Snowmass Village, CO (July 30, 2008) -The Snowmass Wellness Experience (Aug. 15-17), which was written up last year in the New York Times, celebrates its fifth anniversary and the art of healthy living from the earth up with a hands-on festival that keeps participants engaged, learning, and sampling all weekend long.

Hands on: It's a Different Type of Wellness Festival. Many wellness festivals involve sitting in lecture halls listening to speakers-that's not our idea of Wellness! Wellness starts from the earth up, and attendees can get their hands dirty in this novel approach. Fitness classes, cooking demonstrations and tastings, how-to workshops, a green expo, nature hikes, a spirits tasting, comedy, an on-site spa, and more mean attendees aren't merely observers-- they're participants.

Learn how to grow your own food. As fuel and food prices continue to rise, more people are interested in growing their own food. From never-evers to seasoned gardeners, the Snowmass Wellness Experience provides access to top experts who share how to grow and cook your own food and eat nutritionally and sustainably. In their ONLY Colorado appearance, internationally respected keynote speakers Eliot Coleman and Barbara Damrosch of the Four Seasons Farm in Maine have over sixty years of combined experience with organic farming and will explore everything from the seduction of a kitchen garden to the how-tos of sustainable organic gardening.

It's an Edible Extravaganza. From chocolate and yoga classes to an organic spirits tasting to cooking demos and a wellness expo with plenty of free goodies, Snowmass Wellness Experience participants won't go home hungry. They'll also learn how to design and incorporate edible plants into residential landscapes from Jerome Osentowski, one of the foremost permaculture practitioners in the United States who will share insights into agroforestry and other new methods of organic farming and landscaping.

Check out this Whole Food philosophy: We're not talking a grocery store, but rather education about the entire food cycle. With the motto of Wellness From the Earth Up, The Snowmass Wellness Experience offers the chance to learn about healthy eating from a myriad of angles: growing to cooking to preserving to nutrition to incorporating food into your fitness routine.

Foster healthy eating habits. As diabetes and obesity continue to be two of the nation's top health concerns, this festival teaches the tools needed for healthy eating. Mariana Bozesan, author of Diet for a New Life, shares her highly respected integral 8-step approach to life that also reveals the weight loss secrets of centenarians and successful dieters. Other wellness workshops include how to harvest and preserve an organic garden, how to create healthy snacks for people on the go, and how to read nutritional labels.

Get well through laughter. Comedy can be used as a healing art, and Steve Bhaerman, has audiences laughing until the sacred cows come home while sharing insight on how to make positive changes in life. Bhaerman, who performs as Swami Beyondananda, the "Cosmic Comic," is an internationally known author, humorist, and workshop leader and offers a comedy show and workshops at this event.

Bring it all home. How can you eat locally and sustainably at Colorado's altitude? The Snowmass Wellness Experience brings together a talented regional roster of chefs, nutritionists, gardeners, and experts so participants can begin making connections to local sources of food, spirits, and inspiration.

Relax and Retreat. Everyone is entitled to a little R&R. Yoga classes, nature hikes, morning meditations, and a spa pavilion all offer opportunities to relax in Snowmass. Each day pass comes with one complimentary mini-spa treatment through Aspen Club & Spa, and participants are welcome to sign up for more as space allows.

Costly? Well, no. Wellness shouldn't come at a price that's painful to your mind, body, or spirit. The Snowmass Wellness Experience is substantially more affordable than other wellness festivals. An all-inclusive weekend pass is only $175, while day passes, keynote speech passes and fitness/expo passes start as low as $30, allowing attendees the flexibility to see it all or just a little. For every yoga pass sold, the Shatki foundation donates $2.50 to a local nonprofit.