It’s almost the end of November, meaning there are only a few weeks of frantic shopping time remaining before Christmas. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, with office parties, family gatherings, social events, and lots and lots and lots of food and drink, culminating in the grand making of resolutions on New Year’s Eve. If simply the mention of the holiday season sets your heart palpitating as you worry about the work you need to finish before the year end and a busy, and perhaps difficult, social schedule, consider this: you could take advantage of low-cost flights during January and February, rest your mind and body, and reset to start the new year in a more peaceful frame of mind here:
Thanks to suggestions from our guests over the last few years, we’ve discovered a number of different local options for enhancing your stay with us. Whilst we’ve always felt that the natural and secluded location of La Cazalla was a healing balm to the high-speed nature of our instant-access world, we are now delighted to be able to offer choices to supplement your experience, such as yoga, massage, and guided nature walks. As 2019 has seen the legitimisation of the term ‘burn-out’ with its addition to the World Health Organization’s Classification of Diseases, and many of us are struggling to find a balance between work and life, the absolute necessity of us taking time to rest, sleep, be mindful, and spend real time with our friends and family is becoming clear.
While the world provides plenty of insistent, flashing, high-volume signals directing us to make more money and climb higher up the ladder, there are almost no worldly signals reminding us to stay connected to the essence of who we are, to take care of ourselves along the way, to reach out to others, to pause to wonder and to connect to that place from which everything is possible.”
Arianna Huffington, Thrive Global, November 2019.
Why not pause and wonder at La Cazalla de Ronda this winter? Here are a few reasons why we have the perfect location in which you and your family or friends can spend meaningful time together relaxing in the wonder of nature.
1. Relax
Peace and the beauty of nature in an entirely natural, secluded environment
In October, we wrote about the health benefits of spending time around trees. You can read the full article here, but the highlights are that tree bathing (shinrin-yoku) is believed to be a critical factor in the fight against diseases of the body and mind, and the colour green itself is felt to be restful, soothing, cheerful, and health-giving. Take our video tour of the property and choose your tree for meditation, mindfulness, or simply enjoying one of the books from our library:
2. Stretch
Yoga at La Cazalla
In 2018, we were blessed to make the acquaintance of local instructor José Luis of Yoga Flow Ronda. José loves the magical and relaxing feel of La Cazalla and is perfectly happy to come to the house to provide private yoga sessions.
We tried several different locations around the property for our yoga sessions: poolside, magical threshing circle, and beside the ancient Roman alberca, and decided that beneath the trees next to the natural pool was best. The sound of trickling water accompanied by the stirring of the leaves in the trees and the incredible view of the gorge was the perfect accompaniment to practice yoga with José. He charges €15 per person and asks for a minimum of only three people.
3. Indulge
Massage at La Cazalla
We are also pleased to now be able to offer massages on the property.
The lovely Jesica Mena Téllez is qualified in chiromassage, lymphatic drainage massage, Indian head massage, kinesio taping (for muscle and joint support), as well as being a fully qualified beauty therapist with her own salon in Ronda. Pamper yourself and your family with facials, manicures, pedicures, and float away listening to the birds as Jesica’s experienced hands remove the tension from your muscles. Even in January, it can be warm enough to enjoy a massage in the open air in the midday sun, but of course, we can set up the massage table in the privacy of your room. Simply contact us for more information and pricing, and we will be delighted to help you organise your perfect stay with us.
4. Wonder
Nature walks at La Cazalla
There are so many beautiful walks that you can take either directly from the house or from the neighbourhood at the top of the winding 3km track that leads to La Cazalla. You can read about some of these walks in our blog here, and this is how the route to Benaoján looks during January - blanketed in flowers.
We can also organise a guided walk for you with an experienced guide. Whether your pleasure is bird watching, photography, or ‘gathering’ (searching for and learning about edible plants whilst wandering), we will be delighted to contact a knowledgeable guide for you and organise your perfect day out. For those that are more adventurous, there’s also the breathtaking Caminito del Rey, which is open every week from Tuesday to Sunday. As the number of people that can visit during one day for this highly popular walk is limited, we strongly advise that you book online in advance here. Here’s a taste of the view.
5. Recharge
Exercise and eat healthily
For many of us, the holiday season involves a great deal of eating and drinking, and often one of our New Year’s resolutions will be to lose weight and eat more healthily. Jumpstart your new year with a week of exercise, activities, and healthy eating at La Cazalla.
It’s ironic that when you’re feeling tired, exercise can actually provide you with more energy, and there are plenty of activities here to get your heart pumping. We can organise horse riding, guided cycling tours or bicycle rental for you, or if you prefer to run, you may be interested in the 20km Trail Ciudad de Ronda on Sunday 12th January or the Tres Trails (Three Trails) event in nearby Jimera on 15th and 16th February. If you encounter any problems reserving your place through the websites, please let us know and we will be happy to see what we can do to help you.
For healthy eating options, you are welcome to help yourselves to anything from the vegetable garden or orchard. We are so lucky that our land naturally produces an abundance of fruit and nuts, and we have cultivated a vegetable and herb garden for ourselves and our guests to select from. All of our produce is organic and we do not use any fertilisers or chemicals.
6. Rest and Sleep Soundly
We have sun loungers by the Roman-inspired pool, on the terrace, in front of the private suite, and beneath the trees beside the alberca, six large double bedrooms, and three spacious living rooms; plenty of space for you and your friends and family to spread out and find their own haven of tranquility. Several of our bedrooms can be converted for twin beds, and all of our double beds are king size. Our bed linen and towels are soft and of high quality, and we leave a lavender sachet in each of the bedrooms for you to take home, made from lavender grown on the property. Lavender is renowned for aiding a good night’s sleep, and due to La Cazalla’s secluded location, your sleep will not be disturbed by noise or light from town. The Moorish-inspired showers even have adjustable mood lighting so that you may choose your lighting to suit how you are feeling or how you want to feel after your shower.
This is La Cazalla. A luxurious, secluded, naturally beautiful retreat where you can relax, stretch, exercise, eat healthily, rejuvenate your senses, and reset your mind and body in preparation for everything that 2020 may bring into your world. And if you really want to disconnect, we can even turn off the Wi-Fi and the mobile phone booster for you. We won’t tell your boss.
By the way, if you would like to bring your own group to La Cazalla for a week of yoga, fitness, art, mindfulness, nutrition, or whatever your passion, we will be delighted to assist you in organising a vacation for your clients. We are currently working with a Nutritionist from the UK who is organising seven separate weeks of Detox and Yoga retreats for her clients throughout next year, plus a Yoga and Wellness week in May with a Certified Purna Yoga instructor and professional Life Coach from Finland. Simply contact us with your ideas, and let’s take it together from there.