Want to start the New Year with a spring in your step? This new Wiltshire retreat is high on tranquility, but low on prices and mung beans Over the last five years I’ve visited more than 50 of the UK’s more affordable wellbeing retreats, enduring more than my fair share of uninspiring veggie meals, old-fashioned decor, tiny beds and dusty crystals – even in places where I’ve encountered expert therapists and teachers with integrity. Littleton Mill is refreshingly different. Like Tilton House in Sussex and the Grange by the Sea on the Isle of Wight (see panel), this converted 17th-century water mill which opened in May this year is part of a new breed of retreat where you can relax in comfort without having to pay silly prices or confront anything too alternative – unless you really want to. Tucked away in a tiny hamlet of the Wiltshire countryside, it is surrounded by a large garden; the only sound the gentle chug of the water mill. The sun was out when we arrived, so we sat on the terrace chatting to the owners. Melissa Kendall, co-founder of healthy holiday company Jiva Healing , bought the mill as a wreck last year with her husband Richard for the cost of their two-bedroom London flat. As well as their family home, it is now the UK base for group and bespoke wellbeing breaks. Mel and Jiva co-founder Rebecca Andrist, a nutritionist, use the Mill as the UK venue for the detox and healthy eating retreats they’ve been running in India and Europe for the past few years. Aimed at anyone who’s been feeling sluggish, the detox breaks range from a full-on body cleanse using juice fasting, to milder healthy eating breaks focused around cookery lessons. Both breaks include daily yoga, treatments, plenty of down time and food-for-thought talks on happiness and eco-friendly living. Other experts run sessions on meditation, Ayurvedic cooking and Thai massage, weekends for pregnant women looking to destress, and workshops on how to live a more eco-friendly life

Original Source A stylish wellbeing retreat that won’t break the bank