There is so much to love about yoga, but if you want something that will stand out, explore these alternative wellness (and teambuilding) activities for your next event.
Toronto’s wellness scene has plenty to offer groups seeking fresh ways to unwind. The city serves up unique experiences rooted in nature, culture and a bit of adventure.
Experience forest bathing in High Park
The concept: Forest bathing or shinrin-yoku, which emerged in Japan in the 1980s, involves immersing yourself in a natural environment to relax and reconnect with nature.
Blooming Caravan: Emma Rooney, is a certified forest therapy guide whose mobile business facilitates forest bathing and nature experiences throughout the city. Visitors, she’s noticed, have a common reaction to Toronto’s sprawling system of ravines and parks—amazement. “‘Oh, I didn't realize there was so much green space in Toronto!’”
High Park has so many types of ecosystems that people might not be familiar with or associate with Toronto.
—Emma Rooney, Blooming Caravan
For forest bathing, High Park is one of Rooney’s favourites. She notes the vast urban park has spots “where you can feel very far away from the city” plus environmentally significant areas. “It's got so many types of ecosystems that people might not be familiar with or associate with Toronto.”
Besides Grenadier Pond—the city’s largest—Rooney leads participants on winding paths to take in lake views, birdsong and forested areas including a Black Oak Savanna—"a really rare ecosystem, there's almost none of it left today,” Rooney says.
As Rooney points out, the multiple benefits of time in nature (such as stress reduction) are recognized by the Canadian Medical Association. She also likes that forest bathing can be tweaked for varying fitness and ability levels, making it “a really accessible practice for quite a diverse group.”
Good to know: Rooney suggests hiring a guide and keeping group sizes to around 20. To locate certified forest therapy guides, check out Nature and Forest Therapy Canada.
Take to the water at the Toronto Islands
The concept: Activities in and around water allow participants to relax, brush up on watercraft skills and revel in nature.
Toronto Island SUP: A 10-minute ferry ride from downtown, the Toronto Islands offer a unique chance to get away from it all. With the city’s iconic skyline as a backdrop, stand up paddleboarding (SUP) experiences give participants bliss-inducing moments amongst Lake Ontario’s waves and stunning shoreline habitat, all accompanied by knowledgeable guides.
When paddleboarding season is in full swing, typically from May until late September, Toronto Island SUP offers popular options for groups, says owner Julian Ganton. The two-hour Eco-Tour, for example, meanders past two environmentally significant areas of the Islands, two historical yacht clubs, bird migration routes and pollinator gardens.
Good to know: Other customizable group experiences are also available—including kayaking, SUP yoga, sunset paddling and private lessons.
Experience the meditative calm of sound bathing
The concept: Linked to ancient meditative practices, sound bathing involves reclining comfortably and letting sounds of various musical instruments wash over you.
Soul Sound Wellness: At Toronto’s first sound healing studio, owner Danny DePoe, a sound therapist and a professional musician, has a passion for sharing sound therapy experiences with diverse communities. On a given day, you might find him running sessions for a corporate group, charity, or cluster of local students.
During hour-long sessions, DePoe enlists diverse sorts of musical instruments—quartz crystal singing bowls, chimes, buffalo drums, ocean drums (which create water sounds), or Australian didgeridoos. Of the latter he says, "They’re amazing. You feel the sound as if it’s coming from inside of you.”
With participants stretched out on yoga mats, DePoe says, “I use major, minor and dominant chords in a harmonic combination to put the body into a deep state of peace.” He also incorporates breathwork, aimed at strengthening the mind-body connection, and finally guides everyone back from a deep meditative state towards relaxed wakefulness.
“I use major, minor and dominant chords in a harmonic combination to put the body into a deep state of peace.”
—Danny DePoe, Soul Sound Wellness
Good to know: DePoe’s Avenue Road studio accommodates small groups (of four to six people). For larger groups (up to 60 guests), he brings sound bathing to venues city-wide.
Test your limits and experience the thrill of hot and cold therapy
The concept: An immersive sauna and ice bath experience offers groups personal challenges and thrills, plus a chance to hang out between therapies.
Othership: Gaining a reputation among locals for enthusiastic staff, a supportive environment and exhilarating experiences, this Toronto-born concept traces back to 2019 and one single ice bath in Robbie Bent’s backyard (he’s a co-founder and CEO).
Fuelled by Bent’s vision of hot and cold modalities, alcohol-free living and wellness, a popular neighbourhood hangout exploded. Today, Othership has two captivating locations in the city and another in New York.
Choose between guided or free-flow formats and, with your fellow team members, range between generously sized saunas and individual ice baths.
Choose between guided or free-flow formats and, with your fellow team members, range between generously sized saunas and individual ice baths—where invigorating plunges test your endurance—then recover and commune while sipping fragrant herbal teas. Friendly guidance, immersive music, aromatherapy and breathwork round out the experience.
Good to know: For 75-minute guided classes, the maximum group size is 36 people (at the Adelaide location) and 64 (in Yorkville).
Inspire your palate—and healthy habits—via a wellness food tour
The concept: Make five stops to sample innovative cuisine from leaders in the city’s emerging wellness food scene and learn healthy eating tips.
The Foodies Group – Wellness Food Tour: Try zingy ginger lemonade from Greenhouse Juice, crispy mushroom hand-rolled sushi at Planta, or cilantro-scented curry at Kupfert & Kim.
Steven Hellman, founder of The Foodies Group, says the Wellness Food Tour option gives groups a delicious taste of how much this category has evolved. “The food is phenomenal. It’s standalone. It doesn’t even need the title of vegan or gluten-free. It’s just really good food.
“It's very good for people… who want to explore how foods really make them feel, how foods can improve energy.”
—Steven Hellman, The Foodies Group
Hellman says that, beyond palate tingles, the tours—led by dietitians and nutritionists—focus on vegan and gluten-free offerings and joyful healthy habits. “It's very good for people with dietary restrictions. And those who want to explore how foods really make them feel, how foods can improve energy. These are the things the nutritionists or dietitians can talk to over the course of the tour.”
Good to know: The customizable wellness tours can enlist transit or private transportation, accommodate groups of 12 to 150, different budgets and food traditions, and be as upscale or casual as desired. “We can really tailor the tour to the specific needs of the client,” Hellman says.
