Luxury Health Retreat, Italy

Next retreat:
31st May -
4th June, 2027

Plus optional
village stay:
28th - 30th May

Nestled in a charming mountain hamlet in the Italian Alps, this luxurious health retreat offers the perfect blend of rest, nourishment, personal growth and cultural immersion.

Slow down and relax, surrounded by nature, a supportive community, and the nourishing traditions of Italy’s slow-food culture.

Hosted by gut-healthy cooking and low-tox living experts, Jo Whitton and Lucie McCullough.

Escape to the Italian alps with me, for a unique, healing retreat!

Nestled in a charming mountain hamlet in the Italian Alps, this luxurious health retreat offers the perfect blend of rest, nourishment, personal growth and cultural immersion. Slow down and relax, surrounded by nature, a supportive community, and the nourishing traditions of Italy’s slow-food culture.

Under the expert guidance of Jo Whitton, you’ll discover the healing power of “food as medicine” through nutrient-dense meals designed to support gut health. Cook side-by-side with Jo and Italian cooks, as you learn to prepare simple, nourishing dishes the traditional way.

Forage in the alpine fields for edible plants with an experienced mountain guide, and learn to make creative and delicious dishes from wild food. Learn how to create a safe and nurturing home environment, with building biologist and interior designer, Lucie McCullough. Connect with like-minded people, make new friends, and come away rested and rejuvenated.

Luxury Health Retreat, Italy - Quirky Cooking
Jo Whitton and Lucie McCullough, Quirky Cooking Retreat, Italy
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Jo Whitton, Quirky Cooking Retreat, Italy
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Bookings for our 2027 retreat now open!

Click here for pricing & accommodation options

Next retreat: 31 May - 4 June, 2027

Note: We may add a second retreat in May - click the 'Support' button to request info!

When it comes to living a long, happy and healthy life, we know that nutrition is only one piece of the puzzle. The healthiest people on earth have a solid purpose in life, they have strong family and community values, they move their body daily, and they focus on the simple joys in life. Meals are enjoyed together with laughter, relaxation, and connection. They are not rushing around madly every day, eating breakfast on the way to work, saying yes to things they can’t fit in, and just living for the weekend (which is gradually becoming one day rather than two), or a far-off retirement!

What if you could immerse yourself in that nurturing lifestyle for a little while? How would it feel to escape your busy life and take some time to fully relax and focus on your health and wellbeing?

This is your chance to hit the pause button for a few days. Come and hide away from the world with us, in a charming hamlet in the heart of the Italian alps. Take the time to calm your nervous system and nourish body and soul, with the support of gut-healthy cooking and low-tox living experts, Jo Whitton and Lucie McCullough.

Quirky Cooking Gut-Health Retreat, Italy
Quirky Cooking Gut-Health Retreat, Italy

Escape, de-stress, and heal.

An intimate, healing retreat.

We invite you to join us in the heart of the Italian alps, where you will experience the traditional foods and culture of Italy while learning how to improve your health naturally. At this intimate retreat, you will:

* Experience the power of culinary medicine, with meals designed to reduce inflammation, optimise gut health, rebalance the microbiome, improve the gut-brain connection, and revitalise your health

* Forage for medicinal herbs, shop at the village markets, and help gather and prepare ingredients for the daily meals

* Visit local producers, cheese makers and local markets, and learn about traditional Italian foods

* Cook alongside Australian recipe developer and food writer Jo Whitton of Quirky Cooking

* Learn by doing as you cook together, creating delicious, nutrient-dense, gut-healing meals, inspired by traditional diets and using local, organic, biodynamic, whole-food ingredients

* Learn how to optimise your longevity with a balanced approach to health, focusing on the areas of gut health, stress reduction, time in nature, natural movement, sleep, and emotional wellbeing

* Get the help you need to begin implementing gut-healing diet and lifestyle changes into your everyday life, in a way that suits your unique family and stage of life

* Take home recipes and skills to nourish and nurture yourself and your family going forward

* Relax and breathe. Take some time out for yourself to de-stress, re-energise, and refocus, without the distractions of everyday life.

The retreat will be hosted in the stunning luxury ski lodge ‘Baita 1697’ located in Piedmont, in the heart of the Italian alps. Baita 1697 (baita meaning ‘ancient alpine home’, and 1697 being the year it was built) is an exquisitely designed chalet which has been featured in Architectural Digest and Forbes magazine, and comes with unbeatable celebrity credentials. Jamie Oliver has stayed and said it was his “best chalet experience ever”! 

Baita 1697 has been purposefully designed to benefit the health of guests, by owner and internationally acclaimed interior designer and building biologist, Lucie McCullough. When renovating the lodge, Lucie worked with local architect Daniele Ronchail to create a stunning blend of traditional and modern. The open plan living and dining area sits under exposed 17th century stone vaults, divided by a glass staircase with a giant waterfall of lights descending from the second floor. Each room is individually created by local carpenters to be a world of its own. 

Lucie and Daniele have successfully created a space that is in keeping with nature. The design is soothing and beautiful, nothing too harsh on the eye – the perfect place to escape from busy city lives to quiet, cosy comfort surrounded by nature. Lucie is proud to offer a clean, non-toxic environment perfect for a healing retreat, as Baita 1697 is designed with completely natural materials (wool, cotton, linen, wood, stone), with natural ventilation, regulated humidity, and subfloor natural air circulation.

“The use of natural materials has a positive impact on visitors. Guests often remark on how well they sleep in the lodge… When McCullough studied [building biology] in Santa Fe in the U.S., she was happily surprised to see how architect Ronchail had already adopted many of these principles into Baita 1697.” – Forbes magazine

 

Click here for pricing & accommodation options

Next retreat: 31 May - 4 June, 2027

Note: We may add a second retreat in May - click the 'Support' button to request info!

This healing retreat features home-cooked meals using traditional, whole-food ingredients – recipes developed with local, biodynamic and organic ingredients, designed to reduce inflammation, optimise gut health, rebalance the microbiome, and revitalise your health.

Guests can join in the preparation of meals, learning by ‘doing’, alongside gut-healthy cooking expert, Jo Whitton. Jo has extensive experience with cooking for the GAPS Nutritional Protocol and other healing diets.

This is the perfect opportunity to introduce your other half to ‘food as medicine’, and learn about stress-reducing lifestyle changes in a comfortable, luxury setting. Enjoy amazing food, spend time in nature amidst gorgeous scenery, forage for medicinal herbs, walk on mountain trails and visit local producers such as cheesemakers, bee-keepers, local growers, and markets. For those with time to explore before or after the retreat, your hosts are happy to recommend local tours such as biodynamic wineries, mountain treks, and much more.

Join us for an unforgettable five-day, four-night retreat, and enjoy a calming, nourishing, ‘nervous system reset’. You will return home re-energised, refreshed, and better equipped for your journey to good health!

OPTIONAL VILLAGE STAY: 28-30 May

Each year we offer a three-day add on to the retreat, for those who would like to spend a few days in Lucie’s small village in the Monferatto region, where you can experience Italian village life! Forget the busy cities, bustling crowds, tourist food and stress… enjoy a peaceful stay in a quiet, picturesque village with gorgeous, traditional foods, cooking lessons with local nonnas, visits to organic farms, long lunches in the sunshine, wandering through the markets and scenic drives to local sights.

Scroll down for more info…

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Luxury Wellness Retreat, Italy - Quirky Cooking
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The alpine chalet - Baita 1697

The retreat takes place at the luxury chalet, Baita 1697. This chalet is an emblem of a different time, when mountain villages were cut off for months at a time and the people relied on what they could forage from Mountain pastures, and cultivate on the land.  The building was converted from its original use as a farmhouse, with stables under the vaults of the ground floor, a barn and storage space above, and small, rudimentary living quarters on one side.  

The area still holds an attachment to the land, and to the farming traditions of the mountains – dairy farming in the summer produces fabulous, raw cheeses; and the honey and potatoes from Pragelato (the commune where Baita 1697 is located) are famous throughout Italy.  Throughout the summer, there are constant reminders of the agricultural self-reliance of this region, and the corresponding pleasure of enjoying local, fresh, artisanal produce.

Quirky Cooking Gut-Health Retreat, Italy

What Is Included?

  • Transport from Turin to the chalet in Pragelato, Monday morning on May 31st.
  • Luxury accommodation and all meals, from arrival at the retreat Monday lunchtime, through to departure Friday morning
  • Transport back to Turin on Friday morning, June 4th, and drop offs to train station 
  • All workshops, cooking classes, activities and outings from Monday to Friday
  • Meals and cooking classes catered to your specific needs
  • Natural body products and other lovely, local gifts on arrival
  • A retreat chat group where recipes and other resources are shared to help you continue your health journey when you get back home

Optional Village Stay

  • Experience everyday life in a small, Italian village, 28th to 30th May!
  • We pick up guests in Turin on the 28th (Friday) morning prior to retreat and drive to Lucie’s village, Cerrina Monferrato (1 hr drive).
  • Stay in a little house in the village and walk down to Lucie’s house each day to enjoy delicious meals and explore the beautiful, local area with us.
  • Experience grocery shopping in a small village, nearby organic farms and dairies, local markets and artisanal shops; try freshly-made butter & cheeses, wild-caught seafood, locally hunted wild game and local specialities… including (of course) raw-milk cappuccinos & raw-milk-and-honey gelatos at the local cafe!
  • Share meals with Lucie & her family (Jo will be cooking), enjoy cooking demonstrations with local nonnas, relax and enjoy lazy meals in the sunshine.
  • This experience includes three nights accommodation in the village (Friday, Saturday, Sunday nights) before heading up to the chalet on the Monday morning. All meals and transport from Turin to the village, then on to the retreat in the alps are included.
  • Cost for the 3-day Village Stay is €1,800.

This village stay is not included in the retreat pricing. Let us know if you’re interested & would like more information! Email Jo at  [email protected]

Jo Whitton, Quirky Cooking Retreat, Italy
Click here for pricing & accommodation options

Next retreat: 31 May - 4 June, 2027

Note: We may add a second retreat in May - click the 'Support' button to request info!

Reviews from Guests & Media

A very heart felt thank you for our time together. Your hard work, professionalism and love in everything you put into this week paid off tremendously and I’m so appreciative. No easy task pleasing a bunch of strangers. But you, Lucie and Emma did a fantastic job at staying cool under pressure whilst being apart of everything and making us all feel welcome. Thank you! ❤️
TamRetreat Guest
"What a privilege to have met such a remarkable group of inspiring women... Whilst our reasons of committing to this retreat may have been different, it gave all of us the opportunity to learn so much more from the different angles, questioning and perspectives. The impressions made are deep and lifelong. Jo, Naomi, Lucie and Monica, thank you for creating the energy and safe space for our journey... you all made the whole so much more than the sum of the parts!! In joy and gratitude, thank you! Our commitment to well-being continues in the excitement of a new community. xxx"
OllieRetreat Guest
"The time I spent with you and the special people we met has had a big impact on my personally. Thank you for looking after us and making us feel so welcome. What you are creating is magical... I am looking forward to getting home and improving my family's health. Missing you already."
Kathryn-AnneRetreat Guest
We had an amazing week making new friends, lots and lots of laughter. (Tracey)
It’s been a great week, beautiful food, great people and fond memories. 🥰❤️ (Peter)
Tracey & PeterRetreat guests
"It's safe to say this retreat deeply moved me and inspired me to take better care of myself. Thank you Jo, Lucie and Naomi from my heart to yours."
HannahRetreat Guest
"I agree with the magnitude of the impact of this retreat. So powerful in more ways than gut health. Even though I appreciated that portion equally."
KimRetreat Guest
Feeling very grateful for this opportunity. I have made so many new friends through this retreat ❤️ thank you so much for allowing me to be apart of all of this 🙏
EmmaRetreat Cook & Guest
“Chalets in Italy are like fairy dust, and Baita 1697 stands alone as an exquisitely designed luxury ski chalet in Italy’s Piedmontese Alps. It also comes with unbeatable celebrity credentials. Jamie Oliver has stayed and said it was his best chalet experience ever, and a certain top model has also enjoyed its deep comfort and stylish surrounds.”
The White Chalet Collection
“The use of natural materials has a positive impact on visitors. Guests often remark on how well they sleep in the lodge. This resonates with McCullough's latest specialization in 'building biology,' where buildings are built or modified to reduce irritants on inhabitants, often found in construction materials and finishes. Methods include the use of natural materials, regulating humidity, providing natural ventilation and adopting radiant heat. When McCullough studied this subject in Santa Fe in the U.S., she was happily surprised to see how architect Ronchail had already adopted many of these principles into Baita 1697. Examples include using damp mitigation measures and providing subfloor natural air circulation.”
Forbes Magazine

Thank-You Letter from a Guest

Dear Jo & Lucie,

Well, I have been home for a week now and have had some time to process the incredible time in Italy Lucia and I have had. I wanted to write to you both to formally thank you for providing the opportunity to attend the Quirky Cooking Gut Health Retreat in Italy. We could not have enjoyed it more.

We want to acknowledge and appreciate your generosity and kindness during the time we were with you. Lucie, thank you for opening your family home and your very special holiday retreat to us and welcoming us so warmly. You are a natural host and all of the small details were noticed and appreciated like ordering for us when we went out for “Lucie lattes”, running us around in the van, having beautiful self care products for us to try and knowing all the best places. Jo, you worked so hard to feed us all and ensure we got to experience as many different dishes and cooking techniques in a week as is humanly possible! I especially loved your orange roasted (humongous) chicken and seeing Lucia try different foods for the first time! I loved cooking alongside you and getting to know you better on our walks. Thank you for being so open and generous with your knowledge and life experiences…

I especially loved the excursions we went on around the village and during our time in Pragelato. Having morning sunshine cappuccini with the group in Sestriere was a highlight as was the beautiful long lunch we enjoyed at the Agriturismo. Thank you for taking us to the festa in Cerrina Alto – it was so much fun and I loved tasting the natural locally made wines.

Weren’t we lucky to have such a lovely group of people to spend this incredible week with? I think the relaxed atmosphere added to the enjoyment and being a smaller group meant we had the chance to really connect and have some deeper conversations about life and healing.

As you can tell, I love food, healing, natural health, travel and beauty so much but it can be difficult to find people that match my enthusiasm! I think that’s why I loved the retreat so much, I could be myself and enjoy all my favourite things without apology!

Lots of love, Kristin 
(Certified GAPS coach @kristinjcosgrove)

Pricing & Accommodation

Click here to see room options & book in!

Meet Your Hosts

Jo Whitton, Quirky Cooking

Jo Whitton

Jo Whitton is the founder of Quirky Cooking – an online hub for the vibrant community she has nurtured since 2008 with her deliciously wholesome recipes, her down-to-earth advice on healthy living, and her contagious passion for “food as medicine”.

Jo lives in Far North Queensland, Australia, where she works mostly from home (when she’s not travelling), and enjoys the country life. Due to chronic health issues in her family, Jo began researching ways to improve their diet from the time her kids were very young. Her son’s struggles with OCD and anxiety led her to research the link between gut and brain health, and how healing the gut reduces inflammation and improves physical and mental health issues. She began to focus on traditional, nourishing, whole foods, using the principles of the GAPS Nutritional Protocol to successfully help her son and family to heal.

Her experience of working through chronic health issues in her own family resulted in her work helping families reduce physical and mental stress caused by inflammatory foods, guiding them towards simple diet and lifestyle changes that will heal and nourish the body and mind.

Jo is the author of three best-selling cookbooks, and is the host of podcast “Quirky Cooking Chats” where she shares her own and others’ stories of the journey to good health, and the many paths that can take.

Jo runs seminars, gut health retreats, cooking classes and workshops (both online and in person); facilitates online programs to support people working through healing with food; is always developing creative new recipes; and loves sharing her tips and how-to videos of simple, whole food cooking via social media.

You can learn more about Jo at  Quirky Cooking, and you can find her cookbooks in her online store.

Quirky Cooking Gut-Health Retreat, Italy
Lucie McCullough

Lucie McCullough

Building Biologist, Interior Designer & Owner/Designer of Baita 1697

Lucie is not only a talented interior designer with a strong following throughout Europe, Asia and the United States (see Lucie McCullough Ltd,  Architectural Digest, Forbes and the British Times), she’s also a building biologist with a passion for transforming homes into safe and healthy environments for families.

After years of working in the style capitals of New York, London, Rome and Milan with stints at the great fashion houses of Valentino and Ralph Lauren, time spent at British Vogue, and careers in shoe design and interior design in Hong Kong and the USA, Lucie’s health issues led her to the study of Building Biology. Due to poor gut health, a stressful lifestyle and mould illness, Lucie was unable to have children… until she discovered the healing power of food through the GAPS protocol, and also the healing power of a healthy home environment!

Lucie, her husband Ronan, and their four children now live in a picturesque village in the Monferrato region of Italy, where Lucie and a friend started a bilingual Steiner school – the Village Forest School – in the midst of the global pandemic (with a newborn baby no less)! Listen to her fascinating story here.

One of Lucie’s most unusual projects include the complete transformation of Baita 1697 – a 17th century farmhouse, nestled in an old mountain village in the Italian Alps, into a first class luxury ski lodge. Combining her refined eye for aesthetics in interior design, along with her building biology expertise to ensure a healthy living environment, Lucie created a beautiful sanctuary which is enjoyed by her family and guests visiting from all over the world. This is where our gut health retreat is located!

Lucie will be sharing her story of healing, tips for creating a healthy home environment, and some of her favourite gut-health recipes with retreat guests at the retreat.

You can follow Lucie’s adventures on Instagram at @luciemcculloughinteriors, @baita1697 and @villageforestschool.