Soma Vita Spa - Vitality of Body Mind and Spirit

Soma Vita was born from a vision to create more than a wellness facility. It answers a growing need for spaces that support holistic wellbeing – a balance of physical health and nutrition, mental clarity and mindful experiences – and intentional living. It is a sanctuary where people can disconnect from stress, experience recovery and reconnect with themselves. Inspired by the calming rhythm of island living, they leave feeling restored, revived and energised.

Sharmin Reehman, the founder and creative director guides the vision, the experience design and the brand direction of Soma Vita, and the venture is funded and supported by KOHO Air and its investors.

The process of setting up the facility on Gili Air was both exciting and challenging.

According to Sharmin, the proudest moment came in creating a rare balance: ‘…bringing together corporate-grade structure and a culture of trust, where teams feel safe, valued and empowered. Employee wellbeing is a priority and celebration, not just performance pressure, is embedded into daily work. And it’s all set within the simplicity and rhythm of island living’.

As well as delays that are part of any project, the logistics of sourcing and transporting the latest wellness technology and specialised equipment, such as the sauna and generator, from different locations, was a challenge. Another was the need for awareness-raising and education. Although longevity and wellness optimization are rapidly growing industries in the US, the UK and, increasingly, in Singapore and Asia, the concept is still relatively new in Lombok and the Gilis. Many people are not yet familiar with what is available, so it was important to introduce such things as red-light therapy, recovery-focused wellness and biohacking-inspired experiences, and to educate the local market on the benefits of Soma Vita.

From concept to creation

The facility has every modern wellness luxury but, rather than feeling clinical or overly commercial, Soma Vita is designed to evoke a sense of escape from fast-paced living. The whole complex promotes peace and calm and, from the moment guests step inside, the setting is intentionally designed to slow the momentum of life. The décor is a blend of tropical island living, Balinese culture and Mediterranean-inspired architecture and aesthetics. Natural fabrics, wood and textured stone, earthy tones, soft lighting, plants and handcrafted decorator pieces create an atmosphere that is warm, welcoming and sophisticated.

Sharmin explains something of the philosophy that underlies the project:

‘At its core, Soma Vita challenges the idea that health is a luxury category. It was built on the belief that wellness and longevity should not be exclusive to the wealthy or reserved for occasional retreats but instead embedded into everyday living.

‘Rather than separating wellness into isolated interventions, Soma Vita aims to integrate nutrition, sleep optimisation, movement, nervous system regulation and community into a unified lifestyle experience’.

It reflects a shift towards integrated living, where hospitality, health and community converge. The facility can be seen as an ecosystem where human connection actively creates a sense of belonging and supports better health outcomes, by reinforcing good habits and emotional regulation.

‘To put it briefly’, says Sharmin, ‘it’s a community-driven environment designed to make healthy living effortless and accessible’.

What Soma Vita offers

Guests are offered a range of bio-optimisation tools designed for rapid recovery and systemic reset:

• Sauna
• Cold plunge
• Mineral jacuzzi
• Red light therapy.

The ‘next layer’ of tools and therapies will be added soon:

• PEMF (Pulsed Electro-Magnetic Field) mats
• EMS (Electrical Muscle Stimulation)
• Microcurrent sleep devices
• Salt infusion jacuzzi.

Soma Vita is designed for guests who see wellbeing treatments as more than a luxury escape or retreat.

‘It’s a performance system’, says Sharmin, ‘for people who want to restore energy, optimise health and reset their lifestyle in a structured, supportive environment’.

These people might be travellers, shifting from traditional luxury to meaningful, restorative experiences, or those experiencing career or life transitions and looking for structure and clarity in the process. They could be high-performing founders, executives and creatives recovering from burnout or cognitive overload. Some might simply want to build healthier habits in a shared environment or work actively towards achieving longevity and bio-optimisation, rather than choose passive relaxation.

Supporting guests’ aims is a high-performance team offering a blend of expertise in hospitality, professional wellness delivery and strong commercial growth.

‘We have leadership in Partnerships & Strategic Growth and in Operations’, says Sharmin. ‘There are currently four therapists and a wellness coach, as well as reception and concierge staff. We hire staff primarily from Indonesia and bring in regional expertise, where necessary’.

Soma Vita stands apart. It has transformed the concept of ‘wellness’ from the notion of spa or retreat towards a structured longevity system. It offers science-backed modalities and high-performance recovery tools, rather than isolated treatments. It’s a community that reinforces healthy behaviour in an accessible, non-clinical setting, where the natural environment is an active component of the ‘reset’. It focuses on training people how to restore and sustain energy and regulate the nervous system, rather than just offering them a place to find temporary relaxation.

What the future holds

Future planning involves building a fully integrated, protocol-driven approach to wellbeing, as Sharmin explains:
‘This includes data-informed recovery programs, and expanded partnerships that allow guests to move fluidly between fitness, breathwork, therapy and social wellness experiences. We’ll develop signature multi-day transformation programs for longevity, burnout recovery, and performance reset.

‘My vision is to establish a certified practitioner system, and train local talent in standardised Soma Vita methodology and then to build a global ‘retreat + affiliate’ network that extends the system beyond Gili Air’.

The team is confident Soma Vita will be a welcome addition to the health and wellness sector in the region.

It will consolidate currently fragmented wellness offerings into one coordinated, community-driven movement, potentially through collaboration with local gyms, yoga studios and dive centres. This will give the island global visibility and make it a more intentional destination for those in search of longevity, recovery and conscious living, rather than just leisure. Community programming will connect guests, locals and practitioners through events, classes and skills development, while raising the quality of the service and creating economic benefits.

‘The direction is clear’, says Sharmin. ‘It’s a movement from ‘boutique wellness hotel’ to a structured longevity platform that orchestrates the entire health journey of a guest across body, mind and environment’.