REVITALIZE AT CHENOT PALACE WEGGIS

At Chenot Palace Weggis on the shores of Lake Lucerne, living longer and better is the goal.
by Deborah Frank
A beautiful and serene view from the wellness retreat at Chenot Palace Weggis of a mountainous landscape with a blue lake. The mountains are covered in green trees, and there is a small village or town in the distance. The image is taken from a high point from a terrace with some outdoor furniture.

In the palm tree–lined lake area of Weggis, known as the Riviera of Switzerland for its mild, Mediterranean-like climate during the months of March to August, is a resort featuring science-based detox treatments to energize and reset the body. Like a car tune-up, this is your annual maintenance check: clean out the toxins; lube the limbs; reinfuse the body with vitamins and nutrients lost from a year’s worth of poor eating and drinking.

“Are you lacking minerals? Have you got heavy metals stored in your body?” asks Katrin Seifert, director of sales at Chenot Palace Weggis (from $5,650; chenotpalaceweggis.com). “We do a full-body composition analysis to measure if you are at any risk. We check the quality of collagen. We do a test to see how much stress you have inside your body and how well you are able to cope with it. We determine the actual biological age of your arteries.” And the list goes on, incorporating altitude training rooms and pro-athlete machines like an antigravity treadmill that helps you run three times your average pace. Just don’t call Chenot Palace Weggis a medical clinic. “We are a Health Wellness retreat, because we’re all about prevention, ” says Seifert.

A person receiving an energetic massage with cupping therapy. The person is lying on a massage table, and the therapist is using cups made of glass or plastic to create suction on the skin, which is believed to increase blood flow and promote healing.

Chenot dropped the “and” in “health and wellness” to clarify the relationship between the two words, which is the wellness of one’s health, like an evaluation of emotional or financial wellness. The Chenot Method doesn’t promise to give you back that youthful energy, but it does work toward slowing the pace of decline and enhancing vitality at any age. And it’s accomplished by utilizing the latest technology in a cozy, cocoon-like setting that feels more residential than clinical and runs like a five-star hotel. Days begin with hot hydrotherapy baths infused with essential oils to allow the capillaries to widen and prepare to transport toxins to the lymph system for elimination. This is followed by a full-body mud wrap under a heavy blanket on a warm waterbed for sweating out those toxins. After 30 minutes, a therapist pummels you with a hydro jet to wash off the mud. A cold, intense blast brings back blood circulation for a refreshed, reenergized start from your feet to your heart. It’s topped off with an energetic massage of cupping and electro stimulation along the meridians to break up any blockage.

The minimum stay is seven nights for six full days of treatments once a year. “If you can do it twice a year, that’s perfect,” says Seifert. “You’re given advice as to what needs to be done to avoid problems in the future; what to do (take vitamin D and other supplements); and who to see (a physiotherapist for your posture) when you get home.” You can stay longer than seven days but no more than 14, because the 850-calorie-a-day detox diet served is not sustainable, though it is delicious. The plant-based meals are masterminded by Executive Chef Ettore Moliteo and feature dishes like eggplant parmigiana and guacamole tacos that taste even better than non-vegan versions. But don’t ask for the recipes because you won’t get them, at least not until the Chenot Diet cookbook comes out later this year.