Best Fitness Retreats in 2025: Our Guide to Training, Travel, and Adventure

Forget everything you thought you knew about “fitness retreats.” Back in the day, retreats were sold as restrictive bootcamps or juice-cleansing weeks designed to make you feel guilty about enjoying a holiday.

2025 looks very different. Today’s fitness retreats are about training hard, recovering properly, and exploring epic destinations with a crew of like-minded travellers. No punishment. No crash diets. Just a week of sweat, adventure, and feel-good vibes.

At Salt Escapes, we’ve built our retreats around exactly that:

✔️ Daily sweat sessions with elite coaches

✔️ Recovery done right — yoga, ice baths, and mobility work

✔️ Jaw-dropping villas with horizon views and private chefs

✔️ Epic adventures — surf, hikes, and Boat Days

✔️ A community where 90% arrive solo and leave with a crew

So, how do you pick the right retreat for you? Let’s break it down.

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How to Choose the Right Fitness Retreat

1. Get clear on your goals

Do you want to push your performance, prep for something like HYROX, or simply combine workouts with a holiday? Knowing what you want from the week makes the choice easier.

2. Location, location, location

Beachfront villas in Greece. Surf towns in Costa Rica. Cliff-top living in Bali. Think about where excites you most — and whether you’re craving salt air, mountains, or tropical jungle.

3. Retreat length

Some retreats cram the magic into a weekend. Others run for 7–10 days. Salt Escapes is all about week-long Escapes — enough time to settle in, train properly, and actually switch off.

4. What’s on the itinerary

Check the balance of sweat, recovery, and adventure. You want programming that challenges you, but also leaves space for downtime and exploration.

5. Budget + value

Retreats vary massively in price. Make sure what’s included stacks up — accommodation, food, coaching, activities, transfers. At Salt Escapes, once you’re booked, all you really need to do is show up.

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What’s the Food Like on a Fitness Retreat?

Old-school retreats pushed rabbit food and calorie restriction. Not anymore.

Expect:

• Chef-prepared meals designed to fuel training
• Family-style feasts with fresh, local ingredients
• Plenty of lean proteins, colourful veg, healthy carbs, and good fats
• Options for vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free guests
• Healthy snacks and smoothies to keep you energised

It’s less “detox” and more fuel your body so you can train, recover, and enjoy the week.

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What’s the Accommodation Like?

Accommodation ranges from basic dorms to five-star luxury. Here’s the difference:

• Salt Escapes: private villas with infinity pools, epic views, and spaces built for training + chilling.
• Other retreats: can be anything from rustic eco-lodges to hotel-style rooms.

Our advice? Choose somewhere that makes you excited to wake up each morning. For us, that’s luxury villas in world-class locations.

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What Activities Can You Expect?

This depends on the retreat, but typically you’ll find a mix of:

• Functional fitness & conditioning
• Yoga, Pilates, and mobility work
• Outdoor adventures: hikes, surf, kayaking, cliff jumps
• Recovery: ice baths, massages, downtime by the pool

At Salt Escapes, we layer in signature moments like Boat Day and off-grid adventures that turn a retreat into a bucket-list trip.

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Our Picks for 2025

Best Adventure & Fitness Retreat: Salt Escapes

Running Escapes across Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Bali, Greece, Spain and more, we’re all about the mix of sun-soaked workouts, off-the-beaten-path adventures, and luxury villa living. Think beach WODs at sunrise, cliff-top yoga at sunset, surf lessons, and private chefs fuelling it all. Prices start from £2,490 GBP for 7 days.

Best Weekend Fitness Retreat: Workout Away (UK)

Short on time? Workout Away runs high-energy weekend escapes on England’s south coast. Expect HIIT, cardio boosts, S&C, and recovery yoga — all wrapped up in a seaside setting that makes the most of the outdoors.

Best for Nutrition-Focused Travellers: The BodyHoliday (St. Lucia)

If tailored nutrition is your thing, The BodyHoliday delivers personalised meal plans plus Pilates, Tai Chi, and spa-level recovery. Perfect for those with specific dietary needs.

Best for Americans: Salt Escapes Caribbean & Costa Rica

Close to home, but worlds away. From beachfront villas in the Dominican Republic to jungle escapes in Costa Rica, our US guests love that they can jump on a short flight and land in fitness paradise. Trips from roughly $2,500 USD for 7 days.

Best for Aussies: Makiyhana (Sri Lanka)

Sri Lanka’s Makiyhana retreat blends functional fitness with cultural immersion, local food, and surf breaks. A great pick for Aussies looking for something adventurous without travelling too far.

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The Takeaway

The world of fitness retreats in 2025 is about more than just “wellness.” It’s about training, adventure, and connection in places that make you feel alive.

Whether you call it a retreat or a training camp, the right one won’t feel restrictive. It’ll feel like the most feel-good week of your life.

👉 Check out Salt Escapes 2025 retreats and lock in your spot now.

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