Far from the Madding Crowd

Kamalaya Sanctuary and Holistic Spa Resort’s unique natural setting is a perfect fit for its intriguing philosophy of wellness.

The healing energy that pervades this beachfront hideaway, sheltered in lush jungle amid a landscape of majestic giant boulders, is said to come from the cave at its heart, once used by Buddhist monks as a place of meditative retreat.

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Although the monks are long gone, their collective aura of peaceful contemplation, spiritual healing and gentle way of life lives on throughout this serene island retreat. The essence of Kamalaya is expressed in its name – Kamal (Lotus) and Alaya (Realm), an ancient symbol for the growth and unfolding of the human spirit.

Wellness and a vital connection to nature are fundamental to the Kamalaya experience and integrated into every aspect of the resort.

Accommodation, hotel facilities and the business as a whole have all grown around this, carefully expressing the original philosophy mapped out under the vision of founders John and Karina Stewart - to allow guests to slow down in this relaxing natural ambience and so support an organic sense of community to promote heartfelt human connections.

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Karina Stewart

It all sets Kamalaya apart - far from being a hospitality business that added spa and wellness to its offerings, this original vision for Kamalaya came from their backgrounds as wellness professionals.

John lived the life of a yogi monk in the Himalayas in India for 17 years and his wife Karina, a Master of Traditional Chinese Medicine, was brought up with Asian influences of meditation, yoga and natural healing from an early age. With extensive experience of eastern and western medical and healing knowledge, she’s personally designed all of Kamalaya’s wellness programmes - there’s 13 to choose from, including Detox, Stress & Burnout, Healthy Lifestyle, Yoga Synergy and Emotional Balance.

What’s unusual is they can’t be defined as specific to one particular school or style of treatment. They’re all drawn from ancient Asian healing traditions, such as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and Ayurveda, holistic western approaches like Naturopathy and Homeopathy, and even from current medical research.

The real beauty lies in how these treatments and therapies from various traditions are pulled together and combined to complement each other in tailored wellness programmes for individual guests.

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Contemplation with tea in the trees

These programmes are at once holistic, gentle, nurturing and sustainable; they all convey lifestyle experiences designed to inspire, empower and motivate Kamalaya’s guests to continue their healing

journeys after they leave.

But during 2018 Kamalaya will make a change of course from individual programmes to incorporate a series of Life Enhancement Retreats, with a maximum of 12 participants, so specific areas of interest can be explored with support from likeminded people.

They include self-discovery retreats hosted by Karina Stewart and a Ying & Yang Yoga Immersion led by internationally-renowned yoga teacher Simon Low.

Surely the monks would approve.

To discover more: kamalaya.com