Retreat news: The Dreaming goes into hibernation, Fivelements plans four destinations and Minor bets on longevity (17 October 2026)
The past two weeks brought a closure notice from one of the UK's best-known independent retreats and a run of expansion plans from the big wellness operators. Charlotte Church's The Dreaming will pause from December, while GOCO, Hyatt's The Barai and Minor Hotels set out new retreats, brands and resorts in Thailand, Bali, Switzerland, Montenegro and Australia.
The Dreaming, Charlotte Church's retreat in Powys, will pause from December 2026
The Dreaming, the retreat Charlotte Church opened in 2023 at Rhydoldog House near Rhayader, the former home of Laura Ashley, will stop operating at the house from December 2026. Spa Business reports that bookings fell sharply, which the team puts down to the cost of living crisis and later economic shocks, alongside higher operating costs. No reopening date has been set.
The retreat's own site calls it a hibernation and says it has welcomed more than 3,000 retreat guests, hundreds of them through a pay-what-you-can scheme that started at £1 a night, plus free retreats for NHS workers and activists. A few places remain on its last Signature, Samhain and Witch retreats, and its online course stays available.
For readers, it is a sign that small independent UK retreats are under real pressure from softer discretionary spending. If you hold a booking for this autumn, check your dates directly with the retreat.
Source: Spa Business, 14 October 2026.
GOCO Hospitality turns Fivelements into a four-destination wellbeing brand, starting with Samui in early 2027
GOCO Hospitality, which bought Fivelements in 2024, is expanding the Bali healing retreat into a global brand. The plan, set out on Hospitality Net, names four destinations: Fivelements Samui in Thailand, a former beachfront hotel in Lamai within two hectares of rainforest, due in early 2027 with thermal and rainforest bathing, an ocean-view yoga shala and a longevity centre; a renovated Fivelements Ubud in 2028, adding 11 riverside villas with private pools; Fivelements Leysin in the Swiss Alps in 2029, with 60 keys in the main building, 29 chalets and 4,000 square metres of wellness space; and Fivelements Montenegro, at Biogradska Gora, in 2030.
The expansion is backed by GOCO's investment partnership with Fullerton Fund Management, a subsidiary of Singapore's sovereign wealth fund. The Fivelements website already lists all four destinations. The original Ubud retreat on the Ayung River has operated since 2007.
Source: Hospitality Net, 16 October 2026.
The Barai Hua Hin adds diagnostic-led retreats in one, three, five or seven-day formats
The Barai Hua Hin, a 98-room beachfront resort on the Khao Takiap coast that opened in June as the first Unbound Collection by Hyatt property in Thailand, has launched a personalised wellness programme. Each stay starts with a 45-minute consultation pairing a body composition test with Traditional Chinese Medicine pulse and tongue diagnosis, run by resident practitioner Dr Chuthamat Srinoi. Guests get a treatment and lifestyle plan, with follow-up contact at 7, 15 and 45 days after checkout.
There are five retreats (TCM, Ultimate Unwind, Bespoke Yoga Journey, Vital Body Cleanse and Dynamic Fitness Kick-Starter), each bookable for one, three, five or seven days. Short formats matter if you want a proper assessment without committing to a full week.
Source: Spa Business, 14 October 2026.
Minor Hotels launches Life Longevity, with Bangkok Life at The St. Regis Bangkok due this quarter
Minor Hotels has launched Life Longevity, a wellness brand meant to carry a guest's consultation, diagnostics and records between its resort, city and future residential sites. The resort version already runs as Layan Life by Anantara in Phuket, where retreat packages start at THB 35,000 (about £786) per person per night with a three-night minimum, and a seven-night Longevity for Life programme starts at THB 339,500 (about £7,618). The first city site, Bangkok Life at The St. Regis Bangkok, is scheduled to open this quarter.
An optional Circle of Life membership offers check-ins between stays, priced at THB 500,000 (about £11,220) for six months at Layan Life. Minor says more sites are in development outside Thailand.
Source: Spa Business, 7 October 2026.
Avani Cypress Lakes opens its first phase in the Hunter Valley, with AvaniWell's 70 wellness suites
Minor Hotels is combining the Oaks Cypress Lakes Resort and the neighbouring Elysia Wellness Retreat into Avani Cypress Lakes Resort, a 340-acre site in Pokolbin, New South Wales. The first facilities were due to launch in October, with a community opening weekend on 2 to 4 October, and the full redevelopment is due to finish in Q3 2027.
The former Elysia retreat becomes AvaniWell, the brand's first Australian wellness facility, with 70 wellness suites, 26 treatment rooms, a magnesium pool, 10 Pilates reformers, infrared saunas and outdoor cold plunges. Day visitors and locals can use it as well as resort guests. The resort's own booking page now lists the Wellness Suites and AvaniWell packages, with suites open to guests aged 16 and over.
Source: Spa Business, 5 October 2026.
What this means if you are planning a retreat
The big groups are building longevity programmes with diagnostics and follow-up, while one well-known small UK retreat is pausing because bookings dropped. If you book an independent retreat, confirm dates close to travel. If you want the clinical style, ask what follow-up is included after you leave and what the first consultation actually tests.