Ireland – the Emerald Isle – is home to extensive megalithic tombs and monuments, remnants of a spiritual and agricultural people dating back to around 4500 BC, and wild, natural beauty.
The ancient history of Ireland, the folklore, the strong spiritual culture, and the natural beauty will all inspire our exploration of the ancient yoga tradition.
This trip is a combination of a yoga retreat and a culture-filled holiday. Open both to those that want to practice daily yoga to enhance their travel experience, and their travel partners who may wish to join in some of the practices or not at all.
Let’s explore together the wild landscape, ancient culture and ancient practices in Sligo, Ireland.
This holiday offers you an opportunity to truly experience Ireland…
visiting some of the oldest and largest megalithic tombs in the country,
staying at an awe-inspiring country manor house – Temple House – dating back to the 1600s and looking out over the ruins of a Knights Templar castle,
enjoy traditional, seasonal, and local fare for breakfast and dinner, served in the beautiful and elegant dining room,
take in the natural beauty on the grounds and in the surrounding areas,
sit by the fire at Temple House for a night of traditional Irish music and folk lore performed live just for us.
The Details
TEACHERS & YOGA
Jaime Boswell and Kathy Fotterall are both advanced therapeutic yoga teachers with a strong influence from the Kripalu yoga tradition and a passion for studying and embodying all aspects of yoga. All classes are accessible and adaptable to help each student find a balance of steadiness, challenge and ease within their own practice.
The yoga practices will weave together yoga philosophy along with therapeutic practices for the breath, body and mind, always honoring the individual needs of each person. We believe yoga is a practice for all, and will offer variations in the physical practice to allow for finding the positions that support your unique practice and intention.
Classes will be offered each morning and on two afternoons.
Click here to learn more about Jaime and Kathy.
THE LOCATION
Templehouse, County Sligo, Ireland
Temple House, a luxury Country House in county Sligo, Ireland, is a classical Georgian manor set in a private estate of over 1,000 acres, overlooking a 13th century lakeside castle of the Knights Templar. The Perceval family home since 1665, the present manor was redesigned in 1864 and enjoys the authentic and unpretentious luxury country house atmosphere.
Half a mile of avenue meandering through mature parkland brings you to Temple House, its lush green grass maintained in perfect order with the assistance of sixteen hundred sheep and their lambs. Fine old trees provide the flock with a measure of shade on hot days and, in all directions, there is a screen formed by the natural woods that cover more than half the area of this impressive estate.
GETTING THERE & BACK
Transportation to and from Dublin and Temple House will be provided. We will meet in Dublin, at an easy to access hotel, the morning of September 6 around 8:00 am.
Arriving a day or two early into Dublin is highly recommended to allow time to explore the city and to adjust and acclimate.
On our way between Dublin and Temple House we will stop at the Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site to tour the sites of Newgrange, a 5,200 year old passage tomb, and Knowth, an elaborately decorated passage tomb. After touring the site we will make a stop in a nearby village for lunch before making our way to Temple House.
On September 11 we will depart from Temple House early enough to allow for arrival at the Dublin airport by 1:00 pm.
YOGA, EXCURSIONS & WANDERINGS
Make the experience exactly what you want by choosing how you want to spend your time each day.
Yoga classes will be offered each morning, followed by a full Irish breakfast prepared by our host Roderick.
Following breakfast there will be a planned optional excursion each day. Two full-day excursions and two transfers to local towns can be added on for a cost of $160 for all, prices for individual excursions will also be offered. Pre-registration and payment for excursions will be required by May 2022 in order to plan accordingly.
Details on excursions may change due to weather, tour company recommendations or other circumstances. Some of the things we plan to include are:
- free time to wander and explore Sligo Town and Strandhill,
- a hike to the magical Caves of Kesh which have seen human habitation going back to the dawn of settlement in Ireland,
- a picnic and hike at the Neolithic tomb complex of Carrowkeel where 26 of the oldest passage tombs in Western Europe lie scattered over 4 hilltopsoverlooking the beautiful Lough Arrow,
- a day trip to visit Slish wood for a lakeside walk to Inishfree island (a site that was inspiration to the poet William Yeats), Stanford’s tea rooms in Dromahair for lunch, Glencar waterfall and Yeats’ graveside.
The grounds are also free for wandering and row boats are available for exploring the lake.
Prior to dinner we will gather in the Morning Room where drinks are available for purchase on the honor system. On our last evening after dinner we will enjoy traditional Irish music and stories by the fire.
The Investment
Double Occupancy – $1450 per person
Single Occupancy – $2100 per person
Per person costs include:
Transportation between Dublin and Temple House,
Tour of Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site
5-nights luxury stay at Temple House, either in a single room or in shared accommodations with your travel companion, all rooms enjoy their own bathroom,
Five morning yoga practices inspired by the ancient teachings of yoga and the ancient culture of Ireland,
Two gentle and restful afternoon yoga practices, intended to help you feel your best into the evening,
Local, seasonal, and traditional breakfast and dinner – the day of arrival we will have a full 4-course dinner, other evenings will alternate between two and three courses – please note with advanced notice dietary needs can be accommodated,
Full use of the Temple House grounds – please visit the Templehouse website for more about the location, bedrooms, and sample menus – www.Templehouse.ie.
Costs to consider that are not included in the retreat pricing:
Flights & Hotel stay in Dublin
Excursions
Lunch
Alcoholic beverages
Tips
3% Credit card processing fee – (does not apply to initial deposit) – note you are welcome to make your additional payments via check.
Availability
**Please email to inquire about current availability.**
A 50% Deposit Per Person is Required to Reserve Your Room
The balance will be due on July 15, 2022.
All payments are non-refundable, please strongly consider the purchase of individual trip insurance to protect your investment in the case of unforeseen circumstances (e.g. illness, pandemic related travel issues, natural disasters etc.).
There are no exceptions to the no refunds policy.
