Alpine Wellness Retreat: Yoga, Hiking & Culinary Escape in the French Alps

The setting is the point. Naves is a working village in the Savoie, at roughly 1,200 metres, with the ski resorts of the Three Valleys, Valmorel, La Plagne and Les Arcs within driving distance and the Vanoise and Beaufortain ranges on the doorstep. Hiking and road cycling start at the front gate — Hugh is an ex-professional cyclist and knows the local passes well enough to match a route to how fit you actually are. In winter, Naves itself is a cross-country skiing destination, and there's ski touring and backcountry skiing from the village.

Yoga happens in the Barn, the converted 80 m² space with a Bose sound system, log fire and private showers. The retreat weeks are built around daily sessions there, usually in the morning before the day's activity and sometimes again in the late afternoon. Massage, reflexology and beauty therapy can be booked during your stay, and Nikki and Hugh can arrange wellness or spa visits nearby. Beyond that, guests typically pick a mix of guided hiking, road biking, mountain biking, cookery classes and, in season, snowshoe expeditions. There's also painting and photography if you'd rather sit still.

Nikki's cooking is a big part of why people come back. She cooks fresh, vibrant food — she has run cookery and nutrition classes from the chalet for years — and menus are built around dietary requirements rather than worked around them. Full board is the usual arrangement on retreat weeks: breakfast, a packed or chalet lunch, and dinner in the vaulted dining room under the chandelier. Wine is part of dinner. The farmhouse kitchen is also where you'll spend a morning if you've booked a cookery session, making lunch together before eating it.

The house itself is a renovated farmhouse refurbished by Hugh with reclaimed materials and decorated by Nikki — it has been featured in travel and interiors press. Six twin or double bedrooms, luxurious bathrooms, robes and slippers, a sitting room with a log fire, a terrace and BBQ, and a farmhouse kitchen. It's dog-friendly. The feel is rustic alpine rather than hotel-polished: squishy sofas, books, flowers, and the option to switch the WiFi off entirely if you want a proper digital detox.

What makes this different from a big resort-based retreat is the scale and the hosting. There's no front desk and no group of 40. Nikki and Hugh live on site, cook your meals, ride and walk with you, and adjust the week to whoever has turned up. Groups who want a mixed programme — some yoga, some riding, some cooking — are exactly who this suits, and the barn means there's a proper indoor space to come back to when the weather turns.

What's included

- Boutique farmhouse accommodation in twin or double rooms - Breakfast daily - Full board or B&B catering options - Picnic lunches on activity days (if full board with picnics) - Use of the Barn retreat/workshop space (80 m²) - Bose sound system and log fire in the Barn - Private shower facilities - Robes and slippers - Yoga sessions (arranged as part of the package) - Guided hiking and/or cycling with Hugh - Logistical support for activities and transfers - WiFi (can be switched off on request) - Terrace and BBQ access - Dog-friendly accommodation

What's not included

- Flights and travel to the French Alps - Airport transfers (can be arranged at extra cost) - Massage, reflexology and beauty therapy - Spa and wellness visits - Cookery and nutrition classes (when not part of the package) - Ski passes and lift tickets - Ski, snowboard and bike hire - Alcohol beyond what is served with dinner - Travel insurance