At Schloss Elmau 100 dancers bend, sway, flit, and gambol across the wooden floor of a century-old concert hall. Their steps and breathing combine to make a sacred music, the sort that sounds like wind whipping through trees or a deep-throated chant wafting in from far away. Framed by panoramic windows, the saw-edged Wetterstein Mountains captivate as a ponderous stage set. It’s a breathtaking view that connects the dancers—and other hotel guests—to the nature that surrounds them. The outdoors seem to gaze inward at the dancers, as attentive as an audience. Led by choreographer Ohad Naharin and a coterie of some of his most popular teachers, the dancers have come to this wellness haven near the famed Bavarian ski town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen to join a Gaga movement language dance retreat, one of several held each year at the luxurious hideaway. Octogenarians, teenagers, middle-agers, and a new baby strapped to its mother’s chest, among others, groove intuitively to cues from the instructors. The participants hail from around the world: Canada, The Netherlands, Sweden, and beyond. They are professional dancers and awkward novices. They are fit and infirm, large and small, male and female. What they have in common is a personal quest: go Gaga in the Alps.

“Dancing was always a part of life at Schloss Elmau,” says Dietmar Mueller-Elmau, whose grandfather founded the retreat in 1916 as a bucolic destination-style salon, where guests exchanged philosophical ideas, attended arts performances, experienced nature, breathed fresh air, and shared intellectual repartee. Imagine fancily dressed literati waltzing in the concert hall to violins after elegant tête-à-têtes, and hikes to the mountaintop in long skirts or three-piece suits. Though the German word Schloss means “castle” in English, the resort is a grand estate rather than a fairytale castle. Surrounded by a 500-acre nature reserve, it comprises two buildings, each its own hotel complex—though the entire property is open to all guests. The Hideaway, complete with a tower and hipped roof, holds the historic concert hall and slightly smaller guest rooms. This building was partially destroyed in a fire in 2005, but it was rebuilt and renovated by Mueller-Elmau in 2007. The Retreat, a second building just a five-minute walk from The Hideaway, was constructed in 2015. It combines sleek, contemporary vibes with Asian-inspired, sanctuary-style suites. Schloss Elmau offers 147 keys, spread across the two buildings, along with eight restaurants, multiple pools and spas, two fitness rooms, two libraries, and numerous inviting common areas.

Inspired by (or curious about) Gaga, an interpretive dance technique unburdened by strict rules, retreat participants venture to Schloss Elmau to explore instinctive movement and their bodies’ own rhythms. They attend several dance classes a day, join Gaga seminars, and eat meals orchestrated by Schloss Elmau’s acclaimed chef, Christoph Rainer, in a beautiful room with chic Bavarian undertones. Like all guests and other conference attendees at Schloss Elmau, the dancers can partake of the castle’s plethora of wellness and educational offerings as time—or energy—allows. With nature ever present, guests enlivened by fresh mountain air can swim in the various outdoor mineral-fed pools, take part in aufguss sauna sessions, bike, hike, ski, ice skate, sled (depending on the season), take yoga classes, or meditate in lounge chairs, enraptured by mountain views. Clay tennis courts anchor a vast lawn. Families return annually for long stays to enjoy popular summertime soccer and swim camps, as well as archery classes led by eight-time German archery champion Christian Kuffer.

As the CEO and visionary of today’s version of the wellness sanctum, Mueller-Elmau relishes combining history and tradition with avant-garde offerings. His Schloss Elmau honours and incorporates the past, but with elements meant to inspire and renew—perhaps even transform. “It makes sense for Gaga to be here. Gaga awakens something,” he says of the dance retreat. “Schloss Elmau is a place where people can find themselves, where they can listen to the voice within,” he adds. Besides Gaga dance, Pilates, tai chi and qigong retreats, and a slew of yoga getaways (at its Jivamukti Yoga centre), Schloss Elmau hosts concerts, lectures, seminars, and congresses—most with intellectual, wellness, or spiritual themes. It’s been the setting for the G7 twice (2015 and 2022).

Many guests simply come for the six spas. Incorporating pools, saunas, saltwater steam rooms, relaxation areas, fitness rooms, a traditional hammam, a rustic sauna beside a creek, and a Japanese onsen area, some of the spas are adults only, and some welcome families. All of the spas are intimate well-being zones woven into the resort’s footprint, imbued with tranquility and the invitation to relax.

Schloss Elmau also attracts gastronomy fans for its range of dining options—especially Ikigai, its two-Michelin-starred Japanese-French restaurant. The restaurants take pride of place in the two main buildings of the hotel, save for Elmauer Alm, a classic Bavarian gasthaus positioned mountainside, a 40-minute uphill hike from the main property. La Salle, which serves hearty Alpine cuisine, and the atmospheric Kaminstube for fondue stand out at The Hideaway, while Tutto Mondo turns out seasonal regional dishes at The Retreat. Guests can sip cocktails or tea in the various terraces, living rooms, nooks, and bars throughout both.

Twelve wood-burning fireplaces stay lit throughout the resort, illuminating restaurants, spas, living rooms, and libraries. Guests in colourful robes and slippers, athletic gear, or knitwear by Celine sit before them, some with books, others hoisting glasses of wine. Some cozy nooks stay quiet; others roar with the laughter of children or the buzz of good conversation. Schloss Elmau’s guests are honeymooners, families, solo travellers, and girlfriends on holidays. All, like the Gaga dancers, have the chance to pivot here, to learn or do something new. Schloss Elmau, like a door left ajar, simply invites.

“It’s all about inspiration, renewal, and relaxation here,” Mueller-Elmau says as he heads to the concert hall to join the dance class—as intrigued with transformation as are his guests.

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