Amid the clamor of obligations, rush hour traffic, nagging bosses and the chaos of daily life, the last thing most Americans want is a high-volume vacation that requires a lot of running around and planning. Why not try a week at a relaxing yoga retreat, where you will leave with a deep-seated serenity and awareness? You can go anywhere from India to Mexico in search of rejuvenation and spiritual connectedness. With a combination of yoga, massages, jacuzzi tubs and healthy eating, a yoga retreat is more than just a vacation -- it's a whole new way of life and in some ways, a rebirth.
Yoga retreat vacations are great for beginners and advanced practitioners alike. A Yoga instructor since 1997, Jillian Pransky says, "Many of my students are city dwellers. Their yoga is fit in between running in and out of busy streets and wedged into their busy workloads. They get little respite and often don't get the dramatic effect they experience on retreat. Your body has more time to open, change, purify and cleanse in a retreat environment than in a daily practice."
Older yoga enthusiasts will love the Como Shambhala, located 575 miles from Miami in the Caribbean Islands (Turks and Caicos, specifically). This 1,000 square foot sanctuary offers the kind of soft, white sand and turquoise water you'd expect from a tropical vacation destination, while providing you with simple yet beautiful teak and white cotton furnished rooms. For your free time, diving and snorkeling are favorite pastimes. Choose from annual retreats such as: Yoga Play & Discovery, On Top of the World With Judy Krupp, The 7 Chakras on Kundalini Yoga, Yoga Shanti Retreat and Bali Ashtanga Yoga Adventure. Yoga retreat rates run around $6,240 for one week, all inclusive. In 2006, Como Shambhala won Spa Finder Magazine's "Best Spa In Indonesia," The Ultimate Spa Guide's "Top Spas In Asia" and Travel & Leisure's "World's Best Hotel Spa Caribbean Bermuda and the Bahamas" awards, to name a few.
You can go alone or with friends and spouses, you can take a high-intensity work out or a slow methodical yoga class, you can go to India or Thailand. Yoga Retreat destinations are varied and breath-taking, so start planning your spiritual vacation today!
Perhaps more than any other form of exercise, Yoga has been around the longest. Originating in India, this popular form of exercise has been practiced around the world. Why? The physical portion of the workout is very low-impact and can be performed by anyone of any age. The same cannot be said of kick boxing classes or Jazzercise. But there is more to Yoga than just working out the body. It is also a lifestyle that can bring clarity to the mind through spiritual exercises of meditation and concentration. Are you ready to begin your path to a healthy body and mind? Click here to find out more: Kriya Yoga and at Yoga Books also at Yoga Pants
