You’re standing in a darkened Roman ruin, with your arms extended, chanting, and heart pacing. As you look to your right and your left, the profiles of those surrounding you are lit solely by the glow of a futuristic blue “S” beaming from headphones that are directing them about what to think, how to move, and what to feel. No, this isn’t a post-apocalyptic scene; it’s post-blasé wellness—Sanctum, to be exact—come to rescue a sea of sameness in the United States in partnership with Auberge Resorts next year.
Sanctum is a wellness-meets-workout modality that is best summed up as Taryn Toomey’s The Class meets an EDM rave dome. Founded in 2020 in Amsterdam by Gabriel Olszewski and Luuk Melisse when loneliness was peaking mid-pandemic, the method is meant to connect our minds to our bodies and get us out of the habit of putting our lives into autopilot. “Our main purpose is to drive reconnection when the world is constrained by connection and loneliness,” Olszewski tells me.
Everything about the experience is purposefully crafted to be a vibe, starting with the locations, which are often candle-lit Gothic churches, Roman ruins, or art galleries. “We only host our classes in the most unique locations with the soul,” says Olszewski. Much like the early aughts of SoulCycle, the stage is set for you to have a spiritual experience. Rather than music blaring over a loudspeaker, you’ll put on headphones so that you can tune into yourself and drop deeper into your emotions as you do the resistance-based workout that seamlessly blends from classical music to Dutch techno to spoken word of Buddhist scholar Alan Watts to high-vibe Whitney Houston.
The headphones are significant for two key reasons. The first, practical. “You can release a lot of tension, stress, and anxiety through voice release,” says Olszewski. “People tend to release easier when they know the other person doesn t hear them.” The second, scientific. Research shows that people feel more connected and have a more emotional response when wearing headphones as opposed to when music is simply projected over speakers. This allows hundreds and thousands to gather and reap the ultimate benefits of their own individual experience.
While mega-experiences with flocks of participants helped put Sanctum on the map in Europe, the ability of Melisse and Olszewski to help connect others in tailored, curated settings is driving their expansion to the United States with Auberge. “With Sanctum is that opportunity to be able to pause, to move, to get back into our bodies,” says Vivianne Garcia-Tunon, Vice President of Wellbeing, Auberge Resorts Collection.
The pair has honed a retreat formula to create a journey that forces you to go inward, explore parts of yourself you may want to avoid, and then emerge stronger—physically and mentally. “There are moments where we allow you to face discomfort, allow you to face insecurities,” says Olszewski. “Then, we try to dig it out, we try to face that because we truly believe you cannot go into the bliss state if you don’t first face your inner demons.”
Once people have wrestled with what ails them, the Sanctum method turns to rebuilding. “On the final day of the retreat, we usually build up the energy towards self-acceptance, creating a headspace that’s going to reconnection with yourself and then reconnect with the community….We always end up on a high note.”
To start the partnership next year, this will mean creating four unique retreats in Stanly Ranch in Napa Valley, California (January 26 to 28); Commodore Perry Estate in Austin, Texas (March 27 to 29), Mayflower Inn Spa in Washington, Connecticut (June 21 to 23), and Madeline Hotel Residences in Telluride, Colorado (September 6 to 8).
While half of the method is executed on the mat, the other half takes place in the realm of the natural landscape on hikes that happen to a beat with headphones. For example, at Stanly Ranch in Napa Valley, participants can expect to hike amongst panoramic vistas of wine country; in Austin, these take place against an eclectic and vibrant cityscape; in New England, through lush, verdant greenery; in Telluride, summiting a paintbrush mountaintop. Each of the locations gives retreat-goers the opportunity to connect deeply with themselves and others and their sense of place. Something our present digital-first lifestyles lack.
Our digital-first lifestyles could largely unfold anywhere and remain unchanged. By taking moments to turn off our screens and power on our eyes and ears, we can connect with music, with movement, and with each other. Focusing on what’s around us—be it blue lights emanating from headphones, pulsing to a beat, or the scenery that passes us by as we move toward a paramount—is a big ask. It’s also the ultimate opportunity.