Holistic Hideaways

Holistic Hideaways

A place to stay can be as simple as a clean room and cable TV. Or, it can completely transform your life. The Berkshires area has become known for holistic retreats, places that send you home with the ultimate souvenir: a new-and-improved you, with a refreshed spirit, revitalized body, and healthier habits that can last a lifetime. Here are two places you might like to try.

The Berkshires' outpost of Canyon Ranch (800/742-9000. www.canyonranch.com) in Lenox couldn't be more elegantly old-fashioned; the famous spa is set in Bellefontaine mansion, a 1897 replica of Le Petit Trianon in Versailles. Looks can be deceiving, though. This holistic spa is home to a state-of-the-art, 100,000-square-foot fitness center, with the latest classes and the best equipment—perfect for gym-junkies. Choose from among more than 40 fitness classes per day, plus lifestyle management workshops and private consultations with wellness experts in the field of medicine, nutrition, behavior, and physiology. You can change your life in three days (truly), while trying new fitness techniques, eating great food (even chocolate sauce, craftily made from white grape juice and cocoa), and enjoying the Berkshires countryside on hikes and paddling excursions.

Who cares what your body looks like if your personal life is a shambles? The Option Institute (800/714-2779. www.option.org) in Sheffield, is all about learning to make emotional choices that enhance your life experience. Founded in 1983 by author Barry Neil Kaufman (Happiness is a Choice and Samahria Lyte Kaufman, the Option Institute is based on the premise that emotions like misery, fear, anger, and distress are optional, not inevitable. Personal growth workshops are designed to help participants develop tools that will improve the quality of their relationships, which leads to a happier life. "Energizing" and "empowering" are words used by happy fans to describe their experience with the Option Institute. Participants stay in rustic guesthouses, and eat veggie meals served family-style.