I’ve been on wellness retreats before; they left me with mixed feelings. I used to visit one in Palm Desert when I lived in LA. It was beautiful, arid, calm, but so quiet (and pre-Netflix) that I often went slightly stir crazy by the end. I visited one in the mountains behind Malibu, which involved some of the longest hikes I’ve ever undertaken. I loved the physicality of it, but the portions of vegan food every evening were tiny, and I went to bed hungry and fairly miserable.
Enter SHA Wellness – somewhere I’ve seen mates visit and post about on Instagram. “The staff really nurture you, they’re not all clinical,” reassured my friend Sarah Corbett-Winder. Nestled into the Spanish hills behind Valencia, there is a rooftop pool and live music during dinner. You’re allowed an espresso every morning (tip: ask your nutritionist on the first day for this off-menu kick and you’ll likely get it!), and the food is plentiful. Menus are anti-inflammatory, tailored to your personal intolerances and Asian-inspired, so plenty of flavour and spices, rather than bland.
My schedule was absolutely packed, from 8am until 6pm, so zero time to get bored. In London, I get up around 5 to get a bunch of emails out of the way, and I stuck to that routine here too.
Honestly, I had so many consultations and treatments, this article would be pages long to include them all, so if you’re curious, here are all my highlights
xx,
