Nan Tien Wellness Day 2025 - Family Activities in Wollongong (Illawarra)

If you want FREE things to do in Wollongong for families, experience the Nan Tien Wellness Day: a holistic journey for mind, body, and spirit. Healthy Cities has joined us as an event supporter for the highly anticipated Nan Tien Wellness Day, an annual immersive event for adults and kids designed to rejuvenate your energy through music, movement, and meditation.

Celebrate Medicine Buddha Day with a full day dedicated to holistic health practices, workshops and mindfulness. Experience the benefits from a variety of spiritual activities and workshops that engage your senses, including:

• Tea Meditation, Sitting Meditation, and Healing Chants to center your mind.

• Mindful Floral Arrangement and NEW Mala Bead Making Workshop to create.

• Tai Chi to harmonise body and spirit, NEW Pickling with Gratitude Workshop to nourish the body.

Join us in the Medicine Buddha Dharma Service in the Mahayana tradition. Book early, limited places.

Make it a Wollongong day trip or a weekend stay! Our Pilgrim Lodge offers accommodation on-site. Click here for details.

THEME DRESS: Come dressed in blue or don a favourite blue accessory to add to the occasion. 

Full day of benefits of Nan Tien Wellness Day:

• Restore your inner health - calm mind, warm heart.

• Unique blend of Buddhist meditative and creative practices.

• Clear out what no longer serves you and mark a new start.

• Join a community of like-minded people.

Flexibility and freedom are important. You know your needs. You select your mix:

• Free sessions: Walk into Wellness, Tai Chi, Chanting + Healing, Medicine Buddha Day Blessing, Mala Bead Making Workshop.

• Ticketed sessions: Workshops (Pickling, and Mindful Floral), Tea Meditation, Sitting Meditation. 

  Complimentary gift - participate in 5 sessions to receive FREE Medicine Buddha crystal-like necklace.

• Lunch: Dining Hall (bookings required), Tea House (no bookings), Nan Tien Arts Cafe (no bookings).

Program details below

1. Walk into Wellness with the local team from Healthy Cities. Free

Explore the Nan Tien Hill for a 2.3 km path walk + short meditation. Meet outside the Tea House ground level (close to the main car park). Experience the panoramic views of the escarpment from this iconic hill. Learn more about Healthy Cities Australia here. Wear walking shoes, bring a hat, water bottle and sunscreen.

2. Tai Chi. Free

Harmonise the mind and body as Venerable leads adults and kids through a series of invigorating Tai Chi poses aimed at dispelling negative energy. Tai Chi serves as a powerful method to restore your body's natural harmony and foster a tranquil state of mind. When energy blockages are removed, you'll experience reduced stress, enhanced well-being, and emotional equilibrium. Bring a hat, water bottle, wear suncreen.

3. Medicine Buddha Blessing + Dharma talk. Free

Step into the Main Shrine at Nan Tien Temple and join the resident monastics for a special Medicine Buddha ceremony. The practice purifies and removes the underlying karmic causes of diseases and cultivates the causes for holistic wellbeing. Open to all people, this is a unique opportunity to experience a Buddhist practice in a sacred place. All are welcome. (modest dress code required in the Shrines).

4. Pickling with Gratitude Workshop with nutritionist Pietra Giuditta. $15 incl. 2 jars + extras.

Experience the healing power of food in this hands-on workshop led by qualified local nutritionist Pietra @pietralee_nutrition. Learn the art of pickling while discovering the healing properties of different foods used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to support digestion, immunity, and overall wellness. Suitable for beginners and food enthusiasts alike, this session provides a way to connect with food as medicine, nourish the body, and cultivate gratitude.

5. Sitting Meditation with Temple monastic. Cost $5 

Experience the transformative power of meditation in our 50 minute session led by a Buddhist monastic. Ideal for adults and kids. You will further learn the art of quieting the mind through expert guidance on posture, breath control and positive thought patterns. Experience increased discipline and readiness to practice meditation independently at home. Socks are required.

6. Chanting + Healing Workshop. Free

Come, sit, and raise your vibration through the healing power of chanting. In this uplifting workshop you will be guided by Venerable Ru Yi and Migon Mukti who will share the art of Buddhist chanting and other powerful mantras. For absolute beginners and those with some experience. No singing ability required! Chanting is an act of meditation and service. A very popular activity for adults and kids. Limited places. Book early.

7. Lunch: Nourish yourself and enjoy the benefits of delicious vegetarian meals.

Nan Tien Temple Dining Hall - bookings required: $20 adult; $12 children 5-12; under 4 free. No booking needed for the Tea House and Nan Tien Arts Cafe (Nan Tien Institute side).

8. Mala Bead Making Workshop. Free

Create your own mala chanting beads and learn how to start a daily meditation and mindfulness practice. First time offered at the Temple. Limited places. Book early.

9. Petals & Presence: Mindful Floral Workshop - professional florist Sue Wong. Cost $20pp inc. flowers + notes

Working like an artist, you create a harmonious floral arrangements using plants elements that represent the sky (Heaven), the earth (Earth), and the essence of life (Human), each piece becomes a thoughtful expression of the interconnectedness of nature and the human experience. Join us for a step-by-step journey into the world of sustainable and seasonal arrangements, using a mix of traditional flowers, vines, twigs, and eco-friendly materials. You will create a stunning balance arrangement to take home. Unlock the secrets of traditional symbolism associated with foliage and various arrangement styles, allowing you to express themes of grace, movement, heaven and earth, flexibility, and resilience in your seasonal creations. This is a creative and calming experience.

10. Tea Meditation. Cost $5

Learn this unique form of tea meditation, perfect for adults and kids, where each step in making, serving and drinking tea is a meditation practice to create unity and an elegant mood. Serving tea is an expression of Buddhism’s equal-minded offering and being aware of the effects on your mind and body. You can practice tea meditation during any time of the day - in the morning to start your day with presence, enjoy it in the middle of the day for increased focus and clarity, or end your day with the practice for a peaceful night’s sleep. 

Complimentary gift - participate in 5 sessions to receive a FREE Medicine Buddha crystal-like necklace.

Collect your Wellness Day Passport at Registration, attend any workshop and have it stamped each time. With 5 stamps you receive the FREE Medicine Buddha crystal-like necklace. Present the Passport at the registration table before you leave.

View the Nan Tien Temple map here.

Why we support the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals?

Thank you to the generous support from the Hsing Yun Education Foundation who has made this day possible. Nan Tien Temple and the Hsing Yun Education Foundation are commitment to serving the community and play a vital part in achieving the global goals namely in good health and well-being for all people, peace, justice and sustainable communities (Goals 3, 11,16,17) as reflective of our commitment to universal human values.