Six Senses Launches Women’s Wellness Retreat in the Maldives and Japan - Get updated on what's happening in tourism!

Six Senses is introducing a new women-focused wellness retreat designed to address physical, emotional and hormonal wellbeing across the female lifecycle. The Yin Way Retreat – The Way of a Woman will debut at Six Senses Kanuhura in the Maldives from 1 to 4 October 2026, followed by Six Senses Kyoto in Japan from 11 to 14 December.

Blending modern clinical knowledge with principles drawn from Traditional Chinese Medicine and Taoist philosophy, the programme focuses on rest, receptivity, reflection and cyclical living. Its aim is to help participants calm the nervous system, restore emotional balance and better understand how their needs may change from the pre-pregnancy years through menopause and later life.

A broader approach to women’s health

The retreat reflects growing demand for health programmes developed specifically around female biology and life stages rather than adapted from research and protocols traditionally based on men.

Six Senses says the programme moves beyond the familiar focus on fertility and menopause to consider sleep, stress, energy, relationships, hormonal changes and long-term health as interconnected parts of women’s wellbeing.

“Women’s wellness has often been treated as a narrow conversation, focused on fertility and menopause, but it is much broader than that,” said Hati S. Malinova, Six Senses Wellness Director and Integrative Health Expert.

“Women are asking deeper questions about their health, often arriving at Six Senses when calm, sleep, and balance feel just out of reach. Brain fog can begin, and what follows is an overwhelming search for more information on cycles, perimenopause, fertility, fatigue, and the broader impact on relationships.”

Clinical experience meets ancient knowledge

Each retreat will be led by Malinova, who has more than two decades of clinical experience in female and reproductive health, postpartum care and family wellbeing. Her background includes medical and functional health, counselling psychology and Traditional Chinese Medicine, as well as 12 years at a women’s health hospital in Shanghai.

The programme draws on the Traditional Chinese Medicine concept of perimenopause and menopause as a “second spring”. Rather than presenting these stages primarily as periods of decline, the retreat encourages participants to consider what their bodies require at that particular moment.

“The aim is to give women tools they can continue at home,” Malinova said.

“Hormones are not the problem. The challenge is that we’ve rarely been taught how to understand them, work with them, or support ourselves through change.”

Small groups and personalised programmes

Each retreat will be limited to a small group, creating space for individual consultations as well as shared meals, workshops and informal discussions. Although participants may arrive with different symptoms and concerns, the group format is intended to reduce the sense of isolation that often accompanies hormonal changes, fatigue, disturbed sleep or emotional imbalance.

Every guest will undergo an integrated wellness screening on arrival. The results will be used to shape a personalised programme incorporating the Sleep With Six Senses and Eat With Six Senses concepts.

Treatments may include lymphatic drainage intended to support hormonal balance, heat therapies, stress management techniques and therapies addressing cortisol regulation, sleep, circadian rhythms and menstrual cycles.

“The Yin Way is the feminine way. It is about moving with your body instead of pushing against it,” Malinova said. “We spend so much of our lives stretched and striving. Yin reminds us that there is strength in slowing down and truly listening.”

Island retreat at Six Senses Kanuhura

The first programme will take place at Six Senses Kanuhura, a Maldivian island resort known for its beaches and relaxed tropical setting.

Guests will participate in daily yin yoga and sound-healing sessions intended to calm the nervous system. Workshops will explore hormonal health, while sessions at the resort’s Alchemy Bar will introduce herbs and botanicals traditionally associated with women’s wellbeing.

The itinerary also includes a dolphin cruise, communal meals and individually selected spa treatments. Participants will stay in Beach Villas with private pools during the four-day retreat.

Image Credit: © IHG