There’s something magical about Hawaii. Any time spent on the islands is food for the soul; add a few healing crystals into the mix and the result is pure, mind-body bliss. The crystal gurus at Energy Muse recently hosted a high-vibe retreat on the beautiful floating mass of mountains and greenery known as Kauai, and we’re sharing a scene-by-scene below. From daily yoga to hours-long crystal therapy workshops, let this recap from Energy Muse fuel your wanderlust…

The locals refer to Kauai, the oldest Hawaiian Island, as ‘Mama Kauai,’ a place that nourishes the soul. It is said that when this magical place embraces you, veils will be lifted from your eyes. I witnessed this phenomenon during Energy Muse’s first, consciously-curated crystal retreat.

Kauai was not only the setting for this retreat, in many ways, it was also a host, guiding us toward heightened intuition, clarity and spiritual restoration. How my Energy Muse co-founder, Timmi Jandro, and I thought we could compete with Kauai’s hosting skills, I don’t know. As much effort as we put into finding the perfect yoga instructor, the perfect meditation healers, the perfect eco-retreat center and even the perfect lei maker, Kauai still managed to outshine us in its ability to strip down pretenses and breathe new life into intentions —- not that we’re complaining.

Each day of this five-day crystal retreat highlighted a different theme, such as synchronicity or letting go. The goal was to do more than usher in breakthroughs on the island, but to set all the attendees up with the tools and knowledge they would need to deal with issues in the future. While they may not have access to the underground healers, educators or local kahuna (the Hawaiian word for shaman) they experienced on this trip, they can always tune back into that energy with the healing techniques they learned there.

We began our days with a daily yoga class, which instructor Samantha Fox Olson customized to highlight the theme of the day. The poses and reflective meditation she offered helped us to harness the energy of healing transformation.

Then we shifted to crystal healing. After all, this was a crystal retreat! The location for these classes varied from private grounds overlooking a waterfall, to an ancient healing circle, which had crystal and copper grids embedded in the earth. That said, in case anyone had any misconceptions about crystal healing being as easy as laying down and placing crystals over your body, these three-hour crystal intensive workshops were sure to set them straight. We always say, if you want crystals to work for you, you have to work with them. This can be an uncomfortable process, as dealing with deep-seated issues usually is. But each of these therapeutic sessions overwhelmed even us, as instructors, to watch the crystals assist these people in allowing the pain they’ve harbored, to bubble to the surface so that it could finally be released. Were there a lot of tears? Yes, but by the end, they were tears of joy.

The evenings were filled with laughter. A local food alchemist and chef created organic culinary dinners every evening. Each meal was prepared with love: handpicked vegetables, locally caught fish and decadent desserts were crafted to reflect vibrancy and wellbeing. And speaking of crafting, it is my firm belief that you can’t have a retreat meant to uplift the soul without including a little craft time. Our lei maker and instructor was Elvrine Chow of Heavenly Haku who has been transforming the nature of Kauai into joyful creations for over 20 years. Each flower, herb and foliage crown that she taught us to energetically entwine, held the power and peace of the island within its braided band.

One of the most curative moments we experienced was in the medicinal garden known as the Kauai Farmacy. It is four acres of herbal gardens with no pesticides, no chemicals and where harvesting is meticulously done by hand. The Kauai Farmacy produces premium herbal health and wellness products that are subject to the seasons. We all had a private tour of the farm and then indulged in a fresh farm-to-table lunch: a vegetarian lunch made with all fresh vegetables, nuts and edible flowers that came directly from the land. Everything was served on native tea leaves or in Mother Nature’s bowls: green peppers. It was 100% eco-friendly since everything was edible and eaten with our fingers outside, under the fruit trees.

Our evenings closed with Hawaiian storytelling, prayers and hula. It was hard closing each day, knowing that it meant the next day, there would be one fewer days of magic. It was even harder to say goodbye to the island, but the restorative energy that you capture from Kauai’s hallowed grounds isn’t one that will ever leave your soul. Kauai taught us to open our hearts and recalibrate our emotional cores. We left being able to see things from a different perspective, and with a greater respect for the presence of Mother Nature in our lives. If there is one thing we will remind ourselves each time we reminisce about this crystal retreat, it is that we can spread the spirit of aloha with each breath of our life.

Explore more of Hawaii’s magic with our wellness guide to the Big Island.