Yoga & meditation holiday in Turkey ​​
​with Fairlie Gibson & Katrin Heuser

A real treat for your body, mind and soul! Join us for our Yoga and meditation holiday on the stunning Turkish Riviera. A chance to escape day-to-day life, press the pause button and reconnect with your sense of well-being. At the same time, explore the rich culture inherited from the Persian, Greek and Roman times and enjoy the Turkish hospitality. 

Based on the work of Scaravelli Inspired Yoga and Moshe Feldenkrais the lessons will be a process of increasing awareness, sensing, feeling and experimenting with movement and breathing. We look to cultivate moving with more ease, freedom and comfort and less effort and strain. We will look at how to use gravity more intelligently, to shift our weight more efficiently, to organise the alignment of the body better, to breathe more freely, and as a result how to feel pleasure again in movement. The emphasis will be on doing less; using self-enquiry, moving very slowly, sensing and feeling what is going on in our body and our head, challenging what we habitually do and providing new options. It will be an opportunity to vastly increase your sensory awareness, move with more freedom and ease and experience more lightness of being, more wisdom, joy, balance and peace in your life. 
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Can we improve posture, mobility and mental state, by sensing and discovering from the inside what is an optimal way of moving, breathing, thinking for each of us? During the week you can expect to do a lot of sensing of yourself from the inside, ask yourself a lot of questions (no answers needed), experiment with some seemingly very mad movements (all done in a non-judgmental way), meditate and feel really good at the end of it all!

Our intention is to create a deeply restful experience filled with beautiful practices as well as lots of free time for that holiday feeling. Go back home feeling refreshed and more yourself again.

The Huzur Vadisi Lagoon Retreat is the perfect setting. The utter peace and privacy of the venue, immersed in nature, creates a wonderful atmosphere conducive to your yoga practice. Forest bathe, inhale the vital prana, tune into birdsong and the hum of cicadas. We do our practice in a beautiful shala surrounded by forest and the mountains.

On one of the days, we will take a "day off" for a chance to enjoy one of Ian's (our host) famous trips. This could take us to nearby ruins of ancient Caunos, or mud baths, on a bat or other excursions, including off the beaten track. This is optional, and if you prefer you can also chill out on the beach, go for a longer walk, relax by the pool...

Dates and prices

3rd-10th June 2023

​2024 dates to be announced soon!!

EARLY BIRD - BOOK UNTIL 3 MAY 2023!

• £805 - place in shared double or twin
• £925 - place in single 

NORMAL PRICE - AFTER 3 MAY 2023!

• £855 - place in shared double/twin
• £975 - place in single 

SEAVIEW
​At a supplement of £70.​

The prices include:

• Seven nights en-suite accommodation in boutique rooms with balcony
• Delicious and healthy vegetarian breakfast and dinner every day, plus light DIY lunches from ingredients provided by the kitchen
• ​Tea/coffee/fruit all day
• Ten 2h Yoga, movement & meditation classes

They don't include flights, insurance, massages, airport transfers, other trips and activities.

Book your place or enquire here!

What previous participants say about our retreat

We had such a wonderful week at The Lagoon Retreat. The yoga shala is a truly zen space, looking out over the valley with the sounds of the birds, insects, goats, and of course the Call to Prayer accompanying our practice. The pool terrace, with the view across the lagoon and out to sea is heavenly; it’s easy to spend hours watching the light change while the swallows take their evening dip in the pool. Venturing out from the retreat there’s plenty to do, taking a walk down to the lagoon for a swim, or spending some time at Turtle Beach. Snorkelling along the rocks I found myself face to face with a majestic turtle who permitted me to follow for a good ten minutes before she headed out to sea. I’m sure my perfectly crafted yoga sessions with Kat and Fairlie enabled a state of peace that brought about this cosmic encounter!
~ Amanda

My highlight is the anticipation for next year... Ian has yet again created an incredible place. I was really taken by the breathtaking location and its seclusion. The staff are incredibly attentive and accommodating. The week was super varied with gentle yoga, new experiences with Feldenkrais, massages of the highest standard, really delicious and healthy food and wonderful excursions.
~ Ursula

Free time

We start and end every day with a 2-hour practice. The rest of the day is free to relax, enjoy the lush pool, chill at the beach, go walking in the shade of the pine forest, or dip into the riverside town of Dalyan for some shopping.

Possible other activities (extras)

• Take a boat trip through the delta of Dalyan
• Treat yourself and book a session with the resident massage therapist
• Spend the day on the beach (very easy bus ride away)
• Go kayaking on the lagoon (a private beach can be reached by a 15-minute walk through the forest)
• Various sightseeing trips are available
• Get scrubbed and pampered in a traditional Turkish Bath
• ​Enjoy the fun of the local mud baths

About the Lagoon Retreat

The Lagoon Retreat is located in an elevated position in a forested conservation area overlooking the Sülüngür Lagoon with spectacular views across the beautiful Dalyan delta and Istuzu beach. 
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Ian is your host and has been one of the founding partners of Huzur Vadisi for over thirty years. He has a fantastic fund of local knowledge, which combined with his long experience of creating and hosting yoga venues will guarantee your retreat runs smoothly and enjoyably. He is supported by Arslan, who discovered this extraordinary location twenty-five years ago developing the property in harmony with its spectacular natural setting. 

A short bus ride from the village will bring you to the charming riverside town of Dalyan with its shops and restaurants. A 5-minute bus ride in the opposite direction will take you to Istuzu, a long, sandy beach in the conservation area where Loggerhead turtles come to lay their eggs.  

This is a unique location - with its combination of complete seclusion (you feel as if you are on the edge of the known world) and yet accessible, situated on the edge of a traditional rural village with bus connections for getting out and about if you wish. It has unbeatable views, comfortable well-appointed accommodation, a pool and a fully equipped yoga shala. Not to mention the delicious meals for which Turkey, and Huzur Vadisi in particular, are renowned.

Accommodation 

There are eleven air-conditioned ensuite bedrooms suitable for single, double or twin accommodation with balconies and lovely forest views. One sea view room is available at a supplement. 

The Food

Enjoy fresh vegetables and fruit during all our truly delicious meals. It is the food as much as the location, as well as the hospitality, that make this the perfect place to relax and find some peace. 

We will be served opulent breakfast and dinner, unlimited fruit, water, teas and coffee. Delicious inexpensive lunches are available a short walk away in charming little eateries (or in Dalyan) or you can get a light packed lunch if you’re going to the beach. 

Travel info

Flights

There are several companies flying to Dalaman, or you can get an easy connection via Istanbul. Prices vary according to time of booking or season. It is advisable to book early to get the best prices. 

Transfers

The Lagoon Retreat is 25 minutes from Dalaman airport and we will arrange transfers, for which the costs will be added to your bill (for any extras) at the end, so you don't need any Turkish Lira on arrival. ​

About us

You can read all about me (Katrin) HERE.

​And I am so excited for you to meet Fairlie: 

For more than 20 years a Scaravelli Inspired Yoga teacher, Fairlie is now also embracing a Feldenkrais Training, as well as bringing some Qi Gong into her practice and teaching. These practices all feed beautifully into the way she likes to teach Mindfulness Meditation. 

​Very similarly to me, Fairlie loves how contemporary Science, Anatomy, Physiology and Neuroscience are all questioning and validating traditional Yoga practices and she relishes the explorations that these disciplines have brought into her life. 

What other participants say

Now that the sights, sounds, whiffs and delicious tastes of that very lovely off the beaten track part of Turkey have started to subside the cosmic feel good factor remains...and I'm not talking about the aftereffects of the stiff Pimms and lemonade that I've just downed. What a lovely experience to have had. 
~ Helen

I honestly can’t recall a holiday that’s had so much internal push and pull and emotional connection as this one ….I still feel like I’m processing all kinds of stuff….in a good way.
~ Jacqui

Everything was excellent - well organised, flowed beautifully from one activity to the next and felt in a safe place to explore the body and build confidence. The experience of finding and feeling and awakening in my body for the first time, despite many years of yoga, made this week very special. 
~ Steph

Book your place or enquire here!