A typical day starts at 7:30 with pranayama and meditation in the grounds of The Tranquil Inn. Breakfast follows: organic milk, fresh fruit and juices, bean sprouts, porridge and curd. At 9:30 an English-speaking driver and a local guide collect you for the morning excursion, which might be Solang Valley, the Roerich Art Gallery, Naggar Castle, Jogini Falls or the Gompa Monastery. You are back at the resort around 1:30 for lunch on the balcony.

The afternoon is deliberately loose. Some days you have an Ayurvedic massage — three are included across the nine days, each 45 to 50 minutes and of a different type. Otherwise you can rest, read or walk in the forest around the property. At 4:30 the guide takes you out again to temples, waterfalls, Buddhist gompas, museums, lakes or a sunset point. Dinner is at 8:00 and the evening is yours.

What separates this from a standard Himalayan sightseeing tour is that the yoga, meditation and Ayurveda are taught rather than demonstrated. K V Singh has more than 25 years of practice in classical yoga, meditation and Ayurveda, and sessions are built around what guests already know. The programme also includes an aarti arranged privately at an ancient temple and a havan-pooja for health and happiness on the eighth day, plus kirtan and spiritual discourses.

The property is boutique and family-owned, in the quietest and most forested part of Manali but still well connected to the town. Rooms have attached bathrooms with modern fittings, and corridors and lounge windows look out over the landscape — good for sunrise and sunset. Food is fresh and mostly organically grown, and the resort runs silent walks in and around the grounds.

Excursions across the week draw on a long list of local sites: Gompa Monastery, Solang Valley, the Roerich Art Gallery, Naggar Castle, Jana Waterfalls, the Angora Rabbit Farm, Manikaran Hot Springs, the Kullu Shawl Weaving Centre, the Wildlife Sanctuary, Manu Temple, Hidimba Temple, the Himachal Museum of Art and Culture, Jogini Falls, Gulaba, Arjun Gufa cave, Rahala Waterfalls, Beas Kund, Kullu and the Manali Club. Which ones you visit depends on the day and the weather.

Getting there is part of the package if you book early enough. The operator provides complimentary return flights between New Delhi (DEL) and Kullu Manali Airport (KUU) — a 1 hour 15 minute hop — provided the tour is booked 50 days before arrival and paid 18 days before arrival. Guests are met at Kullu and driven the 49 km to the resort, and driven back at the end.

What's included

- 7 days, 6 nights accommodation (sold as a 9 day / 8 night tour) - 3 daily meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner - Snacks during excursions - Mineral water, tea, coffee and juices throughout the day - Daily meditation classes - Pranayama and classical yoga teaching with K V Singh - 3 Ayurvedic massages of 45-50 minutes each - Welcome drink - Nature hikes with a trusted guide - Free excursions to sites of interest with an English-speaking driver and local guide - Exclusive aarti at an ancient temple - Havan-pooja for health and happiness on day 8 - Kirtan and spiritual discourses - Complimentary return flights New Delhi (DEL) to Kullu Manali (KUU), subject to booking 50 days before arrival and payment 18 days before arrival - Airport pickup and drop-off at Kullu Manali Airport - Wifi connection - Pre and post retreat support

What's not included

- Personal expenses - Additional activities not included in the itinerary - Travel insurance - Visa fee - Additional treatments - All other flights

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