Soak up Byron’s best health and pampering treats along with the winter sun

WORDS KAREN FITTALL

Saluting the sun
Tourism Australia/Mike Newling

I’ve never been too fond of celery-stick diets or liver-cleansing regimes: just writing about them makes me want to binge on chocolate, in fact! And if you’re anything like me, you don’t mix health and holidays – unless, of course, you’re lucky enough to discover that your destination is Byron Bay, a little New South Wales gem about an hour’s drive south of the Queensland border.

You might already be acquainted with Byron Bay’s charm: it’s famous as both a backpacker magnet and a hippie hang-out. Throw lots of surfers into the mix, along with chic city slickers seeking the sun, and you have a beach-lovers’ paradise with an understated cosmopolitan tang: the perfect, year-round getaway for some R & R. Byron locals could be kicking back in old boardies or the latest Gucci swimwear, and dining on takeaway falafel, an haute cuisine dégustation menu, or anything in between.

In the same way, the health options on offer around Byron’s 30km of sand-laden shores are some of the most diverse you’ll find in Australia. Here are our favourite, tried and tested, true-blue Byron Bay health treats. And there’s not a cleansing program in sight.

Salute the sun

Yoga is to Byron what caffè lattes are to Melbourne. There are stacks of places here where you can channel your inner yogi – and there are so many different types of yoga to try, it’s not the poses you’ll find challenging, it’s the pronunciation! As the name suggests, Yogalates is a hybrid of yoga and pilates, and was developed by local girl Louise Solomon, who first tried pilates when she was recovering from, of all things, a yoga injury. Deciding to combine the two definitely paid off – she now has DVDs, books and is an internationally recognised brand, but still runs Yogalates classes six days a week at her two Byron studios. “The main difference from straight yoga is that yogalates is gentle and it also focuses on strengthening the core muscles,” explains instructor Lisa Finkenauer. “You get the best of both disciplines.” A 90-minute class costs AU$14; tel: +61 (2) 6687 2031.

Hang ten

Surf’s up
Photo: shutterstock/Holger MetteIt may not be a health treatment as such, but surfing is as good for your wellbeing as it is for your soul – it’s also the quintessential Byron activity. There are a few surf schools operating in this part of the world, but our favourite is Black Dog Surfing. Says head instructor Jason Hamlin, “Of all the surf schools in Byron we have the smallest instructor to student ratio, so the lessons are very personalised and hands-on.” The school has a number of programs on offer, including two- and three-day courses, but the standard three-hour group lesson costs AU$60. They also run kids’ classes and a four-day school holiday program for AU$110. Tel: +61 (2) 6680 9828 for more information.

A raw deal

Meditation on the beach
Tourism New South Wales/
Mike Newling

If retreats are your thing, then Byron will be your oyster. There are rainforest retreats, yoga retreats and retreats that will leave you plump with pampering. But if you want a grass-roots Byron experience that’ll give your health a boost as well, check out the Raw Food Retreat to learn about the power of uncooked fruit and veg during a four-day live-in program costing AU$649 all-inclusive. Keep in mind that this is not a luxurious retreat: it’s all about clean living and operates on a real back-to-nature philosophy. “I was motivated to go because I wanted to learn how to source and prepare raw and super foods,” says Sydney resident Donna Eiby, who attended the April retreat this year. “The demonstrations and recipes helped us take home and apply what we’d learned, so I’d definitely recommend going if you want to learn and are open to new ideas. But don’t go if you don’t like dormitory accommodation, shared toilets and getting up to a flute being played at 5.30am!” For more info, tel: +61 412 723 577.

Seeing red

Henna tattoos have a couple of advantages over the real-deal type: they’re beautiful but can be washed off, they’re painless to apply, and you’ll feel incredibly relaxed. “It’s a really calming, pampering experience,” says Oriel Paterson from Henna Harem. “Henna is very popular in Europe and originated in North Africa and India, but it’s not very well known in Australia. So it’s very ‘Byron’.” One of only a handful of professional henna artists in the country, Paterson offers her services at various local markets and at The Medicine Wheel on Jonson Street in the middle of town. Sessions last from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on the complexity of the design, and start at AU$10 per tattoo. For more info, tel; +61 407 638 799.

Massage the market

Outdoor massageA Byron massage is a must. There are plenty of spas around, but why not bypass them and combine your treatment with a visit to Byron Bay’s famous weekend market? While “on the run” massages aren’t a new concept – traditional Chinese massage stalls have popped up in most shopping centres – you’ll quickly discover that there’s something special about enjoying a hot-stone massage or a spot of reflexology at a market stall with a bustling crowd outside and incense in the air – not the least of which is the price. Costs vary between stall-holders, but the dent in your wallet will be significantly smaller than at any day spa. The Byron Bay market is held on the first Sunday of every month at the Butler Street Reserve: but don’t worry if your travel plans don’t suit that timing. Markets are staged somewhere nearby every weekend – tel: +61 (2) 6680 7722 for market schedules.

Message in a bottle

These days, you can have your aura read and even happy-snapped just about anywhere even slightly alternative, but Byron offers readings with a difference. Osho’s House on Carlyle Street charges AU$60 for a one-hour Aura Soma session, and your first mission is to choose the four bottles you’re most drawn to from the hundred or so tiny vials of coloured oils, essences and tinctures. “From there,” explains Osho’s Santoshi Stone, “we start the consultation, using the bottles you’ve chosen to find out which of your chakras need balancing.” Stone says the whole point is to restore and revitalise: “Aura Soma is based on the idea that you intrinsically know what you need for your own healing – you just have to trust yourself.” For more information, tel: +61 (2) 6685 6792.

Scrub up

Wind down at the Buddha
Gardens Day Spa
Buddha Gardens Day SpaBeauty treatments are a dime a dozen in Byron, but I love them, so I was determined to seek out a Byron specialty that was high on the pamper scale and easy on the wallet. The Buddha Gardens Day Spa, in the Arts Factory Village on Gordon Street, is just the ticket. The traditional Javanese treatment Lulur literally means “coating the body”, and what you get is a detoxifying scrub made of rice, turmeric, fenugreek and jasmine, designed to polish the skin. “It’s one of our most popular treatments,” says spa manager Heather Corbishley, “We like to describe it as the queen of treatments.” I’ll second that – you’ll understand why when you give it a whirl! The 60-minute treatment costs AU$95, and for that you also get to enjoy the spa’s fabulous tropical gardens, heated plunge pool and sauna. Divine. Tel: +61 (2) 6680 7844 for more information.

Karen Fittall says
As a health journalist for ten-plus years, I’ve come across my fair share of the weird and wonderful, have road-tested everything from fake tans to moxibustion, and yes, I’ve even had a colonic irrigation! My favourite health experience this time around? A close tie between the Lulur Scrub and the time I spent on (but mostly off) a surfboard. Very Byron.