First of all, I have to be honest, this review might be a little bit biased as I’m working on the property that is holding the following yoga retreat ;). But then again, I thought, why not? I’ve been here for two years, I love the place and I love taking care of the retreats as well! Again, this is gonna be one of my other series of reviews I’ll be giving. So far I’ve also been reviewing YouTube channels for those eager doing some yoga but don’t have the time to go to a class.
Monte Maravilhas
First of all, I’d like to start with the property of Monte Maravilhas, it’s in Portugal, the area of the Alentejo. It’s quite low-key with still a lot of nature. The owner (no, it’s not me), is called Prem and she has been running the property for over 20 years now. She has three houses and a small one on the domain, a camping site, facilities for the camping site and she has a salt-water pool! And yes, I already relaxed in it A LOT ;). And besides that she also offers yoga retreats, hiking weeks, massage weeks and painting weeks! I had a lot of fun the past couple of years being a part of them and I’d like to share the yoga retreats with you here!
During the retreat you will probably stay in Casa Amarela or in Casa Mimosa. These two houses are suitable for up to 10 people altogether. This also means that the retreat will be with an intimate group. Max. 12-16 people, which makes it nice to connect to each other, but also to get personal contact with your teacher.
Yoga Retreat Alentejo
So from September 14th until September 21st we’ll be organizing our yoga retreat. We are in the middle of the Alentejo surrounded by cork trees, eucalyptus, and on our property we also have a lot of fruit trees and even our own little vegetable garden. During this week you’ll be getting three yoga sessions.
The yoga sessions are very versatile, typically in the morning you’ll do more pranayama (breath work) to wake you up. Our teacher always comes up with something different to give you some more instruments to go home with. Which is nice, as yoga is not only about the poses.
During the retreat you will be served three vegetarian meals per day. During the dinner, after you’re last session, we will also serve alcohol for those who want. It’s not my personal idea of a yoga retreat as I’d be more into the soberness of doing it, but then again, the choice is yours. I do have to say that the location fits perfectly to sip on a glass of wine in the evening on the balcony.
The program looks something like this, but can be changed a bit according to the weather or other activities planned:
- 08:00 Pranayama
- 09:00 Breakfast
- 12:00 Yoga
- 13:30 Lunch
- 17:30 Yoga
- 19:00 Dinner
During the week there will also be a beach day so during that day there will be no yoga.
So, practically, you will arrive on Saturday the 14th of September and you’ll be welcomed by one of the team members of course. During this day there will be no sessions as we want to give you the time to settle in and get to know the other participants of the week. From Sunday until Friday you’ll be following the schedule, minus one day that you’ll be going to the beach, and on Saturday it’s time to pack again and after the lunch we will say our goodbye’s.
Atul Mulji
During this week your yoga teacher will be Atul Mulji. A little bit about him:
“The lessons are taught by Atul Mulji and take place inside as well as outside. Atul Mulji is a yoga teacher and masseur. Almost 30 years ago he started practicing yoga in India. He has been trained at the International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center and followed several seminars and workshops. He runs a yoga and massage practice in Lisbon, Portugal. (www.montemaravilhas.com)”
How to get there?
Although we are a located a bit remotely, getting here is not that hard. If you are coming from outside of Portugal you can either fly on Lisbon or Faro Airport, there you can take a train to Funcheira (served 5 times per day) and then we will pick you up from the train station! It’s also possible to rent a car if you want to travel on after you’ve finished the retreat (or if you’re traveling before the retreat starts).
From Lisbon Airport it’s about a 2-hour drive down here. And from Faro it’s about 1,5 hour.
Conclusion
I truly recommend this retreat, even if I wouldn’t be working here as well. It’s because I’m working here I can even review this as I’ve done 6 yoga retreats so far on this location. Although sometimes I wished that I’d be giving the sessions instead of working so hard to satisfy everyone’s needs ;).
But I’ve been blessed as well, as normally, I give some sessions as well when people ask for it. So that means that for the same price you’ll get some additional sessions as well! So, if you’d decide to come and you see me there as well, don’t forget to ask if I’d be open to give some meditation- or yoga session ;).
For more information on accommodation and price, I’d like to refer you to this website. Here you’ll find some more pictures and you’ll find more information on how to get into the location.
I hope I can share with you the love that I feel for this property. See you there! Or here, in my case.
That was it for now, please check regularly for some new reviews I’ll be giving soon. If you have any more questions or suggestions, feel free to say hello down below.
And for now…
Nama-stay wonderful everyone!
Wow. It appeared to be a very authentic venue for retreat and yoga practice. There is a professional coach to handle it and a place conducive to such kind of activities. It is already refreshing because of the panoramic view of the location and its peace and tranquility would naturally attract a lot of people. It is also good to note that facilities are very much attractive to yoga practitioners.
Thank you for your comment, the teacher that is leading the yoga-sessions is absolutely amazing! Atul has a lot of knowledge about the world of yoga and offers a lot of varied sessions!
Sounds like a relaxing retreat, with a steady daily schedule, breathtaking scenery, plus a beach day as well. Not to mention Portugal at the right time of the year. I think this would be an awesome retreat for anyone looking to travel internationally and gain perhaps a new experience, as well as meet like-minded people in an activity they’re passionate about. It’d be more than simply a week-long vacation; it’d be something rewarding and purposeful.
It sure is Todd! Thank you for your comment. I love this place so much, and therefore I had to make this review and share it with others ;).
You have a lot of great and helpful information on your site!
I learned that losing weight doing yoga isn’t as easy as I thought. I didn’t know that it took a certain style to lose weight by keeping the heart rate up would do the trick.
I thought your design was well laid out and I like the pictures that went with each post.
Your trip to PORTUGAL was well-reviewed and I found myself there in my mind as I read the review. I’m sure that retreat is very relaxing.
Videos are always helpful and I like the links to the products you are recommending.
Would you consider putting information on your site for people like me that have Fibromyalgia and Arthritis?
Overall I thought you did a good job on your website and I’m sure many will benefit from your expertise.
Thank you for your comment Suzy! It’s great to hear that you like the website. That’s what I do it for of course, to inform people and let them know about some great opportunities :). If there is anything that you’d like to ask, feel free to do so whenever you’d like!
I love your honesty, I don’t think that you are biased at all. You are just sharing what a great experience you have had at the property. š I love the fact that Prem has been running the business for 20 years, it means that it is a legitimate business and regular customers have definitely return for the service.
I want to stay in Casa Mimosa on my visit! I love mimosa lol Anyway, how long is the retreat? How long do you suggest one should participate in the program?
Hi Nuttanee,
The retreat itself is 8 night long, with 6 days of activities planned. The best is to participate in the whole program of course. Check out our availability and possibility of even maybe staying longer a little bit if you’d like ;).
IN YOUR ABOUT ME tab make sure you have the ‘about me’ link separatly as well. also if you could try and have a picture on top: header image, that would be great as well. i love the way you separate stuff on your site using tabs, very good. i will do that as well. i am sorry i was unable to leave comment on your site due to personal belief about yoga. otherwise you have very nice, warm colours on your site. stay blessed!
Hi Neea, thank you for your comment. It would’ve been nice to start a bit of a conversation though about your personal belief about yoga, it’s always nice to see other people points of view. Thank you for the feedback!
Hello; wow! I never knew that Yoga has retreats also, I like the scenery, It shows signs of an enjoyable place,
Is the attraction open for some other events? Since September is booked for the Yoga retreat, I wonder if the resort would be available before and after the yoga retreat in September?
You see I like Portugal as also your attraction.
DorcasW
Hi Dorcas,
Thank you for your comment! Of course we are also available all-year round for a holiday. After the retreat you can easily book an extra couple of days/week with us if you’d like, there are some people who’ve been doing that before. You can check our website http://www.montemaravilhas.com for our availability.