Spa Business editor Liz Terry pays a visit to Natirar to see how plans for the new Miraval are shaping up

The new Miraval at Natirar in New Jersey will be built in and around an existing operation owned and run by founders Bob and Kim Wojtowicz. Miraval replaced previous shareholder, Virgin’s Richard Branson, as a partner in the project. The new site will open in March 2015.

The stunning house, set in 400 acres, was the former home of the King of Morocco and already boasts a high-end farm to table restaurant – Ninety Acres – a cooking school and club which runs on a membership basis.

The wooded site has a 60-mile unobstructed view over New Jersey into Pennsylvania: “All you see is rolling hills and trees. No one can build anything in that view,” says Miraval CEO, Michael Tompkins. “The property is set on a hill and from the other side you can see Manhattan. You’re so close to New York, you just don’t know it.”

The site couldn’t be better located, being an hour by car from the city, 25 minutes from Newark International airport and near two train stations which go to Penn Station.

Under the scheme, the existing mansion house will be converted, and a second building constructed, says Tompkins: “The new-build will have the same architecture and use the same brick as the original. The plan is to have 66 keys, while an underground tunnel will be built to the new spa.”

Rockwell Group’s design for the spa building is a dramatic, grass-roofed, minimalist glass building with a waterfall cascading from the roof. Set among the trees, it looks set to be a real show stopper.

Natirar’s fitness centre will be expanded by 6,000sq ft (557sq m) and its stables will be used for Miraval’s famous Equine Experience.

In addition to hiking and biking trails, there’s also a lake on the property. “We’re aiming to organise paddle board yoga,” says Tompkins. “We’ll do snow shoeing in the winter and will be open year round.”

Miraval at Natirar plans to work with Clarins and continue its relationship with the brand: “We plan to roll out future spas with Clarins,” says Tompkins, “but we also aim to make them true to the locales, so at Natirar – which has a 13 acre farm to table garden – we’ll develop treatments based on the Clarins products which contain plant extracts from flora which is native to the area. Clarins head botanist, Jean-Pierre Nicolas, will be involved with scoping out the options.”

The existing operation at Natirar already has strong engagement with a high-end clientele. Combining this with its close proximity to New York City means the new Miraval could not be better placed to succeed.