The Stress-Buster Package at This Wellness Resort an Hour from Manila Is for Stressed-Out Urbanites

Cathy Turvill and her husband Mike started Nurture Wellness Village in 2001. Back then the entire property was only about 1,800 square meters, or roughly the size of around three tennis courts. Today, 21 years later, the wellness village is over five times bigger, at 9,400 square meters. There are cozy rooms for weekend guests, a dining outlet run by a professional and well-known restaurant group, spa and wellness services, and lush greenery that is the complete opposite of the concrete jungle that is Metro Manila. 

All that and it’s only about an hour away from the southern tip of the capital.

Sunlight peeking through the trees at Nurture Wellness Village

Photo by PJ Cana.

“This is beyond my wildest dreams,” Turvill says. “From the darkness of Barangay Maitim (where the property is located in Tagaytay), to something I’d like to believe is shining a light in helping people become happier.” 

Turvill mentions the challenges of the pandemic and how much it took a toll on everybody’s health—both physically and mentally.

“Now, if you look around,” she gestures at the groups of people dining at the open-air restaurant called Farmer’s Table, which is run by the Raintree Group, “you see people eating, families bonding together. For me to be able to be an instrument for that kind of joy is such a blessing. You see people in the garden with their apos (grandchildren), feeling ko we are so blessed with what we have, and I’m more than happy to share it.” 

Forest Village Room

Photo by Nurture Wellness Village.

Turvill says she imagines Nurture to be a place that will meet the needs of “stressed-out urbanites.”

“Manila is just so stressful,” she says. “It’s so gray. It’s so toxic. And often you have to travel far in order to go to your place of work. So Nurture is for the urban warrior who seeks to rebalance himself.”

The idea, Turvill says is for people to be able to “go back” to enjoy nature, harness its healing powers, and make it a joyful experience. 

To this end, Nurture is offering what it calls a Stress Buster package that includes a weekend filled with a suite of services all designed to achieve one thing: complete relaxation. As soon as you check in and settle in your room, the package begins with a kindly madam knocking on your door to escort you to the spa house for a 45-minute “soak” in an infrared sauna. You’re then led to the massage room for an hourlong massage. Ask for the Dagdagay Massage, where the therapist rolls bamboo sticks in and around sore muscles all around the body. 

Foot spa area

Photo by Nurture Wellness Village.

You can then use the rest of the day to chill inside your room or take a barefoot walk around the property and commune with nature. At dinnertime, there’s a special table prepared just for you where you can feast on whatever you want at Farmer’s Table. Turvill says they don’t believe in depriving people of food that makes them happy, so there are genuine palate pleasers on the menu, including Crispy Tawilis, Lechon Kawali, and classic Bulalo served piping hot tableside. 

In the morning you can choose to get a cleansing enema (which you’re free to skip if you so choose), and a quick tai-chi lesson before you go on a tour of the “farmacy” or the garden where the resident herbologist grows medicinal plants. After breakfast there’s a foot spa, a facial by SansAge Wellness Aesthetics, and even a quick juicing tutorial so you can prepare your own healthy juices at home.

Shakshouka at Farmer's Table

Photo by PJ Cana.

“The Stress Buster package was really designed almost like a ‘toe-in-the-water’ for wellness,” Turvill explains. “We also made it easy. But the core principle there is take out your stress so that you’re helping your body become healthier. Stress is the biggest killer of the 21st century.”

She adds that the package combines all of the different kinds of therapies—eco-therapy, touch therapy, and nutrition therapy. 

“We’re taking out the toxins—which are physical, mental, emotional—and then we bring you back. We fill you with the joy and serenity of nature.”

The Herb Garden at Nurture Wellness Village

Photo by PJ Cana.

There is a sense of satisfaction and calm when the weekend is over. Guests will feel relaxed and recharged and, perhaps ready to rejoin the rat race. This is exactly what Turvill wants for her guests.

“That’s what Nurture is all about,” she says. “It’s an easy drive from Manila where you can allow your body to rebalance, physically, emotionally, and mentally, and then be able to go back to the world and feel like you’re new again.” 

The Stress Buster Package is P18,000 for single occupancy and P31,000 for double occupancy. For more information, visit the Nurture Wellness Village website.