“Experience a yoga retreat like no other”
6 Day Wild and Free Yoga Wellness Retreat in Monte Velho, Algarve
Monte Velho Retreat Centre, Carrapateira, 8670-230 Aljezur, Portugal
Portugal Yoga Retreat
Join the Wild and Free tribe on the West Coast of the Algarve for a yoga retreat like no other. Connect with your instinctual wild woman through embodied yoga, meditation, cacao ceremony, rituals, cyclical wisdom, sound healing, nature, and the sea. Come away feeling empowered and ready to start manifesting your desires!
Meet the instructors
Sarah
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Highlights
- Daily morning and evening workshop-style yoga classes
- Daily morning guided meditation sessions and journaling workshops
- Experience a sound bath evening, a cyclical wisdom workshop, and a cacao ceremony
- Daily delicious vegetarian and vegan breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Some yoga classes will be outdoors on the wooden deck
- All the yoga equipment you will need will be provided
- 5 nights accommodation
Skill level
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Advanced
6 days with instruction
Group size: 8-16 participants
Accommodation
Check-in Time:
16:00
Check-out Time:
10:00
Facilities
- Sauna
- Air-conditioned public areas
- Barbeque facilities
- Dining area
- Environmentally friendly
- Fireplace
- Garden
- Kitchen
- Lobby
- Lounge
- Luggage room / storage
- Meditation garden
- Multilingual staff
- Picnic area
- Terrace
- Yoga deck
- Yoga shala
- Yoga studio
- Free Wi-Fi
- Internet access
- Ironing / ironing board
- Laundry
- Medical assistance
- Parking lot
- Tour assistance
- Wireless internet
The space is luxurious and the perfect place to spend some quality time on a solo retreat adventure or a retreat adventure with your friend, partner, or family. Once at the retreat center, you will be in the heart of nature, close to the wonderful beaches of the Algarve.
Available rooms
- Twin room with two single beds and an en-suite private bathroom
- Private room with a double bed and a private bathroom
- Deluxe private room with a double bed and a private bathroom
- Private or shared room in Forrest House
- Tree House Private Suite
Program
Yoga
Experience daily yoga with Sarah. The first practice is in the morning after meditation. It’s a 90-minute Vinyasa-style yoga. Some of these classes are workshop-style in parts where you will delve into technique with practices 90 to 120 minutes long. Your second practice is in the evening and will be a variety of Yin yoga, Restorative yoga, and Yoga Nidra.
You will be experiencing yoga outdoors on the beautiful wooden deck surrounded by nature and in the indoor Garden Temple. If you have not experienced different types of yoga, this is a beautiful environment to do this.
Meditation and journaling
Every morning, start the day in silence and go straight to meditation. It will be outdoors on the deck facing the sun (option to start at sunrise). Sarah will guide you through the morning meditation, teaching you her four simple meditation techniques: The Breath, The Body, Visualisation, and Mantra.
Follow your meditation session with guided journaling. You will learn ways to create your own meditation ritual with journaling that you can use after the retreat is over.
Cacao ceremony
Cacao is the medicine calling you back to your wild and free nature. At Wild and Free, you are invited to join a cacao ceremony held in this stunning landscape. If you have never experienced this plant medicine, this is a really beautiful setting to do it in. Sarah is a trained cacao facilitator and she creates a beautiful, delicate, fun, and joyous ceremony for you to experience.
In the ceremony, you will learn about cacao, experience its gentle healing benefits, and integrate the medicine with sound healing, dance, creativity, and Yoga Nidra.
Sound bath
You will experience a sound bath with a sound healer during your retreat. This is a special event where you will gather and lie in comfort to create harmony within you by using sound to clear discordance and stuck energy within your energy field. Sound Healing uses a variety of instruments including gongs, crystal singing bowls, Tibetan bowls, guitar, voice, hand pans, shamanic drums, shruti box, and some more.
Prepare yourself for something special and enjoy the benefits of relaxation, an increased sense of wellbeing, expanded awareness, and access to inner visionary experience.
Connection with your tribe
You will be gathering with like-minded souls in a high vibrational setting. You'll share your experiences and your wisdom. Something powerful happens when women gather. Come and gather with your tribe and you will rise together.
Sample daily schedule (Typical day)
- 07:00 - 09:00 Morning meditation, journaling, and vinyasa yoga class
- 09:00 Breakfast in Monte Velho
- 10:00 - 13:00 Free time (Can be spent in the hammocks, walking the lands of Monte Velho, going to the nearby beaches or local cafes, visiting the spa, booking a bike tour, SUP beach tour, surf lesson, or massage)
- 13:00 Lunch in Monte Velho
- 16:00 Evening yoga (On some evenings, this will be a workshop plus yoga session)
- 18:00 Dinner at Monte Velho
Sample daily schedule (Special event day)
- 07:00 - 09:00 Morning meditation, journaling, and Vinyasa yoga class
- 09:00 Breakfast in Monte Velho
- 13:00 Lunch in Monte Velho
- 15:00 - 18:00 Cacao ceremony or 16:00 Evening yoga
- 18:00 Dinner at Monte Velho
- 19:30 - 21:30 pm Sound bath
Instructors
Sarah Shannon
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Sara is a yoga and meditation teacher, cacao ceremony practitioner, and moon circle host. She shares offerings through her online platform, retreats Wild & Free, and in Algarve, Portugal. She believes, through yoga and soulful practices and rituals, you can connect to something powerful and beautiful, your own natural power. The practices that she shares have allowed her to discover who she is and they have given her the confidence to let her light shine in this world.
Location
During the retreat, you will be staying at the beautiful Monte Velho Eco Retreat Centre surrounded by nature. Located close to the beach in the stunning Western Algarve with a comfortable ocean breeze. The holistic retreat center is designed to give you comfort and space for your experience. Classes take place in the “Garden Temple” and outdoors surrounded by nature on a wooden deck.
In between sessions, you can relax in peaceful places in the retreat space, in hammocks, your comfortable room, or at the nearby beaches. The retreat center also has a sauna for you to enjoy and where massages can be booked. Monte Velho is approximately a one-hour transfer from Faro Airport (FAO), which itself is less than three hours flight from London Gatwick, and only just over three hours from Dublin and many other European destinations.
Beaches
The weather at this time of year is beautiful and hot. You will get lots of time to explore for sunbathing, swimming, and water activities that you can choose to do. Renowned for surf, these beaches of the Western Algarve are something special. You will have time to explore, walk, hike, try SUP, and visit some of the most beautiful scenery during your time at Wild and Free.
Distances
- Faro Airport (FAO) - 60 minutes by transfer
- London Gatwick - 3 hours flight
- Dublin - 3 hours
Food
Delicious vegetarian and vegan meals at Monte Velho is included in your retreat, you will be served daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each meal is home-cooked using local Portuguese produce; the food is nutritious and delicious.
The following meals are included:
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Dinner
- Drinks
The following drinks are included:
- Water
- Coffee
- Tea
- Detox juices
The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:
- Vegetarian
- Organic
- Whole food
If you have special dietary requirements it's a good idea to communicate it to the organiser when making a reservation
Things to do (optional)
You can enjoy meals/coffees outside of Monte Velho Retreat Center at additional costs. Activities outside of the retreat center that you may choose to do are a surf lesson, SUP beach tour, bike tour, etc.
Spa treatments
Massages and use of the spa at Monte Velho are available, you can book this at the center.
What's included
- Daily morning yoga (Workshop-style on some of the days to learn techniques) and evening yoga (Yin, Restorative, Yoga Nidra)
- Daily morning meditation
- Cyclical wisdom workshop where you will learn ancient wisdom from the moon, Celtic Wheel, and the female cycle
- Cacao ceremony
- Sound bath evening
- 5 nights accommodation
- Delicious vegetarian and vegan breakfast, lunch, and dinner (Each meal is home-cooked using local Portuguese produce)
- All the yoga equipment you will need
What's not included
- Airfare
- Airport transfers
- Taxis to the beach if you do not have a car rental
- Any meals/coffees outside of Monte Velho retreat center
- Massages and use of the spa at Monte Velho (You can book this at the center)
- Activities outside of the retreat center that you may choose to do such as a surf lesson, SUP beach tour, bike tour, etc.
How to get there
Recommended Airports
FAO
Faro Airport
82 km
Transfer not provided
Arrival by car
Rent a car and drive yourself, it takes around a 1-hour and 20-minute drive and it’s a straightforward drive. (Best option)
Arrival by shuttle
Sarah Shannon Yoga can organize a transfer for you. A van for eight people is 160 EUR, a taxi for 1-4 pax is 100 EUR (not included on the retreat fee), if you share with other participants it is much cheaper, they can help organize this for you.
Arrival by bus, train, and taxi
This is the cheapest option but takes longer. Take the bus to Faro railway station and then the train to Lagos. From there, walk to the bus station and take a bus to Vila do Bispo. From Vila do Bispo, the only way to arrive is by taxi (15 EUR).
Cancellation Policy
- A reservation requires a deposit of 24.2% of the total price.
- The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
- The rest of the payment should be paid 56 days before arrival.
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