Albania Mountains-to-Beach Wellness Escape: 9 Days of Yoga, Qi Gong and Seaside Fitness

The trip opens with the mountain section. Day one is a hike to a waterfall tucked into the forest around Shëngjergj, with Qi Gong and meditation once you get there, then a traditional Albanian lunch. In the afternoon you check into the mountain guesthouse, do a restorative yoga class, and eat dinner in the garden. Day two is a second hike, this time to a mountain lake, again with meditation and Qi Gong by the water. After lunch and one more gentle yoga session you drive down to the coast.

From day three onwards you're at Plazhi i Gjeneralit. Each day has its own focus. One morning is Vinyasa and Kundalini-inspired yoga followed by a fitness class working the upper body and back; another is Hatha and breathwork followed by balance and flexibility drills on the sand. Later in the week the fitness classes move on to core, legs and endurance, then full-body work. Evenings are almost always Yin or Hatha, which is a good counterweight after the beach sessions.

What sets this one apart from the many yoga-and-hiking weeks around Europe is Albert. The beach fitness isn't a generic bootcamp: it's drawn from Shaolin Kung Fu training, and the Qi Gong is taught by someone who has practised Chinese martial arts for three decades and trained with Shaolin monks in China in 2024. On the last full evening there's a Shaolin-inspired Moon Salutation meditation after the closing dinner.

Andrea brings the yoga side. She came to Albania for her legal career and stayed, with yoga and mindfulness gradually becoming her main work. She adjusts classes to the level in the room, so a first-timer and a regular practitioner can do the same session. She also runs two workshops during the week, one on stress management and one on mindfulness, aimed at things you can actually use once you're back at work.

There's a lot of unscheduled time. Afternoons are mostly free: swim in the clear water off the cove, read on your balcony, or sit in the gardens around the bungalows. Nobody's pushing you to fill every hour.

The last day still has a yoga and beach fitness session, then lunch and a final swim, a short gentle yoga and meditation, and the drive back. You're dropped at your Tirana hotel around 7 pm, so plan to fly home the next day.

What's included

- 8 nights accommodation (1 night mountain guesthouse, 7 nights sea-view beach bungalow) - 3 meals a day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) - Daily yoga: Hatha, Vinyasa, Yin and Kundalini - Qi Gong sessions with Albert - Martial arts-inspired beach fitness classes - Guided hike to a hidden waterfall - Guided hike to a mountain lake - Breathwork and meditation sessions - Stress-management and mindfulness workshops - Shaolin-inspired Moon Salutation meditation - Closing dinner - Transfers between your Tirana hotel and the retreat locations, both ways

What's not included

- Flights - Travel insurance - Soft drinks, alcoholic drinks and coffee - Hotel nights in Tirana before and after the retreat - Airport pick-up and drop-off (optional, $56 both ways) - Personal expenses