PAUSE Visits:
Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel
Wellbeing redefined.
Being Portugal’s first-ever 5-star medical spa, the expectations for Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel were high, and rightfully so. Nestled along the awe-inspiring coastline of the Algarve, Longevity prioritises results-driven health and wellbeing packages, offering up a plethora of life-enhancing programmes that not only provide relief, comfort, and relaxation in the moment, but also a platform to build upon for those inner-city folk that need to start putting health and wellness at the very top of their personal agenda. Providing tailored services to fit your exact specifications, Longevity make sure to cover extensive ground with their programmes, with everything from detoxing, smart ageing, and sleep and stress management to weight optimisation, muscle and joint care, heart health and mental health care being readily available.
The hotel itself is set atop a quiet and tranquil hillside, standing alone as an almost extraterrestrial structure, boasting a clean and smooth white painted design whilst staying consistently modern in shape. A marvel, of sorts. Arriving at my destination on the cusp of a long February weekend, this otherworldly feeling transcended beyond just the building and its one-of-one shape, being based in something more down-to-earth and ultimately, human.
Welcomed with open arms, my tired and up too early body meandered into an open lobby area where aromatic steam filled the air and immediately brought me some calm. Bringing forth a whole new meaning to wellness and holistic treatment, I was sat down and given a full run down of what I could expect from my stay, available facilities, my bespoke itinerary, the surrounding area, and just about anything else you could think of. There was a distinct sense that it was the people that made Longevity a success, with the staff having had exuded a real feeling of care from minute one.
As an inner-city London native, it became immediately evident that this was a destination in which I could begin to focus, destress, and be proactive in prioritising my physical and mental wellbeing.
PHOTO CREDIT: Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel
Accommodation
With any room at Longevity, you were guaranteed an immaculate view of local Alvor and the surrounding areas – and that includes the pristine coastline. Resting my head in the ‘Longevity Room’, a sea view welcomed me as I headed into my room for the next three nights with double doors opening up to a large accommodating balcony, giving me a much needed dose of sea air. Waking up to the rustling of palm trees a throw of a stone away from my balcony and large bed, you felt isolated in the best way possible. Keeping that theme of tranquility going, an open plan bathroom and shower meant you could take in those views even while getting ready for your day, with a spacious living area and apt storage space working in tandem to keep your surroundings – and mind – as clear as the blue sky above. Coming equipped with just about anything you could need for a short stay, every box was ticked as staff provided me with everything from a spa-ready robe, fresh towels, and an action-ready tote bag to a secure safe, water bottle, and an extended range of neat toiletries.
Amenities
Like any enthusiastic holiday-goer, my first instinct was to indulge in the plethora of facilities that Longevity had on offer, with each and every one living up to its own hype. Each area was immaculately kept, with the downstairs spa proving to be the star of the show. Being booked through the spa reception beforehand, allocated spa time slots kept relaxation at an optimal level and ensured that overcrowding wouldn’t be an issue, with the comfort-personified pool area boasting heated lounge seats, warm and cool Epsom saline solution pools, rain showers, bubble functions, outdoor bean bag seating, as well as an eclectic selection of relaxation facilities. Covering every base, standout features that aided me in detoxifying, relieving muscle tension, and helping lower blood pressure included an aromatherapy sauna, a double-level hammam, sensation showers with multi-function water pressure and climates, in addition to a mood levelling epsom salt room.
Maintaining that all-encompassing approach to wellness, more engaging activities kept the vibrations high, with a 24/7 gym coming equipped with weightlifting areas, treadmills, functional resistance machines and just about anything else you could need for a retreat such as this. A separate studio area was also available to use, being mainly operational for those attending the eclectic selection of daily, multi-level group classes on offer, which included yoga sessions, mindfulness and meditation, cardiovascular workouts and more. If you truly feel like getting the blood pumping, a rooftop seating area can be found surrounding the outdoor infinity pool, which proved to be a chilly dip at this time of year. Nonetheless, it was a worthwhile endeavour, if for nothing else but the expansive views across the Algarve’s stunning coastline.
Treatments
The ‘pièce de résistance’ of Longevity is its wide-ranging selection of relaxation, medical, and lifestyle treatments, with my particular custom-made wellness plan honing in on a dedicated focus to relaxation, anxiety reduction, and a refresh of the mind and soul.
Counteracting the stresses of the everyday inner-city life, this well-balanced program centred itself on physical stimulation through a selection of massages and baths, with a standout being the supremely stimulating ‘Ayurveda Massage’, which very much takes after Longevity’s name and is known to restore balance and harmony to the body and soul for the long term, utilising a range of warm oils to soothe your skin and ease you into a state of calm. Continuing in this vein, a ‘Craneo Sacral Massage’ followed and was the most effective treatment I experienced throughout my time at the facility, championing a soft-touch, gentle, and hands-on massaging technique that, on the surface, looked like it may be insufficient at making an impact. Despite my wide of the mark assumptions, the light touch therapy aided me in sinking into an extended period of relaxation, being a definite option for my wellness journey moving forward. Delving further into everyday habits, hand-in-hand ‘Physical Evolution’ and ‘Nutrition Consultation’ sessions gave me new insights into my own body composition, nutritional habits, as well as my overall health, underlining a distinct focus on prolonging and protecting. Stepping up to state-of-the-art InBody 270 Body Composition Analyser, I was given a thorough run-down of all of my bodily statistics, including extensive muscle and fat, obesity, and ECW ratio analyses, with additional muscle mass breakdowns helping calculate how I should control my weight as well as how I can improve my muscle and fat balance. Working in tandem, the ‘Nutrition Consultation’ took things a step further, giving me a refreshed perspective on my diet, what I can consume on a daily basis, and how my personal body type can benefit from various different protein sources. An enlightening experience, it also told me that everything comes in moderation, and having professionals confirm and encourage that notion helped block out the wide array of destructive diet conversations currently raging in the mainstream.
Food
An essential aspect of any getaway: the food. Placing even more emphasis in balance, Longevity’s range of food looked to use key Portuguese ingredients all the while maintaining their dedication to health and wellbeing, with an eclectic menu across the board helping cater to a variety of different tastes. Set at the summit of Longevity’s grand structure, the restaurant overlooks the stunning 180-view of the surrounding Alvor and infinity pool area, being set up as the perfect spot to take a moment to refuel.
Wake up to a variety of breakfast specials at your request as menu specific orders are made fresh, whilst a wide-ranging buffet breakfast boasting granola and juice stations, cereals, fresh fruit, high-quality meats, cheese, and more give you the perfect – and most importantly healthy – start to the day. Lunch time provides a plethora of well structured and evenly portioned meals, with a personal favourite being the wasabi tuna sandwich sided with a healthy dose of vegetable crisps. Lastly, the evening period brought about the pinnacle of Longevity’s culinary escapades as tuna steak, indulgent fish soup, creamy risotto, and guineafowl lead the way in terms of taste, with fun sweet treats arriving in the form of brownies, panna cotta, fruit and more. Alcohol is also on offer to guests, with red and white wines and beers keeping things simple, but still indulgent.
If you’re somebody who is looking for something to help them recalibrate and give them new perspective, Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel is the spot for you. A simple yet effective formula allows you to breeze through your time at the facility at your own pace, optimising your relaxation time or anything else you’re looking to conquer away from the hustle and bustle of the everyday 9 to 5. Put your health and wellbeing at the top of your agenda this year; you won’t regret it.
Take a look at some extra imagery of the inside and outside of Portugal’s Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel below.
Follow Longevity on Instagram
