Wellness Retreat & Spa Opens in Columbia
This past weekend I attended an open house at the Haven on the Lake, a newly opened 27,000 square-foot wellness and beauty retreat in Columbia, Md. I must admit that I have been looking forward to seeing the facility since August, when I first learned about it from Marla Peoples of The Still Point, when we chatted at the Toma Skin Therapies launch party. In partnership with the Columbia Association, Peoples and her business partner Tori Paide have created a wellness retreat that offers an impressive array of holistic health and beauty enhancing experiences.
Haven on the Lake offers a unique holistic health and beauty experience (Photo: Lia Phipps/DC on Heels)
Haven on the Lake has a warm, inviting and luxurious interior, replete with splendid views of Lake Kittamaqundi from the café area and aquatic center. I was treated to the grand tour of the space, starting with the aquatic and specialized healing environments. In addition to a movement and relaxation pool, Haven boasts some unusual healing spaces. The most notable of these was the crystal salt room (halotherapy), where one can go for relief from respiratory ailments and skin conditions such as acne and eczema. I was intrigued by the beautiful pink bricks of Himalayan salt and plan on returning to experience it for myself.
The other wellness environments include a steam bath, hot tub, sauna, cold plunge pool and tropical rain shower.
The Haven on the Lake offers a variety of yoga classes (Photo: Keithan Samuels/Columbia Association)
Next, I toured the mind-body movement studios, where guests can choose from yoga, Pilates, tai chi, qigong and Barre classes. The studios were perfectly appointed, serene and offered great lake views. I suspect those who work nearby and wish to stop by for a quick lunch hour workout might be sorely tempted to not return to the office! Haven on the Lake also offers spaces for meditation, personal relaxation lounges and an outdoor veranda overlooking the lake.
The Still Point Wellness Spa at Haven on the Lake (Photo: Lia Phipps/DC on Heels)
Finally, Peoples led me through The Still Point Wellness Spa, where in addition to skin care and body treatments, one can also receive acupuncture treatments and nutritional and medical consultations with naturopathic physicians. Each treatment room is named after an acupuncture meridian, and I concluded my visit in the Sole Room where I experienced a delightful hand smoothing scrub of Toma’s Citrus Sugar Scrub followed by a massage and application of Toma Restorative Hand and Foot Cream. My hands and cuticles felt fantastic for the remainder of the day.
The Sole Room, where guests can enjoy luxurious natural manicures and pedicures (Photo: Lia Phipps/DC on Heels)
Haven on the Lake also provides childcare, which is great for spa aficionados with small children.
Although it’s a bit of a trek from Washington, D.C., Haven on the Lake is a worthy destination if you’re seeking a day of restorative movement and spa treatments to enhance your health and vitality. In fact, Peoples informed me that it’s the first of its kind on the East Coast and people have been coming from all over the DMV and even further to experience Haven on the Lake.
A native Washingtonian, Beauty Blogger Lia Phipps is an interior designer with an irrepressible, life-long fascination with health and beauty. When she is not selecting fabrics and paint colors for clients, she occupies herself with trying new products and dispensing beauty advice to friends, acquaintances and anyone who is willing to listen to “Tips from Phipps”.
