A Healing Yoga Retreat in Amorgos, Greece

Soooo, a yoga retreat historically has not been at the top of my list of fun things to experience…..until this past Spring. One of my besties in Bend invited me to go on a yoga retreat with her in GREECE, to an island I had never heard of (Amorgos). I’d never been to Greece nor do I do yoga, how could I possibly say no?! Her niece Heather Lenz is an A++ yoga instructor and spiritual god-dess – she is a powerhouse of great energy, knowledge and has an incredible healing presence.

Who doesn’t need to heal from something sad or traumatic? We left in early April not knowing what to expect and came back 12 days later with open hearts/minds and feeling refreshed, loved and very centered.

“Yoga is not about touching your toes, it’s about what you learn on the way down.”—Unknown

We started out in Athens (more on that later) and slowly made our way to Amorgos, Greece. Amorgos is the easternmost island of the Cyclades island group (think Santorini, Naxos, Mykonos) with a population of ~2,000 (give or take a few thousand). It’s probably the most rugged of all the islands in this group, meaning, more mountains and fewer beaches. It’s so rugged that the road between the two ports was only built in 1995. Without roads, the preferred method of transportation was a donkey. Can you imagine?

How did we get to Amorgos?

I will say getting here is not for the faint of heart. Amorgos does not have an airport so you must either fly from Athens to a neighboring island like Santorini, Naxos or Mykonos and take a boat over, OR you can take a boat from Athens. Since we went in early April (off-season), our travel options were limited.

We decided to fly to Naxos and boat over – it’s a FULL day affair if you choose to do it all in a day. You could also break up the trip and spend the night on a connecting island. Just a warning: The boats are nice, but if the seas are rough, and you are prone to any kind of seasickness, it’s pretty challenging if you are on a small boat. I’ll just say the view of the horizon is a good one to keep an eye on! Oh, and have a small bag handy for emergencies.

One of our companions took the boat from Athens and although it’s a 5 to 10 hour trip depending on the number of stops, the boat is similar to a cruise ship and is pretty comfortable – she loved the experience. I would definitely spend some time studying all the options for maximum comfort.

“The word ‘yoga’ means skill—skill to live your life, to manage your mind, to deal with your emotions, to be with people, to be in love, and not let that love turn into hatred.”—Sri Chinmoy, Indian spiritual leader and meditation expert

Where was the retreat hosted?

The retreat was hosted at the Aegialis Hotel and Spa. The only 5 start resort on the island. All rooms face the ocean, the pool is great, the spa exceeded expectations, there is a variety of healthy food options and it’s within walking distance to Amorgos town. The cherry on top was our yoga Shala – so gorgeous. It was such delight to walk into that room every day.

We had the option to do yoga on the roof-top as shown below, but a storm blew through on our day. Honestly, I was ok with that. My yoga moves do not warrant any kind of audience. LOL.

Side note: There were several groups there at the same time so if this is of interest, you might be able to contact the hotel directly and see if they can hook you up with a group.

“You spend so much time in your head in life. And what yoga does is, it asks you to allow your head to be quiet, to allow it to be still, just for an hour and a half. Just deal with your body and your breath.”—Colin Farrell, actor

What was the retreat like?

We essentially did gentle Yoga/Qigong (1.5 hours) first thing in the morning, then journaled about topics tied to our chakras and ended with a delicious breakfast. Heather toned it down for us as most in the group were Yoga newbies so the majority of it was Yin not Flow.

The afternoons were spent hiking on rocky trails lined with colorful wildflowers, hanging by the pool/beach, partaking in luxurious spa treatments and picking up souvenirs for loved ones. Others napped, read or ran. She purposely planned it so we could have options to do other things outside of yoga. It was great.

The early evenings called for more yoga (for about an hour-ish). Each session ended with a sweet meditation. Before dinner we made a point to reconvene on the outside patio overlooking the deep-blue Mediterranean sea. IT WAS AMAZING!!

“You’re only one yoga class away from a good mood.”—Unknown

Would I do another yoga retreat? YES! With Heather? YES! She is going to be hosting in Sedona this coming Spring of 2025. I’ll be somewhere in Morocco at that time so will have to miss this one. BOO.

Would I visit Amorgos if not on a yoga retreat? Honestly, I’m not sure I would. It’s hard to get to, the hiking is great, but not sure I would go that far for it? It probably depends on what kind of time you have and how much you desire to explore a mostly untouched island in the Cyclades. We did manage to meet Jonas Saul (world renowned author) as he was our hiking guide up to the Holy Monastery of the Virgin Mary Hozoviotissa. He also hosts a writing workshop every year which could be really fun.

In the end, this experience took me to spiritual levels I never knew were possible. A couple of my chakras need ALOT of work. It might take me years to heal them, but will definitely work hard to do so.

“Sit with it. Sit with it. Even though you want to run. Even when it’s heavy and difficult. Even when you’re not sure of the way through. Healing happens by feeling.” — Dr. Rebecca Ray

Namaste

..i choose this..

Pam