Yoga and Ayurveda Retreat Varkala

Trivandrum International Airport is small and easy to handle, and our driver waits just beyond the exit doors holding a sign with your name. Connections through Dubai, Doha or Abu Dhabi tend to touch down before dawn, and the car is ready whatever the hour, with chilled water and a cool towel on the back seat. The road north passes coconut groves, roadside churches and small market towns where auto-rickshaws weave between buses. On the way the driver points out the turn for the old Anjengo fort and tells you a little about Varkala, a pilgrim town long before it was a yoga destination, so you arrive with some sense of where you are.

At the resort the team greets you with a glass of tender coconut water and a short tour of the yoga shala, the treatment rooms and the dining terrace that faces the sea. You receive a schedule for the week, a set of loose cotton clothes for treatments, and a health form that the doctor will read before tomorrow's consultation. Please fill it in honestly, including any prescription medicines, allergies, recent surgery or pregnancy, because every therapy is chosen around this information. Lunch is a light vegetarian thali. Sleep through the afternoon if you can, since long-haul travel and a new time zone are the first things your body needs to recover from.

Toward sunset, take a slow walk along the paved cliff path north of the resort. Cafes, bookshops and small yoga studios line the edge, and below you the surf rolls onto the dark sand of Papanasam Beach, where fresh springwater seeps from cracks in the laterite. Locals and visitors claim the benches as the sun lowers itself into the sea, and the fishing boats switch on their lamps one by one. Dinner is a simple bowl of rice, vegetable stew and a warming ginger and cumin water. The yoga teacher stops by your table to introduce herself and confirm the start time for the morning class. Overnight in Varkala.

The day begins with a gentle introductory class at 7 am on the open-air shala, where the teacher checks how each person moves, notes old injuries and explains the structure of the coming week. There are no demanding poses yet, only easy stretches, joint rotations and some minutes of unhurried breathing as the light changes over the water. After a breakfast of steamed rice cakes, coconut chutney and herbal tea, you sit down with the in-house Ayurveda doctor, who holds a BAMS degree, for a consultation of around forty-five minutes. The conversation covers your daily habits, diet, sleep, stress and the goals you have for these nine nights.

Using pulse reading, observation of the tongue and eyes, and the answers on your health form, the doctor describes your prakriti, meaning the mix of vata, pitta and kapha you were born with, and the current state of that balance. From this comes a written treatment plan, a list of foods to favor and avoid, and advice on rest. The doctor is clear that the program is about traditional care and lifestyle, not about treating illness, and that anything new or worrying should be reported straight away. Herbal preparations used during treatment are part of the package; anything you choose to take home is bought separately.

The first therapy, after lunch, is abhyanga, a head-to-toe massage using heated herbal oil, with two therapists working in synchrony, followed by a short herbal steam. Most guests find it deeply relaxing, and a nap afterwards is normal and encouraged. Avoid swimming or a cold shower for a few hours, since the oil and warmth are meant to settle in. The evening class at 5:30 pm moves a little more, with slow sun salutations and a seated twist sequence, and ends with the teacher leading a short relaxation. A light dinner of kanji, the Kerala rice gruel, closes the day. Overnight in Varkala.

Waking before six becomes easier on the third morning, and the dawn class focuses on alternate-nostril breathing, known as nadi shodhana, before moving into standing poses that build steady legs and an open chest. The teacher keeps the pace slow and offers blocks and straps to anyone who needs them. Afterwards there is time to take the cliff stairs down to the sand, where the sand is still cool and only a handful of people are in the water. Lifeguards patrol the main stretch, but currents can be strong in some months, so swim only between the flags and never after a treatment.

Late morning brings the second abhyanga session, this time with an oil the doctor has selected after reviewing your first reaction. The therapists talk you through each stage, and you can ask for firmer or lighter pressure at any time. After the massage comes swedana, a steam box with your head outside, where steam from boiled herbs warms the body for ten to fifteen minutes. Lunch features red rice, a vegetable thoran with grated coconut, moong dal and buttermilk with curry leaves. The afternoon is quiet, and the resort library has books on yoga, Kerala history and Ayurvedic cooking if you want something to read in the shade.

At 6:30 pm the doctor gives a relaxed talk on the dining terrace about the three doshas, using everyday examples rather than textbook terms. You learn why the program avoids cold drinks with meals, why dinner is served early, and how seasons are believed to affect the body in the Ayurvedic view. Questions are welcome, and the session often turns into a lively conversation among guests from different countries. Afterwards there is a candlelit short meditation on the shala for anyone who wants to join. Bedtime comes early, because tomorrow's outing starts before breakfast. Overnight in Varkala.

Shortly after dawn the car climbs a short lane to the Janardhana Swamy Temple. Townspeople will tell you this Vishnu shrine has stood for about two thousand years; it sits on a rise above the beach. Entry to the inner areas is governed by temple custom and is usually reserved for Hindus, yet any visitor may look at the outer walls, the antique bell hung by a Dutch sea captain according to local legend, and the long flight of steps leading down to the sea. Men are asked to remove shirts in some parts, and clothes that cover shoulders and knees are expected. Shoes stay with the driver.

Below the temple, the shore of Papanasam, a name that means washing away of sins, is where families come to perform bali tharpanam, rites for departed ancestors, guided by priests who sit under umbrellas on the sand. Your local escort explains the ritual quietly from a respectful distance, and photographs of the ceremonies should be avoided. Back at the resort you eat a late breakfast, then join the morning yoga practice, which today concentrates on hip openers and forward bends to prepare the body for longer sitting in meditation. The teacher shows how to use a bolster so that the knees never strain.

In the afternoon your course of shirodhara begins. Lying on a carved wooden droni, you feel warm medicated oil pour in a fine unbroken thread across your forehead from a swinging brass vessel, for around thirty to forty minutes. Shirodhara is traditionally given to quiet a restless mind and support sleep, and many guests describe a dreamlike state during it. Expect oily hair until evening, so plan to stay in. The doctor checks on you after the session and may adjust the oil or the length of the next one. Dinner comes early and is kept light, and the evening class is replaced with gentle yoga nidra. Overnight in Varkala.

Balance poses are the theme of the morning class: tree pose, warrior three and a supported half moon, with plenty of time to fall out and try again. The teacher links each pose to steadiness of attention rather than flexibility, which suits first-timers and longtime students alike. A short pranayama segment introduces bhramari, the humming bee breath, with the hands covering the ears. Breakfast today is puttu, cylinders of rice flour and coconut steamed in bamboo-shaped molds, served with a black chickpea curry, and the kitchen team mentions that they will be teaching you how to make two dishes later in the day.

Your treatment is elakizhi, in which warm muslin pouches packed with medicinal leaves, grated coconut, lemon and spices are dipped in heated oil and pressed rhythmically over the body. The therapists explain that the leaves change with the season and with what the doctor prescribes, and that the method is traditionally used for stiff muscles and joints. Afterwards you rest in a shaded room with a cup of warm cumin water. Lunch is served in the garden; afterwards, take a nap, make a phone call home or stroll a little on the cliff path when the sun lowers.

At 4 pm the head cook welcomes a small group into the resort kitchen for a demonstration that turns into a hands-on class. You learn to prepare avial, a mix of vegetables in a coconut and yogurt sauce finished with raw coconut oil and curry leaves, and a simple sambar with toor dal, tamarind and a freshly ground spice paste. The cook explains how Ayurvedic principles shape the menu, such as balancing the six tastes and using ginger and pepper to support digestion. You leave with printed recipe cards, and whatever you cooked turns up on the dinner table. Overnight in Varkala.

Halfway through the program, before breakfast, the doctor sits down with you to look back over the first five days and talk through what comes next. You talk about sleep, appetite, energy levels and any soreness, and the treatment plan for the remaining days is fine-tuned. Some guests feel tired or emotional around this stage, which the doctor explains is common when the body slows down after months of busy routine. The morning yoga session is shorter than usual and focuses on restorative poses held with bolsters and blankets, so that the body is not overloaded before today's main therapy.

Njavarakizhi follows in the late morning. Small cloth pouches of njavara rice, a native Kerala grain, are cooked in milk and a herbal decoction, then massaged over the whole body while still warm. The process takes around an hour, and the rice paste is wiped away afterwards before a short rest. It is one of the more distinctive Kerala therapies and is traditionally used to nourish the muscles and skin. Lunch is a plain thali with drumstick sambar and a small serving of payasam, the cardamom-scented sweet, which the cook prepares with jaggery rather than sugar.

Around 3:30 pm the car heads up the coast for roughly twenty minutes to Kappil. Here a calm backwater lake lies just behind a narrow sandbar, with open sea on the far side. A local boatman rows you along the edge of the lake in a small country boat, past coconut palms, Chinese-style fishing nets and village houses with their own small jetties. Kingfishers and herons are common, and the water is calm enough that the only sound is the oar. The car brings you back before the sunset meditation on the shala, where the teacher guides a body scan while the light fades. Overnight in Varkala.

A silent morning is offered on Day 7, and most guests choose to join in. Breakfast is eaten without conversation, phones stay in the room, and the yoga class runs entirely on the teacher's soft cues and the sound of waves. After the practice there is time for journaling on the terrace, with a few prompts written on cards: what you noticed in your body this week, what you want to keep from the routine, and what you are ready to change. The silence ends at lunch, and many people find it the most memorable morning of the stay.

Netra tarpanam, a treatment for the eyes, is scheduled in the late morning. A small ring of dough made from black gram flour is placed around each eye and filled with warm medicated ghee, which you keep the eyes open and closed in for several minutes. The therapy is traditionally used to rest eyes tired by screens and long-haul flights, and it feels cooling rather than strange once you settle into it. You are asked to avoid bright light and reading for the rest of the afternoon, so the resort sets aside a darkened room for an extended yoga nidra session.

Later, the resort gardener shows you around the herb garden, where tulsi, brahmi, aloe vera, curry leaf, turmeric and a dozen other plants used in the kitchen and the treatment rooms grow side by side. He explains how the leaves for elakizhi are gathered fresh each morning and how some oils are cooked slowly for days with herbs and milk. You can crush a leaf of each plant to smell the difference. The evening yoga class is gentle, centered on long exhalations and supported backbends, and dinner is a light vegetable soup with chapati. Overnight in Varkala.

Today's morning class steps up the pace a little, since the body has adjusted to the routine. The teacher leads a slow flow of linked poses, with the breath counting each movement, followed by inversions for those who want them and a quiet seated meditation. Breakfast is idiyappam, string hoppers, with a mild vegetable stew. There is a short window afterwards to sit on the cliff with a book or to visit the small handloom shops along the path, where Kerala cotton towels and mundu cloths make light gifts to carry home.

Padabhyanga, a foot massage with herbal oil and gentle pressure on specific points of the soles, is today's main therapy and is paired with a full-body abhyanga. Therapists explain that the feet are given special attention in Ayurvedic care, and many guests say it is the treatment they will try to copy at home. Lunch is served a little earlier than usual, with a vegetable kootu, beetroot thoran and rasam. The doctor visits you after the treatment for a quick check, mainly to ask how you have been sleeping since the shirodhara sessions began.

At around 3:30 pm you drive about ten minutes to Sivagiri Mutt, the hilltop ashram and samadhi of Sree Narayana Guru, the late 19th and early 20th-century philosopher and social reformer who campaigned against caste discrimination in Kerala. The grounds are quiet, and people of any faith may walk in the main areas when dressed modestly. Crowds of pilgrims dressed in yellow come for the yearly Sivagiri pilgrimage from late December into early January, so the atmosphere depends on the season. Back at the resort, the evening class closes with chanting. Overnight in Varkala.

Your final full day opens with an extended yoga session that gathers up the work of the week: breath, standing poses, balance, twists and a final relaxation. The teacher gives you a printed sequence of around twenty minutes that you can practice in a hotel room or at home without equipment. Breakfast is followed by your final treatment, a combination of abhyanga and a last shirodhara session that the doctor has planned to close the course gently. You are asked to stay indoors for an hour afterwards and to drink warm water only.

In the afternoon the doctor meets you for the closing consultation. This is the most practical session of the stay, covering a daily routine you can keep, known as dinacharya, foods that suit your constitution, simple self-massage with oil before a shower, and how to return to normal exercise gradually. If herbal medicines are recommended for home use, the doctor explains each one and you can buy them at the resort pharmacy; they are not included in the package. Before packing herbal products, check what your country's customs authority allows, and keep discussing any long-term health questions with your own physician.

For the farewell evening, the resort lays out a dinner on the cliff terrace with a few special dishes: a jackfruit curry, banana leaf-steamed rice parcels and a light coconut milk dessert. Before dinner the group gathers on the cliff to watch the sunset together, and the yoga teacher leads a short gratitude meditation while the western sky goes orange. It is a good time to exchange emails with the guests you have met and to thank the therapists and kitchen staff, who will not all be on duty tomorrow morning. Pack tonight so that the departure is relaxed. Overnight in Varkala.

A last sunrise class is available if your flight time allows, followed by breakfast and checkout. The doctor and the therapists usually come to say goodbye, and you receive a folder with your treatment summary and the home routine. Your driver loads the bags and takes the coastal road south to Trivandrum International Airport, leaving enough time to reach the terminal roughly three hours before an overseas flight. Eat lightly and keep drinking warm water on the plane, and try not to jump back into heavy meals or hard workouts in the first week home.

Flying out late? A later checkout can often be requested, or we can add a stop in Trivandrum city for the Napier Museum gardens and a quiet lunch, at extra cost. NRI guests continuing to family homes elsewhere in Kerala can be dropped there instead of the airport. Thank you for spending these ten days on the Varkala cliff with us. We hope the routine travels home with you, and our team will happily design a longer Ayurveda retreat in Kerala whenever you are ready to come back.