Curaçao: The Island of Healing

By Julia Eskins

Long known as Aruba’s cousin, Curaçao is stepping into its own. From herbal healing to floating yoga, the Dutch Caribbean’s desert jewel is a wellness oasis.

The last place I expected to find balance – both mental and physical – was in the middle of the Caribbean Sea. Trembling through a 60-minute floating yoga class (full disclosure: holding the bow pose on a stand-up paddle board is harder than it looks), I took a moment to appreciate the natural surroundings: a cacti-lined coast, turquoise waters and the sun ascending above.

Perhaps the early Portuguese explorers felt a similar sense of bliss when they arrived in Curaçao in the 16th century. As the story goes, the island’s vitamin-rich fruits cured their scurvy, so they named it Ilha da Curação (Island of Healing).

Today, wellness traditions have continued on through Curaçao’s herbal healers and entrepreneurial yogis. At the end of the class, our instructor Liberty Suares says “namaste” and smiles as if she’s just shared the world’s best-kept secret. “The special thing about Curaçao is that you can find very busy places, but you can also find calm and relaxing spots,” says Suares, who teaches her stand-up paddle board yoga classes at Playa Knip and Playa Forti. “We anchor away from the beach so we can find our peace and quiet; a Zen moment.”

Despite being part of the famed ABC island trio along with Aruba and Bonaire, Curaçao is less touristy than other Caribbean countries. Walk through the colourful Dutch colonial capital of Willemstad and you’ll find buzzing European-style restaurants. Head to the quiet pockets on the western and eastern points, and you’ll have to adjust your clock to island time.

After yoga and a visit to Shete Boka National Park, I was happy to unwind on a white sandy beach at Santa Barbara Beach & Golf Resort. The 350-room hotel is a wellness destination in itself, complete with three swimming pools, organic bath amenities from Curaloe (a nearby aloe vera plantation), a Pete Dye-designed 18- hole golf course and tennis courts. Miles of hiking and biking trails take guests past the island’s native cacti and herbs, which are put to good use at the property’s Atabei Spa. Their speciality is the Herbal Stemps Massage, a traditional treatment using sachets of locally grown herbs dipped in warm organic oil.

Curaçao’s long history of herbal healing has been gracefully recovered by Dinah Veeris, the island’s resident natural healer who began researching ancient herbal medicine in 1981. Now in her 70s,

Veeris runs Den Paradera, an herb garden and healing centre offering concoctions to treat everything from rosacea to migraines. On a tour, Veeris leads me past her 300-plus species of plants, stopping to dab aloe vera juice on a mosquito bite. For centuries, the tropical succulent has been used to make hydrating lotions, natural dye and elixirs.

As we quietly drift through the garden, the sound of the wind blowing through the native Calabash trees, I realize that I’ve found my Zen moment a dozen times over since arriving. Chances are Curaçao won’t always remain a well-kept secret. But for now, at the junction of peaceful and vibrant, its balanced beauty is ripe for discovery.

- $100 resort credit per room, per stay

- Buffet breakfast for two daily

- Upgraded room at time of check-in

- Early check-in

- Late check-out

*Offers are subject to change and availability.