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THE ART OF REST — A REST RESIDENCY IN BALI
3 nights / 4 days — (Ubud) Bali, Indonesia
4th - 7th September, 2026
This is not a holiday.
It is a place to rest in a way most women no longer know how to.
You are capable, competent, the one everyone relies on. And you are tired in a way that a good night's sleep stopped fixing a long time ago.
If you have been running on empty, quietly burning out, struggling to switch off even when nothing is technically wrong, this residency was created for you.
Over four days in a private villa near Ubud, you will move through different layers of rest, sensory, physical, emotional, creative, the kinds most of us have been skipping for years without realising the cost.
Every detail is designed around one intention. To give your body back something it has been quietly desperate for.
This is rest as it was meant to be. Practised. Protected. Unhurried.
This is not a retreat you forget the moment you are back at your desk on Monday.
Women leave this residency and months later, in the middle of something hard, they close their eyes and they are straight back in that room. They remember the sound. The food. The way the space felt when they first walked through the door. They come back to it when they need it most.
Because what happens here is not just rest. It is learning how to rest. In ways most of us were never taught.
Over four days you will move through all seven types of rest the body and mind actually need. Physical rest, where the body finally stops bracing. Sensory rest, where the noise and screens and decisions fall away. Mental rest, where the mind finds somewhere to land other than your to do list. Emotional rest, where you can simply be without performing for anyone. Social rest, where the people around you fill rather than drain you. Creative rest, where beauty and nature and stillness do the work. And spiritual rest, where you remember who you are underneath everything you are carrying.
Most of us are depleted across all seven without realising it. This residency addresses them together, because that is how genuine restoration actually works.
You will leave with practices and tools you can actually use when you are back home. For the 3am moments when your mind will not stop. For the Sunday evenings when the week ahead feels impossible. For the ordinary days when you need to find your way back to yourself.
The most valuable thing you take from these four days is not a memory of Bali. It is a body that finally knows how to stop. And that goes home with you.
Some women say it is the first time they truly understood something they had never been told. Rest is not something you earn. It is something you are allowed to have.
"I don't even know where to start. What Zara created was something I didn't know I needed until I was in it.
I've been back home for a while now and I'm still using what I learnt. The practices have quietly become part of my everyday. That doesn't happen after most experiences.
My only wish was that it was longer.
The attention to detail, the pace, the way the whole retreat was held, it was clear that every single element was considered. I felt genuinely cared for from the moment I arrived."
Alexia - Guest from The Art of Rest Retreat 2025“I was going through a rough time and was under a lot of stress before attending the retreat with Zara. the retreat was out of this world! zara is sweet and considered all details. it was such a sensory experience. the moment i arrived i felt rested, the space was architecturally incredible, the food was so nourishing, everything was gentle, the movement, the breath, the sound baths from floating to vibrating on our bodies. the gift bag.. gosh where do i stop?
honestly if you want to fill your cup then this is the place to do it. highly recommend mellow habits retreats”
Steph - Guest from The Art of Rest Retreat 2025
Day One — Arrive
Exhale. You are here.
Guests arrive in their own time. The villa is waiting. The pace slows before you even unpack. A gentle breathing practice signals to the body that it is safe to stop, followed by a soft sound immersion to ease the nervous system out of travel mode and into stillness.
As the evening settles a fire is lit and a welcome dinner begins. Food shared slowly around the warmth of a flame. Strangers become familiar. The weight of the ordinary world begins quietly to lift.
Physical rest beginning. The body finally stopping.
Day Two — Drop
Going deeper than the surface.
The morning opens with a cacao meditation. Warm, ceremonial, held in both hands. The kind of stillness that arrives before the day has asked anything of you. Gentle movement to wake the body without pushing it. A traditional coconut oil extraction with a local Balinese artisan follows. Slow, meditative, learning an ancient method by hand.
Sensory rest. The nervous system absorbing beauty and craft rather than information and demands.
An unhurried lunch. Time by the pool or simply nowhere at all. A 60 minute massage to release what the body has been holding. A slow dinner together as the evening softens. And then as the night settles you float. Sound moves through the water and through you. The nervous system drops somewhere it has not been in a long time. A breathing practice and sleep ritual closes the night. You do not set an alarm.
Physical, sensory and mental rest working together.
Day Three — Soften
The body remembers how to let go.
The morning opens with a tea meditation. Something local, something slow, something that asks nothing of you except to be present with what is in your hands. Then out into the Ubud landscape for a meditative rice field walk through the terraces. Nowhere to be. Nothing to achieve.
Creative rest. Beauty doing its quiet work on the nervous system.
Back to the villa for a meditative cooking experience using local Balinese ingredients, preparing food as a sensory act of presence rather than a task. A long slow lunch together. In the afternoon Himalayan bowls are placed on the body and the vibration does what words cannot. Emotional rest arrives here quietly. As the light shifts toward golden hour you float again, this time at sunset. Sound and water and sky all at once. A slow dinner together. By night something has shifted. Not dramatically. Quietly.
Day Four — Carry Home
Leaving differently than you arrived.
The final morning opens gently with breath and tea. A breathing practice and sound session to integrate everything that has moved through the last four days. The group comes together one last time to acknowledge what has shifted. This is spiritual rest. Remembering who you are underneath everything you have been carrying.
You leave with a curated gift of objects and products from our favourite wellness brands, chosen to help you carry this feeling home. And a real practical toolkit for the moments when the world gets loud again. Simple techniques for physical, sensory, mental, emotional, creative and spiritual rest that you can weave into ordinary life whenever you need them.
You do not leave rested and then return to the same version of yourself. You leave knowing how to rest. That is the difference.
Who It’s For
This residency is for women who:
Carry a lot, quietly
Feel tired even when life looks “good”
Struggle to truly switch off
Want depth, not performance wellness
Value beauty, care, and thoughtful detail
Prefer small, intimate experiences.
And women who are asking, quietly, if there is a version of this kind of rest they can actually keep when they go home.
This residency is intentionally small.
Never more than a handful of women. Not because of the villa size — because depth requires intimacy.
Something happens when a small group of women slow down together in a beautiful place. Conversations that do not happen in everyday life. A quality of connection that is difficult to find and impossible to manufacture.
You do not need to know anyone before you arrive. By the time you leave you will know people who understand exactly what you were carrying when you walked through the door.
That is not a side effect of this retreat. It is part of why it works.
No prior experience with sound, breathwork, or movement is required.
Everything is gentle, guided, and optional.
What’s Included
4 days, 3 nights in a private luxury villa near Ubud, Bali
Arrive from 3pm on 4 September. Depart by 12pm on 7 September.
Airport transfers, arrival and departure
Meals and nourishment
Dinner on arrival night and all three evenings
Lunch on days two and three
Breakfast each morning
Unlimited fruit platters throughout
Unlimited herbal tea, juices, health tonics, supplements and snacks
Experiences and rest
Fire welcome dinner on arrival night
Cacao meditation
Tea meditation
Traditional Balinese coconut oil extraction with a local artisan
Meditative rice field walk
Meditative cooking experience using local Balinese ingredients
Floating sound bath under the stars
Floating sound bath at sunset
Daily breathwork and sound sessions
On body vibrational sound massage
Somatic fascia movement sessions
60 minute massage
Sleep ritual evenings
Private pool, sauna facing the rice fields and full villa amenities
Downtime and unstructured rest throughout
To take home
Curated gift of objects and products from our favourite wellness brands.
You are free from logistics, decisions, and planning.
Your only role is to arrive.
“This was one of the most grounding, restful days I’ve had in my entire life. Zara led us through several movements of rest, and from the moment we stepped foot in the house, my nervous system felt safe to just be.
I can’t wait to come back again soon, and would highly recommend anyone who needs a break from the everyday rush of life, to spend a day with Zara and have your cup filled.”
Shauna - Guest from The Art of Rest Retreat 2025the space
Pricing is in Australian dollars.
Payment plan deposit $500AUD (350USD) then two installments.
Single bed in a shared room. $2600 AUD ( $1795 USD)
Pricing is in Australian dollars.
Payment plan available with a deposit of $500 then two payments.
Book for yourself $3,500pp - ($2410 USD)
You can add a friend for $1500AUD ($1030USD) - please email us to organise this option.
Please note beds cannot be split into two singles
About Your Host
This residency is guided by Zara, the founder of Mellow Habits.
I created The Art of Rest because I needed it and could not find it anywhere.
During the Melbourne lockdowns I was working full time from my apartment. I had a view of the ocean from my window. And still I felt completely trapped. My mind was racing, a constant whirlwind I could not slow down. Physically I felt stuck in a way I could not think or meditate my way out of.
So I started exploring differently.
I would lie down, place a Himalayan singing bowl on my body and play it. I would breathe to the sound. And something shifted. Not in my mind first. In my body. The vibration reached somewhere that words and rational practice simply could not access.
That experience became the foundation of everything I now create.
Rest is not one thing. And for most of us the missing piece is not more effort or more discipline. It is an environment that finally gives the body permission to let go.
That is what these four days are.
I hope to welcome you there.
With love and calm,
Zara
rooms
king room
single room (shared)
king room
king room
A typical day may look like:
Slow mornings with breath and gentle movement
Nourishing meals shared quietly or alone
Time by the pool or in nature
Afternoon somatic release and sound
Evening rituals designed for sleep
Long pauses with nothing scheduled
There is structure — but there is also space.
This is not a packed schedule or a productivity reset.
The Art of Rest is designed around containment — where every detail supports the nervous system to downshift naturally.
No rushing between sessions
No expectation to share
No “breakthroughs” to chase
No pressure to be anything other than present
You are not taught how to rest.
You are placed inside an environment where rest happens on its own.
detailsTravel
Guests arrange their own flights to Bali.
Guests are responsible for covering visa costs.
Please wait for written confirmation before booking flights.
Travel insurance is strongly recommended.
Once in Bali, all ground transfers, accommodation, meals and retreat activities are organised by our team.
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Cancellation & Transfers
Cancellations more than 30 days before the residency are refundable minus the 30% deposit.
Cancellations within 30 days are non-refundable due to villa and supplier commitments.
If you can no longer attend, you may transfer your place to another guest at no penalty.
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Exclusivity
This residency holds a maximum of six women. Not because of the villa size, because depth requires intimacy. This exact group of women will never exist again.
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about
The Art of Rest Bali Residency is a small luxury wellness retreat held near Ubud Bali in September 2026. Designed for women seeking genuine rest, nervous system restoration and sensory immersion, this retreat combines floating sound bath, daily breathwork, on-body vibrational sound massage, somatic fascia movement, tea ceremony and chef prepared meals in a private luxury villa. Airport transfers and all activities are included. Spaces are strictly limited to preserve intimacy and depth.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes. Most women who come to Mellow Habits retreats have never done a sound bath, a breathwork session or a somatic movement class before. Everything is guided, gentle and completely optional. You do not need any experience. You just need to arrive.
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This residency is designed for solo travellers. Most guests come alone. The small group size means connection happens naturally and without effort. By day two you will not feel like strangers.
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Mornings begin slowly — gentle movement or breathwork, a nourishing breakfast, time by the pool or in nature. Afternoons include sound sessions, somatic work or tea ceremony. Evenings are designed for rest and integration. There is structure but there is always space. Nothing is rushed and nothing is mandatory.
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Intentionally a lot. Long lunches. Afternoons with nowhere to be. Time to read, swim, walk or simply sit. The unstructured time is not empty — it is where the deepest rest happens.
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We hear this often. The women who hesitate the longest are usually the ones who need it most. This is not an indulgence. It is four days of deliberate investment in your nervous system, your sleep and your capacity to show up for everything and everyone in your life. You will leave not just rested but more resilient. More able. More yourself. Most guests describe it as the best money they have ever spent on themselves. Not because of what they experienced while they were there. But because of how differently they moved through life when they came home.
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Absolutely. Many guests add days before or after to explore Ubud or the wider island. Just let us know and we can suggest where to stay and what to see.
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We will send you an email with all the details but to get you started pack light, loose, comfortable clothing you can move and rest in. A light layer for evenings. Swimwear for the pool. We recommend leaving your laptop at home.
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Cancellations more than 30 days before the residency are refundable minus the 30% deposit. Cancellations within 30 days are non-refundable due to villa and supplier commitments. You are welcome to transfer your place to another guest at no penalty.
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The best way is to get in touch directly at rest@mellowhabits.com. We will confirm availability and send you everything you need to know to make your decision.
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Absolutely. If you would like to talk through the retreat before committing Zara is available for a short call to answer any questions and help you decide if this is the right fit for you.
Send an email to rest@mellowhabits.com with the subject line Bali Call and we will find a time that works.