After the book and movie Eat, Pray, Love, Bali has cemented itself as one of the world’s choice destination to find oneself. It’s thoughtful, it’s beautiful, it’s exotic – and lucky us, it’s also less than three hours away. And with budget flights readily available, it’s a no-brainer to rejuvenate your soul at our southern neighbour’s famed island.

But where do you start? Kuta and Seminyak has more noise than nirvana, and yet Ubud makes you nervous because, carbs. Okay, we jest. In all honesty, spirituality isn’t just about engaging purely in certain practices, but about finding our own equilibrium through a spectrum of healthy activities to align our body, mind and soul. So guess what – slightly north of Seminyak and halfway to the famed Tanah Lot, is the oasis town of Canggu.

Lonely Planet suggests that Canggu is “more a state of mind than a place”, and it’s in this spot you’ll be able to align your own – at the Serenity Eco Guesthouse.

The Yoga retreat at Serenity provides two daily yoga sessions; one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. After waking up, you embark on a languid journey into Vinyasa Flow, featuring a balanced blend of vigourous, energizing and playful flows, rounded off with some gentle, yet deep and soothing flows.

It pulls the body wide open, and you’ll feel ready to receive the day that doesn’t start with slamming your work alarm.

In the afternoon, you’ll get a mix of methods from Yin to Restorative Yoga. These sessions empower you further, building upon your earlier work, with deep and delicious poses that will have you feeling just like the namesake – serene.

Remember the balance we were talking about? It is a beach town after all and so besides all the toning and stretching, really engage your body with a surfing lesson from one of our local instructors. It may not seem like the most spiritual thing to do, but trust us, it’s as much “play” as it is “pray”. Plus, how can one not feel like a goddess when rising from the waves like some version of Venus Rising?

Another unique offering at Serenity Eco Guesthouse is their AcroYoga workshop. It is a physical practice that combines the wisdom of yoga, the dynamic power of acrobatics, and the loving kindness of healing arts. It not only imbues you with strength and flexibility, but lets you foster trust and teamwork in a fun, engaging setting.

For all the hard work you’ve done, Serenity will also offer up one of their indulgent Balinese massages from their expert therapists. If this doesn’t complete your journey to rejuvenation, nothing will.

Your 6-night retreat comes with all of the above, packaged with healthy vegetarian breakfast and dinner meals to truly complete the program. There’s also room for you to connect with your loved ones to share your discoveries with free wifi, or plug out and enjoy a movie night, or the surrounding idyllic setting of this hideaway. All you have to do, is arrive.

First published: Om & Away