Parīlio’s materials drawn from nature, sculptural design and understated interiors make a fitting backdrop for a retreat built around light. Just outside Naoussa on Paros, the hotel was chosen for the opening chapter of PHOS, a new series bringing Greek culture, contemporary wellbeing and the experience of place into one itinerary.
Empiria Group announced the series in September, with its inaugural three-day chapter scheduled for 2–4 October 2026. The programme combined mindful movement, breathwork and sound healing with embroidery, cultural conversation and shared meals. A guided Polaroid walk through Naoussa was among the optional outings, giving the island itself a place alongside the workshops.
PHOS offers an appealing proposition for travellers who want a wellness escape with room for curiosity. You could be drawn as much to making something by hand or discussing ancient Greek ideas as to a strength session.
Greek light, interpreted through wellbeing
PHOS takes its name from the Greek word for light and stands for Presence Heals Our Senses. Light, Presence and Connection are its three organising pillars, with light interpreted through ideas of awareness, stillness and emotional clarity.
Empiria Group developed the platform in partnership with Design Hotels, under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organisation. Travelgems curates each programme, drawing on the host destination’s culture and surroundings.
Kalia Konstantinidou, Empiria Group’s group executive officer and co-founder, explains the thinking behind it: “PHOS expresses something we at Empiria Group have always believed: that the places we choose, and the way we experience them, have the power to meaningfully change how we feel.”
Ancient Greek wisdom and Cycladic traditions provide the cultural foundation. In the opening programme, those ideas appeared through conversation, creative work and movement, giving participants several ways to engage with them across the three days.
Parīlio: a Cycladic setting with a design-led feel
Parīlio opened in 2019 and is a Member of Design Hotels. Its 46 suites and villas draw on Paros’s architectural language, combining contemporary interiors with forms and materials rooted in the island. The overall approach is understated, a natural match for a programme concerned with presence and sensory awareness.
The hotel’s name comes from parelion, a rare optical phenomenon associated with light. That connection gives PHOS a particularly apt starting point, linking the concept to the property as well as to its wider Cycladic setting.
Naoussa’s proximity also matters. The programme reached beyond the hotel through an optional walk in town and an encounter with the Paros Farming Community. For guests who enjoy beautiful design but also want a connection with the destination, those additions bring another dimension to a short stay.
Parīlio supplied the accommodation for the two-night experience, keeping the workshops, communal meals and hotel stay within a single package. Its relaxed atmosphere was part of Empiria’s reasoning for choosing it as the inaugural host.
Movement with intention
The opening-day schedule began with a welcome ceremony and intention-setting led by Niki Smirni, a mindfulness expert and the founder of Travelgems. Sound healer and energy practitioner Nikolaos Unalome was named to lead the next session, an immersive experience designed around relaxation, presence and sensory awareness. A community dinner completed the evening’s plan.
Saturday’s programme brought a more active rhythm, beginning with morning breathwork led by Sukkhadas, a certified instructor in the Wim Hof Method and a breathing specialist. The sessions were designed to encourage energy, awareness and balance, with breathwork appearing again on the final morning.
Wells was announced to lead Strength & Presence, a mat-based mindful strength session that includes intention-setting, mindfulness and gratitude practices. She developed the Redefine Fitness philosophy behind the session and is a fitness trainer, advocate for mental health, and motivational speaker.
Ancient ideas and something made by hand
The Art of Living Well brought a cultural discussion into the middle of the itinerary. Its subject was how ancient Greek wisdom can inform the ways people create, live and connect today, linking the retreat’s overarching ideas to a dedicated conversation.
The announced speakers were Dr. Evy Papadopoulou, curator of antiquities at the Museum of Cycladic Art; Dr. Polina Sapouna Ellis, an archaeologist and jewellery designer; and Wojciech Oglaza, director of business development and community engagement at Design Hotels. Their roles span antiquities, contemporary making and hospitality, giving the discussion several points of entry.
Eirini Xanthioti’s Cycladic-Inspired Embroidery Workshop offered a hands-on counterpart. The textile artist and founder of Studio Araneida in Chania was named to guide participants in creating their own embroidered pieces, bringing traditional craft into conversation with contemporary design.
An embroidered piece is a rather lovely souvenir, particularly when making it is part of the experience.
Themistoklis Pavlis, a movement director who is also an educator and professional dancer, was announced to lead Aegean Fluidity Movement. Inspired by the rhythms and movement of ancient Greek dances, the session brought another form of cultural expression into Saturday’s schedule.
Naoussa through a Polaroid lens
Cycladic Eyes, an optional guided Polaroid walk through Naoussa, invited participants to capture the island from their own perspective. It’s an appealing pairing with a light-led retreat: photography gives guests a creative task while taking them out into the destination.
The other optional experience centred on wine and cheese with the Paros Farming Community. Alongside the cultural panel and embroidery workshop, it added local flavours to the programme’s exploration of place.
Saturday’s plan concluded with movement and dancing, followed by a second community dinner built around storytelling, conversation and connection. Both dinners drew on the Greek tradition of gathering around a table, making shared meals a recurring part of the itinerary.
A final morning for reflection
Sunday’s published schedule listed a gratitude circle with Smirni, a breathwork session with Sukkhadas, breakfast and an integrative workshop to close. Its aim was to help participants look back on the experience and put its insights into daily practice.
Empiria also offered a longer route into the experience. A five-night package combined PHOS with the Soulful Love Retreat, scheduled for 29 September–2 October and focused on mindfulness, movement and setting intentions. The combined stay ran from 29 September to 4 October.
What the opening chapter cost
The inaugural PHOS experience was advertised from €1,400 per person sharing a room, or €2,500 per person for single occupancy. That included two nights at Parīlio, daily breakfast, all community dinners and access to the PHOS sessions and workshops.
Travelgems listed the same starting rates and specified that lunch and beverages were excluded. Its booking details also identified a €15-per-room-per-night climate-resilience tax payable to the hotel, a useful additional cost when assessing the package.
The five-night combination with Soulful Love was listed from €3,350 per person in double occupancy and €5,100 per person in single occupancy.
Empiria Group plans further PHOS chapters across other destinations in its portfolio, with each programme interpreted through the culture, landscape and rhythm of its host setting. For future chapters, start with PHOS.
