#Sandalwood spa treatments are an only-in-Hawaii indulgence

If you can do it anywhere, why bother?

As travelers return to the skies this summer, the savvy are seeking unique experiences drenched in the distinctive culture of their final destinations.

Add a dose of much-needed post-pandemic healing to the encounter and you’ve got a trip worth visiting the TSA for.

Both of those criteria are being met right now on the Big Island of Hawaii.

This spring, Hawaii emerged as the go-to R&R hot spot for mainlanders who long for the buzz of international travel sans the Kafkaesque bureaucracies of departing the 50 states.

While the state continues to require a specialty negative COVID-19 test stamped with its state seal (available and covered by insurance at Northwell GoHealth urgent clinics in New York and provided by Hawaiian Airlines at city airports for a $200 fee) — the state unveiled a new passport program for the fully vaccinated last week.

It also recently dropped testing requirements for intercounty travel, allowing for easy island hopping.

But start your adventure at the pint-sized “grass hut” all-outdoor airport in Kona. You’ll be met with visions of cloud-covered volcanic peaks, blue ocean and austere landscapes of black lava stone.

What few visitors realize is that a few hundred feet above this Mars-like terrain is one of Earth’s rarest environments: the tropical dryland forest.

“When most people think of Hawaii, it’s mai tais and white-sand beaches,” said Justin Lee, 37, project manager at the Haloa ‘Aina Reforestation Project, which has planted tens of thousands of native trees on a foggy hillside overlooking nearby Captain Cook. “But when they come here all of the sudden they are enveloped in a forest, learning about the synchronicities of the trees and leaving with the smell of the wood.”

That smell is the scent of the native sandalwood, known locally as iliahi, which Lee and his family harvest from dying trees to create a local healing product.

But to take in Lee’s forest and the benefits of the native sandalwood, you’ll need to check into the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai first.

Nestled into the oceanfront landscape, the 249-room low-rise hotel has reemerged from a $100 million overhaul. One of its newest perks is the Iliahi Spa and Farm experience, where guests get hip to the healing benefits of the iliahi plant, which boosts mental clarity and has “anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties.”

The process starts with a 40-minute helicopter ride to Lee’s farm, where over 160,000 sandalwood trees are spread over 3,000 acres. There, Lee shows off his family’s reforestation work, as well as the distillation process used to create the island’s signature sandalwood oil.

After a picnic lunch, guests are whisked back to the resort for a sound bath meditation, followed by an iliahi scrub, cocoon and massage. It sets you back $2,300 per person, plus $1,500 for the chopper transport.

Summer rates for the hotel are $1,590 per night.

“It’s about walking and being part of the forest and feeling the vibrations of this native Hawaiian ecosystem,” Lee said. “The fragrance of the oils has a calming effect and getting rubbed down in them and bathing in that smell takes you back to the forest. It’s an energy unlike anything else.”

But the spa isn’t the resort’s only opportunity to soak up a unique helping of Hawaiian culture. Several natural brackish ponds — once used by ancient Hawaiians as fish farms — are spread across the property. But the (admittedly not ancient) King Pond is the must-do. Stocked with an aquarium’s worth of tropical fish, even ocean-wary visitors want to strap on a snorkel.

“The authenticity of the resort, its connections to local culture and its sense of place is very deliberate,” said the resort’s GM Charlie Parker. “We look at the stay as an experience and down to the landscaping and the architecture. All of that leads into a service experience based on the land.”

But let’s not forget that this is the Four Seasons, and high rollers are extremely welcome.

Luckily, next month, the resort debuts its three most over-the-top villas — after a remodel that added a second story, indoor-outdoor living space and a private plunge pool to each.

Not to be outdone, these hideaways are now the largest villa rooms in all of Hawaii. Be prepared to shell out $18,295 per night for the privilege.

Aloha nurse!