Spread across 160 pristine hectares of the Gold Coast’s Cumbrian Valley, Eden Health Retreat is one of the southern hemisphere’s most sumptuous sanctuaries.
“I do occasionally miss a great wine list and a pudding,” admits Shona Philps, the retreat’s general manager, “but driving through the gates of Eden, with the lush green rolling fields, the purple jacaranda canopy, and the darling little Shetland ponies waddling around, it will never fail to make me feel like the luckiest GM in the world!”
The retreat’s tailored programmes – enjoyed over multi-day packages – cover everything from life coaching to fitness to nutrition and naturopathy. First-class facilities include a heated swimming pool, sauna, gym, and a spa that offers a range of massages and treatments. Yoga and pilates classes can be enjoyed inside or out – where also awaits natural mud baths, a tennis court, a massive flying fox, and walks that snake through World Heritage-listed rainforest. Guest cabins dotted about the valley slopes allow for soothing views across that rustling forest to the mistakable sounds of geckos and birdsong, which can all be cloaked in a spectacular mist or beneath searing sunshine and skies of brilliant blue – often all occurring within the same day.
“The last few years have seen a rise in taking care of our health and wellbeing,” adds Shona. “Eden has made health and wellness more accessible to a wider age range, and certainly more men than ever before.”
And it’s a wellness journey that Shona has also experienced firsthand.
“Five years ago, I was as far from a health retreat manager as you could imagine,” she tells Verve. “I weighed 110kg and was slowly self-destructing with food and overworking. Running luxury boutique hotels was thrilling and fast paced, but I wasn’t taking care of myself. Almost at breaking point, I made a few small changes and over a three-year period, lost 55kg.”
Bringing to the role her own life experience – both the weight loss and the end of a 20-year marriage, “I’m 40 now, I got married young” – has, she says, “allowed me to meet our beautiful guests in the space they are in”.
Is there a typical Eden guest?
“Eden has a few core values that we live and die by. One such being ‘connection’. We joke that you will always find your people at Eden! I believe that’s down to the diverse nature of the guests we welcome through our gates. It includes heads of industry, mums and dads, business owners, besties travelling together, and high-end travellers looking for a unique experience.”
The longest-running health retreat in Australia, Eden offers at least 10 classes a day which all play a pivotal role in its philosophy of nurturing through restoration. No guest is obliged to do anything, but they can choose from the likes of guided walks, frisbee golf, and boxing or pottery classes. Cooking demos are also on the menu.
As for the guest menu, the retreat’s head chef and naturopath work with local producers and biodynamic farms to concoct seasonal, predominantly organic dishes designed to promote wellness and reduce cravings, while tending to any dietary requirements and weight loss goals. Alcohol and caffeine are off the table.
“Every retreat homes in on different aspects of wellness, but I love how Eden has such a nurturing, grounded and a approachable aspect to health,” says Ellice Degiovanni, who operates brain-changing movement education sessions. “It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach, which I think is so important as everyone is different, requiring differing elements in terms of their health.”
“The passion and authenticity they show for Eden and everything we offer our guests cannot be found in any other health retreat.”
Can you tell us about your classes?
“They centre around functional neurology which concerns how to move the body in certain way to activate certain areas of the brain, and how the brain signals can affect how the body performs and feels day to day. Following an assessment of a guest’s movement, pain, health or mobility concerns, I can create a specified plan that will hopefully have them walking away from the session feeling more empowered to implement simple, long-term changes into their daily routines.”
Shona describes the 90-strong Eden team of experts and facilitators as “a resource beyond compare”.
“Each team member walks the talk and loves sharing their knowledge with our guests,” she says. “Want to know how to sleep a little better? Blair will sort you out. Always believed that your balance is terrible? Ellice has a plan for you. Need more movement that’s easy? Cain is your fellow.”
From those serving lunch to the masseuses to the people making the beds “all have a life experience and are keen to share it”. “The passion and authenticity they show for Eden and everything we offer our guests cannot be found in any other health retreat,” continues Shona.
“Another thing I love about Eden is how the practitioners and classes encourage the same empowerment among the guests,” adds Ellice. “Because knowledge without knowing how to implement it into your life is just words on paper. Upon departure, guests have been given great strategies, techniques, and tools to feel confident about the future of their health and wellbeing.”
Shona says that it’s their hope that every guest leaves with a feeling of having been on a journey of self-discovery: “We hope they have had that magical moment of reflection, be it understanding what isn’t serving them currently, or finding an activity that they wish to do after Eden, or just simply discovering the joy of playing again.”
The personal connections that are the general manager’s favourite part of her day.
“I have been fortunate to have some of the most profound stories shared with me by Eden guests and they have absolutely made me a kinder, more empathetic human,” she says.
On a more practical level, Shona says that digital detoxing is an essential part of the overall programme.
Shona finishes the chat by revealing some exciting developments including a just-finished $10 million renovation that include a new wellness hub, Premier Double Cabins, and new treatment huts overlooking the valley.
“Our owner, the philanthropist Robert Christie, was a guest of Eden eight times before buying it in 2002, and he remains as dedicated to the core values of connection, digital detox, and health as ever,” she adds. “Working alongside Robert has been exhilarating and I can give you a cheeky hint by saying that there are plans to craft multiple programmes with some specific retreats and goals in the not-too-distant future as part of our ongoing commitment to being at the forefront of the health and wellness industry. So, watch this space!”
