Private Yoga & Zen Wellness Retreat in a Century-Old Farmhouse, Nagasaki

NAMI is a completely private retreat housed in a kominka that was built over a century ago by a timber merchant. The craftsmanship is evident in the heavy beams, intricate joinery, and antique wavy glass windows. The property sits right beside Gyokuho-ji, an active Zen temple, and overlooks the sea. Because only one group stays at a time, the stillness is absolute.

Each morning, Mayumi, a yoga instructor and bodywork practitioner, leads a session on the engawa veranda as the sun rises over the water. The classes are gentle and accessible to all levels, so you don't need to be flexible or experienced — just willing to show up. After yoga, Namiko serves breakfast, either Japanese-style with fermented brown rice and seasonal sides, or Western-style with homemade brown rice bread.

The afternoons are intentionally unscheduled. You might take a walk to the nearby village, visit the Kuchinotsu History Museum, or simply read in the garden. One afternoon, you'll have the option to join a vegan cooking workshop where you'll make shio-koji and prepare a seasonal vegetable sushi dinner. On another evening, Mayumi offers a combined bodywork session: Rakken-ho, a traditional Japanese foot therapy where the practitioner uses their feet to work through deep tension, followed by Ku-Route, a needle-free energy healing developed by acupuncturist Yusaku Shirakawa.

Evenings are for zazen at the temple next door. A resident priest guides you through posture and breath, and you're welcome to join the temple's 5am morning routine of zazen, sutra chanting, and communal cleaning if you want to go deeper. The retreat also includes a full tea ceremony, led by Namiko, who is a practitioner of chado. The connection between Zen and tea is real — Sen no Rikyu built chado on Zen principles, and Namiko explains this as she prepares the matcha.

Namiko Settsu is the heart of NAMI. She spent over a decade at Tsukiji Market and farms across Japan, learning to see vegetables as living things. She later cooked vegetarian cuisine at a retreat center in California and trained for three years as a nakai under the proprietress of a mountain ryokan in Kyoto. Her cooking is rooted in the Zen teaching of Tenzo Kyokun, which regards cooking as meditation.

What's included

- Airport Pickup & Drop-off - 2 nights accommodation - 3 daily delicious and nutritious meals - Vegetarian or Vegan kaiseki dinner - Water, tea, coffee served throughout the day - Welcome drink - Daily yoga classes - Daily meditation classes - 30 minute massage - Cooking class - Private use of entire property (exclusive one-group-per-day) - Parking - Wifi connection

What's not included

- Flights costs - Travel insurance - Visa fee - Additional treatments - Additional activities not included in the itinerary