Sowa Rigpa · Six Senses Vana · Rishikesh
Tibetan Medicine (Sowa Rigpa)
Sowa Rigpa, the Tibetan system of medicine, sold as a five-, seven- or 14-night programme in the Himalayan foothills at Dehradun.
Your retreat, at a glance
The programme
Six Senses Vana is a retreat in Dehradun, in the Himalayan foothills, selling a Tibetan Medicine programme of five, seven or 14 nights. The property says Sowa Rigpa is delivered there by Tibetan doctors and therapists from the north of India, and describes Vana as one of the few places in the world where the system is formally offered in its 'complete avatar'.
Read the full description
The property describes Sowa Rigpa as rooted in Ayurveda, Chinese medicine and Buddhism. At 14 nights it lists a Tibetan consultation and wellness screening, 14 Tibetan treatments, 12 GOM Tibetan meditation sessions and six natural healing or Tibetan therapies.
The property says every stay includes full board with guided nutrition, daily activities, a wellness consultation and screening, transfers, attire and one private treatment or session a night. Its doctors plan an itinerary after the arrival consultation. Elevation Menu treatments cost extra.
Season, arrival & included essentials
- Tibetan consultation and wellness screening
- Tibetan treatments — 5, 7 or 14, by length
- GOM Tibetan meditation — 4, 6 or 12 sessions, by length
- Natural healing or Tibetan therapies — 2, 2 or 6, by length
Is this your kind of stay?
Who it suits — and who it doesn’t
Travel-planning guidance. Medical suitability is for your own doctor and the qualified team at the property.
Consider this if
- Stress or anxiety — the property lists settling anxiety and soothing stress among the programme’s benefits
- Poor sleepers — the property says the programme positively affects sleep quality
- Meditators — 4, 6 or 12 GOM sessions by length, and the page says 'our retreat encourages mindfulness'
- Solo travellers — the property says many of its guests travel to the retreat alone
Consider another option if
- Anyone who needs a phone around the retreat — the property allows devices only in guest rooms or the Sketchbook meeting space
- Anyone who wants to take photographs around the retreat — the property allows photography only within guest rooms
- Guests who require personal security, pre-arrival inspections or other security protocols — the property says it cannot welcome them
- Under-16s — the property opens its full range of wellness offerings from age 16, saying some are not appropriate for younger children
Price & inclusions
What it costs, and what is in it
14 nights, sharing a room
The price includes: Accommodation, full board, a Tibetan consultation and screening, 14 Tibetan treatments, 12 GOM meditation sessions, six natural healing or Tibetan therapies, one private session a night, activities, transfers and attire.
Counted, so you can compare
- 14Tibetan treatments
At 14 nights; 5 at five nights and 7 at seven.
- 12GOM meditation sessions
GOM Tibetan meditation sessions at 14 nights; 4 at five nights and 6 at seven.
- 6healing or Tibetan therapies
Natural healing or Tibetan therapies at 14 nights; 2 at five or seven nights.
Included
- Tibetan consultation and wellness screening
- Tibetan treatments — 5, 7 or 14, by length
- GOM Tibetan meditation — 4, 6 or 12 sessions, by length
- Natural healing or Tibetan therapies — 2, 2 or 6, by length
- Full board with guided nutrition: breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner
- One private session a night
- Group programme of yoga, meditation, cuisine lessons, functional fitness, talks and music
- Departure wellness consultation, for stays of five nights or longer
- Daily use of what the property calls smart Biohacks, including compression therapy
- Attire for within and outside the retreat, with footwear and summer and winter accessories
- Return transfers to and from Dehradun airport
Not included
- Elevation Menu treatments, such as the 60-minute Abhyanga
- Laundry and pressing
- 18% GST
Cancellation. Every property sets its own terms, and they change. Your written quote includes the current property and travel-supplier conditions before you confirm anything.
A day, hour by hour
The day, as the property publishes it
The fact sheet says group activities run from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm, to join as you like; the sample day is not specific to this programme.
- Hike to BarlowganjSign-up, book 24 hours ahead. 'Example Day 5' of the property’s general retreat schedule, open to all guests and not specific to this programme.
- Pratah Yoga — posture, breathing, awareness
- Power Walk
- Gom Meditation
- Mindful TeaSign-up activity.
- Madhyan YogaLight movement of joints and body.
- Prajna — Yoga Nidra
- Walking Meditation
- Raag Therapy 'Peace'
- Sandhya Yoga — breathing, relaxation
- Sowa Rigpa: Ancient Science of Tibetan HealingA talk.
Where you stay
Six Senses Vana
Opened as Vana in January 2014 and part of Six Senses since 2023, it is a full-board retreat whose core offering, in its own words, is based on Ayurveda, yoga, Tibetan medicine and natural healing therapies.
Worth knowing: It is in Dehradun, about 90 minutes by road from Rishikesh. It is not adults-only: guests aged six and over are welcome, with a children’s club. Some excursions, such as the Rishikesh Aarti, can cost extra. Devices are allowed only in your room or the Sketchbook meeting space.
The full profileWho looks after you
Supervision, by qualification and number
Teams are described by role and qualification rather than by name, because staffing changes. The property confirms the current team and how practitioners are assigned before or on arrival.
- Clinical supervision
- The property says Sowa Rigpa is delivered by Tibetan doctors and therapists from the north of India, trained at the Men-Tsee-Khang in Dharamsala; its homepage also lists a specialist trained at Chagpori, Darjeeling.
- The team around you
- Tibetan doctors and therapists. The property’s natural healing therapies include Traditional Chinese Medicine, reflexology, physiotherapy, acupuncture and Raag therapy.
- Consultations
- A Tibetan consultation and wellness screening at every length, and a departure consultation from five nights.
Questions
Before you ask
Can I use my phone at the retreat?
Is food restricted?
Do I need a consultation before I arrive?
What is the minimum stay?
What should I bring?
What is the cancellation policy?
Make a trip of it
Before, during and after your 14 nights
The excursions and extra stays we arrange in Rishikesh, placed by when to take each — a good day out on the wrong day of a treatment course is not a good day out.
Explore flights, excursions & extra stays
Before you begin
Arrive early — see the country while you are fresh
Extra stay · 2 nights
Delhi, at the start
Old Delhi, the Lodi tombs and a night’s sleep before the domestic hop. Fights jetlag and the Dehradun weather risk at once.
Culture · Half day
Haridwar and Har Ki Pauri
An hour downstream and several centuries older in feel — a pilgrimage town with none of Rishikesh’s yoga-school economy.
During the stay
Light enough for a rest day or a free afternoon
Tibetan Medicine (Sowa Rigpa) · 14 nights at Six Senses VanaCulture · Half day
The Beatles Ashram
Chaurasi Kutia, where the White Album was largely written in 1968 — now a ruin inside Rajaji reserve with a small entrance fee and a great deal of graffiti art. Melancholy and worth it.
Active · Half day, early
Kunjapuri at sunrise
A short steep temple climb for the Himalayan range at first light — Bandarpunch, Gangotri, Chaukhamba. Leave at 04:30. Not compatible with a 05:30 practice start, so take it on a rest day.
Culture · 90 minutes, at dusk
Ganga Aarti at Parmarth Niketan
The riverbank fire ceremony, every evening, free and unticketed. Go on your first night rather than your last — it sets the register for everything after it.
After you finish
The reward, once the treatment is done
Extra stay · 4 nights
Corbett & the Kumaon hills
India’s oldest national park and then the quiet ridge villages above it. The correct decompression after a month of teacher training.
Extra stay · 2 nights
Amritsar & the Golden Temple
An overnight train or a short flight west. The langar kitchen feeds 50,000 people a day and it is the most moving hour in north India.
Active · Half day
White water on the Ganga
September to November and March to May, when the river is running. Excellent, cold, and firmly incompatible with any oil-therapy week — book it either side.
Begin with a conversation
Plan your 14 nights at Six Senses Vana
Tell us your dates and who is travelling. A specialist comes back with a written quote for the stay, the treatments, the flights and the transfers.
- 1
Share your plan
Two minutes: when you would like to start, how long, your nationality and your WhatsApp number.
- 2
Talk it through
A wellness travel specialist picks it up on WhatsApp or a free call — length, room, season, and whether this is the right house for you.
- 3
Your written quote
Room, dates, treatments, flights and transfers in one quote, with the current cancellation terms.
- 4
Confirm when ready
Nothing is paid until you confirm in writing. One team then looks after the whole journey.