Sacred Valley Yoga & Shamanic Healing Retreat in Peru

The programme runs at Munay Sonqo Eco Resort, near the village of Arin by Calca, sitting at the foot of the mountains Pitisuray and Sawasiray and right below the Arin waterfall. The resort is built from local materials and set in flower gardens and fruit trees, with hummingbirds, hammocks, and views of the Apus. Rooms are individually themed around Peruvian culture and surrounded by gardens. It's an hour from Cusco and around two hours from Machu Picchu.

A typical day opens with meditation and yoga, followed by breakfast, then spiritual lessons or teaching sessions depending on whether you're on the retreat or training track. Afternoons hold more practice, ceremony work, or excursions, and evenings often include kirtan. Meals are vegetarian and cooked from produce grown on the land.

The ceremonies are the part people remember: a despacho (an offering ceremony), plant baths for cleansing, a temescal sweat lodge, a cacao ceremony, coca leaf readings, and sound and shamanic healing. These are led by Andean shamans. Additional shamanic ceremonies can be booked on days off, and there's an optional Machu Picchu excursion.

What separates this from a standard yoga week is the mix of indigenous Andean practice and yogic teaching. The retreat is structured around the Peruvian Medicine Wheel, which frames the week's work as peeling back layers rather than simply adding more practice. You'll also visit indigenous villages in the Sacred Valley and walk among Inca and pre-Inca ruins, with hiking in the mountains on the schedule.

The setting does a lot of the work. The Sacred Valley is regarded as one of the more energetically significant places in the Andes, and the programme leans into that — the land, the plants, and the local ceremonies are treated as part of the curriculum rather than scenery.

For those on the teacher training path, the certification is Yoga Alliance approved, and the training covers a holistic approach to teaching that connects with nature, spirit, and your own intuition. You leave certified; you also leave having sat in a sweat lodge at 2,800 metres with a Quechua shaman, which is not part of most 200-hour courses.

What's included

- Accommodation at Munay Sonqo Eco Resort - Daily meditation and yoga sessions - Vegetarian meals from locally grown produce - Spiritual lessons and teaching sessions - Kirtan - Despacho ceremony - Cleansing plant baths - Temescal (sacred sweat lodge ceremony) - Heart-opening cacao ceremony - Traditional coca leaf reading - Sound and shamanic healings - Ceremonies with Andean shamans (Quechua, Aymara) - Visits to indigenous villages in the Sacred Valley - Excursions to Inca and pre-Inca sacred ruins - Hiking in the surrounding sacred mountains - Yoga Alliance approved teacher certification (training track)

What's not included

- International flights - Domestic flights and transport to Cusco - Travel insurance - Airport transfers (confirm with operator) - Optional Machu Picchu excursion - Optional additional shamanic ceremonies on days off - Personal expenses - Tips and gratuities - Alcohol and any drinks outside of meals