The day starts at 6:00 with 30 minutes of guided meditation, at beginner or intermediate level depending on your track. From 6:30 there is Jala Neti and a herbal drink, then the main asana and pranayama session runs 7:00 to 9:00. Brunch is at 9:00 and includes fresh fruit. Morning theory runs 10:30 to 12:30 — Yoga Philosophy and Yoga Psychology on the two yoga tracks, Ayurveda Lifestyle on the Ayurveda course. Between 12:30 and 1:00 teachers are available for one-to-one help with asanas or philosophy if you want it. Lunch and rest follow from 1:00 to 2:30.

Afternoons differ by track. Beginners have self-study and free time from 2:30 to 4:00, then a gentle asana and pranayama class from 4:30 to 6:30. Intensive students use 2:30 to 4:00 for Yoga Sadhana or Ayurveda Basics, then take an advanced asana, pranayama and meditation class in the same late-afternoon slot. Ayurveda Foundation students have free time or treatments in the afternoon and an Ayurveda practicals workshop from 4:30 to 6:30, which includes a cooking class three times a week. Dinner is 7:00 to 8:00, and 8:00 to 9:00 is given to videos, chanting or a cultural evening. Silence runs from 10:00 pm to 10:00 am.

Classes run six days a week; the seventh day is free for optional day trips. A guided nature walk is offered once a week and is open to everyone. Timings can shift with the weather.

What separates this from a generic yoga holiday is the length and the structure. Two full weeks with a fixed daily timetable, a certificate at the end (70 hours for Beginners, 100 hours for Intensive and for the Ayurveda course), and morning theory classes rather than asana alone. The Ayurveda Foundation Course is taught by Ayurveda doctors from traditional Kerala families, and its practical sessions are led by the ashram's therapists, who show the medicines used and how treatments are given.

The setting is a working organic farm, not a hotel. Cottages sit among the trees, yoga halls are open-air, and the river is at the edge of the property. Kerala and Tamil Nadu are both within an hour's drive, which makes the free day useful for trips out. The ashram has run teacher training since 2010 and reports more than 2,000 graduates from over 30 countries.

Groups are capped at 10 per track, which is why the one-to-one consultation slot exists in the timetable at all. Teachers are Indian, and the yoga is traditional Hatha rather than a modern studio style. Meals are home-style Indian vegetarian, less spicy and less oily than restaurant food, with the menu approved by Ayurveda doctors and nutritionists.

Getting there takes planning. Most guests fly into Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport, about 200 km away and roughly a four-hour drive, or up to five in daytime city traffic. Mysore Airport is 45 minutes away but has only a few domestic flights. The ashram arranges shared taxi pick-ups from Bangalore where guests arrive around the same time; transfers are not in the price. Foreign guests need an Indian visa before landing, most nationalities as an e-Visa applied for at least two weeks ahead, and the ashram provides a sponsorship letter once the booking is fully paid.

What's included

- 14 nights accommodation in your chosen room (Twin-share, Private Eco-Room or Premium Room) - Three Ayurvedic vegetarian meals a day with herbal drinks - All yoga, meditation and theory classes on your chosen track - Course manuals and a cotton yoga mat - Christmas Eve festive dinner with the ashram staff - Christmas Day holiday outing - Two cultural evenings: classical Indian dance and classical music - New Year's Eve feast and midnight fire ritual - Complimentary night of 31 December - 108 Sun Salutations on 1 January 2027 - Weekly guided nature walk - 70-hour or 100-hour certificate depending on track

What's not included

- Flights and Indian visa - Airport transfers and taxis (can be arranged by the ashram) - Ayurveda treatments and medicines - Optional excursions and day trips - Extra nights before or after the retreat ($50 per day) - 4% processing fee on international card payments