Wellness Travel in Europe: Things to Do for Mind and Body

Thermal Baths

Thermal baths come in all shapes in Europe. Certain areas are known for their hot spring bathing culture since ancient times, and the locals have been keeping these spots to themselves.

These hot natural mineralized waters are pumped out of the depths of the earth and are known for their therapeutic properties.

Most offer large separate spaces for adults and kids and indoor and outdoor themed pools with different water temperatures and mineral contents.

Head to Austria, Germany, Italy, Hungary, and Switzerland for the best public thermal bath complexes. These are luxury-like thermes that are actually made accessible to everyone.

They are open to the public, and many have an upscale hotel retreat complex attached to them. Both have their perks, and it all depends on your budget.

Saunas

The sauna culture is deeply ingrained in the northern and central European culture, and you can take part in this unique experience.

A trip to the sauna, even if it's your first time, will help you relax and put aside all your tensions and worries.

The heat activates your immune system, and you literally sweat out everything to make you feel lighter at the end of the day.

Different aromatic sauna treatments, nude areas, and special pools make this a separate experience from the common thermal bath mentioned further above.

Yet, most renowned public sauna complexes, which are ultimately also the best option, are attached to a thermal bath, and tickets are usually purchased separately.

Please read up on the Sauna Etiquette.

Wine and Food Wellness

Food and wine wellness is a popular trend that encompasses various types of experiences. It will bring out the gourmet in you!

This can be a trip to a wine region with outstanding food options, a farm-to-table getaway, or a cooking retreat. A feast with quality wine, a walk, or a cycle tour across the region, and you'll feel rejuvenated.

For a trip to a wine region, I recommend heading to Tuscany (Italy), Alsace or Champagne or Bordeaux (France), Mosel (Germany), or Wachau (Austria). Each is known for outstanding wine and a fantastic food culture.

For a farm-to-table experience, book a room in an Italian agriturismo. These are farmers who run certified accommodation experiences. Here you get the best home-produced food and drink. Or head to a Buschenschank in Austria, which are traditional inns that produce and sell their own wine and food.

This establishment will serve you authentic regional specialties and high-quality foods, which you won't find anywhere else.

Look out for cooking courses. Especially Italy and France offer the most rewarding skills, fit for all food lovers.

Digital Detox Retreats

Digital detox retreats come in many shades, but the ultimate aim is to feel based again, rooted in a fast-paced, difficult-to-escape, always-online world.

Think upscale wellness-themed hotels, eco-lodges, a chalet in the mountains, a secluded hut at the beach, a monastery escape, or a themed multi-day retreat.

Disconnecting from the online world ultimately gives you a chance to reconnect with the real world again. This is definitely a skill worth exploring in our fast-paced, busy day-to-day lives.

Pick an experience that suits your needs. The most accessible ones, with the least hassle, are upscale wellness resort hotels, as they offer full board and a themed wellness environment in a unique location.

Medical Health Retreats

Private health retreats, also called medical spas, have a long tradition in countries like Austria and Switzerland.

Several renowned doctors of the last century in the area, such as Franz Xaver Mayr and Dr. Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, created new therapy concepts that are still in use today.

New and old treatments are applied to those suffering from specific health conditions. These medical conditions can be age provoked, illness triggered or accident driven.

What not many know is that you can privately check yourself into one of these medical retreats. A "Kur," as these retreats are known in German, usually takes about 3 weeks. Verify with your insurance if they cover the cost.

Pilgrimage Walks

A pilgrimage walk might not be something that you have ever considered if you think of wellness travel. But wellness travel means so much more: to be well and to find yourself once again.

A prolonged walk with a set destination might just be what you need to feel alive again, and in my book that hits the wellness target.

Against common belief, you don't need to be religious or Christian to walk a pilgrimage path. These pathways are open to everyone, and they are set up in such a way that they are safe for all walking travelers.

You will find accommodations and food places that are geared towards the needs of walking pilgrims along the way, which facilitates your planning and safety.

Therefore, I recommend picking an old, well-known pilgrimage pathway. The set infrastructure is immensely useful after a long day on the road.