Pathways through Grief
A nature-based transformational retreat
- For those who have lost a loved one-
Algarve. Portugal
When you feel the YES
If something here resonates, trust that voice.
This is the moment you’ve been waiting for. The time to stop carrying everything on your own.
Pathways into Healing offers a space to rest, be held and tend to what matters most. If you feel ready to step out of everyday life and into care, presence and renewal, you are warmly invited to join us in southwest Portugal.
Weekly Program in a nutshell
This week is a deeply nourishing journey, held with care, skill, and heart.
-
Each day begins in mindful presence. Morning sessions include guided mindfulness, reflection and gentle grief work with Elisabeth & Jiska. These sessions offer a calm and grounded start to the day, inviting awareness, understanding and a gentle tending to what is present for you.
-
After the morning sessions, there is spacious time to rest and restore. You may enjoy a nourishing massage (included in your stay), wander through the gardens, swim in the pool, or walk the quiet road leading to a remote beach. If you have a car, there is also the option to explore the wild coastline or simply sit beneath a tree and take in the sounds and rhythm of nature.
-
In the afternoons or early evenings, we gather again for explorative sessions of movement, gentle yin yoga, sound, ritual and creative expression. These practices support integration on a deeper level, allowing body and heart to open in ways that words alone cannot.
Throughout the week, we work with the elements - water, earth, fire and air - through ritual, ceremony and shared presence. These group circles hold both depth and lightness: moments of silence and laughter, reflection and connection, rest and renewal.
Our homey retreat house, surrounded by the wild beauty of southwest Portugal, offers both shared and single rooms where you can wake to birdsong, feel the morning sun, and rest deeply at night.
Imagine yourself here - breathing more freely, feeling grounded in your body, and sharing this experience with others who understand. This week offers a rare and meaningful gift: time. Time to rest, to reflect, and to reconnect with life in a way that feels nourishing and sustainable. You will return home feeling softer, steadier and supported, carrying both your grief and your renewed energy back into everyday life.
The Team of Pathways Through Grief retreat.
- Elisabeth Tiesinga will be your main host, facilitator and companion. I love to guide spaces where grief, tenderness and renewal meet and to support others in finding meaning, expression and life again. Read more about me here.
- Catarina Silva will support me in holding the space throughout the retreat with her grounded and deeply present energy. She will also bring the gifts of gentle Yin and Nidra yoga, sound, and voice to guide moments of connection and inner listening. Her presence invites calm, openness, and a sense of being safely held.
-
Jiska Rodenburg will join me as co-facilitator during the guided grief work sessions, bringing over two decades of experience in coaching and supporting people through grief, loss and recovery. Her grounded presence supports resilience, integration and inner strength. Alongside this, she is a certified Kundalini yoga teacher and guides individuals, organisations and retreats through her practice in the Netherlands.
- Our culinary team, Ana and Xana, see food as much more than what we put into our bodies. It’s connection, creativity, and care in action. As passionate food activists, they bring seasonal, local ingredients to life with imagination and heart, offering meals that nourish not only your body, but also your spirit and sense of belonging.
- Each participant receives a well-deserved massage with Ivana, one of the most gifted holistic practitioners I’ve met. Her deeply restorative touch invites relaxation, helps release what the body has been holding, and supports gentle integration through care, presence, and skill.
Guest Facilitators
Throughout the week, we are joined by carefully chosen guest facilitators whose experience naturally support the journey we share. Each brings their own way of working with presence, expression and renewal, offering sessions that invite connection through movement, sound, stillness, ritual and ceremony.
These sessions may include meditative harp concerts, Qi Gong practices, embodied movement and voice opening, sweat lodge ceremonies and nature-based rituals. Each offering is held with care and woven into the rhythm of the week, supporting integration, meaning-making and a sense of belonging.
Guest sessions may vary depending on the facilitator and the season of the retreat.
Reviews
Shaini Verdon
Founder of Yogaion retreats & Soulsculpt
“When I started hosting retreats, almost 15 years ago, I was working mostly on my own. Inviting Liz to join was one of the best decisions I ever made. With her background as a KLM purser, she brought incredible organisational skills, but what truly makes her extraordinary is her presence with people.
Liz is one of the best listeners I’ve ever met. As a friend and as a facilitator, she has a rare ability to truly see and hear the person in front of her. During the retreats, while I was often leading classes, Liz was the one who created those quiet, intimate spaces where women felt safe to open up. She connected deeply with each participant, and her warmth and attentiveness touched everyone.
Her mindfulness sessions were simply spectacular, grounded, heartfelt, and full of gentle clarity. She combines a hands-on, can-do attitude with a deeply centred, mindful presence. With her background in doula and grief work, she holds space with grace and strength, making her a truly remarkable retreat host and facilitator.
It’s an absolute joy to work alongside Liz. She brings both structure and soul to every retreat. I highly recommend joining Liz her grief retreat. ”
Nadja
“Through Liz her gentle guidance and deep listening, I was able to connect with my emotions in a new way – not to fix them or move past them, but to acknowledge them, feel them, and begin to understand how to live with them.
A very meaningful moment was a grief ritual by the ocean. That ritual became a quiet, intimate moment of connection – not just with myself, but with my late husband. Surrounded by the sound of the waves and the openness of the horizon, I felt calm and close to him.
During the grief ritual that followed, my tears came freely, and with Liz by my side, they were met with compassion and care.
Liz has helped me shift how I relate to my grief – not as something to push away, but something to hold with softness. And she has taught me how to breathe.
Our conversations continue to support me deeply, offering both comfort and quiet insight.
Thank you, Liz.”
Paula
"Liz holds a beautiful and safe space. I felt carried, understood and safe while sharing. She offers great tools to take home with.
I felt I am not alone, I felt a lot lighter and in peace with myself and my grief, which is part of me."
Christine
" Liz is kind, knowledgeable, understanding, and made me feel very comfortable sharing my feelings. Grief is part of the circle of life, but being able to share my thoughts with others who are also grieving, makes the process a bit more manageable. It takes a village".
Maria
" Grief is something that is alive in me, some days more then others, and doesn’t always get the attention that it should.
The grief group gave space for this and it felt heartbreaking although comforting to hear other peoples stories.
We can support and help each other, listen and create space to grief together (instead of always alone).
Liz is an amazing coach with a lots of knowledge, tools and exercises that helped me a lot in my journey".
