Rise Up: Heal with Melly Rose & Samantha May

Rise Up: Heal is a five-day, four-night healing retreat at Mana Retreat Centre in the Coromandel, led by Melly Rose and Samantha May. It is for people who feel tired of carrying it all, who sense something shifting without the words for it yet, or who have been looking for a community where they don't have to make themselves smaller. The invitation is not to fix yourself or become someone new, but to set down what you've been carrying and rest.

What to Expect

The retreat draws on activations, group healings, sacred ceremony, transformational workshops, sound medicine, movement, rest, laughter and integration. Light Language is part of the mix too. Samantha May fills the space with her signature blend of sacred sound medicine, while Melly Rose and Samantha bring through the teachings, activations and experiences that seem to be asking to meet the group at that time.

The days are not tightly mapped out. The hosts say they listen to the land, the room and the people present, and let the content take shape from there. Their own words after several sold-out Rise Up retreats: the magic is always bigger than the plan. Past attendees describe an unusually open and supportive group of thirty or more, with real conversations and a sense of being held.

The retreat begins at 4:00 pm on the first day and finishes at 2:00 pm on the last. This edition has one more night than earlier Rise Up retreats, to allow more time to arrive, open up and integrate. Everyone who attends is also invited into a free Rise Up WhatsApp community, so the connections can continue after the retreat.

About Melly Rose and Samantha May

Melly Rose and Samantha May host the Rise Up retreats together under the name Rise Up Alchemy. Both now travel from overseas to hold these gatherings at Mana. They describe themselves as taking part alongside the group rather than teaching from the outside. Samantha is known here for her sound medicine, and the two co-lead the activations, workshops and ceremony.

The Setting

Mana Retreat Centre sits in the hills of the Coromandel, on Manaia Road off State Highway 25. Past guests speak of the land, the mountains and the sanctuary, and of a place with nowhere else you need to be. Meals are vegetarian, and Mana caters for gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan diets. The centre is alcohol and drug free, and its food is lacto-ovo vegetarian, so there is no fish or chicken.

Before You Go

No experience is needed. You don't have to be spiritual, healed or ready in any particular way, only willing. Come as you are, whether that means curious, nervous, exhausted or unsure of what you're walking into.

Costs are split in two. Rise Up tuition is paid separately through the Rise Up website and can be spread over the months leading up to the retreat. Accommodation and meals, including the additional night, are paid directly to Mana. Mana acts as agent for the independent teachers: the teachers provide the teaching, and Mana provides accommodation and meals.

The retreat needs a minimum number of participants to go ahead. Cancellations carry an administrative fee, which is higher within 72 hours of the start, and a tuition cancellation fee may apply in some circumstances.