Highlands Centre for Healing

In New South Wales’ Southern Highlands, Highlands Centre for Healing organizes wellness sessions and retreats on a 106-acre property bordering a state forest. Founded by Soo Woods, the project offers a rural setting with horses, walking areas, and places to stay. Its approach combines somatic activities, complementary practices, and time in nature; it is presented as wellness support, not as a diagnosis or a substitute for medical care.

Ground-based work with horses is central to the program. Somatic horse-assisted sessions are client-led and move at the participant’s pace; the website says riding is not required. The interaction is framed as an opportunity to notice sensations, boundaries, and responses in the animals’ presence. The center also offers Reiki With The Herd, a 90-minute session held alongside the herd and within the surrounding natural environment.

Retreats can last one day or several and are available as preplanned programs or experiences arranged around a group’s interests. The schedule may include nature-based practices and activities such as yoga, meditation, breathwork, sound baths, and EFT tapping, alongside individual or group sessions. The format is not a fixed itinerary for everyone: the website describes options shaped by the length of stay, preferences, and the kind of experience guests are seeking.

The center also advertises group gatherings and corporate retreats, along with grief circles, somatic-connection practices, and guided social events. Activities can include horses or take place without them, depending on the program. That range allows a visit to be a single session, a group day, or a longer stay with time for body-based activities, rest, and outdoor experiences.

On-site lodging makes it possible to extend the visit. The Stables has three rooms, a living room with a kitchenette, a wood-burning stove, garden access, a queen bedroom, and a bathroom; horses can be seen and heard from the rooms. Gang Gang Hideaway, built in 2024 and named for the gang-gang cockatoo that breeds in the nearby forest, offers another option for guests seeking quiet and a closer connection to the landscape.

The property is at Eureka Pines, 674 Nowra Road, Moss Vale, New South Wales 2577. Visits are by appointment only; published hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center asks visitors to review the options and arrange their visit in advance, especially for a retreat, accommodation, or group experience, since each activity requires planning.

Highlands Centre for Healing brings horse-assisted sessions, Reiki, wellness activities, and rural accommodation together in one place. The formats differ in length and purpose: an individual session offers a shorter experience, while retreats combine several activities with a stay on the property. For travelers coming from Sydney, Canberra, or elsewhere in New South Wales, the center presents itself as a nature-based destination with programs arranged in advance.