Island Remedy

With its pristine wilderness, clean air, remote retreats, and wood-fired floating saunas, Australia's island state of Tasmania is set to be one of the hottest wellness destinations in the world.

- Pooja Naik

Tasmania is many things—an under-the-radar culinary powerhouse, home to an eclectic art gallery with themes of sex and death, and host to a midwinter festival that draws visitors by the busloads even in subzero temperatures.

Arguably, its magnetism lies in its rugged nature packed with beech and myrtle-peppered ancient rainforests, pristine coastlines, and 3.5 million acres of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. But the real luxury is its air—touted as the world’s cleanest with an air quality index (AQI) that hovers in the teens.

Once considered a sleepy southern outpost, the island state—with its clean air, wide-open spaces, and a gentler pace—now draws travellers, including Indian honeymooners, seeking rest and reconnection. Despite the lack of international flights, the island is surprisingly easy to navigate. It takes just four hours to drive its length. Wherever you're based, nature is never far, as nearly half the land is protected parkland.

This deep connection to the outdoors has fostered a growing wellness movement. There’s no dearth of hiking trails, cutting-edge spas, secluded wellness retreats, and floating saunas. Set on still lakes or anchored in hidden bays, these wood-fired sanctuaries bring Scandi-chic ritual to the southern hemisphere, offering intense heat, a cold plunge, and uninterrupted views of Tasmania’s raw, untamed beauty.

Of Fire and Ice