Mission statement

“We’ve built a wilderness resort in rustic, northern Portugal...let's call it a wellness wonderland for our guests. We wish to inspire new ways of wellbeing, to boost consciousness and stimulate creativity in order to meet the challenges of this millenium.”

Holly Niemela & Edouard Payen

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At Tinhela610 come live a unique experience with nature, self and others. We are a one of a kind wellbeing destination;  not a hotel, nor a guest house but an off-the-grid wellness oasis.  Come to shake yourself up; behold the nature, surrounded by the mysteries of this enchanted land. This alone is enough to inspire those changes in your life that you've been thinking about but doing nothing.  During your stay, whether it’s the Hermitage Experience or Private Experience in 2022 or the Curated Experience starting in 2023, you will undergo the unusual alchemy of Tinhela610 that transforms everyday hum-drum moments into rituals--be it breathing, bathing, eating, exercising or sleeping.  Thus, you awaken.

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Tinhela610 is located in the wild and romantic Tras-os-Montés region of northern Portugal, near Trésminas, the ancient gold mines of the Roman era.  This rural  landscape has remained untouched for years--except for the paths made by generations of shepherds and their flocks. Here you will experience an exclusive natural environment free from urban pollution--be it light, noise, air or water. We discourage excessive consumption—both of our own and the earth's resources—to learn to live more with less.  

Tinhela610 sits proudly on the rocky ledges above the banks of the Tinhela river, measured at 610* meters altitude--a Fibonacci number we felt so important we integrated it into our name.

Today, Tinhela610 is reborn with two renovated stone mill buildings, six new wood cabins that hover above the old stone walls, a Japanese inspired bathhouse, a Finnish wood-burning sauna, an intimate dining hall, all with breathtaking views. Our on-site boutique will be filled with carefully selected products to enhance your physical, emotional and mental wellbeing.  Tinhela610 also offers an outdoor yoga platform, elevated outdoor meditation alcoves, winding footpaths and natural swimming basins in the riverbed.

Base Camp

Base Camp is the foundation of all wellness experiences at TInhela610--be it the Hermitage or Private Experience in 2022 or the Curated Experiences from 2023.  In our secluded woodland, you will live an off-the-grid lifestyle to reconnect, regenerate and restore your overall wellbeing. Our electricity comes from on-site solar panels and our own source  for water is heated by voltaic panels. The cabins are heated via ecological hot water radiators. We have a delicate phyto sanitation treatment system along with toilets that do not require water nor sewage pipes and do not harm the environment.   We compost useable waste and try not to purchase plastic items.  We are tech-free, which helps to de-connect the mind and soothe the soul!

The four cornerstones of Base Camp life are sleep, bathe, nourish and move.  This combination builds and stabilizes our personal foundation for accurate self awareness along with experiencing daily moments for deep relaxation.  

Sleep and relaxation are fundamental to our overall health.  Learn to fall asleep peacefully and awaken rested in our simply luxurious and sweet smelling wood cabins.  The cabins are conceived to promote the best quality sleep possible. Each cabin houses two guests, with tailor-made single beds that are equipped with all natural mattresses from CocoMat, fine Portuguese  linens and black-out curtains.  

Bathe in our Japanese inspired bathhouse with fresh water from our local source. Detox in our traditional Finnish sauna then jump into the cool, clean Tinhela river.  We see water as a teacher and by being more attentive to our relationship with water we raise our level of awareness. We have selected ecological soaps, shampoos and toothpaste in line with our commitment to safeguard the environment and protect our organic water treatment system. We encourage you to only use these products while at Tinhela610.

Nourish yourself with three healthy, simple meals  that, depending on your stay, are either vegetarian or flexitarian. You’ll find the type of menu in the description of each Experience. Also note that we practice intermittent fasting (14 hours) on some of our stays. We feel intermittent fasting helps to keep our bodies in form while also helping us to become more mindful eaters. We will organize full fastings, two times per year during the equinoxes (spring/autumn) under the guidance of a naturopathe. Our aim is to have the highest quality food that is locally sourced and when possible organic--including cheese, olive oil, honey and wine from the Tras-os-Montés and Douro regions.  Breakfast and dinner are shared, convivial moments around the generous dining table. Lunch is boxed and ready to be taken to enjoy outdoors on one of the numerous hidden sweet spots along the river or up in the rocky ledges.

Move. Walk the paths and the ancient back roads, swim in the river, smell the wild lavender,  connect to the earth and the sky. Understand and unlock the automatic habits that bind you to your over active mind and turn on soft fascination.  Exercise is our last cornerstone.  Depending on your stay, there are many ways to move.  Our outdoor platform is perfect for yoga, internal martial arts, gym exercises or stretching.  At Tinhela610 you can hike and even try some wilderness running.  Eventually, we plan to hook up with mountain biking as there are many gravel paths throughout this region.  We are very close to the Vila Pouca de Agiar access to the Camino de Santiago.  You can easily plan to walk the Camino before or after a stay with us. 

Check back soon for our official opening date.
 

HERMITAGE
EXPERIENCES

Hermitage Experiences (HE) 

On-site Booking will be available once we have our official opening date. 

3 nights minimum stay.

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For our first year, we've decided to open the doors ofTinhela610 with our offer, Hermitage Experiences (HE).

Hermitage Experiences are for those times in your life when you want to take a step back, relax and unwind in nature. This soft opening in 2022 grants us the best opportunity to receive our guests with personal attention and care as we chart a sustainable course for our eco-resort. 

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Upon arrival at Tinhela610, slip into a new way of being--we'll help you to unwind and relax. Let go of the urban lifestyle and listen to the sounds outside to better tune into yourself. Tinhela610 is a Place to Breath. The air is clean and fresh--take time to lounge on a big rock by the river, taking long, slow deep breaths.  Empty your mind.  Be in the moment.

At our wellness wonderland time is kept by simple rituals--fetch your water from the fountain to bring to your cabin and wash up in the morning, hike the paths, practice your yoga on the outdoor platform, nourish yourself with fresh and organic food made with love and attention. 

Sit in nature for some shinrin-yoku “forest bathing”.Explore the paths, fields and forests around us. Borrow the binoculars and do some seriously cool bird watching.  Fish in the river for trout...Swim in the river and sweat it out in the sauna, meditate under the stars in the alcova escondida and then sleep soundly. Live the off-the-grid Tinhela610 Hermitage experience fully and completely.  

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Includes all Base Camp features plus half-board--delicious breakfast and dinner (including beverages/wine).

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PRIVATE EXPERIENCES

Private Experiences (PE).

TInhela610 is available for private rentals. Families, friends, groups or corporates who wish to live a unique experience of the best that Tinhela610 has to offer.

Tinhela610 accommodates up to 12 people sharing wood cabins for 2 with comfortable twin beds. We will curate the best possible experience for your group including: outings with local guides, yoga, chi gong or meditation classes, vegetarian or flexitarian cuisine, port & wine tastings.  For companies: team building events and off-site programs for the C-Suite are exclusive moments to boost your company's management perspective, creativity and leadership. 

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Includes all Base Camp features.

CURATED EXPERIENCES 2023

All Curated Experiences will begin in 2023. 

6 days/5 nights.  

Curated Experiences (CE). These experiences are developed around a  particular theme or teaching. These are organized retreats that take place during our mid or high season (April through October). Every CE starts on Sunday at 4PM and finishes on Friday at 11AM. There is one group formed for each Curated Experience. 

Each CE experiential session is guided by one or two teachers. Choose your retreat based upon the content proposed by the teachers; Yoga, Meditation, Ecstatic Dance, Chi-Gong, Tai-Chi, Philosophy,  Art/Painting, Singing, Creative Writing etc. We have announced 3 CE's for our opening season in 2023--exact dates will be announced in November 2022. Many more CE's will be announced with their teachers and content.

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ALL INCLUSIVE. Room & Full Board, Teaching, Taxes/Services in a 2 person shared Wood Cabin with large twin beds. 

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Includes all Base Camp features.

2023 CURATED EXPERIENCES
(examples)

We believe in order to build sustainable, ecological economies, our future world and a healthy planet, we must understand our own relationship with nature and ourselves. We use the term “inner-sustainability” to describe the process of knowing oneself and being consciously aware of how to best manage one’s present and future choices.  Hopefully, these choices will coincide naturally with decision-making that opts for a durable world with equitable economies.  

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The nature at Tinhela610 offers beauty and abundance, calm and serenity.  Using this as our base, our guests can plug into the flora and fauna, the stars and sky, the wildlife and birds--and become more grounded, adaptable, recharged and focused.  We both feel, as perfectly put by podcaster Rich Roll: in that

"we share a bristled resistance to the flavor of the month self-help (gurus), an allergy to the life-hack culture and relentless optimization...along with the reductive binary conclusions and statements of the pursuit of excellence...".  

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Our combined experience of over 50 years of work in the field of wellness and personal development has given birth to our ultimate project, Tinhela610. Thus, our greatest endeavor is to contribute to human, animal, plant and mineral flourishing on this majestic planet Earth.

Holly Niemela

Co-Owner Tinhela610.

Raised in New Hampshire USA, under the strong influence of sisu from her Finnish heritage, Holly had an immediate connection to Nature from early childhood.  Roaming the fields, forests and streams, befriending Nature’s secret guardians, Holly was keenly aware of the magic and splendor of the outdoor world.  These childhood nature experiences along with the Finnish family rituals engrained a deep sense of connection to her inner world with nature and the elements and pointed her in the direction of her life work in wellbeing. 

From her first studies in the mid 80’s of the mind-body connection in Santa Fe, New Mexico to her numerous trainings in northern India and Europe under the tutelage of Swamis, over the following twenty years, Holly became accustomed to the world of the invisible, the mysteries and the wonders of life.  Taught by yoga masters and led by her own inner compass, Holly,  as a yoga teacher was initiated as a Karma Sannyasin in the Dashnami Order of Saraswati, established by the philosopher yogi Shankara in the 8th century and still flourishing in India today. She has been taught by many teachers recognized as experts in the field of meditation and personal development.

Anchored in neuroscience and evidenced-based research, Holly’s conferences, programs and international retreats highlight how ancient practices can be adapted for our fast-paced, digital world to develop our inner connection to outwardly create, collaborate, and be compassionate human beings. Yoga, Meditation, Breathwork, Wellness Practices for Longevity, Mental and Physical Health, Emotional Intelligence.  Holly Niemela

Edouard Payen

Co-owner Tinhela610.

Born and raised in Lyon, France, Edouard’s love of the outdoors brought him to spend much time in the mountains--especially for ski touring in the winter and climbing in the summer.  He feels a striking connection to mountain tops and vistas to his meditation practice and internal connection.

Edouard obtained his MBA from New York University and worked for 25 years in investment banking in New York, London and Paris.  At the same time he began his training in martial arts, eventually obtaining a black belt in Karaté.  In 2009 Edouard left investment banking and converted his career path to become a management consultant in collective intelligence and mindfulness. He is trained in meditation practices from the MBSR program by Jon Kabat-Zinn and in Theory U by Otto Scharmer and the Presencing Institute in the USA. 

Edouard founded Arolla Partners in 2010 and co-founded  the Centre Bonheur National Brut in Paris, France in 2015. Edouard's programs instruct change leaders and companies to  develop new solutions for human flourishing, respect for each other and the planet. 

His years of practice in zazen, mindfulness, chi gong, judo, karaté and yoga have led him to develop a deep inner connection to himself, beyond what any verbal communication can relay.  One feels in his presence a gentle force nourished by his innate nature of kindness and empathy. Chi Gong Baton, Karaté, Mindfulness Meditation, Emotional Intelligence, Collective Intelligence.

"We must learn to re-awaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aid, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn."

-Henry David Thoreau.