Health Holidays In Queensland

You go away on holiday, do all the activities you don’t get to do at work, and then go back feeling like you need a holiday to recover from your holiday! Maybe it’s time to try something a bit different. We’ve found six of our favourite health holidays in Queensland to send you back to the office feeling like a new you!

Healing Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat

Finally, you can enjoy that long-awaited twelve-hour sleep in one of Gwinganna’s airy villa suites, set in the lush green valleys of Queensland’s Gold Coast. Detox away all of your stress with the retreat’s many treatments and fitness regimes. Then ‘detox your mind’ of any unpleasant work thoughts with therapy, food education sessions, ‘afternoon dreamtime’ and calming walks in the mountain air. Refocus and refresh your mind and body with the extensive range of activities, presentations and seminars, including access to the centre’s unique blood analysis service that allows you to make the best choice of treatments during your stay.

This is perfect if you don’t want to worry about travel or your sat nav running out of charge. Not only is the location beautiful, it is also easy to reach, so you won’t go home needing another week to recover from your journey.

Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat packages start at $980 for a two-night weekend package including spa, movement and relaxation, with organic meals and morning Qi Gong included. See www.gwinganna.com/news for the latest news and updates from Gwinganna.

Nightfall Wilderness Camp

There are few camping experiences more relaxing than Nightfall Wilderness Camp, set beside the crystal rapids of Lamington National Park rainforest. The ‘glamping’ retreat offers you the opportunity to have a massage anywhere you choose, in front of waterfalls, rivers or at the heart of the rainforest. The camp is only open to a maximum six travellers at a time, giving you a more peaceful and private holiday experience.

For $455 per night, you’ll receive a seasonal organic breakfast and an unforgettable night under a canopy of stars. Find more information at www.nightfall.com.au.

Palazzo Versace

When the celebrities are removed from the jungle, they are sent to the ‘I’m A Celebrity’ favourite hotel on the Gold Coast to recover from weeks of stress and insect eating. So you know you’ll relax if you treat yourself with a stay at this luxury five-star hotel.

Complete with state-of-the-art fitness centre and world leading urban spa, The Aurora Spa Retreat offers a range of award winning treatments to help you relax and unwind at the Palazzo Versace. These include steam treatments, massage and feet treatments and two-hour packages. Created by Lyndall Mitchell over 15 years ago, the retreat uses spa strength botanically active products in all of its high performance treatments. See their website, www.palazzoversace.com.au/spa, for booking and treatment information.

Orpheus Island’s Gwandalan Day Spa

Traditional Aboriginal techniques have inspired the unique spa treatments available at Gwandalan Day Spa. Therapists are trained in native Australian ingredients to create a range of treatments in consultation with Aboriginal plant knowledge and techniques. This Li’tya (le-dee-ah) product range aims to restore balance and health through herbalism, aromatherapy and touch therapy.

Gwandalan, meaning ‘rest and peace’ in the Aboriginal language of Orpheus Island’s original Manbarra inhabitants, provides a luxurious fusion of cultural experience and relaxation. Beautiful accommodation and a range of calming activities such as fishing are also available on the island. See www.orpheus.com.au.

Ikatan Balinese Day Spa

The Ikatan Spa Noosa offers a tempting eight-hour day spa package, and is the only spa on the Sunshine Coast providing wellness programs. This mini break package is an ideal way to boost your health and wellbeing, with all-inclusive, personalised treatment combinations to rejuvenate and nourish your mind, body and spirit. Select one of the hour-and-a-half-long mind, body or spirit sessions, followed by breakfast and a spa treatment personalised to your needs. After lunch and drinks, you will be treated to yet another personal spa treatment with a healthy afternoon tea to enjoy at the end of the day. Then take the time to explore the spa’s unique garden setting with a cooling drink in hand.

The day package is priced at $895 with the treatments included. Select from meditation, yoga or a yoga and meditation combination to start your day and personalise your experience with a professional consultation from the Spa Manager before arriving. For more information and a list of available treatments including Sikat and Balinese Massage, go to www.ikatanspa.com/retreat-for-a-day/.

Cape Tribulation

Do you have the sort of job where even on holiday, it seems you can’t escape the email notifications and incessant phone calls? Cape Tribulation is perfect for a digital detox because it has absolutely no phone reception. You will be able to relax, secluded from technology in the World Heritage Listed Daintree Rainforest, which contains some of the planet’s oldest rainforest. It’s also adjacent to the waters near the Great Barrier Reef, giving you the opportunity for snorkelling and kayaking, or walking along the coast’s deserted beaches. Go to www.capetribulation.com.au for information about accommodation and activities. With such a range, you can tailor your experience to be as relaxing or as stimulating as you choose.

By Ruth McDonald