YELAPA RETREAT
Yelapa 2025: Yoga and Pure Life
Yoga Retreat at Pura Vida Retreat Center
Yelapa, Jalisco, Mexico
January 25th-February 1st, 2025
Registration now open! Skip down to registration.
Join Baxter for his 13th season in the magical town of Yelapa, and his fifth year hosting this yoga adventure at the lovely retreat center, Pura Vida. Located at the end of the bay an easy 10 min walk from the pueblo of Yelapa, Pura Vida is a perfect place to cultivate what Costa Ricans call “Pura Vida” or Pure Life. In yoga, we call the underlying energy of life Prana, and there is lots of it here, including the open-air yoga deck overlooking the Pacific Ocean that will be our home base for our twice daily yoga outdoor sessions, designed to be accessible to students of all levels, including those newer to yoga.
The center offers delicious, regional, healthy local foods, specializing in vegetarian and vegan options, with occasional seafood for dinners. Your free time can be spent lounging in a hammock, enjoying onsite massage, floating in the salt water zero-line pool gazing out at the ocean, or soaking in the salt water hot tub.
You are only a leisurely walk away from all the charms and great eateries in town and the main beach. Special events include a Backyard Taco dinner in town with the local family that runs the sweet Eclipse Café and folkloric dancers from the high school, an optional hike upriver to the waterfall swimming hole, and evening walks into town to hear music and dance!
Yelapa, reached only by boat, takes people back in time, enhancing the feeling of “getting away from it all” and invites participants to remember the simple life. Walking the beach, hiking in and out of the village, crossing the lagoon, walking up river, getting in waterfalls all create a sense of grounding in this other cultural world steeped in nature. This retreat is recommended for people who like walking and hiking. You must be able to walk up and down the hill at Pura Vida for classes and meals. It is approximately 120 steps uphill from the beach path to our dining area.
What’s included:
-
First night stay at a hotel in Old Vallarta near the boat taxi in Puerto Vallarta
-
6 nights at Pura Vida Retreat
-
Transfer of bags to our boat in PV on the first Sunday
-
Water taxi boat trip with group to Yelapa on Sunday morning
-
Transfer of your bags to your rooms once in Yelapa
-
Delicious healthy meals 3 times a day, with exceptions below*
-
Daily Yoga morning class and late afternoon class, most days
-
Special Dinner in town on Tuesday night
-
Waterfall Hike on Wednesday, with bag lunch provided
-
Transfer of your bags to water taxi on Saturday
-
Water Taxi on departure Saturday with the group back to PV
What You Are Responsible for:
-
Your air travel, and taxi from PV airport to the our PV Hotel (taxi about $30)
-
Dinner on Saturday night (group gathering) and breakfast on Sunday in PV
-
Your dinner on Thursday and lunch on Friday in Yelapa
-
Your taxi ride from PV to airport on departure day (about $15)
-
Gratuity for the Pura Vida Staff, recommended amount: $75/person
-
Those who wish to arrive in Yelapa separate from group will need to pay for their own water taxi (about $25 round trip/person)
-
Request you send your Covid vaccination card when you register
Options:
Massages will be available at Pura Vida; Sign-ups will occur once we arrive.
Optional all-day trip into back country, snorkeling trips, sweat lodge and more can be arranged upon arrival.
Pura Vida Retreat is a place to recharge, replenish and tap into the pure energy of the vibrant jungle and ocean that surround us. With that in mind, the retreat center does not permit alcohol or drugs onsite.
Lodging options:
Most rooms are open air and have at least a partial ocean view. (see description of bed sizes below)
• Double occupancy: $1685/person USD
• Single occupancy: $2075/person USD
• Triple occupancy: $1575/ person USD (only one room available) NOTE: Includes one double and 1 single arrival room in PV for the 3 roommates (the person in the single requires an additional $50 fee)
Couples sharing a bed: Please note that the “queen beds” at Pura Vida are more like a double mattress at home, so make sure you are happy snuggling!
HOW TO REGISTER:
Please note: We highly recommend that you are vaccinated against Covid-19. Please provide a copy or photo of your vaccination status when registering.
Non-refundable deposit to reserve your spot is $450/person.
Before sending your deposit, please confirm that you can walk hills and long staircases comfortably. The property at Pura Vida is set on a hillside with approximately 110 steps for the entrance to the dining area at the top of the property. Also, there are some modest hills in town and on the river hike.
Send checks to:
Baxter Bell
PO Box 20655
Oakland, CA 94620-0655
Or by Venmo @Baxter-Bell-2 (please mark as "personal").
Include the following information in an email when you register:
Your name
Any roommates name
Home mailing address
Email address
Cell phone number
You are physically able to climb stairs and hills: yes/no
A photo of your vaccination card
Please email Baxter at baxter@baxterbell.com when you send in your check.
Payment schedule - Balance due:
• $1235 due October 1st, 2024, for double occupancy
• If you are doing a SINGLE ROOM, your balance is $1,625 unless otherwise noted.
• If you are doing the 3 PERSON ROOM, your balance is $1,125 unless otherwise noted.
• Anyone registering after October 1st should pay the full amount.
Refunds:
Before September 1st:
Refund, if paid in full ($1,685 double, $2,075 single or $1,575 triple), minus $450 deposit, or refund of $1,235 for double occupancy, $1,625 for single occupancy, $1,125 for triple.
Between Sept. 1st and October 1st:
Single occupancy – if paid in full: $2,075 minus $750 = refund of $1,325.
Double occupancy- if paid in full: $1,685 minus $750 = refund of $935.
Triple occupancy- if paid in full: $1,575 minus $750 = refund of $825.
After October 1st:
No refund unless:
1) the retreat is full, and
2) someone fills your spot
– minus $75 admin fee
(potential refund of $2,000, $1,610, or $1,500 respectively for single, double or triple occupancy, only if your spot fills).
Sending in your deposit assumes you have read and understand the refund policy.
Once you are registered, additional information will be sent out well ahead of time for you to plan all the details of your trip!
If you want to start looking at airfares once you are registered, I recommend that you arrive in Puerta Vallarta on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 25th, 2025, and depart from PV on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 1st, 2025. This will allow you to have adequate time for cabs and water taxis and such.
Contact Baxter if you have any questions.