Breathing hive air
You sit in an armchair, hive air travels through tubes to a mask, and you breathe it for around twenty minutes. The volatile compounds of the hive come with it.
around twenty minutes an armchair and a mask
Experience BeeCenter · Apitherapy
Apitherapy: hive air and rest above the live hives
Two programmes in the Honey Garden. In one you breathe hive air for around twenty minutes. In the other you rest on beds above live bee colonies.
01 What happens here
A hive has its own air and its own warmth
The air inside a hive is a complex mix of volatile compounds that come from the bees themselves, from the wax, the honey and nectar, the pollen, the propolis, the materials of the hive and the surroundings outside.
In the middle of summer a colony holds its own temperature, and the sound it makes travels through the timber. Apitherapy brings both of those to the guest while the bees carry on with their work.
02 Two programmes
One programme you breathe, the other you hear with your back
Both take place in the garden, above and beside the same colonies that live here all year.
Lying on the hives
The bed is set above live colonies. Warmth, sound and vibration come up through the openings in the planks, and the bees stay on their side of the timber.
the api chamber in the garden openings in the planks
The plank is warm and it hums all day. You lie on it and do nothing.
03 The inhalation room
An armchair, a mask and twenty-odd minutes
In the room there are armchairs at hive-shaped tables, each with a bee painted on it. The apparatus leads the air from the colony through tubes to a mask.
You breathe normally, without effort. The smell is thick, of wax, honey and propolis.
Hive air may support the airways. What that means for you, and whether it suits you, is a question for your doctor and not for us.
04 Before you come
Apitherapy does not stand in place of medical care
This is an experience in the Honey Garden, not a medical treatment. It does not replace a medical examination, diagnosis or prescribed therapy.
If you are allergic to bee stings, tell us in advance, in your enquiry. The bees stay on their own side in both programmes, but that is something we arrange case by case.
The same goes if you are pregnant or have a condition that needs looking after: ask your doctor first, then write to us.
Common questions about apitherapy
Will I be in contact with the bees?
No. In the api chamber the bees are below the planks, and in the inhalation room the air reaches you through tubes. If you want to see a hive opened and to put a suit on, Dive into Hive is the one.
How long does it last?
The inhalation lasts around twenty minutes. For lying on the hives we agree the length and the time in the enquiry.
What can apitherapy do?
Hive air may support the airways, and the warmth and the sound of the colony may help you rest. We promise nothing beyond that.
I am allergic to bee stings. Can I come?
Tell us in the enquiry, before we agree a date. Visits like that we arrange individually.
How do I book?
Send an enquiry with an approximate date and the number of people, and we will come back with the times that are free.
Pick a day and book your session
Free times are shown straight away, and the confirmation reaches your e-mail as soon as you pick one. For groups, and for anything the calendar does not cover, write to us.