Relax at a North American Spa or Yoga Retreat

There's no place like a North American spa to relax and unwind with your friends!

No need to hop a plane to the Caribbean or Europe if you don't want to - there are spa resorts throughout the US and Mexico.

North American spas and yoga retreats are as varied as the American terrain. You'll find spa resorts and yoga retreats near beaches, mountains, and deserts. Many use Native American techniques for health and spiritual balance. Others use local plants and minerals in their body treatments (like chocolate in Hershey, PA!).

Spas and yoga go hand-in-hand, so you'll find yoga at most spa resorts, and spa treatments at many yoga retreats.

You'll find resort spas, destination spas, and day spas throughout the US, and also in Mexico. And who could resist a yoga retreat in Hawaii!

California

• LaCosta Resort and Spa, Carlsbad. - A great California spa, La Costa offers a wide variety of activities in a wide range of prices.

The Chopra Center offers daily yoga, meditation and Ayurvedic spa treatments. The outdoor spa courtyard has a lounge pool, sunbathing areas and an invigorating Roman Waterfall shoulder-pounding massage to relieve tense muscles.

A great place for a girlfriend getaway or mother daughter vacation, they offer a private pool area with café that will give you every opportunity indulge, rejuvenate and reconnect.

• The Carneros Inn, Napa. - A luxury retreat in the Napa Valley, where gardens overlook the vineyards and farmlands of Carneros, offers tranquility and relaxation.

This North American spa incorporates local products in their massage therapies and treatments: apricots, olives, goat's milk, fruits, and flowers.

Yoga classes are also available.

Utah

• Red Mountain Spa Resort, Ivins - The Red Mountain Spa focuses on outdoor activities, while maintaining the luxurious pampering of a spa. They offer a wide variety of fitness programs, but they emphasize hiking in the georgeous terrain of St. George.

Their spa treatments utilize products from the rainforests of Brazil to the local salts and clay of Utah. You can even learn healthy cooking during your visit!

Arizona

• Hyatt Regency Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch, Scottsdale - The Hyatt's Spa Avania is the first Arizona spa where every detail has been seamlessly choreographed to the science of time. Awaken in the morning. Rejuvenate at midday. Unwind in the evening.

The spa offers a uniquely holistic approach that bases your experience on the cyclical needs of your body at key periods of the day. They blend mineral water therapy, music, YogaAway, diet, and antioxidant teas into personalized treatment offerings, in a beautiful indoor-outdoor setting.

• Sedona Rouge Hotel and Spa, Sedona - The Spa at Sedona Rouge has a very Mediterranean/North African flavor, with eight treatment rooms named for affirmative aspects of life (e.g. Harmony, Creativity, and Healing).

The treatment menu changes based on the time of year in order to suit the seasonally shifting needs of spa clients. Spa therapists and outside specialists administer Health and Lifestyle offerings such as hypnotherapy, chakra balancing, past-life regression, and guided meditation.

• A Spa for You Sedona Day Spa - Sedona's premiere boutique day spa, A Spa For You offers individually created signature massage sessions, body wraps, chakra balancing and traditional Japanese facial massage to re-kindle, nurture and balance your body's own natural healing rhythms.

Pennsylvania

• Spa at the Hotel Hershey, Hershey -

Chocolate body wrap. 'Nuff said!

Ok, they also have a Chocolate Sugar Scrub, Whipped Cocoa Bath, and even some non-chocolate treatments! Try the Mojito Sugar Scrub or a Rose Garden Bath, too.

This is, to me, the ultimate North American spa - who doesn't love Hershey's chocolate? How much more American can you get?

North Carolina

• Lakeview at Fontana, Bryson City - Situated in the Great Smokey Mountains, Lakeview offers a full spa in an affordable, rustic environment.

The comfortable cabins and rooms have no telephone or TV - the focus is on nature and escape from the stresses of everyday living. Lakeview also offers a yoga program and hiking on the property.

Florida

• Acqualina Resort Spa on the Beach, Sunny Isles - Located on the white sandy beaches between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami, the Acqualina Resort and spa features signature body treatments, combining European with Ayurvedic techniques.

New York

• Mirror Lake Inn Resort Spa, Lake Placid - Located in the quiet countryside of upstate New York, The Mirror Lake Inn offers a wide range of accommodations in several small buildings.

This North American spa is an ideal place to kick back and enjoy a moment alone. You'll be pampered with sumptuous products unique to the Adirondacks. The spa's signature treatment is the Adirondack Maple Sugar Body Scrub. The treatment utilizes maple sugar to moisturize and exfoliate the skin.

Hawaii

• Hanalei Day Spa & Ayurveda Center of Hawaii, Hanalei, Kauai - Though not on the mainland, this is still a North American spa! Located just steps from the beach on Kauai, this day spa offers a variety of massage techniques, including Hawaii's lomi-lomi massage. Add a visit to this spa to your Hawaiian vacation.

• Turtle Bay Resort and Spa, Kahuku, Oahu - Set beside the beach on Oahu's north shore, Turtle Bay Resort offers spa and body treatments inspired by Hawaii's natural abundance - coconut, pineapple, and kukui nut oil are combined in body scrubs and wraps.

This luxury spa resort has yoga, water activities, a surfing school and horseback riding stables for their guests.

• Mahalo Hawaiian Yoga Retreat, Volcano, Hawaii - Located in a lush rainforest on the Big Island, the Mahalo Hawaiian Retreat offers cottages and a bed and breakfast year-round.

They also offer week-long yoga retreats periodically, with meditation, silence day, organic meals, and hiking and biking activities.

Mexico

• Casa del Mar Beach Golf and Spa Resort, Cabo San Lucas - Located on the Sea of Cortez, this boutique hotel offers tropical gardens, 6 swimming pools, and gourmet meals.

Sueños del Mar spa is a wonderful place on the seafront to relax and refresh the body and soul. It features a Mexico Hot Stone Massage therapy, and has a fully equipped fitness center.

• Ceiba del Mar Spa Resort, Puerto Moreles, Riviera Maya -This luxury boutique hotel is adult only (15 and over)and offers a beautiful waterfront spa with over 40 indulging spa treatments.

The treatments available include traditional Swedish massage, calming Aromatherapy or Shiatsu, as well as the Temascal, an indigenous Aztec steam bath and massage treatment performed on the beach with hot volcanic rocks.

In addition, the spa offers a fitness center and yoga and aerobics classes. Massages may be taken inside the spa facilities, on the beach, or on a terrace sunroof.

Other Sites Suggested by Readers

We love reader suggestions! (You can click on the "suggest a site" button to the left, or "advertising", if you have an activity you think our readers would like).

Here are some of the sites others have suggested:

• Girlfriend Fitness Getaways, Florida and California

• Prana del Mar Retreat and Wellness Center

Where Would You Like to Go Next?

For more spas and yoga retreats :

For more North American vacation ideas, including Hawaii, Mexico, and Canada :

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