6-Day Flexible Yoga Escape on a Volcanic Crater Lake, Nicaragua

The anchor of each day is two yoga sessions — one in the morning to wake the body up, one in the evening to wind it down. Both are pitched so beginners and more experienced practitioners can take them at their own level. Everything between those two sessions is open time, which is the whole point of the 'flexible' in the name.

What you do with that time depends on you. The lake itself is the obvious draw: you can paddle across its calm surface, swim straight off the dock, or just sit by the water. Shaded trails run through the surrounding dry forest for walks. And two of Nicaragua's most interesting towns are close by — colonial Granada with its painted streets, and Masaya with its market and craft stalls — both easy day trips if you want a change of scene.

The setting does a lot of the work. Laguna de Apoyo sits in a collapsed volcanic crater, which gives it unusually warm, clear water and a steep green rim of forest all around. Staying on the shore rather than up in a town means you're in it rather than visiting it — the birdsong, the wind in the trees, and the view over the water are just there all day.

Food is homemade, plant-based and built around fresh local produce. It's served in a relaxed, shared way with no rush, and dietary needs are accommodated if you flag them when you book.

The retreat is run by Miriam, a Nicaragua-based host who offers this same flexible yoga holiday in several lengths. Accommodation is at her place on the lake, with everything from a shared twin room up to a lake-view suite.

This is a quiet, low-key week rather than an intensive yoga course. If you want long days of back-to-back classes, this isn't that. If you want a steady morning-and-evening practice with a lot of lake, forest and free time around it, it fits well.

What's included

- 6 days / 5 nights accommodation on the lakeshore - Daily morning and evening yoga sessions - Homemade plant-based meals - Access to the lake, dock and forest trails

What's not included

- Flights and airport transfers - Travel insurance - Day trips to Granada and Masaya - Personal expenses - Optional upgrades and extras