KAMALAYA
KOH SAMUI, THAILAND
The Setting
This resort and spa, opened in 2005, has earned a reputation as one of the premier healing resorts and wellness destinations in all of Asia (director Oliver Stone has visited several times, as has Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York).
John Stewart, a former Buddhist monk, and his wife Karina, a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, are the founders of Kamalaya. They first came to Koh Samui looking for rare healing herbs that only grew on the island. While there, they discovered a cave, set in a secluded hillside, which had been used by local monks as a place for meditation for over two centuries. Learning that the land surrounding the cave was for sale, they decided to pursue their dream of opening up a wellness resort right there.
The lush jungle ravine in which the resort is set leads out into a private beach with views of the nearby islands. Two infinity pools sit comfortably besides small natural pools. Treatment centres and yoga pavilions are built into the hill and offer amazing views of the ocean, as do the open air massage tables.
Kamalaya has a number of accommodation options, ranging from simple hillside rooms to expansive two bedroom beachfront villas. While all of the interiors are elegantly decorated with a contemporary touch, you won’t find a TV, flat or otherwise, in sight. Travellers do not come to Kamalaya for a regular vacation – they come there with a goal in mind. Many come to detoxify their bodies, others come to meditate and clear their minds; some come to relieve stress, others come to burn calories.
However, the emphasis at Kamalaya is on a holistic approach that takes all of these factors into account, whatever your particular aim for coming may be. The initial consultation will cover your emotional and spiritual well-being as well as your physical condition, and the programmes are designed to treat the whole person.
That being said, each of the resort’s programmes are unique, so we will highlight the two focused on improving your physical health.
Optimal Fitness
Optimal Fitness is a personalised programme designed to help people achieve their fitness goals. Personal instruction and guidance from a Kamalaya fitness expert allows the programme to be adapted, making it suitable for those wanting to begin a fitness programme as well as regular exercisers who wish to focus on specific goals or develop the intensity of their workouts.
Whether it is to increase your upper body strength, develop cardiovascular fitness, improve body shape and tone, develop regular fitness habits or some other goal, the one-to-one instruction provided by Kamalaya’s trainers is aimed at helping you achieve optimal results. With holistic spa therapies and nutritious spa cuisine included in the package, guests will experience improved health on all levels.
The Optimal Fitness programme comes in five, seven or 10 night packages. The programme starts with a wellness consultation, fitness evaluation and a bioelectrical impedance analysis for measuring body composition. It also includes a lymphatic drainage session, access to daily fitness activities and the fitness centre, and depending on your package length, a variety of daily massages.
Ideal Weight
Kamalaya’s Ideal Weight programme is designed to help identify areas of physical imbalance and related emotional or mental patterns. The programme is structured to guide participants towards achieving their optimal weight and maintaining their balance, within and without. The resort stresses that the programme is not like some ‘fad’ diet designed for rapid weight loss, but a healthy lifestyle approach for long-term weight management and improved wellbeing.
Dietary recommendations and guidance from holistic practitioners in nutrition, naturopathy and Traditional Chinese medicine are included, in addition to therapies such as Chi Nei Tsang abdominal massage, acupuncture and infrared sauna, along with personal fitness training.
The Ideal Weight programme comes in seven, nine and 14 night packages.
