How a spa escape in the Dolomites was the tonic to a year of tragedy

Boy, am I glad to see the back of 2019.

My mum died (expectedly) in April and my dad died (unexpectedly) in August. I was close to them both. It’s been like living in a slow-motion nightmare from which I’m only just beginning to stir.

So when my eight-year-old’s October half term rolled around I knew I needed to get away, but had to think carefully about what I could cope with doing that would also keep my husband Christy and daughter Eva happy.

We opted for a few days at the new Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti in Italy – a wellness break in the mountain air for me; swimming and relaxation for them. I’d been to its long-established sister hotel at Lake Garda before, where everything was exceptional and the setting so beautiful that none of my friends believed my iPhone shots were real. So I was fairly confident it would be good. Thankfully it was.

We made it as easy as possible for ourselves by not hiring a car and instead enjoying a private transfer from Verona Airport. The drive was stunning, the road skimming along the edge of vineyards, orchards, then a river and gradually, forest-covered hills and mountains in autumnal shades of burnt orange and deep red.

Lefay sits at the end of a valley in the town of Pinzolo in the Madonna di Campiglio ski area, which is also great for walking and cycling the rest of the year. There’s one village between it and the craggy mountains that curve around the valley.

The hotel’s central building, which houses the public spaces, restaurants, bar and vast spa, is a soaring glass, wood and stone affair, with bedrooms in more traditional chalet-style buildings connected to it on either side. Despite its size, it blends in well and you hardly notice it until you’re going up the drive.

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Our room, an Exclusive Spa Suite, had a valley-facing balcony, a whirlpool tub and its own sauna. When not playing in those or in the pool with Eva, my husband found he loved just sitting on that balcony reading his book, which for him was as restorative as any treatment (he doesn’t “do” those – I gave up trying to explain the benefits years ago). Eva discovered the kids’ club, which had the perfect blend of creative activities and good old-fashioned Nintendo.

But back to me. The Lefay Spa Method combines the philosophies of classical Chinese medicine with Western scientific research. There are four therapeutic “circuits” to choose from, depending on your current condition, each designed to boost state of mind and energy levels through exposure to different ranges of temperature and humidity, plus phytotherapy (tailored herbal teas) and aromatherapy.

There’s “The Green Dragon” (for impulsive, nervous people), “The Red Phoenix” (for anxiety), “The White Tiger” (for tiredness, weakness and melancholy) and “The Black Tortoise” (for stress). Each is associated with a different season, in turn associated with a bodily organ.

Any of those would have done me – and there’s nothing to stop you trying more than one – but I opted for The White Tiger, which focuses on the lungs and represents the autumn, a time when the “light and luminous” energy (yang) significantly decreases and the heavy energy (yin) becomes more dominant.

According to Lefay, if there is disruption to the flow of energy due to any number of external factors, physical symptoms such as fatigue, isolation and sadness can occur. The idea is to redress the balance.

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I made my way around a series of wet saunas, beginning in a tepidarium (temperature 38C/100F, humidity 70) and working up to a high caldarium (48C/118F, humidity 95). Lying there slowly inhaling and exhaling was a form of meditation in itself.

Then there were sensory showers and the all-essential time at the end stretched out on a day bed in the mountain-facing relaxation room, sipping mallow and blackcurrant tea.

Other highlights included floating in the dark in my own little saltwater lake (which detoxifies the skin and allows the body to absorb minerals from alpine salt), dashes through an ice pool and the energy-boosting White Tiger Massage. I had a private qi gong session with Giuseppe and an invigorating hike up to Chiesa di San Stefano, a frescoed 11th-century church on a nearby hill, with personal trainer Marco.

Lefay’s many pools are also worth a mention, most notably the heavenly, warm indoor-outdoor one which Eva and I splashed about in.

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We looked forward to meal times at the Lefay Vital Gourmet restaurant. Meals were healthy, but not boringly so, and best, we found, enjoyed with prosecco (and my own body weight in local mountain speck and burrata).

I should point out that while the hotel is not geared towards children – only a handful are permitted – those that do come are doted upon. They can even dabble in the spa – Eva joined me for a pedicure on our last afternoon.

So did I benefit from it? It certainly felt good and gave me a chance to breathe.

But what dawned on me at the end of the trip was that simply the action of putting that time aside for myself – not something that happens when you have a young child or a sick parent, or even just an all-consuming job – was the best tonic ever.

• A stay at Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti costs from £272 per room, B&B, including access to the spa (lefayresorts.com).