Offgrid Mindful Cabins

Offgrid began in Bali. In 2018 Björn Welter, who had spent more than a decade in Berlin's start-up world, travelled to the island for the first time. He came back with meditation, mindfulness and yoga as the foundation of his daily routine, and with a question: how could a little of that calm be made available to busy people in Europe?

His answer is a collection of small cabins in the countryside around Berlin, to the east, north and south. They carry personal names: Punnu, Günter, Johanna, Max, Clive, Renate, Carl, Quinton, Lisa and Klaudia. Welter is both founder and architect, and he designed each detail toward one aim, a place built for sleeping well, cooking, reading and doing nothing at all. Every cabin has a queen-size bed, a fireplace and a kitchen with a two-burner gas stove. Several have large panoramic windows.

The practical side follows the same logic. The cabins run on solar power, collect rainwater and use an ecological dry toilet, so guests are asked to bring eco-friendly toiletries. Inside, each one is stocked with a yoga mat, a meditation cushion, favourite books, board games and reflection cards for a daily mindfulness practice.

The cabins are conceived primarily for two adults, and the minimum stay is two nights, long enough to settle. Four of them (Max, Renate, Carl and Lisa) welcome dogs. Locations are graded by seclusion in three Offgrid Levels, from Nature Nearby, where other people are occasionally in view, to Complete Isolation, where the land is the only company. Stays are framed as a Solo Reset, a Work Reset for founders and the very busy, or a Couples Retreat.