Reiki Retreat

This Reiki Retreat is a four-day gathering for people who already practise Reiki and want time to rest, reconnect and learn alongside others. It is held at Mana Retreat Centre on the Coromandel Peninsula in Waikato, New Zealand, and is led by Reiki teachers Suzie Peek, Cherry Campbell, Elisabeth Lautenslager and Tanya Milton. For many who come, it is an annual recharge: a chance to rekindle a practice that has been on pause or strengthen one that is already steady.

Reiki Level I is the minimum requirement to attend.

What to Expect

The retreat runs from a late-afternoon arrival on the first day to an early-afternoon finish on the last, across four days of what the organizers call energy immersion. The schedule is a guideline. The facilitators gently hold the space and also go with the energy of the group and what is needed in each moment.

Each day includes giving and receiving Reiki in different settings, a Circle of Light, meditations, deep sharing circles and discussions, and the drawing of guidance cards. There are resources to help you deepen your relationship with Reiki and with yourself.

Highlights include:

- Giving and receiving Reiki from many people at once, hands on at the Reiki table or by distance
- A heart attunement and a deep grounding meditation
- Sound healing, and a Reiki-infused sound bath in the Tara Sanctuary
- A Buddha Blessing, a channeled blessing
- A global meditation on the hillside platform
- A reattunement for the level of Reiki you are at

Past years have also brought crystal singing bowls, cacao ceremonies, intuitive art making and hand pan meditations. Each year's group brings its own gifts, so the programme shifts with the people in the room.

Your Facilitators

For 17 years, Master Teacher Uli Brell held this retreat at Mana. This year, with her blessing, four facilitators carry it forward.

Elisabeth Lautenslager began her Reiki path in 2007 and started teaching Usui Reiki around 2013. She is an Usui Reiki Master Teacher and an EFT practitioner, also works with Matrix Reimprinting, and is currently drawn to sound healing and breathwork.

Suzie Peek is an energy healer for people and animals and an animal communicator. She is a Kundalini Reiki Master, trained in Usui Reiki Level II, and hosts Reiki shares and workshops.

Cherry Campbell is an Usui Reiki Master Teacher. She is a retired registered nurse with a Bachelor of Science, a Masters in Nursing Education and a Diploma of Meditation Therapy, and she is a certified Pilates instructor who runs her own studio.

Tanya Milton is an Usui Reiki Master with a 20-year practice. She hosts Reiki share events and retreats in her local community, with a vision shaped by Buddhist meditation values.

The Setting

Mana Retreat Centre sits against the mountains, halfway between Coromandel and Thames, with views over the sea, valleys, islands and rolling hills. Forests, gardens and orchards surround it. Sleeping quarters are cosy, and there are shared communal areas.

Free time is part of the rhythm. You can walk the bush paths, visit the Tara Sanctuary, walk the stone labyrinth, climb to the crystal at the summit, read in the library, take a sauna or bush bath, or book a massage. The bell tower's chimes carry across the valley and the bays below.

Three vegetarian meals are prepared each day by the Mana team.

Before You Go

- Reiki Level I is required.
- Food is lacto-ovo vegetarian, so no fish or chicken. Gluten free, dairy free and vegan needs are catered for.
- The centre is alcohol and drug free.
- The retreat needs a minimum number of participants to go ahead.
- Mana acts as agent for the independent teachers: the teachers provide the teaching, and Mana provides accommodation and meals.