“I feel like I came broken and have left feeling stronger and healthier…” A., Residential Retreat Guest in 2019
Residential Retreats at our Haven in the country
The guest accommodation for our residential retreats, in the countryside near Angouleme, is a beautiful stone cottage overlooking the pool and gardens.
It is spacious, private and perfectly placed to watch the sunset in the evening from the garden, have breakfast in the morning sun and has a wood-burning fire for cosiness in the chillier seasons.
Sometimes we need to feel the wind in our hair and the earth beneath our feet – sometimes we want to snuggle down into a big blanket and be wrapped up like a child. Here, you can have both.
The Chateau de Mouillac was originally built over a thousand years ago, it was a Chateau with a tower. At some point, it burnt down and over 200 years ago a maison de maître was built in its place.
This was our family home and then used for residential retreats when we had 4-6 people staying at a time. We renovated a ruin (they had been tied cottages for the people who worked on the surrounding vines), which we moved into on New Years Eve 2019.
Over the years we took the decision to work only with one or two people at a time for our residential retreats so that we can give our undivided attention for as many hours as needed each day. The house was way too big for one, so we developed and renovated the lovely pigsty, which sits in front of the pool with the gardens sweeping down in front of it.
Vines, woods and horses surround us with many different walks right from the doorstep. We have untreated fruit trees – cherries, apples, pears, nuts, plums, apricots, a vegetable garden and fruit vines. The woods are a forager’s paradise full of mushrooms, nuts fruit and leaves. We often see the local deer as we walk, they live amongst the vines surrounding the house and in the nearby woods.
The outdoor heated pool (28°-33°) is open in the summer months, usually April – October depending on the weather. At 12 metres long it is good for a proper swim and a lovely place to lie on the terrace bathed in sunshine. It has a retractable cover so that on the rare occasion the weather is awful you can still enjoy it.
Release toxins and aid relaxation in the infrared sauna. Heat, tranquillity, rest… perfect. Relax in the, very effective, massage chair.
Enjoy breakfast on the terrace, lunch by the pool, dinner at your dining table – or take them all in the cottage if you prefer, you choose!
For residential retreats, we provide support when you need it and we also appreciate your need for quiet time, privacy and space.
Gourmet Delights for Guests of our Residential Retreats
For guests of our residential retreats, we offer a delicious, high raw, gourmet plant food diet. It is very healing, nourishing and cleansing whilst also satisfying the desire and need to ENJOY your food. It has been very highly reviewed by guests of past retreats.
That doesn’t mean going through an awful detoxification process (though we can offer more intense cleansing when required), but you will still be cleaning out toxins and reinforcing your immune system from day one.
We adapt our menus depending on the seasons, how long someone is here and what their requirements are.
A raw food diet is based on raw, fresh, ripe fruit and vegetables, nuts and seeds. The meals we achieve with those, using first-class equipment (high-speed blenders, dehydrators, sous-vide water baths, sprouters and masticating juicers) are amazing. Every mouthful nourishes the mind and body, soothing and energising.
We provide juices, smoothies, meals and snacks throughout the day to really pack those nutrients in. Juices allow speedy absorption with minimal digestion. Green smoothies satisfy both on a nutritional level and alleviate hunger pangs (as well as increasing our stomach acids – all will be explained to you if you are interested). Snacks and delicious raw gourmet meals are prepared with mostly organic produce, often fresh from our garden, to nourish you on every level including pure indulgence!
There will be cake and chocolate, snacks and savoury morsels.
You may experience a few little cleansing niggles on days 2 or 3 which we can help you through and you will feel oh, so good as a result.
During your residential retreat we provide, if required, nutritional and well-being consultations/discussions with Desri addressing any problems you have. All sorts of food or lifestyle-related topics could be covered from feeding a family or what to take to work for lunch to avoid afternoon brain fog.
If you want to (I say this as some people just don’t and that’s OK) we can include teaching about juicing, sprouting and creating delicious foods. You can learn how to substitute healthful ingredients and recipes to create better versions of your favourite foods enabling you to continue on your new path. We can cover how to achieve that ever-elusive 5-10 fruit and veg a day, meal planning and how to sneak nutrients into picky eaters.
We all need delicious and nutritious!
An day-in-the-life of a residential retreat guest at Haven
NB: This is a simple example of a day: your stay with us will be tailored to your requirements.
On rising
Help yourself to a large glass of fresh lemon in water.
Oil pulling, dry skin brushing (both will be taught and the tools supplied which you will take home with you), shower. Obviously, all this is for you to do in your time, in your space, alone!).
8-9 am
Morning juice.
Take a wake up swim, metabolism boosting power walk or lie in the gentle early morning sun… or snuggle back into bed.
9-10 am
Breakfast followed by…
Walk and Talk 1-2 hours with Robin and/or Desri through the woods and among the vines.
10.30 am
Smoothie
11 am
First formal session of the day with Robin. This could be between 2 or 3 hours with comfort breaks as needed.
1 pm
Lunch
2-6 pm
Second formal session of the day. Depending on what you need this will be with either Robin and/or Desri.
Afterwhich: Relax. Use the pool (seasonal), sauna or rebounder.
4 pm
Snack or juice
6 pm
Energy Healing, depending on time available and necessity.
6.30 pm
Evening meal
An example menu at our residential retreats
NB: All meals are vegan
Breakfast
Pancakes with fruit and maple syrup or walnut toast, avocado, tomatoes and ‘bacon’.
Lunch
Lasagna (raw, vegan, grain free, dairy free etc), salad, nut parmesan.
Ice cream with chocolate sauce.
Snack
Milk ‘n’ Cookies (regime depending),
Ginger & lemon shot
All meals can be taken alone or with other guests. There are plenty of spaces inside or outside.
Evenings are your own – take a gentle stroll, explore our vast library of books, films and music curled up on a sofa or make the most of an early night.
Sit outside and watch the sun go down, if its chilly we sometimes light the fire pit and blankets are always available.
Think about what is happening to you, what you want to discuss tomorrow. Maybe start to write a diary. Enjoy a guided meditation or relaxation.
Teas and tisanes and filtered water are available to you at all times and we encourage you to keep hydrated.
We use superfoods and supplements as appropriate.
Dinner
Tree nut Ravioli: beetroot, creamy cheese, herb oil
Truffled mushroom risotto: Mushroom, truffle, garden salad
Carrot cake, vanilla ice cream, physalis
We can also offer a deeper detox of mainly fresh juices and/or lighter meals if required.
Options for our residential retreats
We have several options for the Residential Retreats. To ensure the most effective benefits, we limit the number of clients staying at the Haven to one or two people who come together at any one time.
NB: From August 2021, we also have retreats at our Haven by the sea on the Isle de Ré. Get in touch to book in!
Option one: Intensive Emotional Residential Retreat
Long weekend (3 nights)
Price: from £1,500 per person (4-5 hours of one-to-one overall), to £1,900 per person (9-10 hours of one-to-one overall).
Everything that the Gourmet Raw Food Retreat offers (below), PLUS 2-5 hours a day of one-to-one Intensive Emotional sessions.
One week (7 nights)
Price: from £3,975 – £4,690 per person.
Everything that the Gourmet Raw Food Retreat offers PLUS 2-5 hours a day of one-to-one Intensive Emotional sessions.
Option two: Gourmet Raw Food Retreat
Long weekend (3 nights)
Gourmet Raw Food Retreat: Cleansing retreats for a health boost, weight loss and regaining your glow. Includes your private accommodation, all meals, snacks, juices and drinks (teas, pure filtered water, tisanes), a nutritional consultation, Energy work session, daily guided walks and the use of all facilities.
Price: £1,110 per person.
One week (7 nights)
Gourmet Raw Food Retreat: Cleansing retreats for a health boost, weight loss and regaining your glow. Includes luxury room, all meals, snacks, juices and drinks (teas, pure filtered water, tisanes), a nutritional consultation, Energy work sessions, guided walks and the use of all facilities.
Price: £2,590 per person.
We regularly have clients staying up to 3 weeks at a time. Please contact us about pricing for longer stays.
Please note that it is possible for two people to come together without them both having to follow the same programme. For example, one person can have an Intensive Emotional stay, whilst the other has the Gourmet Raw Food Retreat.