I’m shivering in my denim shorts as I board my evening flight from Luton; the balmy UK summer has turned dank, and sleet hangs in the air as we ascend the staircase. With a deep sense of satisfaction, I remind myself that within just four hours I’ll have whisked myself away to a tropical Balinese-inspired spa retreat, with all the essential trimmings bar the collateral jetlag. Forty minutes from Malaga airport, Shanti-Som Wellbeing Retreat beckons those in search of a peace and tranquillity that make London’s sooty tube platforms feel like a bad dream.
Tucked away in Marbella’s lush mountains, Shanti-Som’s closest neighbour is the village of Monda, a quaint, whitewashed town at the foot of the Sierra de las Nieves. Shanti-Som’s grounds are dotted with technicolour flora and an impressive range of palm trees that swoosh in unison with the breeze. The breeze is a welcome companion; the Spanish sun is less forgiving, with UV levels hovering between 9 and 11 throughout our early June stay.
There’s an undeniable likeness to southeast Asian hotels as soon as you set foot on Shanti-Som’s grounds. Everything from the scattered, life-sized Buddha statues to the lofty reception’s marble floors and vast thatched ceilings pays homage to Southeast Asian spa design. There’s a spatial flow to the property that confirms its status as a contemporary sanctuary. But the air isn’t muggy, you haven’t lost two days to travel, and Marbella is only a twenty-minute drive away if the overwhelming zen of the place gets a little much.
Shanti-Som’s ethos is rejuvenation and relaxation without pretentiousness. On this promise it absolutely delivers. Guests can select any of seven packages for their stay, for a minimum of three days. I choose the Pilates package, which includes one Pilates class and one yoga class a day, as well as a private Reformer class, and opt-in wellness sessions. These daily, mindful activities range from sound healing and guided meditation to ice baths, breathwork and mountain hikes.
There are morning and evening options for all classes, and your agenda can be rearranged at the last minute as often as you’d like. If you lose track of upcoming spa treatments and yoga appointments (it’s a tough life), the hotel staff are always one step ahead, readily handing guests printouts of their latest agenda as they breeze past reception.
This is the type of hotel where guests waft in and out of the communal spaces in pristine white dressing gowns and slippers. Really, anything else would be considered overdressed. Spa treatments are available for booking, and the quality of the rooms, facilities and treatments solidifies Shanti-Som’s commitment to understated luxury. Lymphatic facial drainage, hot stone massages and LPG Endermology are just some highlights of the extensive spa menu. Therapist Alva’s deft touch elevates every treatment.
Yoga and Pilates classes are the flagship experiences here, the only vague structure around which days revolve, alongside the three daily meals – which I’ll come onto later. Audrey and Angelo are particularly sage and inspiring instructors. I’m inspired to continue Pilates after sessions with both; with luck, you’ll be one of only two or three students per class, or even the only one if your chakras really align (like mine did one day – poor Audrey).
All fifteen rooms are scattered around the central courtyard, arguably the hotel’s epicentre, where al fresco dining takes place at each mealtime. In this sense, nothing is more than a minute’s walk away. The most strenuous activity is remembering to collect your freshly laundered towel en route to the pool, which lies an ever-so-slightly longer stone’s throw from the hotel’s atrium. Or attempting to recall which day of the week it is after half an hour of om-ing in the pavilion.
The bedrooms are clean, simple and comfortable, featuring mattresses and pillows that threaten to swallow you up. Blackout blinds lead to a daily moment of confusion when the alarm goes off at 8:30, fifteen minutes before morning yoga, and the bright, tiled bathrooms are expansive and open plan, boasting an enormous rain shower and an array of luscious Typology products to choose from.
Aside from the spa, courtyard and outdoor yoga pavilion, the main area of subdued activity is the pool patio. The distinctly cold pool offers a welcome reprieve from the sun’s intensity. Racing to reserve sunloungers is explicitly banned, and even at full capacity the hotel always feels half-empty in the most indulgent of ways, so guests are safe from the familiar anxiety of competitive holidaying.
Food is where Shanti-Som’s promise of wellness without deprivation becomes most obvious. It begins with the buffet breakfast, which looks like the physical manifestation of a Deliciously Ella cookbook. Overnight oats, three types of chia pudding, banana bread, granola, tropical fruits – perfectly ripe, always – sit alongside savoury toast toppings. Grated tomato, smashed avocado and varieties of hummus, cheeses and meats make a strong lineup, and eggs are made to order. Vegan options and alternatives abound; everything feels designed with health and satiety in mind.
Lunch is an equally colourful buffet situation. All you can eat, but in a classy way. There are at least four types of hearty salad, three types of dip – sundried tomato pesto, caramelised onion and goat’s cheese, and spiced corn and lime were just some of our favourites – a range of breads and always a soup on offer. You’ll never see the same dish twice within your stay, which is a shame, since some of them were downright delicious.
Luckily, I snapped some photos for future summer BBQ inspiration. Naturally, there’s a healthy dessert to finish off each lunchtime. But these aren’t ‘healthy’ beetroot brownies that actually taste of baked dirt; these are sophisticated, nutritionally dense dishes that disguise their healthiness with flavour and texture.
Finally, guests choose their dinner options while enjoying their lunch. There are just two options per course, and three courses, every evening. Wine and other drinks are available; the retreat isn’t too virtuous. Guests happily tuck into a tipple or two at dinnertime, in part thanks to the excellent value of alcohol here.
A glass of Chardonnay or a beer costs around £3, and bottles begin at roughly £20 – a welcome reminder that Shanti-Som’s version of wellness doesn’t require total abstinence. Of course, there’s an always-on extra healthy menu, featuring all manner of spirulina smoothies, cacao elixirs and ad hoc bowls of bone broth for good measure.
After several days at Shanti-Som, the pace of real life is hard to recall. For somewhere of this calibre, Shanti-Som still manages to feel both indulgent and refreshingly unshowy. There’s no judgement for not making your 8am meditation, or for not leaving the hotel grounds for seven days. Guests are like-minded and friendly, without over-egging it. It’s White Lotus without the inter-guest politics.
That’s not to say the outside world holds no appeal. One evening, we reluctantly swap dressing gowns for proper clothes and head into nearby Puerto Banús for dinner at Restaurant Samna, a newly opened Mediterranean-Middle Eastern restaurant that thankfully doesn’t spoil our zen.
The deep blue tones, gentle lighting and airy interiors feel a world away from Marbella’s usual flashiness. In fact, perhaps a little indoctrinated by this point, I found myself thinking it would make a rather good yoga studio; the wave-like ceiling installation would provide a calming focal point while attempting a wobbly tree pose.
The food is equally considered. Local Andalusian ingredients meet Middle Eastern flavours in a menu built around sharing. Smoky aubergine carpaccio arrives topped with feta, popcorn and rose petals; the spiral design of the dish is almost too pretty to disturb. Moroccan short rib cigars are crisp, rich and deeply comforting, paired with a silky tahini and aubergine dip.
Elsewhere, sweet tomato consommé accompanies rich red tuna belly layered over crisp potato pavé. But it was dessert that stole the show: a white and dark chocolate ganache with chestnut cream, rosemary toffee and shards of homemade chocolate. We were still talking about it in the taxi back to Shanti-Som.
Returning afterwards only reinforced its appeal. A few hours of excellent food and a change of scene were a welcome reminder that Marbella is on the doorstep, but slipping back into the retreat’s quiet rhythm felt even more rewarding.
As I make my final swoosh towards reception to hand in my beloved dressing gown, a second skin by this point, I’m left with a quiet sense of peace and admiration for a property that has mastered the balance between wellness and indulgence.
@shantisomretreat | shantisom.com
LLanos de Purla Km 22 Carretera, A-355, 29110 Monda, Málaga, Spain
