Forest Bathing UK – Top Ten Experiences, Retreats, Tours and DIY Days Out
Forest Bathing UK: Top Ten Experiences, Retreats, Tours and DIY Days Out.
With a forest bathing garden clinching gold at the Chelsea Flower Show’s Best Show Garden by first-time entrant Ula Maria, it’s a timely reminder to flit to the forests once more. Any forest in the UK will do, but here are some tempting arboreal suggestions.
SCOTLAND – Forest Bathing UK
Lanrick Estate – Take to the canopy in luxurious treehouse accommodation in Perthshire, a region of Scotland also known as Big Tree Country, the ideal spot for DIY forest bathing. The treehouses are named after local birds that guests may spot during their stay. Walking trails are available on the estate itself, and the Trossachs National Park is a five minute drive away. After spending time in the forest, heat up in the estate’s woodland sauna. Flycatcher, Doune, Perthshire.
An Darach Forest Therapy – At An Darach Forest Therapy in Strontian, certified guides and practitioners offer scheduled Public Guided Forest Bathing walks (£20 per person; last between two and three hours) or bespoke packages in the Scottish Highlands. Locations include the Ardery Woods, the Ariundle Oakwoods, Phemie’s Trail, the Strontian Community Woodland or the Ardtornish Estate. Stay at Kilcamb Lodge Hotel, Strontian, Argyll.
Galloway Forest Park – Combine the magic of the forest with stargazing. These Scottish woodlands experience notably low levels of light pollution so, on a clear night, over 7000 stars and planets can be visible. Three visitor centres provide information points to help guests spot and identify stars and planets, and Dark Sky Rangers run tours and events. Stay at Creebridge House Hotel, Newton Stewart, Wigtownshire.
ENGLAND – Forest Bathing UK
5 Forest Holidays, Blackwood Forest – Forest Holidays offer forest bathing at its Blackwood Forest, just an hour from London, and a haven for beech trees across its 270 acres. Forest Bathing experiences run every Tuesday and last an hour. Sixty cabins are peppered through the forest site, and hot tubs come as standard. Blackwood Forest, Winchester, Hampshire.
Whinlatter Forest – Try family forest bathing in the Lake District with a private session tailored for you and your mini-bathers. The focus can be on sensory games and simple fun, or a meditative calming approach can be taken. The experience includes a tea ceremony (or hot chocolate and marshmallows) and runs for 2.5-3 hours. Stay at Armathwaite Hall, Keswick, Cumbria which offers its own ‘Forest and Moon Bathing Experiences’ too.
Lime Wood and Herb House Retreats – Lime Wood hosts a range of rewilding experiences in the New Forest. Choose ‘Wild Wanderings’ one day retreat, which includes forest bathing, pilates, breath work and sound healing. Lime Wood Hotel, Lyndhurst, Hampshire.
The Tawny – Accommodation at The Tawny is sprawled across the 70-acre rewilded estate in boathouses, treehouses and shepherd’s huts. Hotel experiences include Forest Bathing, with The Tawny providing the natural backdrop.. Return to the luxury of a heated swimming pool in the grounds, while all the interiors were designed to bring a sense of the outdoors in. The Tawny Hotel, Consall, Staffordshire.
Cabilla Cornwall Dirty Weekend – Help rebuild the forest, taking part in restoration activities, on a ‘Dirty Weekend’ as part of Cabillla’s temperate rainforest expansion project. The experience also includes guided rainforest walks, a sound bath, yoga class, woodland sauna relaxation and cocktails round the campfire. Shared and private accommodation is available in Koyt cabins that feature log burners, Egyptian cotton linen and Bramley toiletries. Cabilla, Bodmin, Cornwall.
WALES – Forest Bathing UK
Forest Retreats – Forest Retreats in Wales run wellbeing and yoga escapes that include Forest Bathing. The two-night ‘Revive and Shine Retreat’ includes holistic therapies, forest bathing and sound therapy, alongside yurt or ‘room with a view’ accommodation. It’s also possible to bring your own tent. Forest Retreats, Tintern, Wye Valley.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Slieve Gullion Forest Park – Attend a Summer Solstice Forest Bathing Retreat in County Armagh. This three hour celebration of the Celtic midsummer on 22 June includes forest bathing, a tea ceremony, wild elderflower cordial, local shortbread and Irish strawberries. Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice Forest Bathing will run on 21 September and 21 December respectively. £32 a ticket. Stay at Killeavey Castle Estate, Newry, County Armagh.
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