Hiking and Yoga Retreat at Suryalila, Andalusia

The Hiking and Yoga Retreat is a six-day yoga retreat led by Lidiya Petkova at Suryalila Retreat Centre in Villamartín, Andalusia, in southern Spain. It pairs yoga with guided hikes, and suits anyone who wants to spend a week moving between inner practice and time outdoors in the Andalusian landscape.

What to Expect

The retreat is built around two things that complement each other. The yoga practices are meant to guide you deeply inward. The hikes are designed to inspire you and bring you fully into nature. Over six days, the two balance one another: stillness and attention on the mat, then open air and walking.

The retreat is all-inclusive, so the week is arranged for you and there is little to organise once you arrive. Lidiya Petkova leads the retreat and holds the thread between the practice and the hiking.

The retreat also has a charitable side. Your participation contributes 10% of profits to charitable organisations, so your week supports others as well as yourself.

Your Teacher

Lidiya Petkova leads this Hiking and Yoga Retreat at Suryalila. She also teaches other programmes at the centre, including the Adventure and Yoga Retreat, which combines yoga with outdoor adventures, and a 50-hour training in restorative yoga, yoga nidra and pranayama taught with Vidya Heisel. If a yoga retreat that mixes yoga with time outdoors appeals to you, she is the teacher guiding this one.

The Setting

Suryalila Retreat Centre is in Villamartín, in the province of Cádiz in Andalusia. The hikes take you out into the countryside around the centre, so the landscape is part of the retreat rather than a backdrop to it.

Before You Go

The retreat runs for six days and is all-inclusive. Since the programme includes hiking as well as yoga, expect to spend meaningful time on your feet outdoors, and plan your clothing and footwear for walking.