ELYSIUM RETREAT
An Art of Being & Dreamymoons Collaboration
11 - 14 January, 2026
Byron Bay, NSW, Australia
Art • Ritual • Movement • Meditation • Ceremony
Elysium (Ancient Greek): a fantastical place beyond the pale where we can find meaning, healing and soulful solace.
Throughout the ages, creative inquiry and expression has played a crucial role in helping us reconnect to the realms of deep dreaming and soulful imagination where vision and meaning is conceived.
Art opens us up to the dimensions of beauty and truth, reminding us of the life-giving power of creativity.
Join yoga teacher and creative therapist Lara Zilibowitz & mystical artist and author Annie Tarasova on a residential retreat of reconnecting body, mind, heart and soul through authentic art and expression.
SIGN UP
A magical opportunity awaits…. Deposit AU$500 today.*
Byron Bay, 11-14 January
Immerse in four transformational days of ritual and creative ceremony
As you enter this retreat cocoon, you’re invited to start the year by tuning inward.
Letting symbols speak to you from within, to reveal what is true.
A safe space to bare your heart and to welcome the dreams you wish to see unfurl.
The deeper we connect to our inner truth, our feelings, intuition, imagination, and creative genius - the more authentically we can express ourselves in the world. Our art, movement, words, and actions become medicine - not just for ourselves, but for everyone we touch.
This retreat is a journey from release to renewal. From stillness to expansion. From reflection to creation. From listening deeply to speaking boldly through art and expression.
This is your invitation to realise that Elysium Is Right Here ~ buried within every breath, texture, flavour, scent and colour … when we slow down enough to really notice, helping us find our way back to the magic and mystery of our very Being.
We’re so excited to share this mythic adventure inwards alongside you.
With love,
Lara & Annie
plant seeds for the cycle ahead
Place a AU$500 deposit* today
January is a threshold time - a liminal space between what was and what’s to come.
It’s the perfect time to pause, listen, and begin again.
Over four days, art and ceremony will become one.
Paint will meet prayer.
Movement will meet meaning.
This is a retreat for those who long to live and create with authenticity, to awaken their creative genius, and to gift their unique medicine to the world.
You’ll leave with…
A clear, heart-led vision for your year ahead
Clarity about what truly matters to you and a roadmap rooted in intuition for how you want your year to feel, look, and unfold.A deeper connection to yourself & your creativity
A renewed trust in your inner voice and a creative spark that feels alive and ready to flow.Tangible artworks to inspire and guide you
Your own visual reminder of your intentions, serving as an anchor you can return to again and again.New friendships and a sense of belonging
The kind of connections that form when people meet in truth and vulnerability.A renewed sense of possibility, purpose, and power
The remembrance that you are a powerful creator of your own life, with the inspiration, courage, and energy to bring your visions into reality.
Included ceremonies
Somatic yoga (no prior experience needed)
Visualisation and meditation
Inspired journaling exercises
Creative art processes
Clay play
Dance journeys
Music medicine
Fire ceremony
3 nourishing meals per day
Other rituals for renewal and release to be revealed…
Sample Daily Flow
7:30am - Tea & fruit
8:30am - Embodiment practice
11am - Brunch
12:30pm - Visualisation and journal process
3pm - Afternoon tea & break
4:30pm - Art therapy integration
7pm - Dinner
8pm - Fire ceremony
OUR Sumptuous RETREAT PALACE
Our home away from home is an incredible fairytale castle, a luscious tropical oasis just outside Byron.
Your wonderfully nourishing haven for the weekend features three incredible villas, three infinity pools, wild nature, multiple huge fire places, a meditation tipi and a beautiful, bespoke yoga shala.
Where the sun’s first rays touch Australia is Byron Bay, famous for its iconic beaches and alternative lifestyle, and a hinterland made lush by volcanic soil twenty million years old. Here deep rainforests, stunning waterfalls, hamlets and farmlands share the hills, valleys and sparkling views of the Pacific.
Nestled in the hills twelve minutes outside Byron, our venue invokes this overflowing beauty into five acres of paradise. A sanctuary that imparts serenity with its sublime landscaping, rolling lawns, gazebo over the lake, terraces and nooks, swings in the rainforest and wild ducks on the lake.
The most exquisite soul escape from the city!
All-inclusive price of the retreat:
Triple share villa suite (p/p) - $2,350 + GST
Twin share villa suite (p/p) - $2,650 + GST
Solo villa suite - $3,450+ GST
The stage has been set, now time to show up for yourself in deep and true ways…
SECURE YOUR place!
Join our intimate immersion with a AU$500 retreat deposit* today.
Want to know more? Email us your questions…
*By booking, you agree to the terms & conditions, available here. Non-refundable deposit of AU$500 required to confirm each place. Remainder balance due December 1 2025.
About Your Guides
Annie Tarasova
Annie is an independent artist on a mission to inspire you to look within, as she believes all answers to your questions are found in your inner world. She founded DreamyMoons in 2016, initially created to inspire her to make more art when she felt like she lost touch with her creative side. What was created simply for inspiration, turned into the most fulfilling full time job she could ever ask for.
Through making art again, she connected with her inner child and fulfilled her childhood dreams of creating her own books. Her guided journals and oracle decks are now used all over the world, and as of three years ago she has been exploring painting, inspired by visions and dreams.
Lara Zilibowitz
Lara is an internationally touring yoga and meditation teacher, a qualified transpersonal art therapist and somatic guide, devoted to the intrinsic wisdom and healing creativity of the body and soul.
After two decades of passionate self-study, formal training and facilitation across yoga and the healing arts, Lara has become a master in the field of holding space for others, welcoming them just as they are.
Through her signature evocative language, expressive movement, nourishing breathwork and compassionate inquiry, every practice with Lara is a celebration of existence, a healing journey of exquisite self-remembrance and acceptance.
retreat Attendee Testimonials
“One of the most inspiring and deep experiences of my life.
An incredible journey that touched the deepest yearnings of your heart and soul.”
“I went on a deep shamanic journey, where I navigated between the intrapersonal (knowing myself) and interpersonal (knowing others), I drifted from light to shadow to witness the beauty and magic of my life exactly as it is.
“This weekend was an absolute gift and a prayer answered, a strong reminder of taking the time to listen deeply… to re-inspire ourselves, to heal ourselves, and in doing so, to heal the world. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
~ Vicky, Yoga Teacher and Psychotherapist
“I felt like a newborn discovering life for the first time.
A life-changing, awakening experience that I will be forever grateful for.”
“Lara and Benny are alchemists of life and love, interweaving the two to make the most beautiful tapestry.
“Throughout the retreat - moving my body to dancing, painting to singing my heart out, while meeting some of the most exquisite souls of my life - I experienced a new level of freedom, joy and connection unlike any before.
“Lara’s most gracious, rich, profound, loving guidance mixed with Benny’s out of this world music gave me the space to truly come home to myself. I discovered the deepest love in my heart for myself, everyone and everything around me.”
~ Alex Inch, Theatre Nurse and Yoga Teacher
“Two retreats deep, overwhelmed by magic and beauty, I’ve already planned the next one!”
“I’m forever grateful for what I have had the privilege to experience on their retreats.”
“Lara and Benny hold space with so much tenderness and grace. Thank you for being the pinnacle of authenticity: I feel incredibly inspired to follow suit, to keep opening my heart, to continue being unashamedly me.”
~ Sophia Alize, Yoga Teacher and Dancer
“My whole entire body had been revitalised.”
“Lara holds such a beautiful immersive space, where I felt completely supported and nurtured.
“I belly laughed. I sobbed. My body moved in ways I didn’t think possible. Sound emanated from my mouth like never allowed before. Words and poetry were articulated and flowed to enlighten the mind. It felt like a soothing balm.”
~ Kylie Paget, Reiki Practitioner
JOIN US IN BYRON
Ensure your place with Lara and Annie with a AU$500 deposit*.