(No availability) 8 Days Yoga and Qigong Adventure Retreat in Melaque, Mexico

This active vacation week includes yoga, Qigong, and meditation with lots of free time for active explorations in the area including biking, hiking, and bird watching. Your instructors, Dawn Aarons and Noel Wright, are longtime friends and colleagues and most recently collaborated in writing a curriculum for the Georgian College acupuncture program.

Itinerary

Day 1 (Monday, November 19, 2018)

• Arrival
• Evening program

Day 2 (Tuesday, November 20, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Free time
• Lunch
• Excursion to La Manzanilla, crocodile tour, and sunset birdwatching boat tour (optional)

Day 3 (Wednesday, November 21, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Class
• Lunch
• Free time
• Qigong class

Day 4 (Thursday, November 22, 2018)

• Bike trip (option to ride uber or taxi)
• Breakfast in Jaluco
• Free time
• Lunch
• Free time
• Qigong class

Day 5 (Friday, November 23, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Boat trip (lunch) / Barra sunset, Barra nightlife (optional)

Day 6 (Saturday, November 24, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Free time
• Lunch
• Free time
• Qigong

Day 7 (Sunday, November 25, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Free day (bag lunches available)

Day 8 (Monday, November 26, 2018)

• Morning meridian flow yoga
• Breakfast
• Go home (or stay for another great week)

Please note that this is a vacation and you can opt in or out of what you would like to do. All activities are subject to change.

Bike trip to Jaluco

This morning ride will take you out of town and onto the back roads where you will see farmer’s fields and small communities. You will stop at Fonda, a small restaurant owned by a fabulous cook named Rufina. Rufina will prepare breakfast, fresh squeezed orange juice, and special coffee. Fortified, you will return to the hotel on a shorter, more direct route. The bikes you rent are not new but are all in good working order.

Lunch in Colimilla

This outing includes taking the local bus in Melaque (you can think of it as a tour bus as it will take you all over town) to a nearby town, Barra de Navidad. From Barra, you will take a short boat ride to a restaurant in a village called Colimilla. You will enjoy a leisurely lunch there and then return to Barra.

Barra has excellent shopping, a small museum, some great cafés, and restaurants. People will have free time to roam in Barra for a few hours until you meet on the rooftop of the Alondra Hotel for sunset. After sunset, there is the option to dine in Barra. The return to the hotel will need to be by taxi at the cost of 90 MXN for up to four people.

This retreat will take place in Melaque, Mexico. San Patricio Melaque is a fishing village on the Pacific Coast (between Manzanillo and Puerto Vallarta) that has become very popular with West Coast Canadians and Americans. The community is friendly and appreciates tourism, as tourism has become its number one industry.

Fishing continues to be an important industry as well as farming in the surrounding areas. There are diverse ecosystems in the area and numerous plants and animals. Some locals speak English, but the majority do not. If you make an effort (even just using “Por favor" or please and “Gracias” or thank you).

You will notice how friendly and patient most people are. It is easy to get around without Spanish. Those in the service industries at least know to help you get what you want and need.

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You will be provided with a welcome dinner, seven breakfasts, and five lunches. You are in for a treat. Mexican food is delicious. Some put lime and chili on everything. You will leave it on the side for those who want to take the right amount for them. The food is fresh and tastes more delicious in Mexico.

The chef will only use the finest ingredients and introduce you (if you have not enjoyed them already) to local dishes including but not limited to tacos, tostadas, tamales, and pozole. You will also respond to the specific preferences of each person (one of the benefits of being a small group). Your food will surely be generous in quantity, fresh, and delicious.

It is recommended not to drink water directly from the tap. Even the local people use filtered water and definitely, all restaurants use only filtered water and wash fruits and vegetables carefully. Filtered water will be made easily available to you. Almost everyone there uses water from “garafon”, a large plastic container.

Full containers are sold from trucks that drive around the neighborhood. The hotel will provide all the water you need. Feel free to fill up water bottles at the hotel. It is fine to shower in the tap water.

• Hiking with Lola (Dawn’s dog) to the Mirador
• Birdwatching
• Visit Cuastacomates
• Snorkeling
• Horseback riding
• Skimboarding
• Surfing
• Paddle boating
• Fishing
• Massage

• 6 yoga classes
• 3 Qigong classes
• Orientation and translation service
• Bike excursion
• Excursion by bus and boat to two nearby communities
• Sheets, pillows, blankets, and hotel towels
• Service of professional instructors
• 7 breakfasts and 5 lunches
• Welcome dinner
• 7 nights accommodation
• Airport transfers from and to Playa de Oro International Airport (ZLO)

• Flights
• Dinner
• Gratuities

Recommended Airports

• A reservation requires a deposit of 14% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
• The rest of the payment should be paid 30 days before arrival.