Are ‘Procreation Vacations’ the key to baby success or simply another fertility tourism scam?

Suffering from infertility, as one couple in seven in the UK does, is heart-rending. As the reality sinks in that creating your own biological child might prove impossible, your mind races through the early phases of grief: denial, anger, bargaining and depression. Even as you go through these feelings, you continue to search desperately for solutions.

For those with a medical issue (75-80 per cent of infertility cases are attributed to specific problems, such as lack of ovulation, diminished sperm function or blocked fallopian tubes), treatment options include ovulation-induction drugs, intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilisation (IVF). IVF in particular is often presented as a virtually fail-safe solution for infertility, when in reality it's an expensive gamble with relatively low success rates for uncomplicated patients (the NHS predicts a one-in-three success rate for women under 35, but a one-in-20 chance of conception for women in their early 40s). This confusion exacts a colossal physical and emotional toll on patient and partner.

After a year of trying to conceive, I was informed at my first appointment at an NHS infertility clinic that IVF was my sole option for successful conception. However, because I would turn 40 four months later, the NHS wouldn't fund any cycles for me. A few weeks later, the results of my AMH blood test (a somewhat controversial test originally developed to determine how women are likely to react to IVF stimulation drugs, now widely accepted as an indication of a woman's ovarian reserve) showed that my body’s egg count was so desperately low it would have prevented me from benefitting from NHS-funded IVF, regardless of my age. As a result, egg donor IVF was presented as my best option.

My GP advised me to travel without delay to Spain, where IVF is less expensive. Furthermore, she added, travelling abroad for egg donor IVF typically enables you to sever all ties with the egg donor, whereas children born from donated eggs in Britain are able to contact the donor when they turn 18.

Britain is one of the most expensive countries in Europe for IVF, which is why fertility tourism has become so attractive. Travel to Spain or Cyprus, which both offer well-established fertility clinics with solid success rates, and a cycle of IVF is likely to cost £2,000 less than equivalent treatment in Britain, even once you factor in the costs of travel and accommodation.

According to Lisa Webber, a consultant gynaecologist and member of the British Fertility Society, the difference in cost is warranted by the fact that IVF clinics in the UK are the most rigorously controlled, thanks to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA): “If you travel abroad for treatment, you don’t have the multiple benefits of HFEA and are essentially walking away from the invaluable protection it offers.”

The more I learned about IVF, the less it struck me as the right approach for me. With single treatment cycles often spiralling over £15,000, the finances were dizzying, yet average national IVF success rates for women of my age using their own eggs are a mere 18 per cent. And I didn't have many eggs to start with.

In my quest to discover alternatives to IVF, I started acupuncture, Chinese Medicine and reflexology, cut out alcohol and charted my temperature daily.

My research the brought me to fertility breaks, or procreation vacations as our American cousins like to call them. At their most basic, these breaks involve a bottle of Champagne, rose petals on the bed and a couples massage treatment.

However, more “clinical” options include Ayurvedic fertility breaks at the Giardino Ascona on Lago Maggiore, Switzerland, where resident fertility expert Dr Philip guides clients on how Ayurvedic diet, massage and complementary treatments can boost fertility.

The Zivia Holistic Health Centre offers four, seven and 10-day breaks on the Croatian island of Hvar combining daily yoga, acupuncture and fertility visualisation sessions with dietary consultations and spa treatments.

And in Spain, just south of Valencia, the SHA Wellness Clinic runs five-day packages that include an initial health and dietary consultation and subsequent creation of a tailored nutrition and treatment programme, including acupuncture, reflexology, osteopathy and biological medicines (as opposed to synthetic), with the option to add genetic testing, ozonotherapy (increased oxygen) and counselling.

The hippy in me seized upon this as a tremendous idea. My husband did not. Entirely supportive of me throughout our infertility experience, this was a bridge too far.

“It's not a holiday,” he railed. “It won't be remotely relaxing or pleasurable. We could spend the money [the breaks above each cost in the region of £4,000 per couple] on IVF and at least stand a chance of having a baby at the end of it.”

Fearing he spoke sense, I sought expert opinion. Ms Webber explained: “There are countless fertility experts practising abroad with extreme professionalism and plenty of boundary-pushing treatments in the fertility world that are unproven medically yet have achieved change.

“However, as a traditionally trained professional, I seek biological plausibility and evidence that stands up to scrutiny. I’m therefore wary of offers of any kind of fertility boost, which simply does not exist and sets false expectations.”

Krystal Woodbridge, a psychosexual therapist, registered nurse and trustee of the College of Sexual & Relationship Therapists (COSRT) was open to the value of holistic treatments and getting both partners involved in the process of trying to conceive: “It's certainly good to press the reset button, to assess how to move forward together and create an empowering action plan.”

However, like Ms Webber, she expressed concern about the lack of counselling offered, going on to say: “Such breaks are highly unlikely to generate instant pregnancy and it's unrealistic for couples to approach them believing they're a magic solution. ”

In the end, I decided that I should listen to the husband and just book a relaxing holiday. Let's leave the fertility to figure itself out over the odd G&T.