Here is a testimonial we found on Trip Advisor from one of our great guests at Costa Rica Yoga Spa! Thanks Erik!

“I just returned from another great Costa Rican adventure. This time I was lucky to be invited to stay at the Costa Rica Yoga spa as a guest of my friend Ashley who was teaching a three-week yoga immersion program. I had such a great stay that it motivated me to spread the word about this awesome place.

The Finca Un Amor—the farm upon which the lodge and yoga rancho sit—is perched up high overlooking farms, wildlife refuge, river basin, and the pacific ocean. At the lodge where I shared meals and slept for nearly three weeks, I was close enough to the ocean to hear the surf, which had to compete with the roaring waterfall emanating from the other side of the yoga rancho. Being close to surf is important; and, from the finca, you can be surfing in 15 minutes at Olgas, Guiones, or Ostional (in the dry season). It’s about 7 km to Playa Guiones and I easily made the drive down to the beach nearly every day (in the rainy season). Fortunately, my room at the “Jungle Lodge” featured an all-natural alarm clock: the nearby howler monkeys and roosters made sure I was up early enough to surf before breakfast! Which reminds me to remind you: Be sure to bring your good camera and binoculars because wildlife viewing opportunities are everywhere at the finca. I personally saw chacalacas, egrets, hawks, herons, howler monkeys, white-faced monkeys, iguanas, kiskidees, snakes, vultures, a million insects and some that I forgot!

The Yoga Spa is operated by wonderful hosts Ben and Jill. They used to run a Bed & Breakfast and grow olives in California before taking up the ex-pat life. That they were experienced B&B owners was more than evident in the cleanliness, cooking, and generous hospitality. Darren (Jill’s son) and Ben and Jill have worked hard to ensure that the land, the architecture, and the service foster a special sense of community. Ben and Jill, the other guests, and I ate nearly every meal together for three weeks—most prepared in the open-air kitchen. Eating at the lodge may be my favorite part of all! The food was fresh, local, wonderful and plentiful. The café was always a quick steam kettle away. The sweeping ocean and river basin views from the table and kitchen area were stunning. And, Ben knows exactly how to load cervezas in the fridge to serve perfectly almost frozen Imperials.

As for the food; it was incredible and sustainable. We fetched eggs and cheese from the neighbor’s finca. From avocados to zucchini, we ate more vegetables (that I can’t pronounce) than you can ever imagine. I drank more fresh juices in three weeks than I have in three years in the US. There are banana trees out one side of the kitchen and there’s a mango plantation out the other. One day I saw a man deliver a bunch of coconuts freshly hacked off a tree nearby. Fruit trees, herbs, and peppers plants are scattered about the finca seemingly content to wait for their day in the kitchen. The tropical fresh fruit always arranged neatly on the kitchen counters would make the Chiquita lady want a new hat.

Sound too good to be true? Well, I am not exaggerating and it gets even better. Staffed with accomplished B&B owner Jill, culinary student Hailey interning as the spa’s Cocinara de Verena, and local ticas Xenia and Melena, there was a never a shortage of excellently prepared food! Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Desayuno, almuerza, y cenar! Appetizers and desserts. Antes y postres! From peanut butter banana oatmeal smoothies to Sangria! From fried plantains to chicken marsala! With all that talent in the kitchen and the bountiful fare of Costa Rica at their disposal, we ate like kings. And, I loved it.

Hopefully by now you understand that the Yoga Spa is no ordinary hotel or lodge. You don’t just sleep in your room and pass the other guests in the hallway. It was truly a collective affair. In addition to eating together, we danced together and we had fun together. Willie led salsa lessons in the Yoga rancho/discoteque. Schlomo played guitar in the Yoga rancho/concert hall. Sasha brought over her swings, which we promptly rigged-up in the Yoga rancho/circus trapeze. We dined together at tico-owned restaurants. And together we closed down the local bars and discos!

Everyone in the Nosara area knows Ben, Jill, and Darren. (Of course, at 5’ 22” it’s hard not to know Ben! His tree towers above the rest of the forest.) And, everywhere we went with them we were treated like rock stars by the locals. This is important, especially if you’re new to Costa Rica or the Guanacaste region. My hosts acted a whole lot more like adventure guides than innkeepers; they were intent on ensuring that their guests experienced the local tico culture to the fullest. I’ve been to Costa Rica many times over the past 10 years, yet I learned a lot and met many new friends in the presence of these wonderful hosts.

Since everything about the Yoga Spa and Finca Un Amor is organized around community, I’m not really sure they had any choice but to invite me to practice yoga with the group. Since you’ve read this far, you probably know that the Nosara area is a magnet for students of yoga and the like-minded. This place is a dream to study yoga. Imagine practicing in the perfect temperature and humidity of Costa Rica with an ocean view in one direction and the sounds of a waterfall raging in the background. I don’t have to imagine it. I did it!!

I think it’s the community aspect that sets this place apart from the other yoga teacher training offerings in the area. At the Institute, you’re on your own for food and lodging; the class sizes are much larger; and the direct contact time with the instructors is limited. Many of the yoginis I met who were studying at the Institute who came up to visit the Yoga Spa for classes remarked about this contrast. At the Yoga Spa, you practice together, eat together, travel together, and pretty much live together. You’re having coffee with your instructor in the morning, practicing with her during the day, and dancing with her at night!

In summary, I’d give this place a 100-star review if trip advisor would let me! But the faint of heart should remember: this is Costa Rica. That means unpaved and sometimes impassable roads, especially in the rainy season from May to November. If you’re going to be mobile, I recommend renting a four-wheel drive vehicle. To avoid a long drive to the finca from the Liberia or San Jose airports, fly Nature Air into Nosara and you’ll be only 15-minutes away!

Again, you’re not staying at a Sol Melia or the Bellagio. If you want to burrow into a Marriot-style hotel room, turn on the TV, crank up the AC, and call room service, then this place is not for you. If you’re going to Costa Rica for the culture, the outdoors, the surf, the wildlife, the yoga, and the adventure, then you’re in for a treat you will remember for a lifetime.” – Erik

If you are interested in learning more about a retreat at Costa Rica Yoga Spa, contact us today.

As a Yoga Teacher, I have been facilitating Yoga Teacher Trainings for the past 8 years. Each time I step into this role, I learn so much more than I expected at the onset of the journey. Coming back to Costa Rica for July Yoga Teacher Training in Nosara, we have a much smaller, more intimate group this time. It is exactly what I needed. After closing the Yoga studio, moving from my house into a new home and studio, I felt like my root chakra was spinning as fast as my third eye (which is entirely way too fast for comfort!)

Arriving here again, I found the space to begin to settle and take some deeper breaths. It’s green season, and the cleansing rains are wiping away the dust from the roads and trees, offering a brighter landscape, and with it, new challenges of living in the flow of nature here in Costa Rica. I am ready to begin instructing Yoga Retreats.

The rains and the circumstances are teachers to me. I take some steps back and realize that being a yoga teacher is not just about the agenda that I have. Learning to be the most skillful teacher is about living consciously and with the highest intentions, in relationship with nature. Of course, through it all, we are diving deep into hours upon hours of Asana practice, Alignment work, Meditation, Pranayama and Theory. Already, I have some amazing yoga teachers surrounding me in the circle. They are reminding me again that Yoga is the fullness of the experience.

So, we have enjoyed flexibility in our days to celebrate during the World Cup finals, take a hike to the waterfall, stop by the neighboring farm to pick up fresh eggs and cheese, dance in the rain, meditate by candlelight and guitar of a local Kundalini teacher, and sit around the dinner table discussing life, dharma and the flow of it all. There are so many wonderful activities in Nosara.

Yoga Teacher Training is the journey of Ananda (supreme bliss) of the complete experience. We accomplish this not only through Jnana (wisdom), but also through the practice of Svadyaya (self-study). In order to see the (S)self in the deepest way, we must be in relationship with the world around us. Every person, element and moment can be a teacher to us, if we allow it.

Pura Vida from Costa Rica!

If you are interested in expanding your knowledge of yoga and becoming a yoga instructor yourself, contact us today to learn about the yoga teacher training retreat we offer where you can receive your 200 RYT certificate.

The theme for a day in one of our Yoga Retreats at the Costa Rica Yoga Spa is often Shri, which means beauty and abundance. It is so easy to look out to the vista from the side of the Yoga pavilion and see the beauty of this coast in Nosara. Like pouring out the crayons in a mega box of Crayolas and finding a dozen choices of green, the lush rains of the season have sparked an abundance of color.  In the near distance, the waterfall becomes the melody for our practice of Yoga. In the far distance, the Pacific Ocean becomes a boundary of earth and sky.

In such a setting, it is easy to witness beauty.  The question that I ask of my yoga students as well as my yoga teacher training students in Nosara is, “Can you see abundant beauty within yourself?”  The practice of seeing  Shri is a bit more challenging when we are faced with a difficult position in life, whether it be in a yoga pose, stuck in a traffic jam, or facing an argument with another person who doesn’t see things the way we see them.

The first step in seeing the beauty of the inner or outer moment is to take an expanded view and pause for a moment to breathe. In the practice of Anusara Yoga, this connects us to the first (and most important) Universal Principle of Alignment, Open to Grace.

In aligning body, mind and spirit we must first begin with this bigger experience. Opening to Grace is a practice and a reminder that Grace surrounds us, but is also within us. When we tap into the potential of this bigger energy, we also find our own highest potential.

And, of course, being human, we will often forget to see this beauty within.  So, what happens when we forget again?  Take a step back, receive a deep breath, and remember that the beauty and abundance that is present in all forms of life is also within.  In the pause, we have the opportunity to reflect on the gift of life and see that we have the ability to choose to align with beauty and abundance.

The more the mind, heart and senses are trained to experience Shri, the more we become abundance and beauty itself.

Come find your Shri with us at Costa Rica Yoga Spa in Nosara, contact us today to learn more.

The Last Week of Yoga Teacher Training!!! It literally is putting one foot in front of the other and pushing through – determination and tenacity took me through. And, knowing all of the benefits I was receiving – and enjoying were great motivators for me. This journey reminds me of the Little Engine that kept saying, “I know I can, “I know I can”. Yes, I can!

I thought forward to Sat. when I will have accomplished something that was completely unexpected – being a certified Yoga Teacher! What an accomplishment that will be – so surviving the rest of the week in poses and contortions that I didn’t think this body could do anymore. But, really, at 67, the thought about wrapping my body into the Bird of Paradise pose – and a handstand – whew, the thought of that one… I keep the mantra, “I know I can, I know I can…in my mind and heart each day during my retreat“.

I peeked at what was on the agenda for the next couple of days – they were written in Sanskrit, but I am learning more of this beautiful language every day – enough that I can only imagine what twists and lifts I will be accomplishing the next day in Nosara. Every day I have embraced and done what a month ago, I would have deemed impossible for a senior, novice yogi. Each day gave me more strength, flexibility and balance which brought me such joy. I loved my eye-opening adventure in this amazing Yoga Teacher Training class.

I look forward to learning more lessons this week – about life and yoga in Nosara.

Come accomplish what you thought wasn’t possible! Start the journey of learning yoga and more about yourself! Contact us today to learn about a retreats at Costa Rica Yoga Spa.

Take a Long Deep Breath.

Notice how immediately the action of taking a deep long breath brings you into the moment. Now focus on taking 5 deep breaths. What happens in your body and in your mind? You slow down. The beauty of long, deep breathing is that whatever may be happening in your environment, the breath brings you back into your Self, to your center. This is a gift. The only power that truly exists is in the Now. You can’t change the past, you aren’t yet in the future, but you are here now.

At the Costa Rica Yoga Spa we are surrounded by nature, trees, birds, monkeys, and so much more. Few distractions and a lot of organic inspiration makes this a unique place for heart opening transformation.

Every yoga class, offered with our yoga retreats, begins with Pranayama (Prana=breath/life force, Yama=technique/restraint) or “breathing techniques”. Whether simple Long Deep Breath (LDB) or powerful Kapalabati (breath of fire), the focus always begins with the breath. In Costa Rica we are blessed with a temperate climate that allows for warm clean air to practice outdoors all year around.

I invite you to take a moment and stop. Where ever you are take a moment and take a Long Deep Breath. Imagine your lungs filling like a glass, from the bottom to the top. Belly gently relaxes and expands, ribs and chest lift, all very natural with out strain. Pause for a brief moment before the exhale and empty the lungs, just like a glass, from the top to the bottom. Chest softly falls, ribs collapse inwards and navel point reaches toward the spine.

Take 5 LDB and imagine a peace, balance and harmony in your life, mind and body.

Give Thanks for all your blessings.

Here at the Costa Rica Yoga Spa we spend time on the little things to uplift our minds. Practicing Yoga, breathing deep, eating clean, enjoying the nature that surrounds, making a difference, any small or large way that we can.

Come and visit. Life really is good up here at Costa Rica Yoga Spa, contact us today to learn more about retreats such as Yoga Teacher Training or Spirit of Yoga offered in Nosara.