Four mornings. One yoga mat. A slower pulse.
A gentle four-day retreat in the forests of inland Goa. One ninety-minute session every morning. The rest of the day is open, on purpose.
A retreat for people who want the steadying effect of a daily practice, without the schedule of a teacher training. The brief, in one line
A gentler version of what you already know.
Each morning starts with one ninety-minute session, taken slowly, with a teacher who knows how to work a mixed-level group. The focus is breath, mobility, and releasing the tension most of us carry without noticing.
After breakfast, the day opens up. A nature walk if you want one. The spring pool. A long lunch. A real afternoon nap. We deliberately do not fill the hours. That is the practice too.
Beginners are welcome. So are people who have been on the mat for twenty years. The pace and the focus serve both, which is the harder thing to design and the thing we have spent a long time getting right.
Sadhguru Gurukulam
Astha Gupta. A teacher who arrived here from somewhere else.
Astha is a Classical Hatha Yoga teacher certified by Sadhguru Gurukulam, and a volunteer with the Isha Foundation since 2019. Her training is the 1,750-hour residential program at Isha Yoga Center, which teaches the practice in its oldest and most exacting form.
She did not arrive here from a yoga background. Her early career was in machine learning, AI, and industrial automation. She came to yoga after her own transformation through Hatha practice, and that experience shapes how she teaches now: simple, grounded, practical, focused on making the work accessible to people who want results they can feel.
Her work today is to teach in a way that leaves you able to practice on your own when you go home. The point of the four days is not to make you dependent on a studio. It is to give you something you can keep.
"The body already knows what it needs. The work is to slow down enough to listen, and to come back to it long enough for the changes to settle."
Slow at first. Slower by the end.
Each day adds a little less on purpose. By the last morning the schedule is almost invisible.
Settling in. Nothing more.
The first afternoon is built around landing. No yoga session yet. The schedule starts gently because you do.
- 12:30Arrival and check-in. Cold towel, fresh lime water, room key, no rush.
- 13:30Lunch from the kitchen. Goan thali, often from what was picked that morning.
- 16:00Optional walk with the on-site naturalist around the grounds.
- 18:30Guided sunset meditation at the ridge. Twenty minutes, seated, simple.
- 20:00Dinner outdoors when weather allows. Early to bed for tomorrow's first session.
The body begins to soften.
The first session of the retreat is intentionally the slowest. The point is to introduce the body to the room.
- 06:15Tea and biscuits on the deck. Optional, but most people show up.
- 07:00Ninety-minute morning session. Spine, hips, breath. Long holds.
- 09:00Breakfast in the open dining area. Eggs, fruit, parathas, coffee, time.
- 11:00Optional nature activity, or the morning free at the property.
- 13:30Lunch followed by rest, the pool, or a book on the verandah.
- 17:30Short walk if the light is good. Otherwise, more rest.
- 20:00Dinner and overnight stay.
Most guests stop checking the time.
The day looks similar on paper. It feels very different in the body. This is when the retreat actually starts to work.
- 06:15Tea on the deck. Birds, light, very little conversation.
- 07:00Second morning session. Building on balance and breath capacity.
- 09:00Breakfast at the property.
- 11:00A curated nature experience with the resident guide.
- 13:30Lunch followed by long, unstructured rest.
- 17:00Spring pool, forest, or a chair on the verandah. No schedule.
- 20:00Dinner. Early sleep, by habit now.
A slower kind of departure.
The last morning is paced like the rest of the stay. No rushed exit. Most guests are quieter on the drive out than they were on the drive in.
- 06:15Tea on the deck for the last time. Watch the light come up.
- 07:00Final session. Longer holds, more breath, less movement.
- 09:00Breakfast, with no schedule pressure behind it.
- 11:00Checkout. Slower walk to the car than the one you arrived with.
yogaś-citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ
Yoga is the stilling
of the fluctuations
of the mind.
"If you do not divide the world, as you breathe, as you pulsate with life, you will know you are a part of everything."
From first tea to last fire.
The retreat is shaped by three small anchors, plus a lot of open time on either side of them.
Tea, then practice
A small cup of tea on the deck before anyone speaks. Then ninety minutes on the mat, slow openings and long breaths, in a room that smells faintly of damp earth.
Open hours
A guided walk if you want one. The spring pool. A long lunch. An afternoon nap on the verandah. The schedule deliberately lets go for most of the day.
A small fire
Dinner outdoors when the weather is good. More stars than most guests have seen in years. Sleep early, by habit, by the second night.
Where you will actually be.
Inland Goa, in the Western Ghats. A working plantation, a forest, a spring-fed pool, and a small cluster of cottages.
Right for some people. Not all.
Worth reading before you book. The retreat does a few things well and a few on purpose not at all.
It works if you
- Want a gentle introduction to yoga, or a soft return to it
- Are looking for unstructured days, not a packed schedule
- Prefer quiet evenings and early starts to nightlife and late dinners
- Are comfortable being a little off-grid, in the forest, on uneven ground
- Will read, walk, swim, sleep, and not feel restless about it
It will not suit you if
- You want a high-intensity yoga teacher training
- You expect a city resort with a spa menu and late-night service
- You want every hour scheduled and a curated activity at every turn
- You need fast wifi and stable connectivity for full working days
- You are looking for a beach holiday or a party scene
The basics, handled.
- Three nights in an AC forest cottage
- Goan buffet meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Tea and coffee through the day
- All yoga sessions and the guided sunset meditation
- All scheduled Nature's Nest activities listed in the itinerary
- Access to the natural, chlorine-free spring pool
- All applicable taxes
- Pick-up and drop from airport or railway station (additional cost)
- Any food or beverages outside the included meals
- Personal expenses, laundry, off-property activities
Things people usually ask.
No. The morning sessions are gentle and built for mixed groups. People who have never done yoga sit alongside long-time practitioners and both get something useful from the same class.
Ninety minutes, every morning. Hatha-based, slow paced, breath-led. Focus is on releasing tension, restoring mobility, and breath awareness rather than physical intensity. Slower than a typical city studio class.
Yes. A good number of guests do. The shared meals, the small group sessions and the gentle rhythm of the property make it easy to settle in without feeling on display.
Loose cotton clothing for yoga and walks, a light layer for early mornings, closed shoes for forest paths, a swimsuit for the spring pool, and any personal medication. A full list goes out with the booking confirmation.
The property is in Surla, Sacordem, Dharbandora, inland Goa. Roughly ninety minutes from Dabolim airport, depending on traffic. Pick-up and drop can be arranged for an additional cost.
The kitchen is largely Goan and largely vegetarian, with non-vegetarian options on most meals. Allergies and dietary preferences are easy to accommodate if you let the kitchen know in advance.
Send a short message to check dates.
A WhatsApp note is the fastest way to see availability, check whether the package fits, and get the practical details. Mention your preferred week, whether you are coming alone or with someone, and any yoga background.