The boutique eco-friendly village resort Desa Potato Head Bali has introduced a series of gentle wellness activations.

The site’s philosophy is known as Merasa, which means “to feel” in Indonesian and is linked to the Ayurvedic practices that anchor the brand’s holistic approach. 

The new rituals are designed to provide realignment, in keeping with Ayurvedic traditions and in contrast to wellness programming that sees wellness as an escape from daily life.

A new Ayurvedic protocol has been created in consultation with a leading educator in Ayurvedic medicine and the medical director of Arogya Nepal, Dr Binod Ghimire. 

Guests will receive a one-to-one consultation, followed by lifestyle guidance, natural remedies, mindfulness practices and a dosha discovery test. 

The Desa’s apothecary called the (Farm)acy will create teas, oils and tinctures for long-term wellbeing using Indonesian herbs and plants, such as togu kola, pandan and moringa.

The (Farm)acy will also host a new Healing Garden Workshop to teach guests about herbal remedies as they create their own traditional face and body masks and experience a herbal facial steam.

The Desa’s plant-based restaurant, Tanaman, will serve a menu that follows the lifecycle of a plant – from seed to sprout, flower and fruit; followed by fermented plants. Courses will feature kenari nuts, local sesame, baby chayote, cilembu poteto, temu kunci and a dish of sacred flowers. 

The restaurant works with regenerative farms and small-scale producers.

A new series of Purnama (full moon) gatherings will feature live sound meditations and ceremonial moments led by different Bali-based musicians and wellness practitioners each month.

Potato Head and Desa Potato Head Bali

Potato Head is a hospitality brand that was founded in Indonesia in 2010 to provide experiences that encompass a combination of creativity, culture and care for the planet.

Desa Potato Head Bali is the brand’s first creative village. The 220-suite site was designed by OMA and Andra Matin. 

It has a series of mixed-use social spaces, including bars, restaurants, sculpture gardens, outdoor amphitheatres, wellbeing facilities, a beach club and an underground nightclub.

Desa Potato Head is looking to expand the business and is being advised by Neil Jacobs, the former CEO of Six Senses. Jacobs launched his own consultancy Wild Origins last year.