The USA is a country of enormous variety. There's always something to see or do whether it's day or night, but being always 'on' leaves some people yearning to switch off. Spa retreats across the states are happy to oblige, serving up relaxing, therapeutic environments in which to disconnect. Expect hikes across acres of untouched wilderness, massages and facials using local products and ingredients, and pure uninterrupted time to yourself.
There are many way to unwind among the sun-drenched rockscapes of Amangiri. The retreat is a stone's throw from the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon – each serving up terrific views. As for the Aman Spa, guests can indulge in treatments inspired by Navajo wellness practices, including massages, body wraps and facials. The retreat’s strong Indigenous influence also permeates its cuisine, and diners can tuck into seasonal menus inspired by Native American food culture.
Blackberry Farm's luscious, rolling green fields are a calming presence in the foothills of Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains. Often wreathed in mist, the Cherokee and early Appalachians once foraged on this land, and the rustic retreat serves up fresh food and drink by upholding traditional farming practices. The farm eschews the spartan menus of some spas to offer high-quality wine and dairy, complemented by exercise classes, deep tissue massages and walks in the surrounding forest.
Ensconced amid 30,000 acres of woodland, The Lodge and Spa at Bushcreek Ranch is completely isolated, granting glorious views of the starry night sky. Guests can stay in luxury log cabins or lodge rooms and pass the time with horse-riding, yoga and skiing, while the spa offers treatments inspired by the Old West and Indigenous cultures. Try the Wyoming river stone massage.
Sleek, white, modern and minimalist, there's nothing to distract you from wellness when relaxing at Carillon, with its palm-lined poolsides. The resort stretches languidly along the Miami beachfront, offering guests bright blue views as well as water-based activities like ocean fishing and kiteboarding. The hotel has in-house therapists, who will tailor your experience to fit the challenges of your life.
Situated in the Sonoran Desert, CIVANA Wellness Resort and Spa is a recent arrival to the wellness break world. Designed by long-time Oprah Winfrey collaborator Deepak Chopra, this ayurveda-inspired retreat centres around four main pillars: movement, spa, nourishment and discovery. Expect vegan food, yoga, customised spa treatments, private consultations, daily health classes and a lot of meditation.
As its name suggests, Eau Palm Beach Resort is perched on a palm-lined strip of sand, and guests can enjoy the sun and sea from their own private cabanas. Further inland, relax in the resort's verdant garden complete with dipping pool (a garden villa booking will ensure a private garden) and sample an extensive spa menu that goes far beyond the beauty basics.
Step through the elaborate, eponymous Golden Door to find a wide array of wellness options that can be tailored to suit individual visitors. Guests can enjoy daily massages, venture out on hiking trails, attend cooking classes and dine on farm-to-table meals. An attractive retreat for skincare lovers, Golden Door also offers in-depth skin analyses and treatments.
Perched in the Bradshaw Mountains, you’ll find plenty of geothermal water to soak in at Castle Hot Springs. The resort's award-winning pools are rich in restorative minerals like lithium, magnesium and bicarbonates, while out-of-water experiences include the usual range of spa treatments, as well as guided hikes through the Sonoran Desert.
Somewhere between a wellness resort and a palace, Canyon Ranch Lenox is a Neoclassical stately home offering guests personalised stays that they plan in advance with the help of dedicated wellness guides. Most programmes centre around five key pillars – health and performance, mind and spirit, fitness and movement, nutrition and food and spa and beauty – overseen by a team of fitness trainers, physicians, mental health therapists and life coaches.
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Lumeria Maui is an excellent choice for travellers wanting to take some wellness home with them. The resort focuses heavily on education, and guests can expect daily lessons on a range of wellness topics including yoga, breathwork and sound toning. After class, try one of the many massages available at the spa, before dining on local ingredients at the Wooden Crate restaurant surrounded by tropical flora.
Tucked away in the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve you’ll find the well-reviewed Miraval Austin Resort and Spa. The retreat focuses on 'wellness with a purpose', serving up specific programmes for coping with loss, fostering creativity, reconnecting with loved ones and more. All-inclusive packages include meals, resort credit for treatments, yoga and fitness classes, plus meditation sessions.
Set against the sprawling Topatopa Mountains, Ojai Valley Inn excels with an expansive 'spa village' that offers a range of signature treatments for a range of wellness needs. Two pools, gym classes and facials are par for the spa course, but we're guessing most guests have never tried an orange blossom and honey wrap, a flower seed CBD scrub or sound energy therapy.
Sandwiched between the pinkish-red cliffs of Zion National Park, Red Mountain Resort's wellness experiences are interwoven with its world-famous surroundings. Hike, bike and play golf surrounded by sumptuous scenery or sample spa treatments inspired by local desert flora: a prickly pear sugar scrub, lavender hydrating cocoon or turquoise sage salt glow. You’ll find wellness packages suited for short or long stays, as well as group or solo trips.
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Among 53 acres of desert you’ll find the award-winning spa, Sanctuary Camelback Mountain. The villas and suites both come with superb views of Arizona's rugged, rocky terrain, juxtaposed with the vibrant and verdant gardens that rim the resort's cool blue infinity pool. Feel your cares ebb away in the retreat's 12 indoor and outdoor treatments rooms, Zen meditation garden and soothing reflection pond.
Shou Sugi Ban House's wellness experiences, grounded in the Japanese principles of wabi-sabi, have earned the retreat an excellent reputation in the spa world. The resort emphasises simplicity and gentleness, with a calm, minimalist aesthetic and yoga and meditation workshops to spare. Indulge in spa treatments designed to ground, purify and nourish, then head to the restaurant for a gourmet menu curated by a Michelin-starred chef.
Alaska is not famed for relaxing spa weekends, but Stillpoint Lodge is hoping to put the state on the wellness map. The retreat sits on the shores of Kachemark Bay State Park – only accessible by sea or sky – and guests can glimpse bears, wolves and moose moving among the surrounding pines. Expect forest bathing, yoga, massages after long scenic hikes and fresh food grown in the lodge's own garden.
Branding itself "where nature nurtures", the Lodge at Woodloch is a gorgeous green getaway set in 500 acres of pristine woodland and a 15-acre private lake. Resort specialities include digital detoxing, forest bathing and chakra energy exploration, alongside other more unusual offerings like a brand-new snow room, Tyrolean bucket shower and Himalayan salt sauna.
A true seaside escape, summer is the best time to visit the Reeds at Shelter Haven as the retreat wheels out private boat excursions, beachside kayaking and a range of other aquatic activities. But even out of season visitors will be impressed by the exceptionally ornate Turkish bathroom, light therapy lounge and other grand facilities. Guests can stay for a minimum of two nights, and there are packages for romantic breaks, solo trips and friend-focused getaways.
The original location that spawned a chain of Canyon Ranch spas, Canyon Ranch Tucson promises "ancient wisdom and modern innovation" as part of a personalised wellness programme for every guest. There are more than 200 available services, ranging from haircare to a 'soul journey' using "imagery, music and breath", and when the day is done snuggle up by a fire pit in the boulder-strewn grounds.
Channel the south of France while staying stateside at Cal-a-vie, which has a carefully curated rustic French aesthetic. Impressively authentic, the property boasts real 17th- and 18th-century French buildings that were shipped over from Dijon brick by brick, and the resulting resort feels unquestionably European. Enjoy signature treatments like the Vinothérapie grape skin wrap and Vichy scrub or de-stress with a meditation session in the chapel, before sampling imported Cal-a-vie branded French wine.
The vibrant red rock of Arizona’s Boynton Canyon is a sight to behold, and the Enchantment Resort has strived to create architecture that blends into the landscape. Its spa, Mii Amo, encourages visitors to reconnect with themselves, offering services like meditation, wellness lectures, private consultations and moon ceremonies. The spa is currently closed and undergoing renovation, but should be one to watch when it reopens later this year.
With wood hut-saunas nestled on the banks of the lake and a cellar full of reds from surrounding wineries, the Lake House on Canandaigua draws on its surroundings to offer guests a serene wellness experience. Visit the Willowbrook Spa for daily wellness classes and dips in the hydrotherapy hot tub, take a canoe out on the lakefront or snowshoe on Bristol Mountain during winter months.
Nestled on Hawaii's east coast, the Hana-Maui Resort offers guests treatments based on local healing techniques and regional botanicals. Relax with hands-on techniques like the lomi lomi massage – a traditional massage with nut oils sometimes known as the 'loving hands' massage – or sit in the hot tub staring out over grass, sand and sea before dining on local fish and vegetables. The retreat is dog-friendly, so feel free to bring a furry friend.
Lake Austin Spa Resort boasts of being the only destination spa in Texas built on a lake, so naturally you can enjoy aquatic activities like paddleboarding, hydro-biking and kayaking. For a slightly slower pace, there's also a beautifully converted pool barn, spa facilities and gourmet dining.
For a blend of western and eastern healing practices stop off at the Mayflower Inn or more specifically its onsite spa the Well. Specialising in both treating and teaching, the Inn supplements exercise classes, reiki sessions, Thai massages and acupuncture with expert-led health coaching sessions and daily workshops. An elegant New England townhouse with 53 acres of landscaped garden, it's perfect for a post-spa wander between perfectly pruned flowerbeds or you can read in one of the downstairs lounges.
If you're looking for seclusion, then try Sensei Lanai for an adults-only break on an isolated island. A soothing, serene enclave even by wellness retreat standards, this resort offers traditional Japanese onsen baths and a Nobu-curated menu to go with its traditional Japanese aesthetic. Wellbeing classes and lectures ensure you leave with more than you arrived, while scuba diving, horseback riding and deep sea fishing proffer a pinch of the tropical island life.
Tucked away on 200 acres of land in the Santa Monica Mountains, this Malibu-based hideaway aims to detox both body and mind. Stay at one of its 21 private cottages for a structured wellness programme packed with early morning starts, hiking, yoga, massages and plant-based cooking classes. In quieter moments try some of its more unique treatments, like IV therapy and cryotherapy saunas.
Found in the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains a stone's throw from the suburbs of NYC, the Valley Rock Inn comes with indulgent spa treatments and a dedicated pool space, and is a great base to explore Harriman State Park and Sterling Forest. Hike, cycle and amble your way over wooded hills and babbling brooks – if you can be prized away from the swimming pool.
Yoga is the order of the day at the Pearl Laguna, a 12-bedroom spa retreat in Orange County on the rim of the Crystal Cove State Park. Run by Katresha and Geo – both expert yogis – the programme concentrates on four central pillars of exercise, rest, food and positive loving thoughts. Visitors come here to switch off from their busy lives and enjoy meditation, hiking and, of course, downward dog.
The Vista Verde Guest Ranch, a retreat in the Rockies offering luxury log cabins and private hot tubs, is an ideal wellness destination for any time of year. In summer go horseback riding and fishing before kicking back with a range of spa treatments. In winter enjoy dog sledding, snowmobiling and ice fishing, and then retreat indoors for some gentle yoga. The ranch is an inclusive place, and it welcomes families.