Everyone looks for something different in a yoga holiday. For some, it might be an opportunity to de-stress, for others a chance to learn how to breathe properly, to improve their yoga practice or simply to switch off the phone for a few hours or even days. Recognising this fact, Adler Spa Resorts has launched a series of yoga retreats in its properties in Tuscany and the Dolomites that address a wide range of needs, as well as incorporating current yoga trends that emphasise mindfulness, being in nature and digitally detoxing.
Driving the yoga initiative is Annemarie Sanoner who started practising yoga in the early 1990s when she travelled to India and became so inspired by it that she quit her job in order to pursue a career focusing on yoga and Ayurveda. She is a qualified yoga teacher, Ayurvedic therapist and stress management coach. As she says, “These days, the desire for peace and quiet, balance and regeneration from the daily hustle and bustle is very strong. There is almost no other practice that generates the holistic benefits of yoga, uniting physical wellbeing, like movement, breathing and nutrition, with philosophical elements.”
Ms Sanoner is a great believer in the start of a new season, be it autumn, winter, spring or summer, being an ideal time to embrace new challenges and lifestyle changes as she thinks the mind and body are more open at these times. So, if it’s all got too much and you need to escape, Adler Dolomiti’s Yoga & Nature package has a three-night break, valid till 3 October, which includes daily yoga, plus the chance to experience both yoga and meditation, and yoga and relaxation sessions, so that guests get a chance to really unwind even if they are only able to find time for a long weekend away. Detox teas are provided on tap and guests can opt for a vegetarian menu if they choose. Rates start from £375 per person sharing on a half-board basis.
Many of us have too shallow a breath, so those wishing to learn to inhale properly should book onto Adler Balance’s Ayurveda Special week, from 23 to 30 October. The programme will be led by Volker Mehl, a pioneering Ayurvedic chef who has published several cook books and a qualified Yin-Yoga teacher. There will be a dedicated Pranayama (breathing) class, alongside private Ayurvedic consultations and treatments, Ayurvedic cooking tips and daily delicacies, as well as a Yin-Yoga class every day. The week costs £1550 per person sharing on a half-board basis.
Hatha-Yoga and Vinyasa-Yoga teacher Veronika Rössl is promising a week-long Yoga Retreat at Adler Mountain Lodge from 20 to 27 November that will challenge and empower participants, through a series of different classes, mindful hiking and candle-lit meditation, with a view to rejuvenating participants’ practice and giving them new perspective. Thanks to its rural setting in the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Dolomites, this is the perfect yoga holiday for those wishing to get in touch with nature during practice. As Ms Sanoner points out, “The mere presence in the middle of unspoilt nature leads to relaxation and increases the regeneration of the body and spirit, which is further intensified through specific yoga exercises.”
Adler Thermae’s Yoga Antistress with Barbara Woehler, from 27 November to 1 December, will ensure guests take a digital detox for several hours per day, at the very least, as it includes two hatha yoga sessions of two hours per day; these sessions cover the areas of asanas (postures), pranayama (breathing) and yoga nidra (deep relaxation). And it’s not just the yoga that will keep guests away from their phones, the panoramic vistas from the hotel of the Val d’Orcia’s gentle rolling hills also have a habit of enticing guests to switch off, self-reflect and meditate. The four-night package costs from £690 per person sharing a double room on a half-board basis – vegetarian food is available on request – and also includes a spa voucher so that guests can choose a treatment of their choice.
