Wellness Week on Ikaria: Yoga, Acupuncture and Longevity

The retreat starts with an afternoon arrival at Karras Star Hotel in Avlaki village, a mile from the port of Evdilos. There is a meet-and-greet with drinks and a welcome dinner at the hotel, plus a presentation from Geoff and Po D'Arcy. The hotel has a pool with views over the north shore, and rooms come with either a garden or sea view.

Most mornings follow the same shape: yoga with Po from 7:30 to 9:00, then a breakfast buffet until 11:00. On several days there is an acupuncture clinic with Geoff and Alyssa at 11:30. Lunch is at the hotel at 1:30 on some days, and afternoons are left open. On Day 3 there is a restorative gentle yoga session at 6pm with acupuncture alongside. Day 5 adds "Poolates" — exercises in the pool with Po — before lunch and a presentation on the week's lessons.

The outings are the part that makes this different from a standard yoga week. On Day 2 you go to George and Eleni Karimalis's farmhouse vineyard for a cooking class. George talks about the traditional Ikarian diet and longevity, then Eleni teaches you to cook dishes that you eat on the vineyard terrace with organic wine from the vines below. Day 3 is a road trip north with a coffee stop in a mountain village and a soak in the ancient thermal baths at Therma, which were private spa baths for Greco-Roman royalty and were not open to the public until the 20th century. Day 4 is a hike through Mediterranean forest — pine, centenarian oaks, wild strawberry trees — with a visit to a herbal lab that makes medicines and cosmetics from the local plants. Day 5 ends with a tour and tasting at an Ikarian winery, including the pithostasi where clay jars are buried for fermentation and the granite press where grapes are pressed by foot.

The week closes with a farewell dinner buffet on Day 5 evening and a final breakfast buffet on Day 6 before transfers to the airport. The schedule is described as fluid and subject to change, and activities may change too.

Geoff and Po D'Arcy lead the programme. Po teaches the yoga, which is described as gentle and all levels, with more vigorous workout sessions also available. Geoff and Alyssa run the acupuncture clinics, which happen both as individual sessions and as part of yin yoga savasana. Geoff and Po also give health presentations during the week. The page does not list their specific certifications or training history.

Ikaria itself is the setting: a northern Aegean island reached by a 35-minute flight from Athens. The hotel is on the north coast near Evdilos, close to the beaches at Messakti and Livadi and the villages of Armenistis and Gialiskari. Average June temperatures are 68–79°F.

What's included

- Six nights' accommodation with breakfast at Karras Star Hotel - Welcome and farewell dinners - Five lunches - Daily yoga sessions with Po - Acupuncture sessions (individual clinics and as part of yin yoga savasana) - Optional morning fitness classes - Health presentations - All yoga mats and blocks provided in the yoga shala - All scheduled activities: Panagiria Festival (if dates allow), Herb Walk, Cooking Class, Road Trip/Thermal Baths, Winery Tour and Tasting - Airport transfers for specific flight times

What's not included

- Beverages (alcoholic or soft drinks) - Massages - Three free time dinners - One free time lunch at Therma restaurant - Hiking lunch - Free time taxis transport - All flights