Yoga Retreat Travel Tips

You know the story. You planned a relaxing getaway and by the time you get home you are just as burnt out as when you left. Tired. Foggy. Ready for a vacation. Here are some tips from an experienced yoga retreater to keep you stress free and rested while traveling to and from your next yoga retreat in paradise!

1. Smile
Have you ever noticed that no one is smiling in the airport? We board these futuristic machines that transport us magically across the world in hours. That’s worth smiling about. Next time you feel yourself annoyed, tired, frustrated, smile instead. Smile at someone. Make someone smile! Turn a day of stress into a smile fest!

2. Touch Yourself
No, really. You’re about to be sitting for hours. Massage your neck, your shoulders, your feet. You can transform something that might make your back hurt into a dedicated hour for releasing tension! Bring one of those self massage balls from Yoga Tune Up!

Get your balls here: Yoga Tune Up

3. Be Grateful
It’s like second nature for us to be 30,000 feet in the air these days. But it’s pretty incredible if you think about it. Humans have designed these sophisticated devices so that we can see loved ones more often, visit more places that inspire us, be a part of many different communities. That is amazing. Don’t look at the travel as the crappy thing you have to do, but instead as the amazing ability to invite more love into your life.

4. Drink Water
Keep your body healthy by drinking as much water as possible. It just makes everything better

More on this and other healthy travel tips: 5 Healthy Travel Tips

5. Stretch
Sit on the floor, stand in the aisle, do whatever you have to do to get some quality stretching in!

Check out Jennifer Jarrett’s airport asanas: Airport Asanas

6. Aisle Row
Drink a lot. Pee a lot. Stretch a lot.

7. Bring Healthy Snacks
Turn an unhealthy experience into a superfood party – Dulse seaweed, kale chips, almonds, fruit, chocolate. Pack a delicious meal for the road and be excited for your next layover!

7b. Clementines
These babies make you feel good.

More ideas here from our friend Aarona at Yoga of Nourishment

8. Buy one delicious drink at the airport
Aloe water and coconut water are both good options for their hydrating and lubricating capabilities.

Who knew aloe was so good for you? Benefits of Aloe Juice

9. Breathe
Let’s face it you’re going to get bored, it’s true, so turn boredom into practice by breathing deeply for an hour straight. Just try!

10. Don’t do any crazy Pranayama
You might get arrested as a suspicious person. Trust us, we know. We like being suspicious but there is a time and place for that.

11. Pack Well
Don’t forget to pack enough essentials for a day or two in your carryon. Yoga retreats to places like Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Belize etc., connect in big airports and luggage gets lost!

12. Give Something to Someone
Bring something with you or buy something to give to someone, anyone, while traveling. No one will expect it and you’ll surely make someone’s day. It will transform airports, bus stops and train stations from places of bitterness and frustration into spaces that inspire generosity. Imagine if people were giving each other gifts not just for happy events and to best friends, but for potentially exhausting moments to complete strangers.