Ask Susie: Spiritual Renewal

Question:

I just turned 50 in April, and am looking for the ultimate spa/spiritual renewal trip of a lifetime, anywhere in the world, and need help choosing my destination! I’ve looked everywhere and am now more confused than ever. My ideal trip is someplace where I can spa, [enjoy] light treks and beach/mountain water activities and whatever else a trip of a lifetime can offer. I am looking anywhere between July 9-August 7 for around a two-week stay.

Please, do you have any suggestions? Thanks.”

-Troy

Answer:

Hi Troy,

Ah…how fun to think about planning an ultimate spa/spiritual renewal trip of a lifetime.  You are right that there are so many options that it might be hard to choose, however you no doubt know yourself fairly well at the age of 50 (at least, I like to think that this age did bring some enlightenment) that once you are presented with some options, you will likely find one that makes your toes tap.

Here are a couple of ways I might suggest narrowing the choices.  First, let’s take a look at the winners of SpaFinder’s Readers’ Choice Awards.  These are voted on by people who travel quite a bit, and I find them to be a pretty good guide.  Right off the bat, I think it’s a good idea to look at the Crystal Award winners — the spas that were voted top on their continent!  These include the following:

Favorite Spa in Africa: One & Only Cape Town; Favorite Spa in Asia: Ananda in the Himalayas; Favorite Spa in Australia: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat; Favorite Spa in Europe: Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin; Favorite Spa in North America: Golden Door; and Favorite Spa in South America: Kurotel Longevity Medical Center and Spa.

Of those, I think the one that would be the most spiritual and includes some treks would be Ananda in the Himalayas. That would definitely be a trip of a lifetime.  One of the executives in our company was just there recently and absolutely raved.

Another way to search might be by country.  Select three or four countries you might want to visit for a 50^th renewal trip and then check the “Favorite Spas by Country” list at this same link for a few suggestions.

Other ways to look at options would include selecting hotel/resort spas from the dropdown menu near the top of the site and then filter (dropdown box on the right) for “Price: High to Low.”  Alas, you generally get what you pay for, so price can be a good guide. Check out the most expensive first.

Or, select destination spas from the dropdown menu and then filter for “Price: High to Low.” You can also use the handy filter on the left if you want to narrow those options further—for example, looking for places on the beach, or ones who offer hiking, etc.

And finally, one of my personal favorites if I was planning a 50^th trip of a lifetime:  COMO Shambhala Estate in Bali.

Hope this is of some help and please write a review when you return, as we would all like to hear about your once-in-a-lifetime spa trip!

Very best, and happy birthday!

Susie