“All I need is my passport and yoga mat.”

This is a ubiquitous phrase to those who have ever experienced a trip to a Yoga Retreat Center — it’s the simple things in life.

What is a Yoga Retreat Center?

A yoga retreat center is located everywhere around the globe and offers group yoga activities. Western-style yoga retreat centers are more luxurious by offering five-star accommodations and providing more activities to the itinerary besides yoga.

On the other hand, eastern-style yoga retreats focus solely on yoga practices. They are more affordable as you are humbly put in nature near or located in monasteries or India’s ashrams. An ashram is a place where one strives towards a goal in a disciplined manner.

As wellness retreat tourism is on the rise, more and more yoga retreats are opening their doors around the globe, and some can even be found locally.

Today, yoga retreat centers are sometimes combined with various activities, such as surfing, to help you gain a more profound connection spiritually with the ocean. Other retreats may offer yoga and meditation, physical fitness, horseback riding, and other activities.

As a whole, yoga retreats have one common goal: to help you seek a deeper balance in your yoga practice and within yourself. An added bonus is that by attending a yoga retreat, you will be surrounded by like-minded individuals from all life paths.

Who Are They For?

Whether you are a new yoga practitioner or an avid yogi, yoga retreats are perfect fits for all experience level types. The original idea of yoga retreats was for a yogi to find a deeper meaning of self without daily distractions.

Some retreats focus their teachings on beginners only. If you are new to yoga, attending a retreat like this will not only help you build a foundation for your yoga practice, but you will also have the privilege of learning yoga under the close guidance of the teacher.

Equally, though, for the intermediate and advanced yogis, working closely with a teacher in a smaller class provides you opportunities to ask questions and allows the teacher to give you more personable tips on poses and help you establish a better flow.

Yoga Retreats Aren’t 12 hours of Yoga

If you are considering attending a yoga retreat, each retreat has an example itinerary of what the average day would look like on your trip.

Your day will consist of one to two-hour yoga sessions, delicious locally grown and cooked meals, free time to explore, and an activity stamped in the day, depending on the retreat.

Yoga retreats are meant to teach you a deeper understanding of flow, balance, and mindfulness from the practices and lessons you are taught. Some visitors have had a deep sense of enlightenment when attending a retreat.

As you embark on your spiritual journey or relaxation at a retreat, you are surrounded by a community at the retreat center. You are surrounded by like-minded individuals attending a yoga retreat to unwind from their daily tasks or enjoy the adventure of travel and yoga.

Being around a close-knit community at a retreat may bring new friendships and relationships. You will be able to exchange experiences about yoga and life with one another. It is popular amongst solo travelers to attend yoga retreats as a way to make friends when traveling. Everyone at the retreat has a common interest which is yoga.

As yoga is the foundation for each retreat, the meals you consume also play an essential role at each retreat.

The Delicious Meals at Yoga Retreat Centers

At most retreats, your itinerary will have at least one scheduled meal where you and the other guests sit and have a communal meal made from scratch in the kitchen. You can expect the meals to be on the higher end of the healthy scale.

The meals are prepared with local, organic, and seasonal ingredients and are often homemade without any additives or refined products. Expect whole ingredients for a wholesome you!

As you indulge in the delicious meals, they are intended to help bring you mental clarity and provide your body with energy and proper nutrition. Many yoga retreats offer vegetarian and vegan meals, and they accommodate food allergies.

In some cases, some yoga retreats offer a thoughtfully prepared detox or cleanse to help release your body from toxins aside from detoxing your mind from technology in addition to the detox from your daily yoga practice.

The practice of specific yoga poses provides the body with a natural detox of toxins in the body. Yoga twists, in particular, are powerful detoxing postures. As you gently twist, you are squeezing toxins from the internal organs and tissue, then allow fresh oxygen and blood to travel to these organs when you gently release from the twist.

Supplementing with certain foods, such as vegetables and fruits, detox your mind from all your negative anxieties, thoughts, and emotions and may help you manifest letting go of anything that does not serve you.

Purifying your mind from these thoughts and emotions can be profoundly healing in combination with detoxing your body. Purifying the body and mind will bring you a deeper feeling of clarity.

A Sense of Adventure

This is my favorite part! Attending a yoga retreat in a new country allows you to connect and learn from new cultures. Some yoga retreats in Indonesia offer cooking classes from a local using freshly grown ingredients.

Often, yoga retreat leaders will add adventurous activities like paddle boarding, kayaking, surfing, or hiking. On some days, you may explore local towns and markets or visit a waterfall.

Traveling to a new city or country supplies you with a new natural terrain to explore and hike, whether that is a new beach to walk on during the sunrise or many hiking trails into the forest and mountains.

Signing up for a yoga retreat in a new place in the world manifests new experiences and the will to try new things. You may be out of your comfort zone, and knowing you’re not alone may encourage you to be more adventurous.

Allow yourself to be free from your world at home as you spend quality time on self-care, practicing what you love, or creating a new habit of daily yoga to take back with you.

Before attending a yoga retreat, we suggest doing research on the retreat center and the destination where you’ll be going. As you embark on your journey, set an intention and enjoy yourself. You deserve it!

With Love and Light!