Wellness travel, without the clichés.
Wellness Retreater is an independent travel magazine for people who believe a great trip should leave you feeling better than when you arrived.
We discover beautiful destinations, memorable places to stay, and experiences worth travelling for. From hidden spa towns and tropical surf spots to ancient wellness traditions and hotels with epic fitness offerings, we find places that help you feel good.
Wellness Travel That’s Realistic
We’re interested in the places that make you want to pack a bag, but we’re equally interested in making those trips feel achievable.
Not every escape needs to involve a private villa, a week-long retreat or a four-figure spa package. Some of the best wellness experiences can be found in a long weekend, a local thermal bath, a brilliant hotel breakfast or an afternoon spent walking somewhere beautiful.
So expect a mix of aspirational and achievable, far-flung and closer to home, luxurious and wonderfully simple.
Above all, expect travel stories worth reading.
Beautiful places.
Interesting experiences.
Wellness from around the world.
Welcome to Wellness Retreater.
Discover Wellness Destinations, Stays & Experiences
Our wellness travel magazine covers:
🏝️ Beautiful destinations that nourish body & mind
⭐️ Unique hotels, retreats & stays
🧡 Feel-good experiences, travel ideas & itineraries
Wellness Escapes: Discover Somewhere New
From emerging wellness destinations to overlooked corners of familiar ones, our Wellness Escapes section explores where to go and how to make the most of your time there.
Expect destination guides, practical itineraries, seasonal escapes, and round-ups designed to turn inspiration into an actual trip. Whether you’re into yoga, fitness, spas, meditation, or simply want a break that helps you feel better, you’ll find ideas you want to book.
Wellness Stays: Find Hotels, Retreats & More
Our Wellness Stays section isn’t the usual five-star resort list…
We seek out hotels, retreats, villas, lodges, and even Airbnbs that offer something genuinely special, at an affordable price. It might be an exceptional spa, a beautiful natural setting for yoga, a fascinating approach to wellbeing, or simply a really good night’s sleep.
Some are luxury stays worthy of your bucket list; others are boutique hotels or small independent retreats that won’t break the bank. Because we want to make wellness travel realistic and achievable for more people, not just those with money.
And when we review somewhere, we’ll tell you what it’s actually like, who it’s best suited to, and the downsides too. That way you can make an informed choice about whether it’s right for you to book.
Wellness Experiences: From Around the World
Wellness looks different everywhere. Our Wellness Experiences section explores the revitalising things to do while you’re at a destination. From Japanese onsens and Moroccan hammams to Greek spa treatments and surfing Bali’s waves, we cover yoga, fitness, recovery, hikes, activities, and the rituals that cultures have used to care for body and mind for generations.
These are the experiences that make each destination unique. In a world of cookie-cutter chain hotels and Instagram-perfect aesthetics, it’s these authentic, real-world experiences that become increasingly important. Both to try for ourselves and to champion to other wellness travellers, before they’re lost into the ether.
Editor’s Notebook: Insider Tips & Finds
The Editor’s Notebook is where we step back from the itinerary. It’s where you’ll find the wellness travel trends we’re watching, new openings, interesting ideas, useful travel finds, and the occasional opinion on where the industry is getting it right (or wrong).
Because good travel isn’t just about knowing where to go. It’s also about the process of planning, booking, and preparing for an amazing trip.
This isn’t wellness travel as a collection of green juices, Pilates classes, and luxury resorts (although we do enjoy all those things!). It’s about…
- Discovering new places or a different side to ones you thought you knew.
- Exploring traditional wellness practices or innovative modern treatments.
- Learning about other cultures and supporting sustainable tourism by moving beyond tired wellness travel cliches.
- Getting inspired to make your next trip one that leaves you feeling refreshed and revitalised.
- Realising you can do it all without needing a luxury budget.
Meet the Editor Behind Wellness Retreater
Hi! I’m Caroline, a wellness travel super-fan… I founded this digital travel magazine to help other people like me. People with stressful jobs who choose holidays, travel, and weekends away as their way to recharge and revitalise.
But aren’t necessarily into the woo-woo spiritual retreat vibe…
Or the Instagram-perfect travel influencer accounts…
What do I know about wellness travel? Well, I’m a qualified nutritionist, physiologist, personal trainer, and have spent 20+ years travelling the world and working overseas.
I currently run a wellness marketing agency and spent 10 years working in the health and fitness industry. I headed up marketing for a fitness equipment company that supplied some of the biggest hotel chains in the world. So, I got to work with hospitality brands on their wellness concepts and help them create initiatives that would appeal to their guests.
This job took me around the world and to some of the most incredible wellness hotels in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. I absolutely loved it. But the constant pressure and work travel took its toll on my mental and physical wellbeing.
Weekends away were a haven that rejuvenated me.
So, I decided to combine my love of travel and my health background to create a website that helps others discover epic wellness breaks.
I also want to be your go-to source of honest, independent wellness travel info. I’m not afraid to call BS on some of the wild woo-woo claims made in the wellness industry. Or tell you when a spa hotel isn’t as good as its Booking.com photos.
And my educational background (qualified nutritionist and personal trainer with a Master’s degree in Human Nutrition and a Bachelor’s in Sports Science and English) means I’m pretty adept at weighing up the scientific evidence base for treatments.
So, if you’re looking for honest, down-to-earth travel info, then you’re in the right place.
Why I Love Wellness Travel
I’ve been lucky enough to visit incredible wellness hotels and retreat facilities around the world. From the Great Wall of China to countryside houses in the UK, you could say I’m a super-fan…
My first ever wellness retreat was actually unintentional. I headed off to Morocco on a solo trip to learn surfing – my first fitness holiday.
The surf hostel randomly offered a yoga class on the rooftop, something I’d never done before. But I thought it sounded cool and it offered the chance to enjoy the sunset overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. So, I gave it a go…
That rooftop yoga class was transformative.
It opened my eyes to the power of movement and meditation in a peaceful setting. That trip was packed with physical activity, time in nature, mental stillness, and healthy food. There was always a wholesome group dinner with fresh vegetables, great company, and someone playing a guitar.
Ever since then, my holidays and weekend breaks have included a wellness element. Whether it’s a swimming pool and sauna to thoroughly chill out in, or a countryside setting to get back to nature.
If you’d like to learn more about wellness travel, then check out our digital magazine.