7-Day Private Somatic Dance & Wellness Retreat for Women in Andalusia, Spain

You arrive at Jardin de Luz on a Saturday afternoon and have a check-in session that day — a chance to sit down with Pingel, talk through what brought you here, and set the tone for the week. From there the rhythm settles into two sessions a day, mornings and afternoons, with Wednesday kept clear as a rest day. A typical session might be a NIA class (a sensory-based movement practice that mixes dance, somatic work, and martial arts forms), a Chakradance meditation, an embodied creativity exercise, or a Quantum Human Design exploration. Everything is one-to-one, so if a session needs to shift because you're tired or something has come up, it shifts.

The somatic work is gentle on purpose. Pingel's approach — she calls it MAMA, for Map, Anchor, Move, Align — is about noticing what's actually happening in your body right now, finding something that feels safe or pleasurable to anchor to, and moving from there. The idea is that your nervous system reorganizes itself when it is given enough experiences of ease, rather than being pushed through discomfort. If that sounds abstract, in practice it means you might spend a session dancing freely in the outdoor studio, or lying on a mat tracking sensations, or working with imagery and sound in a Chakradance sequence.

What makes this different from a standard yoga or dance retreat is the privacy and the tailoring. There is no group to blend into, no set sequence you have to follow. The Quantum Human Design element also sets it apart — you get a personalised reading of your own energetic blueprint that is woven through the week rather than delivered as a one-off consultation. Guests who have done it tend to describe the combination of undivided attention and a very quiet setting as the thing that actually shifted something.

Pingel has a background in contemporary dance and fine arts, and has trained in NIA, Feldenkrais, Organic Intelligence post-trauma growth coaching, systemic constellations, and Chakradance. She has been running retreats at Jardin de Luz for years and lives on or near the property. Her manner is warm and unhurried; the retreat is explicitly not therapy, but it is trauma-informed and moves at whatever speed you need.

The setting does a lot of the work. Jardin de Luz sits in olive and citrus groves in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, within walking distance of Lanjarón (a mountain village known for its spring water and its baths) and a short drive from the bohemian town of Orgiva. There is an outdoor dance floor with a wooden deck facing the pine forest and the high peaks, a pool among the olive trees, and several quiet corners in the garden where you can sit on your own. The nearest beaches are about 30 minutes away by car. The week includes an excursion into the Sierra Nevada national park and a trip to Orgiva's weekly market.

What's included

- 6–7 nights accommodation at Jardin de Luz (guesthouse room, wooden cabana, or bell tent depending on the package chosen) - 3 vegetarian/vegan meals a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner) - Fresh fruits and nuts from the land available throughout the day - Spring water, herbal infusions, coffee, and tea - Morning coffee and tea time with a sugar-conscious sweet - Two sessions a day (except Wednesday, which is a free day) - Check-in session on arrival day - All movement sessions: NIA Move to Heal, somatic dance, Chakradance, embodied creativity - Quantum Human Design exploration - A trip to the Sierra Nevada national park - A visit to Orgiva and its bohemian hippie market - Use of the pool, gardens, outdoor dance studio, and indoor studio - Yoga mats provided in the guesthouse and cabana

What's not included

- Flights - Travel to and from the airport (pickup service is extra: around EUR 90 one-way / EUR 180 return from Málaga, paid to the driver) - Travel insurance - Visa fees - Travel expenses - Additional sessions - Additional activities not included in the itinerary - Personal expenses