The dining area at Five Elements, a health & wellness spa retreat in Bali
In short:?Fivelements is a seven-roomed holistic health retreat nestled alongside the tranquil Ayung River in Bali. It combines traditional Balinese healing rituals with spa treatments and a menu of raw and living cuisine. Book accommodation and treatments for some delicious private time or take advantage of the more intensive ?healing journeys? to set you back on track. It?s an utterly peaceful place to replenish all year round, although the best time to visit is in the dryer winter months of March ? October (November to February is the hotter wet season).
One of the soothing bedrooms at Fivelements spa resort in Bali
Our experience: Queen of Retreats asked nutritionist Belinda Mann to try a four day, three night healing journey at Fivelements. Here?s what Belinda found:
?As I travel a lot it is easy for me to feel ungrounded, and after a busy trip from Brazil to London to Bali I was looking forward to some serious me time so I could find my centre again. I chose a Panca Mahabhuta (Five Elements) retreat, and from the moment I arrived I felt welcome and at ease.?My ?guest liaison officer? was a highly personable guy called Janur, who told me a little about himself during our friendly consultation to balance the sharing aspect. We agreed on a programme of treatments that would help me ?let go? and reground ? in the meantime, a traditional Balinese scrub and massage awaited me, the perfect way to begin to unwind.
The days that followed were a lovely flow of holistic sessions ranging from massages, beauty treatments, yoga and meditation to sacred arts (such as Aikido and Somatic Therapy) and (the best) a watsu water massage ? each one designed in a careful sequence, said Janur, to help me let go a little more each time.
Highlights included a private session with Made, a talented yoga teacher who has developed his own style of Tantra Healing yoga. His skill in perceiving my energy levels and where I was ?at? put me at ease straight away, and we began with a meditation before commencing yoga. He noticed the slight scoliosis in my back, and we worked on yoga postures and stretches to help release and then strengthen certain areas along my spine. He even incorporated massage in the session, using a combination of Thai and Shiatsu.
It was the prefect prelude to my watsu, a water healing massage that, the therapist explained, was especially designed to help you let go. A watsu can bring up old traumas, emotions or just make you feel decadently free ? as was the case in my experience. It was easily one of the most beautiful healing experiences I?ve ever had.
Nutritionist Belinda Mann?s suppertime reading at Fivelements spa resort in Bali ? Dennis Genpo Merzel?s book?Dharma 24/7
I am a fussy eater, so I was relieved to find out that the personalised service at the retreat extends to your food. You are welcome to eat anytime that fits in with your personal schedule, and the staff were accommodating to all my requests. Consuming too much fruit just doesn?t suit my constitution, for example, so instead of the suggested breakfast of fruit juice, fruit salad and a choice of granola or scrambled tofu, staff happily accommodated my request for a superfood smoothie followed by some whole grain bread and avocado. (As delicious as it was, I did find the superfood smoothie turned into a superfood mousse after five minutes, and I had to finish eating it with a fork).
The dining area was divine, though service could be a little erratic. People often chose to take meals in their room (and with the suites being large enough to hold a royal court, why not) so I was often the only person in the dining room. I often brought a journal to write about that day?s experiences in between ordering and eating, and had plenty of food for thought, for throughout my stay Janur offered me copies of poems and quotes that he thought would inspire me (my favourite: ?When we do things simply because we love to do them, not out of shoulds and should nots, we need no gimmicks, no techniques. Life is fully lived and experienced in each moment with complete awareness and consciousness? Dennis Genpo Merzel from the book?Dharma 24/7).
Before leaving I had a closing ceremony with Janur and Pak Putu, a temple priest who said a devotional prayer and offered flowers, incense and water before chanting a sanskrit mantra. It was a lovely way to seal the end of the healing journey and send me safely on my way and it didn?t feel cheesy at all. In the three days I was here I felt transformed ? I?d had time to quieten my mind, get back in touch with my inner voice and refocus on what was important to me. It was the the personal approach of the programmes at Fivelements that allowed this depth of self discovery in a relatively short space of time ? Janur even emailed me after the retreat to ask about the goals and commitments I had made during the stay.?
A mask at the Balinese healing resort Fivelements
Retreat Credentials
The healing journeys:?Although you can just book accommodation at Fivelements (and the setting alone is worth it) more searching souls can take advantage of ?healing journeys? to set them back on track. Choose a Panca Mahabhuta (Five Elements) journey to ?regenerate and replenish?, a Tri Kaya Parisudha to ?detox and transform? or a Finding Centre: Healing Earth retreat which uses mediation, yoga and treatments with clay. Whichever you choose, you?ll have a series of treatments created especially for you after a detailed personal consultation.
These healing journeys all follow the Balinese principle of ?Sekala-Niskala? ? the belief that we exist in both the seen or conscious world (Sekala) and the unseen or psychic world (Niskala). Be prepared for some treatments to include meditation, chanting and chakra balancing with local Balinese healers ? Pak Wayan, for example, comes from a family with a long lineage in energy healing, and during a Panca Mahabhuta session he may pray and meditate with you before working on balancing the five elements within your body (microcosm) to that of the universe (macrocosm).
Sacred Arts are also an integral part of the journeys, disciplines that teach you practical and simple techniques to use in your every day life after leaving the retreat. Somatic Therapy, for example, helps you identify and let go old patterns in your life that are no longer serving you well, while Aikido is a a sacred martial art which can help you regroup and rebalance through movements such as the ?two-step?, a physical way of bringing you back to centre when your mind is racing.
Each journey has an important focus on food ? world renowned nutrition experts in raw and living food such as Gabriel Cousens and David Wolfe both guest host healing programmes here once a year.
Janur in action ? Belinda?s guest laison officer at Fivelements spa resort in Bali was a key part of her healing journey
Other treatments & wellbeing activities: You can of course just stay here and dip in and out of a long list of massages and spa treatments ? these include a Balinese Boreh, which combines a body scrub with local herbs, a massage and flower bath, the ?Chocolate Love?, where your body is exfoliated with a cacao scrub, then painted in warm chocolate and washed off before you are massaged with cacao butter, and facials which use only ingredients you can eat. Each treatment lasts a decadently long two hours, beginning with a floral foot bath and rub and finishing with tea outside the treatment room by the river. The sound of flowing water from the Ayung River flowing past you as you are massaged is extra soothing. Yoga can be done on a one to one basis or in a group if you?re travelling with others ? choose tantra healing yoga, yin and yang yoga, vinyasa flow or gentle hatha.
The healing pools at Fivelements health retreat in Bali
The?outside & inside:?The restaurant, healing centre treatment rooms, pool area and river side suites are all nestled along the river, and though everything is in close proximity, each area feels very secluded and private. Tables on the lower decking by the river make an enjoyable place to take tea, read a book or talk with your partner, while next to the beauty treatment rooms there?s a soothing pool where you can relax in between treatments. As the retreat only accommodates 14 people and many are having treatments, you often have these areas to yourself.
The Alpah suite at Fivelements luxury health spa in Bali
The bedrooms:?All the rooms feel like natural havens you can retreat to between treatments. There are two waterfall suites set slightly back from the river, and five larger river front suites set right on the river. All have thatched roofs, stunning semi-outdoor shower/toilet areas and large stone baths in curtained enclosures, while lights and music canall be adjusted with the use of a tablet device similar to an ipad, so there?s no searching for light switches in the dark.
Food & drink: The menu is based on living food and raw cuisine, but has lots of choice to satisfy almost all tastes, including warmed dishes and several raw desserts for those with a sweet tooth (the chocolate Ganache Cake is a real treat). If you are new to raw food, the Live Lasagne is not to be missed ? a work of art with layers of cashew ?cheese?, basil pesto, shitake mushrooms, baby spinach and tomato marinara. Lighter options include salads and soups (some warm), lentil dahl (a great option after a massage) and the Green Delight (a mix of greens, baby rocket, cucumber, alfalfa sprouts and avocado tossed in dressing of coconut oil, lime juice and sea salt, then sprinkled with pumpkin seeds ? yum).
A delicious wrap ? one of the raw food delights on offer at Fivelements spa retreat in Bali
As some of the food can be very rich, it?s best finished off with a nice digestive tea and they have an interesting, bespoke selection. We were impressed by the range of juices and healthy smoothies on offer too ? standouts included the Electrozyme Tonic (cucumber, apple, wheatgrass, celery, lime, coconut water, kale, spirulina) and the Super Immunity Booster (broccoli, dark leafy greens, celery, parsely, tumeric, ginger, apple and orange). Many of the smoothies? such as the Superfood Smoothie (banana, cacao powder, cacao nibs, maca, bee pollen, gojiberry, coconut milk) were a meal in themselves, so go easy if you are having a more substantial meal.
Fellow guests: Come to be alone or with a significant other ? this is not a place to meet others. The retreat attracts visitors from around the world, and includes a mix of couples and solo travelers, usually in their 30s, 40s and 50s.
?What?s queenly:? The privacy, and the personalised service ? staff go out of their way to bond with you and make sure you really get the most of the experience.
What?s lowly:? The programmes can be quite packed with sessions and treatments ? if you?re on a healing journey, it?s worth booking an extra day just to give yourself the space to relax, reflect and enjoy the surroundings. Though having so few guests makes it a beautifully private place, it also means it?s difficult to meet others and be inspired by their stories.
Sample Costs: A typical three night Panca Mahabhuta healing journey retreat costs ?1590 per person staying alone or ?1210 per person sharing a double room all inclusive. Rooms all year round cost ?350 per night based on two people sharing, including breakfast, service charge and tax.
Interested??Ask a question about this retreat or book.?You can also find out more at www.fivelements.org?- if you contact them via their own site, please tell Fivelements that you heard about them on www.queenofretreats.com ? thank you.
? Queen of Retreats
A balcony view at Fivelements spa resort in Bali
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