A beautiful setting, programs and nurturing that boost guests’ wellbeing. Discover Cal-A-Vie in Vista, California, with the help of Carole Jacobs, Real Food Traveler’s Health, Fitness and Spa Editor.

Save this article to Pinterest to help you plan your visit to Cal-A-Vie. Photos courtesy of Cal-A-Vie. Graphic by RealFoodTraveler.com.

Spa Spotlight: Cal-A-Vie in Vista, California

If your notion of the perfect gift from Santa is a lavish spa retreat nestled amid fragrant lavender fields and sun-kissed orange groves, twelve acres of rolling vineyards, and quiet sycamore woodlands, welcome to Cal-A-Vie.

The vineyards of Cal-A-Vie.

From the moment you step onto this 500-acre destination health resort suspended in the dreamlike hills of North County San Diego, you’ll be transported to pastoral France — minus the jetlag.

If the landscape isn’t enough to take you to there, the resort’s 17th century structures certainly will. Imported from a village and convent in Dijon, they maintain constant vigil over the spa from surrounding hilltops.

The resort is the brainchild of Terri and John Havens, who dreamed of creating a retreat that reflected their passions for antiques, French travel, and a healthy lifestyle. (The couple live full-time in Houston but also keep a home overlooking the spa.)

To that end, the 400-year-old structures were dismantled and shipped in various stages of ruin and remorse from Burgundy to Cal-A-Vie, meticulously rebuilt stone-by-stone, and repurposed for their new lives across the pond. Along with the structures, the Havens also imported a massive number of antiques from France (tapestries, chandeliers, furnishings) which are housed throughout the property.

Perched on the resort’s highest hilltop is the Parish Hall, now used for special events, small dinners, and wine tasting the resort’s estate-grown varietals –reds, whites and specialty roses produced on site, bottled nearby, and sold at the spa and at the Houston country club where the owners reside.

On another hill is the chapel, lit by candles and used for weddings, yoga, and “sound bathing;” and a 17th century stone windmill. On yet another promontory is the L’Orangerie, originally a convent’s winter greenhouse for oranges and now used for cooking classes and demos with the resort chef and candlelight dinners.

The hillside windmill on the property.

Sprinkled in the valley below the hills are the resort’s modern-day structures. There’s an Observatory for star- and sun-gazing via a state-of-the-art Takahashi telescope; a Bathhouse spa with a cold plunge pool; a fitness center; two swimming pools; an 18-hole golf course; outdoor tennis and pickleball courts surrounded by orange trees; and across an old wooden bridge, 35 French country villas topped with terracotta roofs.

The plush villas have lofty ceilings; Travertine tile bathrooms with soaking tubs; Italian Frette linens, down pillows, and comforters; stunning oil paintings; authentic French antiques; decadent-sized memory foam beds; and sundecks that overlook a tumbling patchwork quilt of fields, flowers, orchards, and vineyards. There’s even a duck pond with a miniature floating French chateau for the incredibly lucky ducks.

Cal-A-Vie’s gourmet spa cuisine is a true farm-to-table experience that revolves around seasonal produce and herbs plucked from the spa’s organic gardens; wildflower honey gathered from the spa’s apiary; and ingredients sourced from local farmers and suppliers.

In the morning, fresh coffee is delivered to your room, after which you can head to the restaurant for the omelet du jour and more. Lunch and dinner feature fresh homemade soups and salads as well as light, delectable fare like kabobs with sweet potato puree, and honey-sesame salmon.

Meals are served in an elegant dining room, or, during nice weather (nearly all the time) on an outdoor patio overlooking stunning views. The resort also provides in-room snacks like popcorn and matcha lattes.

When it comes to activities, there is enough going on at Cal-A-Vie to keep you occupied for months, and the 5:1 ratio of staff to guests guarantees a customized experience. On arrival, an advisor will review your fitness level and goals and use them to create a daily list of activities from which you can choose.

If you want to blast calories and lose weight, there’s 160-plus fitness classes — from cardio barre, TRX, upper body blast, aerobics circuit, HIT workouts, and Pickleball to Country Line Dancing. Or you can start your day with a guided hike on ten miles of trails in the surrounding hillsides or vineyards; join the spa’s astronomy experts for a unique solar walk; or enjoy walking meditation around the resort’s enchanting Labyrinth.

For water babies, the aquatics offerings in two pools include everything from aqua barre, circuit, stretch, yoga, jogging, deepwater exercise, lap swings and nautical flow to Polates, which combines the grace of Pilates with the tranquility of water.

After an invigorating workout, you can head to the spa Bath House for signature vinothérapie treatments sourced straight from the spa’s site’s grapevines, including grape skin wraps, scrubs, and facials.

Or unwind with a massage (from aquatic massage in the watzu pool to aromatherapy, bamboo, Thai, shiatsu, gua sha, herbal poultice, cupping, CBD, deep tissue and hot stone); a facial (flavors run the gamut from lavender oil to LED Light); or a wrap (from algae jam and CBD Himalayan coffee to lavender, honey, and seaweed).

Hot Stone Massage is one of the treatment options.

Or de-stress with treatments from ancient Chinese to New Age California. Zone out with Crystal Bowl Sound Healing in the Chapel; limber up with the Ashtanga, Chakra, and Trapeze yoga in the gym; bliss out with guided visualizations and walking meditations in the Labyrinth; or soothe mind, body and soul with holistic treatments like KT Taping, Magnesium Infusion, Microcurrent Body Lift, and Water Craniosacral.

Attendees participating in sound healing. 

Or get creative with the resort’s hands-on mindful art and creativity classes. Fashion feathered dream catchers, craft chakra energy bracelets, or make lavender wreaths, origami, or journey cards.

For guests who need extra help shaping up, chilling out or healing, there’s also nutrition counseling; classes on intermittent fasting, detox, and healthy meal planning; hormone and nutritional testing; life coaching; and holistic health and medical care from naturopaths, acupuncturists, and chiropractors.

After a whirlwind day and dinner, you can visit the Observatory to catch a falling star, or head to the tasting room to sample the spa’s harvest of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot grapes.

The observatory at Cal-A-Vie.

Back in your villa, take a moonlight soak in your tub, then sack out for what may be the deepest sleep of your life. Should you have sweet dreams of Cal-A-Vie, don’t pinch yourself. It’s real.

When you go: Cal-a-Vie offers 3, 4, and 7-night packages that include gourmet cuisine, fitness classes, hiking, beauty and spa treatments, mind-body awareness programs, lectures, guest speakers, and accommodations. In 2025, the 40th anniversary of the resort, Cal-A-Vie will introduce a host of new programs, including sky-bathing in the Observatory; a new Magnesium pool, cold plunge and infrared sauna in the restored Bathhouse; and several special week-long programs, including Pickleball, Mindset Matters, Yoga, Pilates, and Women’s Week programs.  To learn how to make the scrumptious food served at Cal-A-Vie, check out its new cookbook, “Food as Medicine,” which comes out in May 2025. For more info on the resort’s fitness, spa, beauty, relaxation, mind-body wellness, nutrition, and holistic health treatments, as well as for more information on its cuisine, accommodations, packages, and pricing, visit their website, here.

-Story by Carole Jacobs, Real Food Traveler Health, Fitness and Spa Editor

Hungry for more? Read Carole’s article about Death Valley’s Secret Kingdoms.