White Mountain
Wellness activities
While there’s no doubt that the mountains are great for sport, with plenty of activities to keep you active on and around the slopes, they’re also the perfect place to relax and connect with nature! And it’s a proven fact: the wide-open spaces of the mountains have real benefits for physical and mental health. So, while you’re here, take the opportunity to recharge your batteries.
What wellness activities are available in the resorts?
If you want to relax after a long day on the slopes, there are plenty of ways to recharge your batteries in the resort. Once you’re there, don’t hesitate to contact the resort’s tourist office to find out about the facilities, activities and wellness areas nearby.
Spas, baths and thermal baths
First of all, you’ll often find centres or places that contain spas and hammams, where you can also get a massage. Ideal for relaxing a body that has been skiing for hours!
Many hotels offer access to their spa areas so you can enjoy the services without necessarily staying there. Other specially dedicated facilities open their doors to you all year round, for a moment of relaxation with a view of the peaks.
If swimming is your idea of relaxation, there are plenty of spas and baths in the resort too! While many of these activities are indoors, they can also be enjoyed outdoors, even in winter.
With warm water and indoor access, it’s impossible to catch a cold. In some spas, there are also wellness centres built close to a hot spring, for 100% natural relaxation.
Aromatherapy and sylvotherapy: 100% natural activities
Mountains and high altitudes are home to many plants that can’t be found anywhere else, and which have beneficial effects on the body.
Wellness centres incorporate them into their treatments, either raw or in the form of essential oils, to relieve aches and pains, for example, or simply for their relaxing effects. This is known as aromatherapy.
And while we’re on the subject of nature and well-being, have you heard of sylvotherapy? This practice consists of taking advantage of the benefits of being surrounded by trees, and is a nature-centred approach.
In the mountains, energies emerge from the trees and this benefits our bodies. You feel less stressed and more in harmony with nature.
To discover the benefits, many resorts have developed this activity by offering special sylvotherapy outings.
Yoga in the mountains, an activity for body and mind
To free the body and clear the mind, yoga is the essential wellness activity. But snow yoga is also practised in the mountains! Whether on your own with a teacher or in a group class, many resorts offer an introduction to snow yoga.
All you need is a yoga mat, a warm but comfortable outfit and some snow around you, and you’re ready to go. Practising yoga on the snow allows you to disconnect completely in the heart of nature, for an unusual but inevitably relaxing experience…
Discover all the ways to practise yoga in the mountains!
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Wellness resorts
The National Association of Mayors of Mountain Resorts (ANMSM) classifies French ski resorts according to a number of specific characteristics. There are wellness resorts, offering a variety of services in facilities specially dedicated to mountain wellness.
Ideal for holidaymakers looking to combine skiing and relaxation, you’ll easily find spas, jacuzzis, hammams and massages of all kinds. The perfect opportunity to combine snow activities with fitness treatments in top-quality wellness centres.
There are also spa resorts, such as Ax 3 Domaines in the Pyrenees, where you can enjoy a wide range of spa treatments. Discover all the wellness resorts in all the French massifs:
The benefits of the mountains for the body and mind
It’s no myth: serious scientific studies have shown that mountains have positive effects on our bodies. In fact, altitude leads to hypoxia (a drop in oxygen pressure) and an overproduction of red blood cells. In a way, mountains give our bodies a boost, without any risk to our health.
At altitude, we are also more exposed to natural light and store more vitamin D, which boosts the immune system. Altitude also has an effect on blood pressure, which drops in the mountains and helps prevent cardiovascular disease.
The various wellness activities coupled with the natural effects of the mountains make the French massifs ideal destinations for relaxing and looking after your body and mind.