Essencia: The Nature of Our Selves Retreat
May 26th - May 30th, 2026 • Son Rullan, Mallorca
Set on a historic 14th-century estate in Deia, Mallorca, Essencia is a four-night retreat designed to help you realign with your deepest self. Through a blend of compassion-based practice, creative expression, and mindful connection with the landscape, you’ll discover clarity, purpose, and a renewed sense of belonging. With time for structured introspection, rest, and community, this retreat supports personal integration in a deeply nourishing environment.
What to expect:
Compassion-focused contemplative sessions rooted in evidence-based psychological practices
Creative workshops: ceramics & floral design
Morning yoga, somatic practices & nature walks
Accommodation in a privately-held, historic estate with mountain & sea views
Deepen Your Connection in One of Mallorca's Rarest Settings
Your Daily Experience
Contemplation
Daily sessions applying compassion-focused therapy principles to cultivate sustainable self-relationship.
Shared Nourishment
Mediterranean meals of local produce, including breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and other refreshments.
Creative Exploration
Workshops with local ceramicist and floral artist to deepen your felt sense of Mallorca and its landscapes.
Connection & Integration
Precious time to connect with our retreat group, plus spacious periods for personal reflection and journaling.
Morning Movement
Gentle yoga, somatic practices, and nature walks to regulate the nervous system and integrate practice.
Exclusive Accommodation
Son Rullan's singular architecture, gardens, pool and uninterrupted views across terraces to the Mediterranean.
“The place is stunning but the real magic was how intentional it all was. I felt seen, emotionally nourished and creatively reignited.”
This retreat’s daily rhythm combines structured contemplative practice and dialogue, creative workshops, and space for rest, play and connection.
Generous time for individual reflection allows personal integration of insights, all supported by a rare setting and local cuisine prepared with nourishing ingredients.
This program addresses the particular stressors facing those with busy lives and seeking renewed energy and purpose. It offers practical frameworks for compassionate self-expression alongside creative practices alongside creative practices, such as ceramics, floral artistry and writing.
Son Rullan’s Unique Heritage
Once a 14th-century Templar monastery, Son Rullan occupies a rugged mountaintop position near Deià within Mallorca's UNESCO-listed Serra de Tramuntana. The estate preserves its original stone architecture: whitewashed lime walls, timber beams, and chambers connected across multiple levels through ancient staircases.
Having served as an artists' and intellectuals' retreat through the mid-20th century, Son Rullan continues this legacy—where medieval architecture, Mediterranean landscape, and contemplative seclusion create an environment uniquely suited to contemplation, restoration and creative practice.
Deià occupies a distinctive position in Mallorca's Serra de Tramuntana mountains, where traditional stone houses sit among olive groves and ancient terraced hillsides that descend toward the Mediterranean coastline. The name itself derives from the Arabic "Ad-Daya," meaning "village," directly reflecting the spirit of the place.
Your stay at Son Rullan
Your investment pairs your retreat experience with your stay at Son Rullan and its estate. Accommodations can be adapted for individuals, couples, or small groups, with rooms varying in scale and amenities to suit different preferences and budgets.
All rooms offer either ocean or mountain views (in some cases both), and guests enjoy access to shared spaces including the library, lounging areas, gardens, and terraced grounds that invite contemplation and connection.
Each space has been thoughtfully restored to honour the estate's 14th-century character while providing modern comfort for your retreat experience. Our pricing allows guests to adapt their experience to their needs.
Retreat location
Wavego Surf Camp • Imsouane, Morocco
Your stay at Son Rullan
Your investment pairs your retreat experience with your stay at Son Rullan and its estate. Accommodations can be adapted for individuals, couples, or small groups, with rooms varying in scale and amenities to suit different preferences and budgets.
All rooms offer either ocean or mountain views (in some cases both), and guests enjoy access to shared spaces including the library, lounging areas, gardens, and terraced grounds that invite contemplation and connection. Each space has been thoughtfully restored to honor the estate's 14th-century character while providing modern comfort for your retreat experience.
Kok Home
Shared: 690€ each
Private: 790€
Agac Bungalow
Shared: 795€ each
Private: 890€
Big Home
Shared: 890€ each
Private: 990€
Investment
(per person, based on room category)
Dorm (max. 4 people): 890€
Shared twin room (shared bathroom*): 930€
Shared double room with ensuite bathroom: €980
Private room (shared bathroom*): 1030€
Private room with ensuite bathroom: 1130€
* Shared bathrooms are shared with a maximum of 3 people.
Terms & Conditions
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To secure your spot, a non-refundable deposit of 500€ is required. Your booking is confirmed once we receive the deposit or proof of payment. This deposit will count toward your total retreat cost.
The remaining balance is due 6 weeks before the retreat. If preferred, you can also pay the remainder in cash on site—just let us know in advance.
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More than 6 weeks before: You may transfer your booking to another retreat within the same year (if available). The deposit remains non-refundable.
6–3 weeks before: The deposit is non-refundable; the remaining amount will be refunded.
Less than 3 weeks before: No refunds will be issued.
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Travel insurance is mandatory and must cover cancellations (including COVID or other illness), medical care, and return transport. If you're joining from abroad, international health insurance is also required. All participation is at your own risk—please listen to your body and assess your limits.
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In the rare case that we need to cancel the retreat, you’ll receive a full refund of your payment. However, we cannot reimburse travel or other pre-trip expenses (e.g. flights, visas).
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We reserve the right to remove anyone whose behavior is disruptive or disrespectful, with no refund. Guests are also responsible for any damage they cause to the property or surroundings.
Your Expert Facilitators and Hosts
Dr. Amy Finlay-Jones
Amy is a psychologist, researcher, and meditation teacher specialising in compassion-focused practice. Her work bridges science and contemplative tradition, drawing on two decades of experience in mental health, mindfulness, and human connection research.
Amy's teaching is informed by her own experience of illness and healing, her creative and contemplative practice, and her deep interest in how compassion can sustain both personal wellbeing and collective flourishing.
In facilitation, Amy brings a grounded presence and a capacity to hold spaces of both tenderness and transformation. Her approach emphasises accessibility and authenticity —supporting participants to reconnect with themselves and with what gives life meaning.
Amy holds an Associate Professorship and a PhD in Clinical Psychology, and is lead editor of the Handbook of Self-Compassion. Her research investigates the effects of compassion training on health and wellbeing.
Amy is a certified facilitator of Compassion Cultivation Training (Stanford University) and Mindful Self-Compassion, bringing over a decade of experience delivering compassion-based approaches in clinical, community, and organizational settings.
She is the founder of Kindful through which she develops programs that integrate evidence-based approaches with contemplative practice.
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is a Mallorca-based designer and ceramicist creating nature-inspired pieces through Mia Nua. Through slow, hand-built processes she teaches ceramics as meditation—cultivating patience, calm and trust while people shape functional beauty from clay that honours imperfection, play and the joy of making together in place.
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is the floral artist behind HUMO, a practice that fuses fashion, art and Mediterranean landscapes. Her work invites people to slow down, create with flowers, and experience nature’s raw, fleeting beauty as an intimate act of self-care and expression. Her work is celebrated across Spain and is a gift for our retreat.
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is a Paris-based chef and food stylist. At the heart of her work lies connection, weaving people, place, and creative practice through the ritual of cooking and shared meals. Guided by a sensitivity to environment, she works with whole, organic, and sustainable ingredients that reflect the landscape that foster healthy relationships to our bodies.
