December 29, 2022 – January 2, 2023

New Year Yoga and Nature Retreat
Carrapateira, South Portugal

The start of a new year is a special moment.

A moment to take a break and close a cycle, to align with your heart wishes and step up into a new beginning, feeling lighter and trustfull.

In this 5-day retreat, we offer a space to welcome 2023 near the sea, enjoying the practice of yoga, the tranquility of nature and new connections with like-minded people. Without hustle and bustle, parties or social commitments.

We will share the practice that we love, a gentle yoga practice that brings you back to yourself, to relax and to manage what you are living with equanimity. You will practice different syles: Hatha, Hatha Vinyasa, Yin yoga, including myofascial release, and of course, pranayama and meditation.

All levels are welcome! We will tailor to each individual, so that everyone gets the most out of his practice!

We will immerse ourselves in the practice of meditation and yoga Nidra, effortlessly, understanding that the mind is a powerful instrument that can be at our service, when we direct our attention to the present moment with love and respect.

You will return home with tools for starting a new year with more strength and peace of mind.

We will have time for ourselves, for resting, walking along the beach, observing the sea, the sunsets and the stars and absorbing the magic of this wonderful place. We will show you our favourites natural places and the most pristine beaches.

And there will also be time to celebrate! To connect with others, laugh and enjoy!

THE TEACHERS

Laura Méndez – Lakshmi & Paloma Dorado.

Laura Méndez–Lakshmi

Laura is a yoga teacher, traveler and continuous yoga student.

She has been teaching yoga in classes, workshops and retreats since 2011 and has been practicing it for more than 18 years.

Before becoming a full time travelling yoga teacher, she worked as an interpreter in Brussels for the European Commission. Yoga helped her balance a stressful job and slowly took more and more space in her life.

Her first training in Hatha yoga, led her to continue deepening and training in Yin yoga, myofascial liberation, Ayurvedic yoga and more, spending long periods of time in India practicing with her teachers.

Her personal practice has evolved from a demanding Ashtanga practice to a gentler Hatha yoga practice.

In her classes you will enjoy a mixture of different styles, with special attention to conscious breathing.
Accessible classes, with modifications for all levels, from the practice of ahimsa (do not harm) and the complete acceptance of each student.

As a certified coach and NLP teacher, she also guides people on their own journey towards self-awareness and personal growth.

Her main motivation, helping busy and stressed people find a way to deeply relax through the effective and powerful techniques of yoga, has led her to conduct retreats in different places in Asia and Europe, offering her students a way to connect with its center and with nature.

Paloma Dorado.

Paloma started to pratice meditation 20 years ago, guided by a deep wish of understanding human nature.
Passionate about the relationship between science and spirituality, she studied Physical Sciences, and later, worked for the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN), located in Geneva.

At the same time, she trained as a therapist in several energy therapies and energy healing, such as Metamorphic Technique, Reiki, and Mystic Therapy.
After her first meditation retreats, at the age of 22, she found her Spiritual Master, whose guidance and teaching continues to be very present in her day to day life.

She collaborates with the meditation instructor Javier de Salas, as an assistant in retreats and workshops in Spain, United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong and Bali, including the Asia Yoga Conference and the Om Yoga Show festival, in London.

In search of a conscious approach to yoga, she immersed in Nayana Yoga School’s training, enjoying of extending the time in each pose, gently and meditatively.
She deepened her yoga education with a yin yoga teacher training. She approached the study of Vedanta, in the Sama Yoga School, training as a yoga teacher in this authentic, soft and deep style, which combines classic Hatha yoga asanas with postures of Chi Kung and mantras.

She currently directs Shama Retreats, a company dedicated to organizing yoga and meditation retreats in nature, together with national and international teachers.

Welcome 2023 enjoying yoga, the ocean and the tranquility of nature

THE PLACE

We will stay in Monte Velho, a spacious and secluded retreat center in Carrapateira, in the region of Aljezur, South Portugal.

A family run, self-sustaining retreat and holistic centre with a strong passion for reconnecting its visitors with nature.

Located where south-western Europe sinks into the Atlantic, the region is enriched by the strength of its’ nature, with multiple paths some ending between dunes of fine sand by the ocean, while others on the cliffs by sunset.

The center sits in a stunning elevated, nestled between mountain and sea with a panoramic vista over the ocean.

It has a fully equipped beautifully designed 170 m2 yoga shala, with underfloor heating and a spa, with sauna, turkish bath and several massage options.

All rooms have confortable beds, private bathrooms and cozy heating.

The food is first class, delicious, ecological, local and seasonal, cooked by specialized chefs in vegetarian and vegan cuisine.

Two of the most amazing and long beaches of the region, Praia Amado and Praia Borderia, are are in less than 8 minutes by car from the retreat center.

A unique space to practice, reflect, connect, nourish and rest.

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How to get there?

You can reach this magic place in just 1 hour and 15 minutes from Faro airport, which has direct and affordable flight options from most European main cities.
There are also public transport options from Faro and Lagos.
 
If you want to book a taxi from the airport, we can group you with other participants, so you can have an easier and cheaper trip.
Private group taxis will be available from the airport to the venue, round trip, on the arrival and departure days:
 
  • December 29: Taxis will be leaving Faro airport at 14.00
  • January 2: Taxis will be leaving the venue to Faro airport at 12.15

Prices varies from 20 € to 40 € per person/per way, depending on the number of people per taxi.

You can reserve your place in a group taxi from the airport, until one week before the retreat.

If you are in Spain, we can put you in contact with other participants to share the trip by car.

THE PROGRAM

Each day includes:

• Yoga for everyone: asana practice to revitalize, strengthen and empower your body. A more dynamic morning practice will be combined with yin type classes, where we will learn to feel and meditate in the postures.

• Meditation and pranayama workshops.

• Conscious breathing to bring clarity to your mind. Some practices will take place outdoors.

• Guided and silent meditations.

• Yoga Nidra.

• Guided relaxation and energy healing.

• Connection with nature: excursions to natural spaces to enjoy and to charge ourselves with the energy of the elements.

The classes will be lead in English, with translation into Spanish if neccesary. 

Thrusday December 29

16.00 Arrival to the retreat venue. Check-in

17.30 Welcome and introduction

18.00 Yoga session.

20.00 Dinner

Friday December 30

08.00 – 09.30 Energizing morning yoga class

09.30 Breakfast

10.30 – 13.30 Discovering South Portugal: excursions/ nature/ beach/ trekking

14.00 Lunch

15.00 Resting. Enjoying the venue

17.00 – 18.15 Meditation workshop

18.30 – 19.45 Yin Yoga

20.00 – 21.00 Dinner

21.15 – 21.45 Yoga Nidra/ Guided Relaxation

Saturday December 31

08.00 – 09.30 Energizing morning yoga class

09.30 Breakfast

10.30 – 13.30 Discovering South Portugal: excursions/ nature/ beach/ trekking

14.00 Lunch

15.00 Resting. Enjoying the venue

17.00 – 18.15 Breathing Techniques in yoga. Pranayama Workshop.

18.30 – 19.45 Realising tension through movement.

20.30 Special New Year Eve Dinner

22.00 New Year Ceremony – Saying goodbye to the year from the Heart

 

 

Sunday January 1

09.00 – 11.00 Starting 2023 in a healthy way: New Year Yoga class

11.15 Brunch

12.30 – 16.00 Setting our new year intentions and heart wishes by the ocean

16.00 Resting. Enjoying the venue

17.00 – 18.00 Yin yoga/ myofascial release

18.30 – 19.30 Special Event

20.00 Dinner

21.00 Time for sharing

Monday January 2

08.00 – 09.30 Energizing morning yoga class

10.00 Check-out from the rooms 

10.15 Breakfast

11.00 Farewell session

12.00 Departure

(*) The daily schedule can change depending on the weather conditions and the duration of the trips.

Start the year in the best way.

Package Includes

  • All yoga classes, workshops and sessions included in the program, in a beautiful indoor, well equipped yoga shala with ocean views.
  • Accommodation in single, double or triple rooms with ensuite bathroom and terrace. All double and triple rooms have two separate bedrooms connected by a door, each one with a double bed or 2 single beds. Therefore, in double rooms, each person sleeps in a different space.
  • Healthy vegetarian food, using fresh, local and seasonal ingredients prepared by an experienced chef specialized in healthy nutrition.  3 meals per day.
  • Special New Year dinner.
  • Trips to some of the most pure, tranquil and beautiful natural beaches and trekkings.

On request (at additional cost, on request at arrival):

  • Several types of massages.
  • Sauna.
  • Turkish bath.

Not included:

  • Flights tickets and travel insurance.
  • Private transport from Faro airport to the retreat center, round trip. (Please check the timetable of the private transport in the program section before booking your flight tickets).
  • Transport on the excursions (transportation on excursions will be done in our own cars. If necessary, we would hire a group transport and its cost would be shared among the number of participants who use it. All the excursions are close by to the venue, between 10 and 25 minutues by car)

EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT

Until 100 € discount if you book your place before November 10, 2022

(Discount sold out)

Total Price per person. All inclusive

Option 1

Triple shared room, with one ensuite bathroom and terrace.

890 €

The triple room has two separated bedrooms, each one with two beds. The total capacity is four people but you will stay three in total, all with the same gender. Two people will stay in one bedroom and one person in the other bedroom.

OPTION 2

Double shared room, with one ensuite bathroom and terrace.

970 €

The double room has two separated bedrooms, each one with a double bed. You will share the room  with one person of the same gender. Each of you will stay in a different bedroom.

OPTION 3

Single room: large double bedroom used as single, with ensuite bathroom and terrace.

1170 €

Single room: large double bedroom used as single, with a double bed and private ensuite bathroom.  The room will be only for you.

What our participants say?

5/5

Booking and payment policy:

– To book and secure your place, we request a 200 € deposit.

– You can click on the blue button “Book your place” below, fill in your data and pay the deposit online.

– Once the payment  is made, your place will be reserved (you will recieve a confirmation email)

– The balance should be paid before December 1. If we don’t received the payment of the balance before that date, we reserve the right to cancel your booking and offer your place to other person.

– If you book your place after December 1, the full payment of the retreat is requested.

– If you come alone and want to stay in a triple or double room, you will share with a person of the same gender.
IMPORTANT: We can not guarantee that you will have a roommate (sometimes we are odd or there aren’t people of the same gender who request a shared room).

In the unlikely event that there isn’t any other person of the same gender whom you can share the room with, you can have the room for your own but you will be requested to pay the price of a single room.

Cancelation policy:

– If you cancel at any moment before November 10, we will refund you the full amount paid, except the deposit, which could be used as a credit for another retreat during the next 2 years.

– If your cancellation takes place between November 10 and December 1, we will refund the total amount you have paid, except the deposit. The deposit won’t be refunded.

– If your cancellation takes place between December 1 and December 15, after you have done the full payment, your payment won’t be refunded. But you can keep the 50% of your second payment in a voucher for a future retreat. The voucher will be valid for 2 years in any of our retreats.

-If your cancellation takes places after December 15, your payment won’t be refunded under any circunstances.

– At any moment, you could hand your booking over to some other person (friend, relative, colleague…etc), who would like to join the retreat and stay in the same type of bedroom.

– In the unlikely event that the retreat has to be canceled, we will also be refund the full amount paid.

– Your personal expenses, such as flight tickets or any other cost that wouldn’t has paid directly to us, won’t be refund.
Most travelling insurances covers all your expenses (flight tickets, the payment of the retreat, accomodations cost if you stay before or after the retreat in Portugal, etc), if you have to cancel your trip. They are unexpensive and they could be a good option to insure your trip.

Any questions? Write us: info@shamaretreats.com

Don't you know if this retreat is for you?

Call us at +34627419996 or write to info@shamaretreats.com and tell us what you are looking for. Communicating and asking all the questions you need, is the best way to check if what we offer fits with what you want or feel like at this moment.