BALI, INDONESIA

GIVE BACK RETREAT

This retreat is part of our GIVE BACK initiative, where EPM will donate at least 10% of profits to a humanitarian partner in the community where each retreat is held. Our partner in India is THREADS OF LIFE  a “fair trade business that works with culture and conservation to alleviate poverty in rural Indonesia.”

HOTEL

Our time in Bali will be split between two locations so guests can experience the best of what this lovely land has to offer! We will start at a seaside town away from the hustle and bustle and really settle in to this week by the ocean! We’ll spend half of the week in beach accommodations, a relaxing way to ease into our holiday. We will be taken care of by an award-winning boutique hotel family that will host us at both locations in Bali. The first is sumptuous, yet unassuming – an ocean-front retreat that lies in the shade of Mount Agung, held up as sacred by Balians, surrounded by opulent coconut groves. Mid-way through the week, we’ll head into Bali’s most famous town of Ubud. We’ll be hosted in luxury accommodations – a tranquil and secluded hillside retreat that sits high up on the edge of the rich green Ayung River valley in Bali’s central foothills, in the traditional Balinese hill village of Payangan. Both hotels offer award-winning design accommodations and even one of the world’s “Top 50 Pools in the World.”.

CUISINE

Healthful, vegetarian food is part of the retreat experience, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily, either hosted at our hotel or out and about in town. Some even come served on a banana leaf! The cuisine is simple, delicious and Balinesian, using fresh ingredients from local markets. We will take our tastebuds further by exploring Indonesian cuisine in a cooking class – we’ll be accompanied by our chef to a morning food market, where we’ll bring fresh ingredients back to the hotel and have a master cooking class to learn a bit of how to bring the flavors of Bali back home with us!

SURROUNDING AREA

Guests will not only enjoy the grounds of the villa, the outdoor areas, including a lovely pool, patio and lounges, but the retreat also includes some amazing day-trips to the surrounding sites. A guided day in and around Ubud will lead guests through an introduction to this area. We’ll visit a spice plantation, participate in a Balinese healing and fire ritual, and learn Balinese cooking during our cuisine lesson. There will be time in nature and on the beaches, and we’ll also get to visit the Indonesian weavers of our “Give Back” Partner in Bali to learn more about the amazing textiles of the area.

The final full day entails a trip to a luxurious five star spa, where we’ll delve deeper into Bali’s serene beauty and tradition by spending a day in the life of a local farmer – a private guided walk through rice fields and jungle paths will be followed by a picnic breakfast in a rice field pavilion, known as a bale, where we will help local farmers plant rice with traditional methods. Next we venture to the spa villa close to the banks of the river for a traditional bathing ritual, scrub and massage. What a way to end the week – in pure relaxation!

YOGA

Daily meditation and yoga classes will be offered in a way to relax, stimulate, and help guests grow in their own personal practice. Classes are open to all levels, beginner to practiced, and can range from gentle and restorative to more vigorous vinyasa flow and ashtanga styles.* Style and class levels will be determined and moulded to fit participating students’ needs, and with a small intimate retreat class size, students will be able to get personalized attention and comfortability to deeply explore their practice. Depending on each retreat location, classes will be held in a dedicated indoor yoga space, and some also offer outdoor options for us to use if the weather is agreeable.

Certified yoga instructor and EPM founder, Erin Lewis, will facilitate the classes, helping each student focus on improving their practice and gaining new insights into their bodies and movements. She’s studied various types of yoga disciplines since 1998, concentrating on the Ashtanga discipline since 2008. She received her teacher certification in Florence, Italy and has continued her education with various specialty certifications throughout the years. She now combines powerful movements with more anatomical-based core vinyasa flow and restorative movement in her personal practice and teaching style.

* Participation in classes and activities is optional throughout the retreat. All levels welcome!