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The Well VP, Vivianne Garcia-Tunon / photo: THE WELL
The team behind The Well in New York City has opened its first holistic wellbeing retreat outside the US at the Hacienda Alta Gracia in the tropical foothills of Costa Rica’s Talamanca Mountains.
Adopting an integrative, holistic approach, the Costa Rican development sits on a 180-acre site in Pérez Zeledón with the property – part of the Auberge Resort Collection – encompassing a spa, a working coffee farm, 50 hacienda-style villas, organic vegetable gardens and stables.
According to VP of development, Vivianne Garcia-Tunon, the retreat is unique in the world. “The Well at Hacienda AltaGracia celebrates Pachamama, or Mother Earth, as the master healer,” she explains. “With the universal healing power of nature at the forefront, the destination pays homage to the Costa Rican environment and its healing energy, which delivers transformative retreats to guests.
“The experience is brought to life by medical practitioners and through the delivery of custom spa services, daily programming, fitness classes and a calendar of seasonal retreats,” she says. “We’ve designed an indoor and outdoor wellness centre that unifies the physical, mental and spiritual, with unique energy and intention to revitalise guests.”
Garcia-Tunon has worked in wellness the industry for over 20 years – for brands including ESPA, Mandarin Oriental and GHM – and is also an interior designer, nutritionist and licensed massage therapist.
Her role in realising the project involved overseeing pre-opening; starting with design consulting, OS&E, concept development, recruitment, treatment protocols, start-up and training.
The heart of the 20,000sq ft (1,858sq m) eight-treatment room wellness facility is Casa de Agua, a greenhouse-style pool and heat therapy room overlooking rolling hills and a canopy of tree-tops.
All wellness journeys at the retreat begin here, where guests are immersed in a five-step purifying ritual using Costa Rican clay to prepare them to receive the benefits of their selected therapy.
“We’re bringing our integrative approach to wellbeing to the Talamanca Mountains, where we're amplifying the power of healing through nature,” says Garcia-Tunon. “Guests are surrounded by the natural landscapes of Costa Rica and have access to best-in-class services and adventure, all under one breathtaking space for a true sensory and healing experience.”
Programming ranges from craniosacral therapy to rituals inspired by Central American healing methods using local flowers and herbs, as well as binaural sound therapy, astrology sessions, forest-bathing and access to touchless recovery technology.
The Well has also curated a selection of restorative activities for guests, such as equine therapy, lunar gong baths and silent breakfasts, to help them connect to Hacienda AltaGracia’s core philosophy, which is community, a sense of belonging and the connecton of visitors and locals.
To complete the offering, certified health coaches are on hand to educate and support guests in pursuit of their individual wellness goals. They conduct a thorough health history review with each guest before creating a personalised experience that can include recommendations for mindful movement classes, appointments with practitioners, dietary support and integrated treatments and programmes.
Garcia-Tunon reveals that the opening of this first international location marks the start of The Well’s global rollout: “We’ve got an exciting expansion plan that includes a second location in Central America, as well as properties in the UK and four more in the US [Florida, California, Texas and Colorado],” she says.
The rainforest retreat at Hacienda AltaGracia joins the brand’s existing portfolio; its flagship New York location and its latest opening at Auberge Resort Collection’s Mayflower Inn & Spa, in Connecticut.
“Costa Rica was a natural choice for The Well due to the country's commitment to health, wellness, sustainability and preservation of the natural environment,” says Garcia-Tunon.
“We’re delighted to be opening our first international location and the largest wellness centre in Central America, close to one of the few Blue Zones in the world.”
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The Well VP, Vivianne Garcia-Tunon / photo: THE WELL
The team behind The Well in New York City has opened its first holistic wellbeing retreat outside the US at the Hacienda Alta Gracia in the tropical foothills of Costa Rica’s Talamanca Mountains.
Adopting an integrative, holistic approach, the Costa Rican development sits on a 180-acre site in Pérez Zeledón with the property – part of the Auberge Resort Collection – encompassing a spa, a working coffee farm, 50 hacienda-style villas, organic vegetable gardens and stables.
According to VP of development, Vivianne Garcia-Tunon, the retreat is unique in the world. “The Well at Hacienda AltaGracia celebrates Pachamama, or Mother Earth, as the master healer,” she explains. “With the universal healing power of nature at the forefront, the destination pays homage to the Costa Rican environment and its healing energy, which delivers transformative retreats to guests.
“The experience is brought to life by medical practitioners and through the delivery of custom spa services, daily programming, fitness classes and a calendar of seasonal retreats,” she says. “We’ve designed an indoor and outdoor wellness centre that unifies the physical, mental and spiritual, with unique energy and intention to revitalise guests.”
Garcia-Tunon has worked in wellness the industry for over 20 years – for brands including ESPA, Mandarin Oriental and GHM – and is also an interior designer, nutritionist and licensed massage therapist.
Her role in realising the project involved overseeing pre-opening; starting with design consulting, OS&E, concept development, recruitment, treatment protocols, start-up and training.
The heart of the 20,000sq ft (1,858sq m) eight-treatment room wellness facility is Casa de Agua, a greenhouse-style pool and heat therapy room overlooking rolling hills and a canopy of tree-tops.
All wellness journeys at the retreat begin here, where guests are immersed in a five-step purifying ritual using Costa Rican clay to prepare them to receive the benefits of their selected therapy.
“We’re bringing our integrative approach to wellbeing to the Talamanca Mountains, where we're amplifying the power of healing through nature,” says Garcia-Tunon. “Guests are surrounded by the natural landscapes of Costa Rica and have access to best-in-class services and adventure, all under one breathtaking space for a true sensory and healing experience.”
Programming ranges from craniosacral therapy to rituals inspired by Central American healing methods using local flowers and herbs, as well as binaural sound therapy, astrology sessions, forest-bathing and access to touchless recovery technology.
The Well has also curated a selection of restorative activities for guests, such as equine therapy, lunar gong baths and silent breakfasts, to help them connect to Hacienda AltaGracia’s core philosophy, which is community, a sense of belonging and the connecton of visitors and locals.
To complete the offering, certified health coaches are on hand to educate and support guests in pursuit of their individual wellness goals. They conduct a thorough health history review with each guest before creating a personalised experience that can include recommendations for mindful movement classes, appointments with practitioners, dietary support and integrated treatments and programmes.
Garcia-Tunon reveals that the opening of this first international location marks the start of The Well’s global rollout: “We’ve got an exciting expansion plan that includes a second location in Central America, as well as properties in the UK and four more in the US [Florida, California, Texas and Colorado],” she says.
The rainforest retreat at Hacienda AltaGracia joins the brand’s existing portfolio; its flagship New York location and its latest opening at Auberge Resort Collection’s Mayflower Inn & Spa, in Connecticut.
“Costa Rica was a natural choice for The Well due to the country's commitment to health, wellness, sustainability and preservation of the natural environment,” says Garcia-Tunon.
“We’re delighted to be opening our first international location and the largest wellness centre in Central America, close to one of the few Blue Zones in the world.”
Sponsored: Comfort Zone - Rethinking packaging
With its commitment to meeting the highest standards in relation to sustainability and regeneration, Comfort Zone is reducing its plastic footprint through the use of innovative packaging design and an important partnership to stop ocean-bound plastic
Project preview: Cultivating health
Montara Hospitality Group is developing Tri Vananda, a multi- generational, residential wellness community on the island of Phuket
Sponsored: Art of Cryo – Cold gold
Introducing cryotherapy can be lucrative for spas, as well as offering customers a cutting-edge therapy with powerful benefits for both body and mind
Interview: Brothers in spa
Saverio Quadrio Curzio of QC Terme on working with brother Andrea
on the global expansion of their luxury brand, which is built around European bathing traditions
Everyone’s talking about: Property investment
Reductions in travel and the growth
of homeworking have changed where people spend their time. Our experts consider how this will impact investment
Research: Crossing the watershed
The Global Wellness Institute dives deep into data on the US$4.4tr global wellness economy. Kath Hudson reports
Q&A: Michael Roizen & Victor Koo
The Global Wellness Summit in Boston brought the industry together for three idea-packed days. Spa Business caught up with this year's influential co-chairs
Mystery Shopper: Out of the blue
Jane Kitchen visits Iceland, the
land of fire and ice, to compare
and contrast experiences at the
famed Blue Lagoon and the newly-opened Sky Lagoon in Reykjavik
Sponsored: Optimal results
Gharieni is using research findings and insight to ensure its innovative wellness concepts exceed customers’ expectations
First person: True North
Andrew Gibson heads to Larvik in Norway to experience the world of wellness that is Farris Bad
Urban spas: La Samaritaine
Ghislain Waeyaert visits the Dior Spa at La Samaritaine in Paris, after its €500m upgrade
Spa software: Staff retention
How the latest software can help retain staff and increase business potential in a COVID-challenged world
Finishing touch: COVID attacks fat cells
Researchers from Stanford University set out to explain why people with obesity are at higher risk when contracting COVID-19, as Tom Walker reports
Synergy – The Retreat Show, the global trade show for retreats, has launched a global research
initiative that will provide insights into the retreat sector from both consumer and industry
perspectives.
The Wellness Tourism Association (WTA) has published a non-regulatory global industry
framework designed to ensure the retreat market offers responsible experiences.
A new survey of UK and international spa practitioners shows that stress, burnout and
wellbeing concerns have caused one in three respondents to consider leaving the industry.
The UK's four Chief Medical Officers have published a refreshed edition of Physical activity
guidelines: UK Chief Medical Officers' report, updating the evidence that underpins the nation's
physical activity recommendations and placing greater emphasis on strength, balance, reducing
sedentary behaviour and, for the first time, supporting people taking weight loss medications.
Anna Bjurstam has left her role as Wellness Pioneer at Six Senses Hotels and Resorts and
launched a new wellness, longevity and “consciousness consultancy” called Wahayla.
Fairmont Cheshire, The Mere, has opened today (10 July) in the Northwest of England
with a
1,715sq m Fairmont Spa that has been designed using a ‘Wellness without Walls’
concept.
Wellness hotels generating less than US$1 million (€932,700, £785,200) – or 10 per cent of
total revenue from wellness and leisure – recorded the strongest RevPAR and TRevPAR growth
in 2025 across categories when compared with 2024, according to the latest Wellness Real
Estate Report by RLA Global, produced in partnership with P and L benchmarking firm HotStats.
Lefay Resorts, the portfolio of two luxury wellness properties in Italy, has added emotional
dance classes and group cold plunge sessions in response to market demand for social
connection.
The MSpa Oslo series is a perennial bestseller in global markets. With innovative
engineering and premium performance, this completely portable spa line-up is expertly
designed to meet the needs of customers worldwide. [more...]
