Resolution Retreats, founded in 2012 and based at Lakeside Health & Wellness Resort on the shores of Lake Karapiro in the Waikato region, is New Zealand's only live-in weight loss, health and wellness retreat exclusively for women. Named New Zealand's Best Wellness Retreat multiple years running at the World Spa Awards, the 35-hectare property is distinguished by its explicit weight-loss guarantee — a candor the retreat leans into rather than avoids, given that roughly half its guests come specifically wanting to shift weight. Programs range from a 3-day "Fresh Start" through longer 7, 10, 14 and 21-day formats, all designed around bringing diet, exercise, treatments, therapy and education together into a single structured system rather than offering an à la carte wellness menu.
Every live-in package is fully inclusive: nutritionist-planned meals (five per day, spanning three mains and two snacks), group movement and yoga classes, education and health workshops, cooking demonstrations, unlimited access to resort facilities, and ongoing facilitator support, with pre-booked spa treatments bundled into select packages. The program spans both scientific and more holistic elements — on-site blood testing and nutrition seminars sit alongside qi gong and meditation — while dedicated personal trainers adapt exercise routines to each guest's individual fitness level and any injuries, reinforcing a "progress not perfection" philosophy over rigid intensity. Workshops extend into body-positive psychology, mindfulness, breathwork and muscle tension release, aiming to address emotional and psychological patterns around health rather than focusing purely on physical outcomes.
Facilities include a day spa, pool, sauna and steam room, gym, and bush walking trails across the property, giving guests both structured programming and unstructured downtime — naps, magazines, quiet time by the pool — built into the schedule. Because the retreat is women-only and residential, it also functions as a peer community: many returning guests describe the experience as much about the friendships and shared understanding formed with other women as about the individual health outcomes, and the retreat frames itself as a "health reboot" that guests can return to periodically rather than a one-time fix.