Kerala Yoga & Ayurveda Retreat: Ashram Life, Backwaters and Varkala Beach

You land at Cochin airport and get picked up in the morning, then drive to Munnar for two nights near the tea plantations. From there it's on to Alleppey and a night on a traditional Kerala houseboat — a converted rice barge that cruises the Kuttanad backwaters, one of the few places on earth where rice is farmed below sea level. Food is cooked and served on board, and you sleep on the boat.

Then comes the core of the trip: seven nights at the Sivananda Yoga Ashram at Neyyar Dam, next to a lake inside a wildlife sanctuary and surrounded by forest. The ashram has a fixed daily routine you're expected to keep to. Mornings start in silence, followed by guided meditation, mantra chanting and prayer, then a 90-minute hatha yoga class with pranayama, surya namaskar and asanas, finishing with deep relaxation. There's a yoga philosophy lecture each day covering things like the four paths of yoga, the Vedas and Upanishads, the three gunas, and the three bodies and five sheaths. You'll also do a stint of karma yoga — the ashram's service work. Evenings are meditation and chanting again.

A four-hour Ayurvedic wellness package runs alongside this stay: oil massage, Shirodhara (the warm oil poured steadily over the forehead), Njavara kizhi (herbal rice boluses), head massage and a herbal steam bath. While based here you also go out with a local guide to walk the village, see old temples and visit the traditional markets.

The final three nights are in Varkala, a beach town in Kerala known for its clifftop restaurants and shops. Yoga and meditation continue in the mornings here, but the afternoons are yours — swimming, wandering the cliff path, buying spices and handicrafts, or eating your way through the local and international restaurants. Only breakfast is provided at this stage so you can choose where to eat. Throughout, transport between resorts and to and from the airport is in air-conditioned vehicles.

The whole thing is run by Rajesh Dayakar, a classic hatha yoga teacher based in Linköping, Sweden, who was born and raised in Kerala. He studied yoga and Ayurveda here for years, taught yoga in Bali, and has been a guest teacher on other Bali retreats. On this trip he teaches the yoga classes, leads meditation and the philosophy talks, and acts as guide in the region he grew up in. Group sizes are small enough that he knows everyone's name; past guests describe the trip as well-organised but flexible, and one family who brought an 11-year-old noted how well their child was looked after.

What's included

- 14 nights' accommodation (twin share or private room) - All yoga classes - Guided meditation and mantra chanting - Yoga philosophy talks - Satsang sessions - Breakfast, lunch and dinner for the first 11 nights - Breakfast only for the final 3 nights in Varkala - Ayurvedic wellness package (oil massage, Shirodhara, Njavara kizhi, head massage, herbal steam bath) - Pick-up and drop-off at Cochin Airport - Air-conditioned transport between resorts - Night on a traditional Kerala houseboat in the backwaters - Guided village tour, temple and market visits - 7 nights at the Sivananda Yoga Ashram following the ashram schedule

What's not included

- Flights - Visa - Transport for extra activities such as temples and shopping - Lunch and dinner for the final 3 nights in Varkala - Travel insurance - Ayurvedic treatments for children