Body Holiday St Lucia
Wellness is a real buzz word at the moment. From small things like running yourself a lovely bath to larger, full on wellness holidays, it seems like everyone is paying more attention to their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. I am lucky enough to have been on a number of these so called ‘wellness’ trips and thought I’d review them so you guys can make an informed choice for your own personal trips!
First up is Body Holiday in St Lucia. This is a destination and resort that had been on my wishlist for as long as I can remember and let me tell you…it did not disappoint. Daily spa treatments, high octane classes, slow yoga flows, walks in the beautiful surroundings and soooo much nourishing food. I have been a few times and always at the start of the year and can confirm it is a great way to banish those January blues.
GETTING THERE 6/10
Body Holiday is located up near Rodney Bay which is sadly quite a drive from the airport meaning you get off your long flight and back into another vehicle for a near-on 2 hour drive. Body Holiday do their best to make this as pain free as possible by meeting you at the airport with snacks and a nice cold flannel and bottle of water. You then embark on the 2 hour bumpy and loooooong drive up to the resort. There are both helicopter and speed boat options however I have not done these so cannot comment other than that your luggage cannot travel with you so whilst you get there faster….your luggage is coming by road!
ARRIVAL 9/10
Now this is where the experience really starts. You arrive at the resort and the lovely concierge team are there to open the car doors for you and welcome you personally by name with a refreshing wellness shot. You are taken straight to your rooms very closely followed by your luggage and asked to take passports etc to reception later which is a nice touch as by this point it’s been a long journey and you just want to get to your room! If you have flown from the UK it is evening time and dinner is calling!
Another nice touch is that when you are a returning customer they make a big deal to acknowledge this and say ‘welcome home miss shaw’ which makes you feel a little special!
ACCOMMODATION 7/10
The rooms at Body Holiday are spacious and simple. I think they are made based on knowing that people will not be spending much time there due to the number of activities on offer etc. They are definitely showing signs or wear and tear and could do with some refurbishment but everything works, the shower is decent and the beds are super comfy. Each room has a kettle, a Nespresso machine and they are not shy about giving out the pods, a fridge filled with iced water which is replenished daily and if you ask for it they will also provide fresh and plant based milk in the fridge.
Amenities wise, there is a large fruit plate provided as well as a note from the GM. They do a great turndown service including a different herbal tea each evening and some little sweet snacks.
FOOD AND BEVERAGE
The resort offers a few different areas for food and drink which do vary their menus and offerings so you can be sure you get a variety of delicious food throughout your stay.
Cariblue
This is what I would call the ‘main’ restaurant. It is a real hib of the resort and does breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast and lunch are both served buffet style and dinner is A la carte with a rotation of 4 different menus and a St Lucian buffet thrown in there one evening.
BREAKFAST 9/10
This is my fave meal of a holiday and the buffet here is fab! They have all the usual suspects, the only criticism is that it is the same every day but there are so many options that this doesn’t really matter:
Fruit, yoghurt, granola, overnight oats, all sorts of toppings and condiments.
A whole cold, savoury section including salad, avocado and cream cheese.
A bakery section including breads (inc GF and Vegan), pastries, energy balls, cakes, energy bars.
A hot section with traditional offerings like beans, hash browns, sausages, bacon but also some Caribbean specialities.
An egg, pancake and waffle station being prepared especially for you a la minute.
Juices and wellness shots as well as coconut water
Coffees are waitress served straight to your table and they offer both decaff and plant based milks.
LUNCH 8/10
The lunch buffet comes out pretty much as the breakfast one disappears and is a great selection of dishes. They have a cold, salad section which is the same every day but is super extensive and probably has about 50 items for you to build your own salad with. They then have a hot section with different things every day; always some sort of meat, some sort of fish and a veggie dish. They don’t have a regular vegan hot offering at lunch but the salad bar is so huge that this doesn’t matter. They also have a huge dessert buffet with fruit, lots of little canape sized cheesecake/brownie/spinge cake type things, an ice cream station with different flavours every day and lots of toppings and a hot pudding of the day. The fave with my family is the chocolate saucy hot pudding and as of writing this - choc pudding day is a Tuesday ;) It is also worth noting you can take your plate from here to anywhere else to eat such as the beach or the Paviliion beach bar.
DINNER 6/10
Dinner at Cariblou is an a la carte affair and they have 4 different menus that they rotate meaning you don’t have to have the same options every night if you choose to dine here regularly. There is also a separate vegan menu which you can ask to see throughout the day and they do ask for a pre-order from. We usually make a reservation as there are 5 of us but I have seen plenty of couples walk in and get a table without a specific time reservation.
The a la carte menus usually include 3 options for each course and they are modest portions with some quite high end options including lobster. They bring bread for the table which can be replenished if you ask and they also include a sorbet palate cleanser in every meal. The downsides of the experience are that the communciation re the vegan pre-order seems to be a bit inconsistent as to whether it has got to the kitchen or not. When I asked for a vegan option on the evening I was literally given a plate of lettuce, cherry tomatoes and cucumber which was not a sufficient main course! It also does feel slightly rushed and there are some grumpy servers however the food in general is really tasty and its a nice indoor/outdoor space to enjoy your evening meal
Overall, Cariblue is a great hub and offers some fab food - its worth just making sure they know any dietary requirements from day one of your trip so they are adhered to throughout. They also have some super grumpy staff whom you will identify early on and its easy to avoid them as most staff are lovely and super helpful!
The Pavillion beach bar/The Clubhouse 8/10
This space is based centrally and on the beach between Cariblue and the wellness bar. It opens a little later in the day but serves coffee, cocktails, mocktails etc from 10am. You can get lunch here and they have a proper pizza oven so have a daily special of pizza; pasta and salad as well as a staple menu of simple lunch dishes. If you prefer, you can also take your buffet plate from Cariblue in to this space.
The lunch is a la carte but then moves seamlessly in to afternoon tea which is a buffet option with an ice cream cart and stays open over cocktail hour as the sun goes down meaning you can enjoy some snacks at this time.
In the evening, The Pavillion varies its offering; some nights it is a la carte of a quite mediterranean themed menu inc pastas and some lovely fresh fish dishes. They also have themed nights in here which tend to be buffet style. Some of the themes are BBQ night and curry night. Every buffet offered throughout the hotel is always super plentiful and very easy to find GF and vegan options. It is definitely worth booking a table for these nights as they get busy! This space turns in to the Clubhouse bar in the evenings and always has some sort of entertainment whether it be a live band, a DJ or the weekly white party.
The Wellness Cafe 8/10
This is located at the far end of the resort and is a cute, small space with a real focus on wellness. You can get breakfast here which is a la carte and they have a wide range of juices, smoothies and funky lattes. The Wellness cafe is open all day and has a self service section filled with energy balls and a variety of baked goods many of which are vegan and/or gluten free. They also do a la carte lunches of bento boxes, big salads and wraps. Service is pretty slow here and the offering is small and niche but if its the type of thing you like, its great and its a good people watching spot especially when people are doing aqua aerobics in the adjacent pool. This closes at 5pm so don’t get caught out when you’re looking for your early evening energy ball from here!
Tao 9/10
Tao is the resorts Japanese restaurant and is actually also open to external guests. It is located above the wellness cafe and looks out over the bay which is lovely. You do need to book Tao in advance as it gets very busy, you should ideally do this before you even arrive at the resort especially if you are only there for a week.
Food wise, Tao is a la carte and they are aiming to make this a fine dining experience, It’s a nice opportunity to get a bit dressed up. You get a lovely cold flannel when you arrive and then water is replenished the whole time. The food is really tasty and they have an extensive menu including loads of sushi and hot options. There are some surcharges for some of the sushi dishes so make sure you are aware of this. Apart from that; Tao is included in your all inclusive rate you have paid for the holiday. You are offered coffee and provided with petits fours at the end of the meal. There are also plenty of GF and vegan options available.
Windows 7/10
Windows is the ‘fine dining’ experience at Body Holiday and you are allowed to visit this once per week during your stay. You must pre book this. It is located in the space that houses the breakfast and lunch buffet in Cariblue and has a different theme every night. You are asked for dietary requirements before hand so that the chef can accommodate these. On arrival you are welcomed by name and it is candlelit and very atmospheric. There is an amuse bouche and then it is a tasting menu that has 4 separate courses as well as a small palate cleanser. The food is tasty but no moreso than the usual Cariblue menu and many of the dishes are slight variations on what is already available in Cariblue which is slightly disappointing. The meal ends with coffee and petits fours and does feel more elevated than dinner in any of the other outlets however - I feel that they are trying to create something super special but cutting a few corners in doing so and therefore not quite hitting the mark.
The Piano Bar 7/10
The Piano bar is adjacent to Cariblue and has a large grand piano in it which guests are welcome to play but also has professional performers each evening. It is a sultry cocktail bar with velvet everywhere and the waiters are in white suit jackets so it feels quote special. The only problem is….ITS FREEZING! They seem to have the aircon on high, constantly and its so so cold which means that we do not really go there. They do serve a variety of cocktail and mocktails and will happily make you something bespoke if you aren’t sure what you like. A nice spot for pre dinner drinks or a digestif if they would just turn the heating on!
The Beach 10/10
This isn’t specifically a food and beverage outlet however, when you are on the beach, you have a red flag by your lounger which you just have to pop in the sand. You can then order anything from Pavillion or the Wellness bar inc food and they bring it straight to you. They also have a fresh coconut stand a couple of days a week where they will chop one up for you for you to drink the juice and eat the inside, Every morning there are people circulating with fruit skewers and chips and guac and in the afternoon they bring round ice lollies.
ACTIVITIES 10/10
This is where Body Holiday really comes in to its own and is why it is SO unique. Every day, there is a full on schedule of fully included activities (I will include a couple of photos below with the daily schedule). The beauty of the activity offering here is that there are very few options that you need to book for which gives you the freedom to choose last minute and to see what you feel like on the day. They have a gorgeous spin studio with the latest spin bikes, high up in the trees and overlooking the bay, it’s a new spin experience! They also have a fitness studio up at the spa which is well airconditioned and where they do a lot of their functional training classes such as boxfit, aerobics, legs, bums and tums. Other spaces include the yoga deck which is literally out over the sea and such a beautiful and peaceful space to practice yoga. They also have a deck on top of the spin studio where some other mat based classes such as pilates and absolution take place. The highlight of the day is always aqua aerobics at 11am in the main pool. I know what you are picturing but let me promise you, this is not aqua as you know it! It is a high octane, fun, dancy class and not something I ever thought I would love so much - the next day I can guarantee you will feel it! Finally, they of course use the beautufyul beach for morning beach bootcamp classes (super hard) and caribbean dance sessions.
It’s all very well talking about the activities on offer HOWEVER, its the instructors that make them all so fabulous. At Body Holiday they call their fitness team the ‘Body Guards’ and they absolutely make the whole Body Holiday experience. They are so high energy allll the time and whilst not teaching they are out and about within the resort really getting to know everyone and getting involved in everything including all the evening entertainment. By the time you have been there for 24 hours they all know your name, they come and join you for meals and know exactly the classes that you love. They will make adaptations in any classes that you need them for and it is such a personalised experience. Each evening, one of the Body Guards also hosts a solos table at dinner for anyone who is travelling alone. Without the body guards, Body Holiday would not be half the offering it is, they are superheroes!
There is also a fully equipped gym onsite if you fancy doing your own thing at any point.
THE SPA 7/10
As part of your holiday, you have 1 x 60 minute treatment in the spa included EVERY DAY! There are about 12 different options you can choose from and you can book these in advance or leave it to the team to book you in and your schedule will be in your room when you arrive. The spa is a well oiled machine and there are about 50 treatment rooms, you will be told which treatment room you are in for each day on your in room schedule when you arrive. You just need to arrive 5 minutes before your treatment and head to your specified room - be warned; the walk up to the spa is quite a climb so leave yourself time!
The treatments are a variety of massages, facials and wraps and your therapist will know which one you have booked when you arrive. Some of the therapists are friendlier than others but in general there is not much interaction and if you want something specific it will be up to you to tell them as they may not always ask. The treatments are generally really good and by the time you have got changed etc tend to be about 45 mins.
The downside of the spa is that it does feel like a bit of a conveyor belt and the service does not feel quite as personalised as some other areas of the resort. It is super well organised and they do have a lot of people to get through every day so I understand why the therapists don’t necessarily want much interaction and why it has to feel like a conveyor belt however this does somewhat take away from the experience for me.
CONCLUSION 9/10
In conclusion, I would highly recommend Body Holiday. I think a lot of people have the misconception that it is a ‘boot camp’ style holiday where you eat kale for a week and kill yourself in exercise classes. This could not be further from reality…it is essentially whatever you want it to be. It has a typically chilled Caribbean vibe and if you fancy doing 6 classes a day and eating healthily, ansolutely, go for it! Equally, if you fancy a chilled day on the beach with a beer and some fries, thats also totally cool.
Body Holiday is a unique offering and you pay for what you get but in my opinion it is totally worth it. The Body Guards make the resort what it is and I would recommend anyone looking for a getaway with lots of optional activities, great food and awesome people to book that flight to St Lucia and get yourself to Cariblue beach.
DO REMEMBER I AM AN INDEPENDENT TRAVEL ADVISOR WITH ACCESS TO THE BEST RATES SO DO GET IN TOUCH WITH ANY ENQUIRIES!
