How to enjoy Shinrin-Yoku (the Japanese concept of Forest Bathing)
It can sometimes be hard to relax when you are travelling. If you’re constantly making plans for the remainder of your trip or checking your phone for updates from home or work, how can you switch off? One way that we like to unwind and disconnect during a trip is by wild swimming, another is by embracing the Japanese tradition of shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing.
Forest bathing is a relatively new concept, emerging from Japan in the 1980’s as an antidote to the fast pace of city life. The idea is pretty straightforward: surround yourself with trees and allow your mind to relax. You can take yourself for a long walk in a forest, or simply sit in the woods for a short period of time, it’s how you spend your time among the trees that matters. You should leave anything distracting (phone, book, headphones) behind and wander into the woodland on your own with the aim of slowing down and paying attention to your surroundings.
When travelling, forest bathing is a great way to switch off and really soak up your surroundings. If you are close to a forest or a gathering of trees, sit among them once a day for a short period of contemplation or meditation. You don’t have to be in a huge forest to enjoy the benefits though. If you are travelling somewhere tropical or balmy, you could sit below a palm tree or wander into a botanical garden to indulge in a little shinrin-yoku. Walk slowly or find a comfortable spot to sit down, paying attention to all of your senses. Smell the scent of the trees around you, listen to the leaves rustling in the wind, and soak up the sight of all that nature, noticing the little details such as how the light bounces through the canopy of leaves above. Take long, deep breaths and try not to think about stressful situations.
PHOTOS BY ANDREA SWARZ & MARIA ISABEL GUZMÁN
Forest bathing is particularly soothing when you are visiting a busy city. Modern urban life can quickly become stressful, so removing yourself from the hectic streets in search of greenery is a quick and easy way to unwind. Locate your nearest park, or head slightly outside the city limits in search of nature. If you’re struggling to find forests, look for cactus gardens, vineyards, or palm-lined beaches.
Countless scientific studies have researched the benefits of surroundings ourselves with nature, finding that being among the trees has a calming effect, boosts creativity, relieves stress and can ultimately make you happier. There are even reports that suggest forest bathing can improve physical health, by reducing blood pressure and boosting our immune systems. The colour green has been shown to trigger a calming effect with benefits even seen from painting the colour in your home – this is amplified when you surround yourself with trees.
If you like the idea of shinrin-yoku, plan your travels around it. Consider where you could visit that is in close proximity to gatherings of trees, allowing yourself to plan a getaway themed around mindfulness. Lose yourself in Puglia’s olive groves, wander around the edges of a Mexican jungle or enjoy a spa retreat surrounded by greenery in the Azores. Check into a rainforest hotel in Bali, discover Lisbon’s botanical gardens or head into the hills of Los Angeles. You don’t need to be deep in a pine forest to enjoy the benefits of forest bathing – once you start searching for greenery you will find it everywhere.
