French Alps yoga holiday
| country: | France |
| location: | French Alps |
| departures: | 2009: 6 Dec |
| price: | From €695 (7 days) excluding flights. €250 single supplement. |
| more info: | Price includes 7 nights at the chalet, 7 organic breakfasts, 5 chef prepared vegetarian dinners, hot tubs, 14 hours of yoga (6 morn and 3 eve sessions), a market trip, airport transfers, local shuttles. |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Experience a week you will never forget on the edge of the largest Alpine Nature Reserve.
Tap into your Source at 'The best eco-lodge in the Alps' Sunday Times - a 'hip' and friendly 21st Century Commune hosted by Duncan McCallum, TV Presenter and Adventure Sports Guru and Saskia Anley, Yoga Teacher and personal development coach..
Every morning before breakfast, you will do 1.5 to 3 hours of yoga set in the stunning back drop of the Alps. You'll spend the morning doing an energising flowing Hatha-Astanga yoga class. Sometimes we practice in a converted Barn or by a lake or in an Alpage. The rest of the day is yours to hike, rock climb, white water raft, swim in the lakes in Summer or ski or snowboard in the Winter. 3 evenings will be dedicated to a meditative reflective yoga class. We will go into the heart of yoga in a little more depth and go on a silent walk or snow shoe to a secret Canyon. In the evening, we are famous for our fun and lively communal vegetarian dinner parties (Meatatarians can be catered for!). You may take a
dip in the wood fired hot tub under the stars.
Saskia your host has been practising Hatha and Astanga yoga for over 17 years. She trained and qualified as a yoga teacher in India. Her classes are flowing and balanced encompassing Pranayama (breathing), asanas (postures) and relaxation. They are accessible to beginners and advanced practitioners. Your hosts will help you organise your adventure activities. Most often guests find ski and boarding partners of their level in the winter and hike and do activities together in the summer. Our guests have said:
'This is one of the best experiences of my life so far!'...' My mind was truly challenged, my heart touched and my soul soothed. It was absolutely wonderful.'
Tap into your Source at 'The best eco-lodge in the Alps' Sunday Times - a 'hip' and friendly 21st Century Commune hosted by Duncan McCallum, TV Presenter and Adventure Sports Guru and Saskia Anley, Yoga Teacher and personal development coach.. Every morning before breakfast, you will do 1.5 to 3 hours of yoga set in the stunning back drop of the Alps. You'll spend the morning doing an energising flowing Hatha-Astanga yoga class. Sometimes we practice in a converted Barn or by a lake or in an Alpage. The rest of the day is yours to hike, rock climb, white water raft, swim in the lakes in Summer or ski or snowboard in the Winter. 3 evenings will be dedicated to a meditative reflective yoga class. We will go into the heart of yoga in a little more depth and go on a silent walk or snow shoe to a secret Canyon. In the evening, we are famous for our fun and lively communal vegetarian dinner parties (Meatatarians can be catered for!). You may take a
dip in the wood fired hot tub under the stars.
Saskia your host has been practising Hatha and Astanga yoga for over 17 years. She trained and qualified as a yoga teacher in India. Her classes are flowing and balanced encompassing Pranayama (breathing), asanas (postures) and relaxation. They are accessible to beginners and advanced practitioners. Your hosts will help you organise your adventure activities. Most often guests find ski and boarding partners of their level in the winter and hike and do activities together in the summer. Our guests have said: 'This is one of the best experiences of my life so far!'...' My mind was truly challenged, my heart touched and my soul soothed. It was absolutely wonderful.'
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | You’ll be picked up at the airport at about 1pm on Sunday. We’ll have our first meal and get to know each other. |
| Day 2: | You’ll wake up, grab a handful of organic raisins and walk through a rural alpine scene to a beautiful practice space for Yoga. Breakfast is back at the lodge. We’ll help you organise your days. There is so much to choose from – creative writing to canyonning, trampolining to tennis, hiking to horse riding, skiing to sitting… This evening we will bring the yoga and mediation practice deeper. We then have a communal vegetarian dinner – the hub of our lodge! |
| Day 3: | Similar to above without the evening practice – but the hot tub will be fired up for meditation under the stars. |
| Day 4: | On Wednesday we all take a trip down to the local market – the biggest and oldest in the region. The evening yoga practice will be at about 5pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. |
| Day 5: | Similar to above without the evening practice – but the hot tub will be fired up for meditation under the stars. |
| Day 6: | On Friday we encourage everyone to try something different before going home – push your boundaries! How about a parapent flight or Dance of Shiva? |
| Day 7: | We leave for the airport at about 11am. |
small group adventure holiday
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends its good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as seeing new places. how this holiday makes a difference
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Environment
Our accommodation has been described as a 'posh commune' – you will experience an alternative family lifestyle with a communal, community and environmental ethos. The McCallum family moved from Scotland to France to realise an evolving dream – to reconnect with each other and our environment, to live in the mountains, create a sustainable venue and run 'life-enhancing' courses. It took 3 years and is now up and running and is becoming a 'phenomena'. Journalists have described it as the 'best-eco lodge in the Alps'. Guests often talk about the 'positive energy' here. The crew and our instructors have a strong environmental policy. We educate all our clients in no-impact camping techniques. We carry shovels for toilet sumps and bags to carry out all paper and rubbish. We recycle picnic waste and insist on refilling water bottles. The farmhouse accommodation is set up for recycling all waste and we compost. We are starting to grow our own veg. We get milk from the subsistence farm next door. We buy bulk supplies from local organic wholesalers and can supply these to our clients on request. We used sustainable building techniques where affordable including extra thick Warmcell insulation, triple glazed windows facing North, glass walls facing South, a highly efficient wood pellet burner, low temp under floor heating, organic paint, etc. We have mountain source water on tap. We try to consume minimum energy. All our appliances are A or AA and 90% of our lighting is low energy. We recycle metal, plastic, glass, paper and cardboard and compost and the kitchen is set up to make this easy. Our linen is organic cotton and our cleaning products are environmentally sound. Our heating and hot water is low energy bio mass and the house is super insulated. Our toilets are flushed with source water (and are dual flush) and our waste water is cleaned, filtered and goes back into the stream as drinkable water. We encourage minimum use of water, the option for un-ironed sheets and 1 towel and the use of spring water vs mains (which can be pumped into the house from our Source). If people stay more than 1 week, we encourage them to keep their sheets and towels and give them a big financial incentive. We only use the dryer rarely, only when absolutely necessary. All of our cleaning products are sourced wholesale from a eco-friendly supplier. Community We provide info on activities on offer in the area and help to organise them. We encourage our guests to eat in the mountain yurt and local farm restaurant and to buy all produce through local organic suppliers at the Wednesday Market. |
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