Euphoria Retreat review by Klaudia

Healing Holidays Wellness Advisor, Klaudia, shares her lowdown on her recent stay at Euphoria.

Our journey began in Athens. Usually, a 3-hour journey seems like a daunting prospect, but we were greeted and made to feel incredibly welcome by Vasillos our driver. He provided refreshments whilst we relaxed in spacious comfort found within their Euphoria branded people carrier.

The journey itself takes you on long winding motorways through the Greek countryside, blessed with stunning mountains amongst lush green valleys. Our journey of calming relaxation had already begun before we knew it.

EUPHORIA RETREAT

As you approach the retreat, you are taken through small ancient villages, finishing with Mystras where Euphoria sits gloriously on top of, overlooking the surrounding villages below. As you arrive at Euphoria, you see how fresh and modern the brickwork and finish is. Yet the Byzantine architecture gives it the feeling that you’ve come back centuries in time. All through the relatively small Resort, you find semicircular archways leading you to your room, Spa or restaurant feeling like you’re going somewhere with intent and purpose, surrounded by the history that precedes it.

Designed with the Spa and Restaurant as the centre focal points, you are never more than a minute away from your time to relax or share a meal. Rooms are situated either side of the Spa, entering through Byzantine styled walkways.

The retreat has a relaxed feel, brought from its attention to detail with design, to the surrounding valleys and forest that give a real sense of peacefulness in a very quiet part of Greece that is so rich in history. From your room to the pool, to the restaurant, you will find a view that takes your breath away and deeply rests your inner soul.

The staff are very attentive to your needs and yet not intrusive to your experience. The main goal of Euphoria is wellbeing, and this is achieved from the word go by listening to what you would like out of the experience and delivering through their carefully thought out treatment list in order to help balance the Meridian of your body.

THE MASTERPIECE SPA

The Spa itself is a masterpiece in design. A spiral staircase takes you up 3 levels where you will find relaxation rooms, yoga practices, treatment rooms and their pièce de résistance, their Sphere pool resting gently, awaiting your presence as you float gently inside, your ears slightly under the surface of the water listening to the sounds of the ocean (whale sounds and relaxation music are played underwater) Once you’ve found peace, the outside pool awaits, opening up into the sunshine where a 19meter pool overlooks the valley below and the forest above.

THE UNIQUE ACCOMMODATION

The rooms vary from size to views. We stayed in an Executive Deluxe room which was spacious and a large bathroom. Each room category is different and offers something unique.

Whether it’s a Classic room with a large outdoor area or a Deluxe Superior room with better views than some of the room categories above. Each room has a mosaic tile wall and amenity kits to go with it. Bathrobes, slippers and toiletries all with 5* comfort. The beds are king-size and offer the comfort that will have you sleeping for 10 hours straight!

THE SPA TREATMENTS

The spa team were excellent. You will naturally want to go for the Spa experience and their knowledge and expertise made me feel comfortable with every treatment. Their Hamman is a great experience and the deep tissue massage is thoroughly recommended for anyone that wants to get the knots out of everyday stresses. Other faculties include a gym, Salt room, Sauna, Steam room, California Hot Tub and a cold plunge pool for those feeling brave! I had Natalia twice and is clearly multi-skilled in her practice. She was excellent throughout my Hamman and Deep tissue massage.

HEALTHY EATING

The restaurant on site is the Gaia restaurant. Greek for “Earth” and has a wide selection of healthy options. The menu is designed to keep with a healthy wellbeing theme, although you can still treat yourself to steak and wine in the evening. Meals are served 3 times a day, with outdoor seating recommended for the views! Those on a programme can find their smoothies/juices labelled with their names in the relaxation room on level one.

ENJOY THE OUTSIDE

Each day you have the option to take part in their daily activities. We chose the morning Hike which was a total of around 4 miles and took us through the tracks to a hidden church! In a deeply religious country, this was a lovely touch and is carved into a cave within the mountains near Euphoria so if you get the chance to take part in the beginners/intermediate hike its really something special. Other activities include Yoga, meditation, TRX training and for a fee they even have nutritional classes. The property even has hybrid mountain/road bikes to explore the local area. We took ours to Sparta! A 25-minute ride away and very useful if you want to explore some of the history within the area.

WHO IS EUPHORIA IS PERFECT FOR?

Euphoria is certainly a place for anyone that wants to go and completely relax and de-stress. In an area so quiet, you find looking out into the distance valleys an incredibly calming experience. The property is for solo travellers and couples. We found as a couple we spoke to a lot of the solo travellers and was a great place to eat and talk together.

The retreat is a phone-free zone for the spa and restaurant, but we found this was abused by a lot of the clients, so if they want a stricter approach, this could be enforced a little more.

PEOPLE WHO MADE MY STAY

Special thanks to Carmine, Kelly, Vasillos, Stef, Anastasia, Marina, Maria and Diane for making our stay a wonderful experience. If you want calm and relaxation, look no further than Euphoria.

INSIDER TIP

The Leoncini building sits on top of the restaurant and is the only remaining part of the retreat from 1820 and offers the best views and some of the best uniquely styled rooms. It’s also the rooms closest to the restaurant and spa!