New Year's Eve Retreat at Lake Atitlán, Guatemala

This New Year's Eve yoga retreat at Lake Atitlán, in the Sololá region of Guatemala, is a week of yoga, meditation and intentional ritual for anyone who wants to close one year consciously and step into the next with clarity. It is led by Ashlyn Bugbee, a Denver-based yoga teacher and retreat leader, and it is held as a small group, with only a handful of places remaining.

The organizers describe their retreats as immersive sanctuaries, built around community and curated with reverence for the land, the people and the culture of each place they visit. Here, the focus is on grounding and alignment as the year turns.

What to Expect

The retreat runs for six nights, crossing the threshold from one year to the next. Days are shaped by yoga, meditation and ritual, held within what the organizers call a deeply held container: a group that gathers with shared intention, where strangers often become something closer to family. The invitation is toward clarity, so that the turning of the year becomes a real act of completion and beginning rather than just a night on the calendar.

Ashlyn's teaching offers a good sense of the likely texture of the practice. She blends dynamic vinyasa with the contemplative stillness of Yin Yoga, meditation and ritual, and Yoga Nidra is central to her work. Expect movement and stillness to be held in balance.

A past participant, Kristy, said of the retreat: "Surpassed my expectations. Honestly got more from this retreat than I ever imagined I would."

About Ashlyn Bugbee

Ashlyn Bugbee is a yoga teacher and retreat leader based in Denver, Colorado. She grew up in the mountains of Colorado, which she says gave her teaching and practice a grounded foundation. She describes herself as a devoted student of yoga, a lover of ritual and sacred spaces, and someone who believes deeply in the power of community.

Her classes draw on Buddhist philosophy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, bringing mindfulness and dharma teachings into asana. She honors both the solar and lunar currents of yoga, pairing vinyasa with Yin Yoga, meditation and ritual. Yoga Nidra has been deeply healing for her personally, and it holds a central place in what she offers. Whether she is guiding a class, holding ceremony or leading a retreat, her intention stays the same: to invite people back to what is essential, to what is real, back to themselves.

The Setting

Lake Atitlán sits in the highlands of Sololá, Guatemala, and the organizers count it among the most energetically potent places on Earth. This is a place they have returned to before, having held retreats at the lake in 2021 and for the previous New Year's Eve. They approach each destination with respect for the land, the local people and the culture, and that care shapes how the retreat is held here.