Datu Wellness

Some moments become part of every DATU retreat. Satsang is one of them. ✨

Different places, different seasons, different people around the circle. Yet, evening after evening, something familiar happens.

We gather.

To listen. To share. To ask questions. Sometimes to speak, sometimes simply to be there.

Datu in Robb Report Germany 🌿

A week to slow down, let go of decisions and turn the attention inwards.

In her beautiful feature for Robb Report, Verena Carola Mayer shares her personal experience of seven days with DATU, exploring Ayurveda, daily rituals, rest, community and the quiet shift that can happen when we give ourselves permission to simply be.

Thank you, Verena, for joining us and for sharing your experience so openly and personally.
We feel truly grateful to see our retreat, our people and our philosophy captured with such care✨

Every retreat brings together a different group of people. Since welcoming our first guests, we have shared this journey with people from more than 15 countries, from across Europe to the United States.

Different ages. Different professions. Different backgrounds.

What they often have in common is something less visible.
They arrive feeling tired. Stressed. Constantly making decisions, caring for others and moving from one responsibility to the next.
They come because they need space to slow down, rest, recharge and find their way back to themselves.

That is exactly what our retreats are designed for.
From authentic Ayurveda guided by practitioners from India and around the world to nourishing meals, a thoughtfully curated daily programme and even retreat clothing, every detail is taken care of. There is no planning, no organising and very few decisions to make.

Simply choose what feels right each day, and let the rest unfold naturally.

Whether you join us on the Cilento Coast, in Umbria or else where, you’ll find the same authentic Ayurveda, genuine care and a community that welcomes you exactly as you are.

While most of our guests are women, every retreat also welcomes a number of men.
Some arrive on their own, others with their partner.
What they all have in common is the desire to slow down, reconnect with themselves and step away from the pace of everyday life.
Wellbeing is not a women’s topic. It is a human one.

One of Asia Kostka seasonal creations:
Spring Polenta with Regina Beans, Herb-Spiced Legumes, Steamed Vegetable Ribbons, Marinated Puntarelle & Wild Flowers 🌸

To Asia, this dish reflects the Ayurvedic principle of eating in harmony with both the season and the body’s needs.

Designed for Kapha season, it combines predominantly extractive ingredients that lighten, stimulate digestion and clear seasonal stagnation with augmenting ingredients that gently nourish and sustain.
Bitter marinated puntarelle, fresh herbs, warming digestive spices, steamed zucchini and wild flowers are all extractive in nature, supporting liver function, kindling Agni (digestive fire) and encouraging the body’s natural spring cleansing process.
In contrast, creamy polenta, Regina beans and sweet carrots provide grounding nourishment, building energy and supporting the tissues without becoming excessively heavy.

For Asia, every ingredient has a purpose.

She believes food can be both nourishment and medicine.
For her, there is no such thing as one universally healthy way of eating.
What truly matters is the context: the season, the climate, each person’s unique constitution and what the body needs in that particular moment.

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Three simple Ayurvedic habits she recommends:
• Cook with ghee.
• Soak grains and legumes overnight.
• Bloom digestive spices in warm ghee before cooking.

One of the principles Asia returns to again and again is balance.

In Ayurveda, a meal is ideally made up of all six tastes: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter and astringent. Together, they create not only flavour, but balance.

If she had to share one simple tip, it would be to build your kitchen around a few thoughtful ingredients rather than endless choices.

Her everyday favourites include spices like cumin, coriander, fennel, turmeric and ginger, alongside pantry staples such as einkorn, millet, tulsi, mung dal and asafoetida.

Simple ingredients. No need to make it complicated.

Raised between psychology, nutrition and traditional health systems, Asia believes the most meaningful cooking begins with listening.
Listening to the seasons.
Listening to the ingredients.
And listening to what the body

Datu in ELLE Luxembourg ✨

Thank you, ELLE Luxembourg, for giving space to stories like these. And thank you, Marie-Adélaïde Leclercq-Olhagaray, for experiencing DATU with such openness and for capturing its essence so beautifully.

„The only way out is the way in.“
A phrase that stayed with Marie-Adélaïde long after leaving DATU.

In this beautiful feature for ELLE Luxembourg, she shares her experience of our Ayurvedic retreat and the conversations that shaped it.

From our belief that „the true luxury today is humanity“ to the idea that we don’t convince people, but simply create opportunities for clarity.

It is also a story about trust over pressure.
Gentle guidance instead of fixed rules.

Ancient wisdom brought into modern life through personalised care, meaningful rituals, nourishing food and a team that meets every guest exactly where they are.

We also loved seeing Asia Kostka and her philosophy brought to life.
Inspired by memories of her grandmother’s vegetable garden in Brooklyn, she leads the DATU kitchen with the belief that food can be both nourishment and medicine.

Nourishing Kitchari:

Ingredients:
• Brown rice & mung dal
• Ghee
• Ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves & star anise
• Carrots & courgettes
• Fresh coriander

Optional:
• Mustard seeds
• Cumin seeds
• Curry leaves

A comforting Ayurvedic one-pot meal, gently spiced to support digestion and restore balance.

Rather than following recipes alone, every meal reflects the principles of Ayurveda:
eating what grows around us, following the seasons, honouring each person’s unique constitution and creating balance through all six tastes.

Ghee & Cardamom Biscuits:

Ingredients:
• Plain flour
• Ghee
• Unrefined sugar
• Ground cardamom

Lightly sweet, fragrant and comforting. A simple biscuit inspired by Ayurvedic flavours.

Ayurveda isn’t simply a style of cooking - it’s first and foremost a philosophy.
It teaches us that food can nourish us while also serving as medicine.

One of the questions we hear most often is: Should I come alone or with someone?

The truth is, most of our guests arrive on their own. Others come with a partner, a close friend or a parent.

What we see time and time again is that no one stays alone for long. A warm sense of community naturally forms, where kindness, encouragement and shared experiences have a way of spreading from one person to another. Many guests tell us this becomes one of the most meaningful parts of their retreat. There is comfort in being surrounded by people on a similar journey, and many leave with friendships that continue long after they return home.

At the same time, there is never any pressure to socialise. If you need space, simply wear one of our Silent Pins. Everyone understands and respects it, creating room for the quiet moments that can be just as healing 💫