Past retreat · first edition
Origin Retreat Recap · Istria, Croatia
istria, croatia
october 07–11, 2026
A look back
Five unhurried days, held by landscape, breath, and one another. Thank you for being part of the beginning.
The first edition of Zura was held in the beautiful lands of Istria, Croatia, guided by Anelise and Tara. Five days of daily yoga, pilates and meditation, cacao ceremonies and ecstatic dance, excursions to Rovinj, wine and olive oil tasting, and long tables of local food, all held by the quiet sanctuary of Villa Gaia.
Moments we shared
Origin, in pictures.
Rituals, slow mornings, long tables and golden evenings. A small glimpse of the five days we lived together.
The practice
Mornings of movement, evenings of stillness.
Each day began with yoga and pilates on the pool deck and in the garden, and softened into candlelit yin and somatic evenings. Every level moved together, gently.
The connection
Strangers on arrival, family by the end.
What stayed with us most was each other. Slow conversations at the winery, quiet moments by the pool, and circles where everyone was truly seen. Origin began as a retreat and ended as a friendship.
Nourished inside and out
Long tables, local flavours, slow evenings.
A local chef filled our days with seasonal Istrian dishes, and we gathered for wine tasting, dinners out, and one unforgettable final sunset meditation together.
How it unfolded
An unhurried rhythm.
- · Welcome & settle in
- · Cozy opening dinner
- · Ritual opening ceremony
- · Moonlight swim & sauna
- · Herbal tea time & journaling
- · Yoga Pilates combo class
- · Yoga & Somatics workshop
- · Rovinj excursion
- · Evening Yin Yoga
- · Power Pilates
- · Pilates Philosophy workshop
- · Cacao Ceremony & sunset at the beach
- · Ecstatic Dance
- · Morning Yogalates
- · Local Pasta dinner
- · Wine & Olive Oil tasting
- · Intuitive Painting workshop
- · Somatic Yoga
- · Last special class
- · Community Farewell Brunch
- · Departure with new energy