination called Ste. Anne’s Spa. It’s an all-inclusive overnight spa destination surrounded by farms and forests. It’s a local hotspot and we’re so excited because we will be taking our entire family with us! We are looking forward to spoiling our parents and siblings.
1.Focus on your mental health. Whether its meditation, journalling, or talking to a therapist, your mental health is directly related to your physical health.
2.You don’t need to go to expensive spas or retreats to “achieve wellness”. There are so many simple things like incorporating mediation, cold plunges, or a smoothie to your morning routine that will have a lasting impact on your health. Spend some time in nature by going on a local hike. Wellness vacations are an amazing way to reset but the real magic happens in our daily routines.
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The original pioneers of sustainability within the industry; Titanic Spa is a multi-award-winning destination spa that places equal emphasis on the wellbeing of both their guests & the environment. Set amongst the majestic hills of the Pennines, the beautifully restored 20th-century textile mill blends stunning architecture with modern state of the art spa facilities & apartment-style accommodation.
Whether it's an overnight break, day or evening spa visit that guests are looking for, Titanic Spa has something for everyone to enjoy, along with a wide range of luxurious treatments to complete your time with them. During a visit, guests can indulge in locally sourced food & sip on delectable drinks that provide guests with a unique & unsurpassed spa experience of escapism, relaxation & indulgence.
Provided By Titanic Spa
Provided By Spalato Spa
Spalato spa is inspired by the idea of the quintessential Mediterranean spa – offering the ultimate in peace and relaxation. Your very own getaway is situated on the beautiful Adriatic coast in Dalmatia – a spacious, modern, and unique wellness center that covers over 2,600 square meters of indoor and outdoor space overlooking the Adriatic Sea.
Relax in many areas within Spalato, such as the steam room, Finnish sauna, unique relaxation space, cold and warm pools, whirlpools, private spa, treatment rooms, and fitness facilities. Let your stress and worries float away in 8 x 20 m pool.
Enjoy treatments for your face, hands, and body using selected Elemis products, with active ingredients. Spalato spa treatments and massages will awaken and replenish your energy sources from deep within.
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The unique spa concept that offers you a refreshing twist on quality relaxation based on traditional procedures. Enjoy the ultimate bath moment in huge hand-carved royal oak tubs filled with the natural extracts used to brew Czech Krušovice® beer.
Let the vitamins and enzymes naturally present in brewer's yeast help regenerate your skin, remove the harmful substances from your body and ease fatigue and stress in the most relaxing way possible. And, of course, enjoy an unlimited consumption of beer while you are at it :-)
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A REFRESHING TWIST ON QUALITY RELAXATION
In our next issue, get ready to discover the enchanting allure of Europe’s summer. Immerse yourself in the sun-drenched landscapes and vibrant cultural tapestry that await you across the continent.
