I love Mexico and especially, Yelapa. This is a muchas gracias workshop, to celebrate my deep gratitude for the place and people of Yelapa in my 10th year teaching there. This workshop is an immersion into the beauty of the natural world and rich culture that surrounds us in this small village. The week includes gentle yoga and other somatic movements, awe, wonder, art, music, bird watching, healing plants, astronomy, ocean time and a deep dive into our innate stillness.

The daily schedule includes yoga and meditation, gentle somatic movements and rest. Local Yelapans will also be teaching, offering art classes, guided bird walks, native plant medicine knowledge and stargazing. We’ll take a boat trip to see the Humpback Whales and will visit a beach for lunch nd a swim further down the coast.

This year’s trip is a fundraiser for the Yelapa Elementary School. A part of every workshop registration fee will go toward the purchase of playground equipment in the school yard.

Yelapa is a small coastal village, accessible by boat only. It is not an island but the end of a peninsula where roads have not been developed. There are no cars in Yelapa; mules, horses and UTV’s are used for transportation. Yelapa is steeped in beauty; the beach, the river, the forests, the plants, the birds and the village.

This trip requires a lot of walking on uneven terrain. Pura Vida Retreat Center is located on the upper bay accessed by a narrow trail along the water’s edge. There are many stairs at Pura Vida, 120 steps to the dining hall! Walking is our way of life this week. Please consider this when registering.

** A note to those who would like to arrive into Puerto Vallarta a couple days earlier. I am organizing activities for Friday and Saturday, before the first group meeting. We will visit the Puerto Valarta Botanical Gardens, visit a Mescal distillery and explore some other local venues. More details soon.

Rooms available at Pura Vida:

Double Room - Shared room with 2 beds or one King $1995

Single - one person per room, queen or king size bed $2595

3 or 4 person shared Palapa with loft - 4 double beds in 2 floor cabana with a large terrace $1895 per person for 4 people, $1950 per person for 3 people

Rooms are chosen on a first come basis, register early to choose your spot.

Price Includes:

• 6 nights at Pura Vida in Yelapa

• Round trip private boat transportation, Puerto Vallarta / Yelapa

• Transfers of luggage from your PV Hotel to the Puerto Vallarta Pier and from the Yelapa Pier to Pura Vida

• Daily breakfasts, lunches and dinners in Yelapa (exceptions below)

• All classes

• A guided hike with picnic lunch up the river to a waterfall

• A Tuesday Night Fiesta with a special dinner at a local family’s home followed by a performance of Mexican Folklorico dances by the students in Yelapa

Not Included:

• Airfare: Fly into Puerto Vallarta on Saturday, February 20th and depart on Saturday, February 27, after 1:00 PM.

• We will meet at the Town Dock and Pier in the morning of Sunday, Feb, 21 for our boat to Yelapa and will return to the PV pier at 11:00 AM on the 27th, please  allow 60 minutes from the pier to the airport.

• Dinner and hotel in Puerto Vallarta Feb 20 Note: We have a reserved block of rooms at the Gaviotas Hotel, $125/night for Feb 20.  Let me know if you would like to reserve a room.

• Round trip transfer airport/ PV hotel (~ $45)

• 1 lunch and 1 dinner in Yelapa

• Boat transportation to Yelapa if you arrive/depart at a different time than our group

• Tips for the Pura Vida staff ($100)

How to register

• Pay your non-refundable $600 using the button below. Send me an email with your room request and roommate information. Register early for the best rooms.

• The final balance is due, Dec. 2 by check, Venmo @ Kim Schleicher - 1 or Zelle.

  • If registering after Dec 2 please pay in full.

  • ***Note, schedule subject to change