Yoga Holiday Italy 2023

Location:

I am excited to share with you a new venue in Italy for our annual yoga retreat. Villa Pia offers us all creature comforts, spaces for yoga both inside and out, set in the hills with stunning views over the surrounding countryside.

About Villa Pia

Villa Pia sits on the border of Tuscany and Umbria on the edge of the medieval village Lippiano. The villa has a heated swimming pool, tennis court with gorgeous views over the Umbrian hills, table tennis, yoga studio and extensive gardens in which to rest and read.

The retreat is all inclusive. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all provided, and you’ll be free to help yourself to fresh fruit, coffee, tea, alcohol and soft drinks at any time of the day or night.   

Villa Pia’s chefs prepare delicious local Italian cuisine with the care and attention to detail that Italians are known for. All their ingredients are locally sourced wherever possible.

Venture Further:

Walk the hills, visit the local medieval hill town Città di Castello to see some great Renaissance art. Walk to Monterchi, a couple of miles from Villa Pia to see Piero della Francesca’s Madonna del Parto, the radical painting of a pregnant Virgin Mary held up as an icon of feminism. 

OR simply read a book, relax, and unwind. Have a massage. Learn to cook like an Italian. Or simply do nothing, allowing more space to open up within, to decompress. 

WHAT’S INCLUDED

All breakfasts and lunches plus fruit, coffee, tea, cake, alcohol, and soft drinks at any time of the day or night.
Dinner for six nights out of seven, including wine and beer. On Thursday, when the kitchen staff have the evening off, we will be free to explore some wonderful places to eat and drink nearby in Monterchi and Lippiano.

WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
Flights and transport to Villa Pia. Where possible group transport can be arranged.
– Travel insurance essential.
– Tickets to galleries.
– Massage, beauty treatments.
– Truffle hunting.
– Cookery lessons.
– Wine tasting

The yoga, the delicious food, beautiful accommodation, the quiet location, wonderful
sunshine, and the opportunity to find time to be with yourself will nourish the soul, relax the body and calm the mind. Turn homewards at the end of the week invigorated and centred!

Accommodation:

There are 11 double rooms all en suite.

Yoga:
I work to ensure that all students can participate and benefit from the practices, whether you’re new to yoga or a more experienced student. The time on the mat is for you to enjoy and celebrate what your body can do, with a positive and non-judgemental or competitive attitude. The experience of yoga on a retreat offers the time and space to take your practice to a deeper, more transformational level.   

The day will start with a refreshing cup of tea and fruit. We will then rendezvous on the platform for a morning practice which will be dynamic and active, harnessing the power of the sun and the energy of the day to invigorate, enliven and stimulate. Lunch will be served on the terrace. The rest of the day is yours to explore this fascinating area or relax around the pool or terraces. The evening practice will be softer, quieter and more meditative as the day cools and evening unfolds; we will have time for some gentler asana, pranayama, meditation and yoga nidra. To close the day, we will share each other’s company and a delicious dinner on the outside terrace overlooking the mountains. 

I do not belong to any particular school of yoga and teach in a non-dogmatic eclectic way, with the emphasis on being inquisitive as to what your body can or cannot do, today, now, rather than acquisitive of posture or end result.  You are free to do as much or as little as you wish; non-yoga partners are very welcome.