Ashley and I are so excited to announce our first collaboritive retreat to Bulgaria!
If you want to extend your summer sun and enjoy the fresh sea air, while dedicating time to advance your yoga practice - this retreat is for you!
Immerse yourself in luxurious surroundings right by the Black Sea - endless golden beaches, sea waves just a stone drop from your room.
We are doing something different and exciting this year. We booked a few private villas in an all inclusive luxury hotel with the best amenities out there!
Hammam, steam bath, Finnish sauna, soft herbal sauna, room with natural Himalayan salt , many different poolsWe will be practicing right by the sea in a lovely open shala.
Welcome to your yoga retreat sanctuary in the Bulgarian Golden Sands Seaside
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Imagine...
Waking up each morning right by the side, only having to walk a few steps to your energising morning yoga practice. Practice will be followed by brunch at one of many restauraets within our resort. Whether you fancy savory or weet all will be catered for.
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Connect...
With likeminded people, your teachers and yourself. Whether you decide to come on your own or with someone, you will enjoy some uplifting conversations, have fun, and most importantly spend some time on you.
“The retreat was incredibly well organised and thought out! Every class was made to feel very personal to tailor to people’s needs.
I have been so impressed how Ashley and Melinda have run this retreat. I will definitely come to another one. You made it all so perfect for all of us!”— Retreat student from 2019
What can you expect on our Yoga Retreat to Bulgaria?
You will stay right by the sea with endless golden beaches. Your room will be in a modern villa with its terrace opening straight onto a private swimming pool.
You will spend 6 evenings & 7 days staying in one of 4 private villas. Each boasts it’s own infinity pool, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a living room.
You will participate in 12 yoga classes - 1 each morning and evening. You’ll have the option to attend workshops and Q&A sessions exploring some more challenging postures. We will answer any questions you may have about your practice and techniques - think of these almost like private lessons!!
Our yoga classes will include: Sattva, Rocket, Mandala, Yin & Yoga Nidra. The morning classes will be energising and dynamic, the evening classes will vary between relaxing, calming, grounding with some dynamic. We will have daily morning meditations and breath work.
All of your healthy, nutritious and carefully balanced meals are provided by the onsite restaurants. This includes breakfast buffets, lunches, and Á-la Carte dinners. We will be serving a vegetarian menu. Dietary requirements can be accommodated for, providing we have notice.
You are right by the famous Golden Sand beaches. Obzor Beach is one of the longest beaches in Bulgaria, with a length of 8 km. It is framed in the north by an impressive cliff and the lush green of the coastal forest.
You will have the opportunity to deepen your yoga practice, to switch off and connect with nature + spend time with other amazing people. Expect a group of likeminded, open, fun and adventurous yogis! You will leave feeling lighter, rested & grounded!
Your hosts
Ashley Ahrens - Yoga Teacher
I’m a London based Senior Yoga Teacher (teaching over 9 years) with a background in sciences - I studied genetics in university and minored in psychology and anatomy. Now I am pursuing further education in nutrition in my quest to understand health and wellbeing holistically.
I am SO EXCITED for our retreat to Greece! We haven’t been able to organise an international retreat for a couple of years now, so this upcoming one is extra special for this reason. Travel and yoga retreats can once again (all fingers and toes crossed) be organised with more confidence!!
I’ll be teaching you active Rocket and Sattva yoga practices on the 3 mornings that I’m teaching (along with breathwork and meditation), and more gentle/relaxing yin and meditation on the 2 evenings I will be teaching.
I love to chat about philosophy and the deeper parts of yoga - ask me anything while we’re together!! I’m a huge anatomy nerd too and love to talk about alignment and how to advance both your physical and spiritual practice.
www.ashleyahrensyoga.com // Instagram @ashleyahrens.yoga
Melinda Szepesi - Yoga Teacher
As a teacher, my main focus is to help you find your own practice and build awareness both through mind and body.
I spend my days practicing and educating myself about the human anatomy to help my students with their physical practice, as well as offering quarterly reflection classes to bring more awareness to your everyday life. You will be practicing mandala vinyasa and yin with me.
We will open with a Mandala vinyasa class, moving 360° around the mat, softly flowing through asanas, challenging the body and the mind. For the rest of the retreat, we will alternate between slowing down with some Yin yoga and to invigorate with some Mandala.
Prepare for some creativity and some fun with me.
www.melindasyoga.com // Instagram: @melindaszepesiwww.melindasyoga.com // Instagram: @melindaszepesi
“I feel relaxed so my goal’s been achieved!I’ve had a lovely relaxing, but active weekend, full of tasty food and amazing yoga! On the top of it I was surrounded with a bunch of lovely people! Ashley and Melinda are great teachers and very lovely. Thank you for everything!”
— Retreat Student 2019
Testimonials from our 2021 Norfolk “City Escape” Yoga Retreat
Pricing
We have a limited amount of Early Bird(EB) prices available, prices are per person based on double occupancy:
(EB expires March29th, 2024 - first come first served)
Master Bedroom (King beds)
with own bathroom
– from £1850 Early Bird / £1950 Regularper person
Twin Bedroom with own bathroom
with own bathroom
– from £1850 Early Bird / £1950 Regularper person
All Prices are per person.
Please do not hesitate when it comes to sharing with someone you don’t know. We have done this ourselves too and have often come away with incredible friends. Coming along on retreat alone can be a truly magical and profound experience.
Pricing plans are available! Split the payment over a few months.
(Example: for £1850 Early Bird Shared Room : £250 deposit + £320 per month over 5 months)
To reserve your space, we require a non-refundable deposit of £250
Twin Rooms will be allocated unless you request to share with someone.
Note: Every room has it’s own bathroom
Twin Bedroom: You may come along with a friend or we will pair you up with a yogi if the same sex
Return / cancellation policy:
If we have to cancel or reschedule due to any Covid related lockdowns out of our control, you will have the option for a full refund (deposit included) or to transfer your booking to the new date.
Full payment is required 30 days in advance of the retreat (August 15th 2024).
If you cannot attend due to self isolation or for any other reason with short notice (outlined in our contract), we cannot refund and therefore we advise you purchase travel insurance which covers cancellations due to self isolations etc. Please remember to take out comprehensive insurance to cover any unexpected circumstances. Should you need to cancel your space the deposit may only be returned if you fill your space. Upon receiving the deposit you are automatically agreeing to the booking and cancellation terms of the retreat.
Please let us know if you have any questions and we are happy to answer!
FAQs
What’s included?
- 6 energising morning practices: Mandala, Rocket, and Sattva
- 6 evening practices to unwind: First evening is Mandala flow, followed by yin & yoga Nidra on subsequent nights- 2 workshops
- Optional other group activities: beach, hiking, exploring the local town (as decided by the group majority)
- 6 nights accommodation
- Towels, linens & toiletries
- All meals, tea/coffee/snacks at the Villas
What’s not included?
- Travel to Bulgaria - there are direct flights from Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton - and a 45-minute taxi ride from the airport that will be organised by us and included in your stay. (we will coordinate who can share the taxi together) - it’s super easy to get here!
- Extra food and/or entertainment whilst out of the hotel.Can I come alone?
Absolutely! You don't have to come with someone to have fun on a retreat! You may even prefer it because it gives you the opportunity to really get to know the other guests & us hosts and have precious alone time. Our rooms are either double or twin beds, so if you are coming alone, we will pair you up with someone we'd think you'd get on with in a twin room (so far everyone has left with new yogi friends!!)
If you are worried about sharing a room with someone, you can request single occupancy - please ask about rates and availability.
For travel, usually most people end up on the same recommended flight, so you’ll most likely meet each other before you arrive!
About half our guests come with friends/partners and the other half come individually, you won’t be the only one don’t worry!Do I have to participate in everything?
Not at all. This is your time to do whatever it is your heart desires!! If that means skipping yoga and going for a walk, do that! Workshops and group outings are of course optional as well, and many guests do prefer to skip them to do their own thing, there’s no right or wrong here - we provide a schedule, and you choose what you want to do - it’s your retreat.
I have food allergies / intolerance / a specific diet to follow, can you accomodate?
Yes! There are plenty of different restaurants that is happy to accommodate any dietary requirements, provided we have notice.
When you book with us we ask you to fill out a registration form providing anything we need to know about, including dietary preferences/needs. We reccomend you to enjo 100% vegetarian, mostly plant based, but it will be your choice what would you like to eat.
We have catered for vegans, lactose intolerance, soy allergy, gluten intolerance, etc and are happy to make sure you are well fed in the way your body needs.Will you be providing alcohol?
No. We normally do not providing any alcohol, but if you want to you can enjoy some at one of the bars on site.
Some people will be drinking, some won’t, it’s a personal choice so please enjoy whatever your preference is!
