10 Revitalizing Yoga Retreats Slideshow
The Parker Palm Springs: Palm Springs, Calif.
Escape to Palm Springs and customize a yoga vacation that's all your own. With the YogaWorks package at The Parker Palm Springs, a two-day minimum stay includes four yoga classes taught by some of the best yoga teachers around. And while you're doing your body good with a little stretch and tone, don't forget there are three on site restaurants to indulge at during your visit. Treat yourself at Norma's, where breakfast is served all day, Mister Parker's, for delicious bistro fare, or nurse a nightcap at Mini Bar, before crashing into bed.
Sardinia Yoga: Sardinia, Italy
Set on Costa Smeralda at the Grand Hotel in Porto Cervo, Sardinia Yoga offers a one-of-a-kind beachfront experience to enjoy sun, sand, and savasana. Only open for two sessions – one from May to June, and the other from September to October — you'll wake up every morning for yoga on the beach, followed by brunch where their house special, uove in camicia — is a local favorite. Spend your afternoons at Cala Granu beach, or stretch out by the hotel pool or in the gardens to bask in the Mediterranean sun.
Parrot Cay: Turks and Caicos
With white sandy beaches and turquoise water, Parrot Cay in Turks and Caicos is the perfect island destination to de-stress. The hotel hosts week-long yoga retreats to help you find a new level of calm. These programs consist of five hours of daily practice over a five-day period, in addition to learning seminars and treatment therapies to accompany your practice. Menus are crafted to complement the healthful experience with yellow fin tuna takaki with seaweed salad and ponzu dressing and grilled conch with spicy mango and peanut relish.
COMO Shambhala Estate: Bali
Cue a hotel that pledges complete commitment to your improved well-being. At the COMO Shambhala Estate in Bali, your quest for better health is at the heart of your stay. Choose from a variety of hatha yoga, pranayama, or meditation classes or choose a wellness package that's right for you. Enjoy healthful cuisine prepared fresh at Glow, the estate's all-day dining restaurant that features an open kitchen, so you can watch your cuisine as it's prepared. Looking forward to dinner there will help you get through the day's asanas.
Blue Spirit Retreat: Nosara, Costa Rica
If solitude and serenity are what you're after, head to the Blue Spirit Retreat on the coast of Costa Rica, where you can become one with nature during your week-long yoga retreat. Achieve spiritual transformation while overlooking a three-mile white sand beach on the Pacific Ocean. After your practice, sip on smoothies and feast on freshly baked goods at the hotel's Café-Library, which also serves organic wines and local beers in the evening. You can also go all natural with their "pure food option," which offers greens, grains, and legumes without dressing or seasoning for lunch and dinner. Talk about cleansing!
Haramara Retreat: Nayarit, Mexico
Haramara Retreat was created for inner restoration. Tranquility, nature, and security await you at your jungle retreat, where you can choose from a three-night or five-night package, offered from June to November. Your meals, spa treatments, and yoga classes are included in the cost of your stay. If that's not enough to kick-start your mind into vacation mode, then the well balanced and delicious Mexican cuisine served on-site in the open air restaurant overlooking the ocean will have you taking a permanent leave of absence from your working life.
Rancho La Puerta: Tecate, Mexico
Offering one-week programs for all aspiring and accomplished yogis and yoginis, Rancho La Puerta promises to improve your inner-self. Set amongst the mountainsides and meadows of Baja California, you'll be hiking at sunrise and taking yoga and fitness classes at all levels. Even the food supports this lifestyle — boasting an on-site organic farm and supporting an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet. And if you feel like harnessing your cooking skills, sign up for classes at La Cocina Que Canta, where they use the best local and seasonal ingredients.
Holistic Holidays: Puerto Calero, Lanzarote
It's every yogi's dream — perfecting your eagle pose overlooking the ocean on the Canary Islands. At Holistic Holidays in Lanzarote, the spiritual discipline is taken seriously with the Journey into Yoga program, where the philosophy of yoga is just as important as its practice. Held at the Oceanside Spa Hotel, the program allows you to not only improve your physique, but also tap into your emotional core. Early morning yoga classes are followed by a swim in the ocean, and in the afternoon, you'll unwind at the hotel's spa.
Kailasam Yoga and Ayurveda Holidays: Kerala, India
Take an exotic holiday and venture to Kovalam, a seaside village in Kerala, India, for a two-week retreat to enrich body and mind. Based out of a private house that was converted into a yoga center, it can only be reached by a footpath through the coconut groves. Kailasam promises the calm setting you crave for an ideal yoga practice. You'll take two classes each day with breakfast on site and the chance to explore the town for lunch and dinner. In the middle of the retreat, you're given two days off from yoga to explore Kerala or relax in Kovalam.
Gaia Retreat and Spa: Byron Bay, Australia
The Gaia Retreat and Spa in Byron Bay is the ultimate destination for centering your energies and becoming one with nature. Pick from a range of retreat packages that suit your needs and hop on a flight to Australia to decompress. From daily yoga classes to spa treatments, Gaia is committed to your well-being. Gaia uses organic, local produce from native suppliers, works with ingredient's grown in their own organic garden, and the chef on site is trained in macrobiotic and ayurvedic cuisines. You'll never feel as detoxified or rejuvenated than after your stay at Gaia.