Spa+Clinic Team Multi award-winning Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat’s environmental and organic focus continues to grow with its nomination as a finalist for World’s Best Eco Spa Award 2016 (a division of the prestigious World Spa Awards), to be announced in Italy in September.
(Tip from SPA+CLINIC: To vote for this Aussie legend, oi oi oi, click here.)
To mark the achievement, Gwinganna has released a new date for a unique three-night retreat, Organic Living, with its popular organic gardener and food specialist Shelley Pryor.
Over the past 10 years, Shelley has become an integral part of Gwinganna, sharing her vast knowledge on gardening at home, organic foods and medicinal uses for herbs.
The retreat will explore a range of ideas relating to growing and using organic produce with tips for both the garden and the kitchen.
Shelley has previously worked with Australia’s iconic cook Maggie Beer on specialty retreats at Gwinganna and now offers private sessions for guests along with her regular morning garden walks on the property.
She recently compiled a special chapter for the retreat’s new recipe book, A Taste of Gwinganna, which gives information and instructions on how to use and make some key healthy foods.
“Having the largest organic gardens of any Australian retreat means that Shelley’s role at Gwinganna is vital to our ongoing sustainability efforts and Ecotourism certification,” says marketing and public relations director Tracy Willis.
“The gardens are constantly evolving and expanding plus a program to replant fruit trees in the orchard will further enhance the variety and health of these trees.”
Shelley is a dynamic presenter with over 25 years’ experience, described by US-based Organic Spa magazine as having “the magnetism of Mary Poppins”.
She also manages Gwinganna’s chickens and bee hives. The chickens help recycle food scraps and improve soil quality, while the bees help increase pollination of crops, flowers and plants and also produce honey for Gwinganna.
The retreat is available for one date only in 2016, Thursday, October 6-Sunday, October 9.
The package includes three nights’ accommodation, specialty sessions with Shelley, all activities, delicious organic meals and plenty of time to relax in the stunning spa.
Gwinganna, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in March, is situated in a hidden region of the Tallebudgera Valley on Queensland’s Gold Coast. It sits high on a plateau, surrounded by ocean and valley views, with more than 200 hectares to explore.
It was the first Australian spa to win Best Global Luxury Destination Spa in the 2015 World Luxury Spa Awards.
But back to the World’s Best Eco Spa Award 2016, where Gwinganna is in elite company indeed, along with a fellow Aussie: The Spa at Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley, NSW. Other finalists are:
- Crassula Eco Spa at Cornelia De luxe Resort (Turkey)
- Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs Resort and Spa (New Mexico, US)
- Post Ranch Spa at Post Ranch Inn (California, US)
- Six Senses Spa at Con Dao (Vietnam)
- Six Senses Spa at Ninh Van Bay (Vietnam)
- The Thalasso SPA at Tivoli Ecoresort Praia do Forte (Brazil)
- Una Spa at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel (Peru)
- Waterfall Spa at Blancaneaux Lodge (Belize)
