Yurt yoga: chilling out in Andalucia

Are you lured by the idea of luxury camping, with some DIY yoga thrown in? The Yurt Hotel in deepest Andalucia could fit the bill, says YA's editor, Lucia Cockcroft.

 

 

 

It's early morning, and ribbons of daylight are creeping round the closed door of my yurt. Outside, the sound of last night's singing crickets have been replaced by the tinkle of goat's bells and a cuckoo's persistent call.

 

yurt hotel andalucia yogaI am waking up slowly, listening to the unfamiliar quiet as I lie warm and cosy in my yurt. In am inside, but also half outside, the calming tinkle of the natural world a hair's whisker away.

 

Sleepiness aside, I am keen to get on with my yoga practice, and within minutes I am sitting on a cushion in meditation on my mat, poised for my first yoga practice of the day.

 

Camping, but not as I know it
I am used to organised yoga retreats, where classes are at set times in the day - but I have come here, to the Hoopoe Yurt Hotel in the mountains of Andalucia, for a similar experience without the structure: lots of yoga, peace and quiet, and nature in abundance.

 

My yurt, where I am staying for a too-short three days, is one of five (which are individually decorated - ours was the Afgan) open for guests from April to October every year. I am here in late April, lucky to have missed the torrential Spring rains, replaced by warm sunshine.

 

yurt hotel andalucia yogaThis is camping, but not - thankfully - as I've known it before. Gone are the waifer-thin mats, grotty bathrooms and loud fellow-campers. Instead, the beds are supremely comfortable, the yurts warm and cosy, the outdoor bathrooms private.

 

But the overwhelmingly special element to this experience is the amount of outdoor space allotted to each yurt (there are one or two guests to every yurt ) - every one has an acre of private meadow, with hammocks, private bathrooms complete with compost loos, and shaded seating area.

 

At this time of year, a carpet of lupins was in full bloom just outside the door. Our allotted area also sported cork trees, a host of birds (among them, sparrowhawks, turtle dove and, honey buzzards) and the odd lizard - framed by the backdrop of the hazy-blue Grazamala mountains.

 

The sense of space, and the feeling of being held in the arms of nature, was incredible. Once in the vicinity of the yurt, privacy is virtually assured. All that's left to do is - well, pretty much nothing.

 

Except eat, that is. Ed and Henrietta, the personable young owners, organise a three-course dinner with wine, four times a week. Guests sit round a big table under a pergola lit by Chinese lanterns, eating food fresh from the kitchen garden or sourced locally.

 

Settling into a yoga space
At first I found all my unaccustomed spare time rather unnerving. My default yurt hotel andalucia yogaaction of email checking, internet surfing and phone checking was rudely, but deliciously - called into check, as I slowed down into a lower gear.

 

There was little to do but read, sleep, walk in the mountains - you can follow marked walking tracks that crawl up from the top of the picturesque local village, Cortes de la Frontera - and practice yoga.

 

In the real world, I aim for a daily practice, but am too-often distracted or pushed for time.

 

Here, with no other demands to pull me aside, I luxuriated in a couple of two-hour sessions a day, alternating gentle yin postures with a more dynamic flow.

 

The meadow-land outside the yurts is hilly and uneven, so parking yoga mats outside can be a challenge. My compromise was to roll the mat out inside and leave the door wide open. The bird calls and sheep bells made it easier to drop into meditation, and added depth to my practice.

 

Formal yoga classes are sometimes available for yurt guests - a local ashtanga teacher comes down from the village as demand suits. But organised yoga wasn't available when I stayed at the Hoopoe Yurt Hotel, and I was happy to settle into the rhythm of my own practice, resting in my new-found sense of space and tranquility.

 

Need to know -
There are four styles of yurt to chose from. A double yurt costs 115 euros a day. Chose from a three, four or seven-night stay. Each has a comfortable bed and traditional Mongolian furniture.

 

Food is locally sourced and vegetarian on request. A three-course dinner is served on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights.

 

The camp runs on solar power - there are sockets for charging mobile phones and laptops. They have private bathrooms with hot showers and compost loos.

www.yurthotel.com

 

 

Lucia Cockcroft

 

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