Off the property

Excursions and add-on experiences.

Every retreat includes one Wednesday excursion. The four experiences below are the most-chosen options. Add-on experiences (massage, cooking class, private temple tour) can be booked at the front desk on Sunday night.

01
~ Wednesday excursion · most popular

Tegallalang rice-terrace walk.

— Led by Pak Made · 6:30am to 11am · roughly 8 km, mostly downhill

The classic Mawenu hike. Out by van at six-thirty to the high end of the Tegallalang valley, then four hours of mostly-downhill walking through the rice terraces, with stops at three farmer warungs for coffee and a sweet rice cake. Ends at the river temple at the bottom of the valley.

Pak Made grew up in this valley and knows every farmer on the way. He'll introduce you to four or five and translate. Bring sturdy shoes and a light layer; the morning is cool but the valley warms by ten.

Duration
~ 4.5 hours
Group size
Up to 8
Difficulty
Easy
Add to your booking Read more Included
~ Wednesday excursion · early start

Mount Batur sunrise hike.

— Led by Pak Made + a Batur guide · departs 3am · returns by 11

The harder Wednesday option. Van picks up at three in the morning for the ninety-minute drive to the trailhead at Toya Bungkah. The hike is about two hours up, switchbacks on volcanic gravel, summit at six just as the sun comes over the lake. Breakfast at the summit — banana and eggs cooked over a steam vent — and back down by ten.

Best for guests who actually like an early alarm. Not recommended for the silent or yin retreats. Headlamps and walking poles are provided. Bring a warm layer; the summit can be 12°C in dry season.

Duration
~ 8 hours
Group size
Up to 6
Difficulty
Moderate
Add to your booking Read more Included
02
03
~ Wednesday excursion · cultural

Tirta Empul temple loop.

— Led by Pak Made · 8am to 1pm · van + walking

The cultural option. Drive thirty minutes to Pura Gunung Kawi, walk the rice-paddy steps to the eleventh-century rock-cut shrines, then continue on foot to Tirta Empul, the spring-fed purification temple. Pak Made guides the purification — the practice of stepping under each of the eleven spouts in sequence — for any guest who wants it.

Sarong and sash are provided. The water is cold enough to wake you up. Lunch is at a small warung in Tampaksiring on the way back. This is the best Wednesday option for the November ceremonies week.

Duration
~ 5 hours
Group size
Up to 10
Difficulty
Easy
Add to your booking Read more Included
~ Add-on · Sunday afternoon

Kitchen day with Putu.

— Led by Putu Wirajaya, head of kitchen · 9am to 4pm · max 6 guests

An optional Sunday-afternoon add-on for guests who arrive a day early or stay an extra night. Out at six in the morning to Pasar Ubud with Putu, then back to the kitchen to cook a full Balinese feast — three sambals, one fish, two vegetable mains, brown rice, and a coconut sago dessert.

You'll eat what you cook for dinner with the rest of the property. Includes a Mawenu cookbook with the day's recipes hand-written in. Best for guests who already love to cook.

Duration
~ 7 hours
Group size
Max 6
Difficulty
Stand all day
Add to your booking Read more $185 / guest
04
Add-on packages

Smaller things you can add to your week.

The villa massage series

$1403 sessions

Three 75-minute Balinese massages over the week, in your villa, with our resident therapist Bu Sumi. The traditional kind, with kelapa oil and slow strokes.

  • 3 × 75-minute sessions
  • Booked Tue / Thu / Sat afternoon
  • In your own villa
  • Includes jamu after each
Add to your booking

The private temple ceremony

$220per guest

A private one-hour ceremony at the property's small family temple with the village priest. Designed around an intention you set on Sunday — a death, a transition, a beginning.

  • Held Friday morning
  • Includes sarong + sash + offerings
  • One-hour private ceremony
  • Translated by Pak Made
Add to your booking

The writer's retreat

$3105 sessions

Five 45-minute one-on-one writing sessions with Ines through the week, in the small library. Built for guests working through a book draft, a long-form essay, or a memoir.

  • 5 × 45-minute sessions
  • Mon / Tue / Thu / Fri / Sat
  • One-on-one with Ines
  • Includes a small notebook
Add to your booking

The family add-on

$640partner / spouse

A meal-only and accommodation-only package for a non-practicing partner. They sleep in your villa, eat at the long table, and join the Wednesday excursion. They don't attend yoga.

  • Same villa as primary guest
  • All three daily meals
  • Wednesday excursion
  • No yoga participation
Add to your booking

Most guests do none of these.

The retreat works on its own. The add-ons are here for the guests who want them. If you arrive on Sunday and decide on Monday morning that what you want is to stare at the garden for seven days and do nothing else, that is also Mawenu, and it is the one we built for.