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What Is A Homestead Retreat?
A clear explanation of what a homestead retreat is, why it feels different from a hotel or formal retreat centre, and who it suits best.
The phrase homestead retreat usually describes a retreat or restorative stay that happens in a place with the feel of a lived-in home, land, gardens, food, and slower daily rhythms rather than in a formal retreat centre.
That difference matters because the atmosphere changes the experience.
How a homestead retreat feels different
A homestead retreat is often:
- more personal
- less corporate
- closer to nature
- more rooted in hospitality and everyday care
- less focused on performance or polished wellness language
For some guests, that feels immediately more grounding and real.
Why people search for this kind of stay
Often they are not looking for a luxury resort or a packed programme. They want rest, land, calm rooms, nourishing meals, and a place that feels human.
That is part of what makes a homestead-style stay appealing for solo retreats, women's retreats, and slower countryside breaks.
If that sounds like what you are looking for, start with our retreats in Norfolk page.
Is a homestead retreat the same as a holiday?
Sometimes yes, sometimes no. A homestead retreat can be a quiet holiday with restorative benefits, or it can be a more intentional retreat-style stay. The difference usually comes down to how much structure, reflection, or themed time you want.
For broader slow-travel planning, our Norfolk holidays page compares those options.
Who it suits best
A homestead retreat is often a strong fit for people who want:
- a quieter and more intimate environment
- real rest rather than entertainment
- countryside and nature
- a more personal atmosphere than a hotel
If you want the accommodation side first, see our guest house stays page.
Hawa is a Sufi healing practitioner, spiritual guide and mother whose work is rooted in lived experience, devotion and deep personal transformation. Drawing from Sufi Spiritual Healing, breath and bodywork, sacred sound and Holy Hijama Therapy, she offers compassionate spaces for healing, remembrance and reconnection to the Divine. Based at Home House Homestead in the Norfolk countryside, her path is one of surrender, simplicity and the unfolding journey of the heart.
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Hawa’s path has been one of deep longing — a search for love, truth and a more meaningful connection to life.
Originally studying music at the University of East Anglia, she was first introduced to yoga in her early twenties, where she discovered a quieter and more connected way of being through breath, movement and inner awareness.
Motherhood became one of the greatest loves of her life. Becoming a mother at 23, and later raising twin boys, her early adult years were devoted to family life. Yet beneath the surface remained an unshakable longing for something deeper.
Her journey led through periods of grief, addiction, disconnection and profound inner searching, whilst yoga remained a constant thread throughout her life. Following the death of her stepfather, unresolved pain and deeper questions began to surface, marking the beginning of a sincere healing journey.
Over the years, she immersed herself in many healing modalities including yoga, meditation, bodywork, ceremony, sacred sound and transformational practices — not initially as a profession, but as a path towards healing her own heart and life.
A major turning point came after the breakdown of her 17-year marriage. During this period of surrender and personal transformation, she was guided back to her voice, to song, and to a deeper relationship with herself and the Divine. It was also during this time that the spirit of the Hummingbird came to her as a symbol of unconditional love, resilience and the ability to find sweetness amidst suffering.
In 2020, she stepped away from her growing healing and coaching business, left city life behind and moved to Home House in the remote Norfolk countryside. There, immersed in simplicity, nature and spiritual devotion, a new way of living began to unfold.
Her path eventually led her to Islam and the mystical tradition of Sufism — the path of the heart — where her lifelong longing found a home. She was given the name Hawa, meaning Eve, the first woman and mother of humanity.
Today, Hawa walks the Sufi path devotedly whilst studying Sufi Spiritual Healing through the Sufi University, continuing her training towards a Master of Divinity. Her work is grounded not only in study, but in lived experience, surrender and ongoing spiritual practice.
Through Sufi healing, breath and bodywork, sacred sound, Holy Hijama Therapy and the spaces she holds at Home House Homestead, she offers others a compassionate space to heal, soften, reconnect and return to themselves and to the Divine.
Her work is rooted in the belief that when we empty ourselves of what no longer serves, Divine Radiance can begin to shine through.