Awakening to Wholeness

Step away from everything for a week. Wake up among almond and olive trees in the quiet hills of the Western Algarve. Spend the mornings, afternoons, and evenings with Unmani, in deep inquiry into what is true. Spend the hours in between however your heart wishes: on a cliff path above the Atlantic, on a quiet beach, on a bicycle through the countryside, or simply under a tree with a book.

This is a retreat and a holiday in one. A pilgrimage inwards, in a setting that makes it easy to soften, rest and open. The inquiry goes deep. The surroundings are gentle, nurturing and very beautiful. Come to connect with yourself and the divine, and let the land, the light and the sea do the rest.

Join us for a transformative journey of awakening to yourself as Oneness beyond all separation, and also embracing the individual ‘you’ in the world.

The Heart of the Week

Immerse yourself in embodied awakening, and discover the possibility of embracing all aspects of your true nature – your mind, your heart and body.

Meet yourself as Life itself, and explore how to find the courage to live as this in your daily life.

This teaching has two main streams: Awakening out of the dream of separation to a recognition of your true Self; and discovering how this Awakening can be a lived and embodied unfolding into more wholeness in your life.

The journey is not over with the recognition of our true Self. Many of us have had glimpses of, or an awakening of some sort, with experiences of emptiness or bliss. But these experiences tend to fade, or we discover that we do not know how to live now with this new recognition.

The invitation of this retreat is to learn to meet all aspects of our experience, whether it is blissful or uncomfortable. We embrace fears and old conditioning, wounds or traumas, dismantling old beliefs and identities, leaving only what is authentic. We start to live life no longer through the sense of separation, but as the Love that we truly are.

In this retreat with Unmani, you will realise that you are Oneness beyond separation, and that you can live as an individual expression of this Oneness. This becomes a new way to be ‘you’, as you live life more courageously with an open heart.

Join us on this inner journey from fear to love. Bring the reality of your true Self into your everyday life.

The Rhythm of a Day

Three sessions with Unmani give each day its shape. Everything around them is yours.

Each day starts with a free-style movement session with music where you can move any way you feel to, and open your body for the day. These sessions end with silent stillness.

• 09.30: Morning movement with music

• 10.00: Session with Unmani

• 11.30: Tea break

• 12.00: Session with Unmani

• 13.30: Free time: lunch, the beach, a walk, a massage, a rest, or time alone

• 17.30: Session with Unmani

• 19.00: Dinner at Monte Rosa, in the village, alone or with others.
  

Exact times will be confirmed closer to the retreat.

We meet for 3 daily group sessions with Unmani. Each one is an hour and a half with a tea break in between.

The sessions are also available to join online, live from wherever you are.

These sessions will include:

• Guided meditations

• Silence

• Talks on Awakening, Truth, the nature of the mind, and many other themes.

• Dialogues where you can explore, investigate, and feel into any area of your own unique path with Unmani’s personalised guidance, energetic holding, and reflection.

• Opportunity for questions and answers and general sharing. 

• Other activities which support the continuing questioning and dissolution of beliefs and identities involving creativity and movement

• There will be free time in between the sessions to integrate them in your own way, to rest, take a walk, or go to the beach.

Is this Retreat for You?

Despite the fact that the fundamental message of Nonduality is that there is nothing to get, nothing to do, and no one to do it, the reality is that unless you truly realise this yourself, there is still someone trying to do or get something. And even if you do already realise your true nature, there is still the unraveling of who you have believed yourself to be, and the never-ending embodying of this realisation.

Although you can very easily scroll through endless teachings and teachers online, meeting a ‘live’ teacher in person is a very different experience. Unmani has 20 years of experience in supporting people to wake up to their true nature. She has been described as an ‘energetic surgeon’ when she works with people in dialogue. Unmani meets you in whatever confusion or misunderstanding is there, and guides you back to clarity. Although there may be many words, what she invites you into is beyond all the words.

At a retreat with Unmani, you are devoting yourself to meeting Yourself. In our usual daily life, we tend not to have enough time to deeply connect with what is true and real, as we are often too busy running from one thing to the next. When you come to a retreat with Unmani, you disengage from the routines and unhealthy habits of your daily life, and give yourself the gift of this time for rejuvenation and self-nourishment.

Unmani holds the paradox of the Awareness beyond the whole of experience, and also dives deep into the personal experience as well. This means that coming to a retreat can mean that you discover more clarity, focus, and freedom in all kinds of areas of your human life. This paradox of the impersonal and the personal brings so much freedom and courage to live from your heart in your daily life.

Monte Rosa

Monte Rosa is a small rural guesthouse set on four hectares of rolling land, among old almond, olive and fig trees, a few minutes from the village of Barão de São João. Our sessions take place in the Round House, a light, circular space in the garden. Around it there is a swimming pool, gardens, terraces with views of the sunset and a communal outdoor kitchen.

Barão de São João itself is a small, unhurried village with cafés, a bakery and a mix of Portuguese families, artists and people who came for a holiday and never left. Lagos and the coast are about fifteen minutes away by car.

Between the Sessions

Between the sessions, the days are yours. Go off on your own, or join others. Many people find that this is where the retreat quietly continues: a walk alone after a morning session, a conversation on the beach with someone you met the day before, a shared car to Sagres. Integration happens in the living of it.

The beaches

From the sheltered golden coves around Lagos and Luz to the wild surf beaches of the west coast, there is a beach for every mood. Swim, read, walk barefoot along the waterline, or simply sit and watch the Atlantic.

Walking

Follow the cliff paths of Ponta da Piedade, walk a stretch of the Fishermen’s Trail along the wild west coast, or wander the forest trails of the Mata Nacional, just outside Barão de São João.

Cycling

Monte Rosa rents out bicycles and e-bikes. The quiet country lanes around the village are lovely to explore, whether for an hour or a whole afternoon.

Rest and care

Book a massage, join one of the yoga classes held in the Round House, float in the pool, or take a long nap in the shade. The land around Monte Rosa invites you to slow right down.

Lagos, the villages and good food

Wander through the old town of Lagos, browse the market and find a small restaurant by the harbour. Or stay close to home: Barão de São João has cafés, a bakery and a relaxed village life. Eat at the venue, cook in your own kitchenette, or go out with others in the evening.

Sunsets and dancing

Watch the sun go down over the ocean at Cabo de São Vicente, the south-western tip of Europe. And during the week, Katy, Unmani’s retreat assistant, will host a silent disco on the beach: headphones on, shoes off, dancing at the edge of the Atlantic.

Around Monte Rosa

Beaches, villages, cliff walks and quiet countryside, all within easy reach.

Where to Stay

You are free to choose how you would like to stay: right at the venue, or in a place of your own nearby.

At Monte Rosa

Monte Rosa has eleven rooms, studios and cottages, each with its own bathroom, most with a kitchenette and a private terrace. Staying on site means waking up a few steps from the Round House, with the pool and the gardens on your doorstep. Rooms start at around €65 per night for one person and €75 for two. Cottages for two to five people start at around €100 per night. Sharing a room or cottage with one or two others is a lovely way to keep costs down.

To book a room at Monte Rosa, please email contact@awakeningwithunmani.com, and we will arrange it for you.

Nearby

If you prefer a place of your own, there are lovely guesthouses and holiday homes in and around Barão de São João. A few favourites on Airbnb:

• Casa Mira: a cosy studio in nature with its own patio and kitchenette, just outside the village. Perfect for one or two.

• Casa da Liberdade: a charming little townhouse right in the heart of Barão de São João, a short walk from the cafés.

• Cosy family home in nature: a large cottage with a garden near the village, lovely to share with two or three others from the group.

• Simply Be in Nature: a simple cabin among the trees near Lagos, for those who love to live outdoors, cook under the sky and fall asleep to the stars.

Staying nearby does not mean staying apart. Many participants share cars, meals and afternoons at the beach.

Meals

Breakfast is served at Monte Rosa every morning (€12). A group lunch can be arranged at the venue, or you can bring a picnic, cook in your kitchenette, or head into the village. There are good supermarkets and restaurants in Lagos and Luz. On the last evening, we will gather for a group dinner to celebrate and connect with each other before we go home.

Why Come to a Retreat with Unmani?

• Disconnect from all the noise and distractions and turn your attention inwards. This will inevitably create a sense of well-being and spaciousness in itself.

• A time to truly focus on yourself and to listen to your deepest longing.

• To be held in a supportive and safe space where you can meet and learn to embrace all aspects of yourself.

• Cultivate a heightened awareness of this simple present experience, and savour its richness and beauty through guided meditations and exercises with Unmani.

• As you realise that you are not the mind, you may find more joy and simplicity in your daily experience.

• Discover that everything that you have ever longed for is right here in this moment.

• In this retreat, you will navigate some challenging or confronting emotions, beliefs, or held identities, and develop the courage to meet them fully, while simultaneously knowing that they do not mean anything about you. This encourages a life dedicated to living as the Love that you are, despite whatever challenging times you go through in your life.

• You will learn to accept, appreciate, and have compassion for this human that lives in this world in time and space, and all that you have endured or achieved. This inevitably will bring more experiences of joy, ease and freedom.

• Discover a new way to be ‘you’ in the world. A way of living that is courageous, empowered, and yet sensitive, responsive, and open-hearted.

• Connect with people who share a similar love of truth and are also on a journey of self-discovery. This sense of community and support that develops during these retreats is a rare thing in our modern, mostly virtual lifestyles.

• Spend time connecting to yourself in the beautiful nature of Portugal and meet the inner joy that is your true nature.

• Come home rested. A week of sea air, sunshine and unhurried days is a gift in itself.

~ Unmani

Getting There

The nearest airport is Faro, about an hour’s drive from Monte Rosa. There are direct flights to Faro from Amsterdam, from many airports in the UK and from several cities in Germany. Lisbon is about two and half hours away by car.

You might want to hire a car, and sharing one is easy: once you have booked, we will put you in touch with others in the group so you can travel together from the airport and explore the area during the week. Monte Rosa works with a local company, Marina Rental Car. Airport transfers can also be arranged. Without a car, there is a train from Faro to Lagos (about two hours), and buses run between Lagos and the surrounding villages.

Watch a short video about these Intensive Retreats in Portugal here.

Click here for the weather in Portugal in April.

You will receive more detailed directions and information once you book your place.

Dates and Details

Wednesday 14th April to Wednesday 21st April 2027

Monte Rosa, Barão de São João, Western Algarve, Portugal

Exact arrival and departure times will follow.

Also available to join online.

Your registration includes

• Three daily sessions with Unmani (1.5 hours each)

• A daily movement session with music

• A small group of up to 20 people

• Each session includes sharing and intimate dialogues; full participation is asked

• Talks and guided meditations

• Songs by Robert Hanuman, based on Unmani’s words

• All sessions will be recorded for your own personal viewing after the retreat

• Afternoons to reflect, explore the area, go to the beach, walk in nature, socialise or be on your own

• Silent disco sessions on the beach with Katy

• One or two other sessions where we invite someone local to offer an extra activity for the group.

Accommodation, meals and travel are not included, so you can arrange them in the way that suits you best.

Costs

• Teaching Fee: In person: €750 (early bird €695, if booked by 31 December 2026)

• Teaching Fee: Online: €650 (early bird €595, if booked by 31 December 2026)

A non-refundable deposit of €250 secures your place. The balance is due by 1 March 2027.

If you would really like to join us but have genuine financial difficulties, please email contact [at] awakeningwithunmani [dot] com to enquire about discounts and possible options to assist during the retreat.

Planning your budget

Everyone will spend the week a little differently. As a rough guide: sharing a room at Monte Rosa, cooking for yourself and sharing a hire car (optional), comes to around €500 to €800 for the week on top of the teaching fee. This leaves room for a few extras, such as a yoga class (from €10), a massage (from €55) or a day on a bicycle. This does not include travel. With a cottage or Airbnb of your own, your own car and dinners out, it will be more.

Booking Procedure

To confirm your place, a non-refundable deposit of €250 of the teaching fee cost is required at the time of booking. The balance is due by 1 March 2027. If you would like details to pay by bank transfer, please contact us.

Please note that before you book your place at an Intensive, Unmani asks that all participants come to at least one open meeting. If this is physically impossible, please make sure that you have watched several of Unmani’s free video clips available on YouTube.

Cancellations

The €250 deposit is non-refundable. If you cancel after paying in full, the rest of the teaching fee will be refunded.

Accommodation is booked separately and follows the cancellation terms of wherever you stay: Monte Rosa’s own terms if you book through us, or those of Airbnb or whichever platform you used.

Please ensure that you read the Booking and Cancellation Policy carefully before you book.