Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa
It can be difficult to stay healthy and active when traveling, but your nutrition kick doesn’t have to be put on hold. Whether your goal is to eat healthier or get in touch with your inner Zen, there’s a vacation spot for you; our Forbes Travel Guide team found a handful of hotels that cater to everyone from runners and yogis to vegans and healthy eaters. These 10 resorts will help you stay fit.
For the Yogi
After a massive makeover, Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa in sunny Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (about 25 miles north of San Diego), is back and better than ever—especially for those looking to find their inner yogis. The Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star resort features a beautifully tranquil yoga pavilion, where you can take classes or practice on your own. Choose from various classes daily, ranging from gentle yoga to power yoga, all of which are complimentary. When you want a break from sun salutations, try fitness activities such as boot camp, tennis, spinning and TRX. Maintain your diet by ordering from the hotel’s spa menu, which features light options such as Baja California grilled fish tacos and farmers market crudité with Greek yogurt ranch dip and roasted garlic hummus.
For the Snow Warrior
Perched mid-mountain at Park City’s Deer Valley Resort, Stein Eriksen Lodge Deer Valley is the ideal base for an avid skier, snowboarder or all-around mountaineer. Considering the Five-Star hotel is named after Norwegian Olympic gold medal skier Stein Eriksen, we can’t think of a better place to hit the slopes. Not only do you have ski-in/ski-out access to the 2,026 acres of trails, but the lodge provides a full-service ski locker room and ski valets—meaning you can have your boots heated, check out the weather and trail conditions, and warm up with hot chocolate before your first run. You can also rent skis at the convenient sports shop. Keep in mind that Deer Valley is a skier-only mountain, but the hotel offers shuttle service to Park City, where you can snowboard to your heart’s content.
For the Hiker
In the Four Corners region—where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona all meet—sits Amangiri, blending seamlessly into the arresting desert landscape with towering plateaus and deep canyons. And it’s in those surroundings that you’ll find spectacular hikes. The Four-Star hotel boasts its own trail system in its backyard. Amangiri guides are more than happy to suggest routes depending on your fitness level and interests; the eight trails on the property range from a one-hour beginner hike to a cave to a five-hour advanced option to explore some canyons. The resort also offers daily complimentary one-hour guided hikes, in case you want to get the lay of the land before embarking on your own with a hotel-provided map.
The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel
For the Surfer
Standing atop a 150-foot bluff, The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel is a water enthusiast’s dream vacation. Salt Creek Beach, which sits just below the resort, has some of the best waves in Dana Point, so paddling out is a must. Whether you’re new to surfing and need a lesson or are a seasoned veteran and want to ride some of the best breaks along the Southern California coast, the Four-Star hotel has an activity for you. The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel can even outfit you with wetsuits, surfboards, leashes, wax and anything else you could possibly need. If you aren’t into surfing, get a core workout with a stand-up paddleboarding session.
For the Fitness Fanatic
We’ve all worked out in lousy hotel gyms, where the lack of equipment leads to a less-than-stellar session. For a fitness-focused hotel, check into The Houstonian Hotel, Club and Spa. The Four-Star resort gives you complimentary access to one of Houston’s best health clubs—and you don’t even have to leave the grounds to get there. You’ll find just about everything you could possibly want in a health club: more than 300 cardio and strength-training machines; indoor and outdoor tracks; courts for tennis, racquetball and padel (a hybrid of tennis, racquetball and squash; the club is the home of the U.S. padel team); a cycle studio; and a rock-climbing wall. And if you need motivation, hit one of the 165-plus weekly group exercise classes that range from kickboxing to barre.
For the Health Nut
California Health & Longevity Institute, located at Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, recently partnered with The Ranch at Live Oak in Malibu to make a stay at the serene Los Angeles hotel even healthier. Dubbed The Ranch 4.0, the all-inclusive, four-night wellness retreat combines luxury with well-being. Each day consists of eight to 10 hours of intense exercise (ranging from a four-hour hike in the morning to body-toning classes in the afternoon), with a massage as your reward. Geared to those looking to shed pounds, The Ranch 4.0 puts you on a daily 1,400-calorie diet of vegetarian fare. Of course, it doesn’t sound so bad when it’s served in a private greenhouse setting at the luxurious Four-Star hotel.
For the Nature Lover
It’s Mother Nature at her finest: vibrant foliage in the fall, snow-blanketed mountains in the winter, wildflowers in the late spring and lush greenery in the summer. The Ranch at Rock Creek is a scenic escape for nature lovers—spend the day outdoors, but retire to a luxurious room come nightfall. One of the best parts about this Five-Star Montana resort is that it’s all-inclusive. That means you can explore all that the 6,600-acre ranch has to offer, including horseback riding, fly fishing in Rock Creek and the trout ponds, and mountain biking in the warmer months as well as cross-country skiing and snowmobiling in the winter. All kinds of wildlife (moose, deer, elk, coyotes, wolves, beaver and more) call The Ranch home, which will make you feel that much closer to nature.
For the Tennis Player
One of the top tennis resorts in the world, The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort is a must-hit. Take your pick from two complexes: the year-round Roy Barth Tennis Center or the seasonal West Beach Tennis Club. Whichever you choose, you’ll find plenty of hard and Har-Tru clay courts. Throughout the week, both centers offer a variety of lessons. For more intensity, sign up for a three-day mini camp. Those looking for some one-on-one time can opt for private lessons with pro Roy Barth himself. If you don’t need to brush up on your game, reserve one of the courts. Bonus: Rental equipment is available so you don’t have to lug your racquet through the airport.
For the Golfer
When a hotel overlooks one of the most picturesque holes at one of the most beautiful golf courses the world, it’s hard to say no to a round or two. The Lodge at Pebble Beach hedges the 18th green of Pebble Beach Golf Links, with the Pacific in the distance. Head to the Pebble Beach Golf Academy to work on your swing (though you’ll play on the Peter Hay Golf Course and The Links at Spanish Bay) and score tips from world-renowned pros such as Laird Small and Dan Pasquariello. The Four-Star hotel offers year-round packages that include rounds on Pebble Beach Golf Links, The Links at Spanish Bay and Spyglass Hill Golf Course. And when the U.S. Open returns to the fabled links in 2019, you’ll be able to say that you’ve played Pebble.
For the Runner
Portland, Oregon, is a runners’ city, thanks to its 220-plus miles of trails and popular Portland Marathon. Even if you don’t run the 26.2 miles in October, the city is still a great place to jog, especially when you stay at The Westin Portland. The Forbes-Recommended hotel teamed up with Runner’s World magazine to map out three-, five- and seven-mile runs along the Willamette River for guests. If the weather isn’t cooperating, the third-floor gym will get the job done—the treadmill’s LCD TV helps make the miles pass quicker. And don’t worry about bringing your gear—the hotel lends out New Balance sneakers and running apparel. Come for the Forest Park Marathon on August 16; The Westin sits just about three miles from the start line.
Photos Courtesy of Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa and The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel
