Spa Eastman in Canada’s Eastern Townships

In her twenties Jocelyna Dubuc became interested in learning more about foods to improve her health. Touting her success, she would ultimately create a wellness destination in Canada way before the term was even coined. In 1977, she opened Spa Eastman, a holistic place in Canada’s Eastern Townships that has now been in existence for four decades. This year-round holistic resort in southeastern Quebec (about a two-hour drive from Montreal) emphasizes healthful eating with daily activities and mind and body treatments.

The History of Spa Eastman

Once a history and geography teacher, Dubuc recalled that learning more about the correlation between eating right and physical well-being was a revelation for her. “The teacher in me said, how is it that nobody taught me this, that what I put in my mouth is so important.” That “a-ha” moment 50 years ago would alter Dubuc’s life direction. Driven by her pursuit of budding knowledge in nutrition, Dubuc would go on to study yoga and meditation and spend time at an ashram in India. Her education would also encourage a dream – to create a place where people could come to unwind and learn how to take better care of themselves.

“My objective with the spa was to integrate all the activity that we do as an art of living,” said Dubuc, who is now in her early seventies and still serves as its president. Applying her reading and research, Dubuc started Spa Eastman as a bed and breakfast style retreat on a farm, with a few rooms and small staff. She had her hand in every aspect of the operation that could make it grow. “I started it for myself because I had no other model,” she remembered.

Like spas of today – seen as wellness destinations and a focal point of a growing travel niche – Dubuc began adding treatments like therapeutic massages, body wraps and facials as well as dietary plans. “When I got my first facial, I thought, ‘oh my god, it feels good,’” she remembered. Having a variety of choices for guests was key, as Dubuc noted that not everyone is comfortable with a massage, “but to receive a facial, they’ll open up. So, it’s important to find ways to create that openness.”

Over time Spa Eastman has advanced in other ways, for example, the staff now numbers about 110 employees. It was named “Best Spa in Canada” at Spafinder’s 2015 Wellness Travel Awards. Located on a woodsy 365-acre estate at the foothills of Mount Orford, Spa Eastman provides an overall sense of peace and seclusion. It’s practically a small village spread over seven lodging pavilions with 45 guestrooms. Its main pavilion is the central point, with a restaurant, bistro, classrooms, spa and retail shop along with Nordic baths areas and indoor and outdoor pools.

Tonique Cuisine

Spa Eastman’s dining program has been developed nutritionally through scientific research on health benefits, but it also prioritizes food that tastes good. With a kitchen led by Executive Chef, Naturopath and Nutritherapist Veronica Kaczmarowski, with Chief Nutritherapist, Nutritional Counselor and Chef Jean-Marc Enderlin, the spa’s aptly named “Tonique Cuisine” is said to foster increased energy and better sleep and digestion.

Ingredients are organic and seasonal with locally sourced fish, poultry and meats all cooked at low temperatures. Coconut, soy and nut-derivative milks are used along with grains and non-gluten flours such as millet, buckwheat, brown rice and chickpea. At breakfast, their Choco-Chia Vitality Cream combines quinoa flakes, sprouted buckwheat, hempseeds, raw cocoa, black cherries, and chia seeds. At dinner, choices might be a vegan tofu cutlet or a rabbit confit with a fresh rosemary, pink peppercorn and yellow-mustard seed cream served with a julienne of seasonal vegetables. A salad bar is stocked with produce from the spa’s garden and a prime selection of extra virgin olive oils. Breakfast features a homemade yogurt with maple syrup, honey and fruit.

Spa Treatments

While Nordic spas are very trendy in Canada, Spa Eastman’s leans toward the practical side. Referred to as “Eastman-les-Bains,” their thermotherapy system is thorough. Outdoors there are two spas at different temperatures plus a pool. Indoors, you’ll find an infrared sauna (which encourages releasing of toxins), a Finnish sauna (dry heat), a hammam (detoxifying eucalyptus steam bath) and an Igloo shower (sprays a cooling mist of eucalyptus and peppermint oils). There are also two Kneipp baths, one for the legs and one for the arms. These help with circulatory problems and increase blood and lymphatic circulation.

Spa treatments run the gamut from massages and facials to exfoliation and body wraps. Be different and try the NeuroSpa Power Nap Station. It’s designed to promote relaxation through intra-corporal music (multi-frequency acoustic vibrations) which is synchronized with conventional music. Basically, it’s taking a nap but with sound.

A Full Events Calendar

Spa Eastman provides a variety of activities and a daily calendar listing of happenings with sessions conducted in English or French. Guests can take guided walks in the woods or venture along the property’s 15 kilometers (9+ miles) of hiking trails. Personal consultations are available including weight loss, naturopathy, osteopathy, fascia therapy and fitness assessment.

Dubuc hopes that all her patrons leave with a sense of resolve for whatever ails them.
“It can be life changing,” she says. “But you must give it time.”