Ayurveda/Ayurvedic - Yoga - Retreat Centre - Sri Lanka
Ayurveda/Ayurvedic - Yoga - Retreat Centre - Sri Lanka
Being in an unsurpassingly beautiful and peaceful setting, Ulpotha is the ideal retreat venue for practicing Yoga in the relaxed manner unique to this wonderful spot. Here Yoga can be appreciated for what it is meant to be, a means to seemingly effortlessly find peace and a meditative inner calm without any of the dogma that can so often get in the way of the best of intentions.
This oasis of tranquility is a traditional working village cradled on one side by low mountains and a lotus ringed lake, and on the other by emerald green paddy fields. The bio-diversity of Ulpotha is extraordinary, with flora, fauna and bird life of dazzling variety. Animal life is equally varied, with even wild (but gentle) elephants visiting from time to time. A perfect holiday retreat.
Guests who come to Ulpotha will find a natural sanctuary of exceptional beauty, where the main activity is simply relaxing in its remarkable atmosphere of peace and calm while indulging in feasts of exquisite organic cuisine. Alternatively, there are many intriguing sites of cultural interest to visit in the immediate vicinity, many of which are completely off the usual tourist-beaten path.
For those who wish to couple their Yoga with something other than the above, there are a number of Ayurveda therapies available, all of which are administered by Ulpotha’s acclaimed resident doctor. The revenues generated by the therapies that are administered to Ulpotha’s visiting guests help subsidize the free Ayurveda Clinic run for the benefit of surrounding villages.
Timetable, Prices & Special Offers
SUMMER 2010
13 June 2010 to 29 August 2010 - Dhamma Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, Vinyasa Flow Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Anusara Yoga - US$ 1,250 per person per week.
WINTER 2010
7 November to 21 December 2010 - Mindfulness and Yoga Retreat, Arkayoga (Classical Mindful Yoga), Fluid Hatha Yoga - US$ 1,250 per person per week.
21 December 2010 to 2 January 2011 - Hatha Vinyasa Flow Yoga - US$1,500 per person per week
2 January 2011 to 27 March 2011 - Dynamic Hatha Yoga and Pranayama Intensive, Iyengar Yoga, Vinyasa Flow Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Anusara Yoga - US$ 1,250 per person per week.
Price includes:
- full board and lodging on a twin sharing basis
- three tasty veggie meals per day + snacks, teas and coconut water
- two yoga classes per day with our internationally renowned yoga teachers
- one massage per week with our international therapists
- one excursion per week to cultural sites or to the beach
- guided walks to nearby temples
What's not included:
- transport to Ulpotha (we can arrange pickups for you from the airport or from other hotels on the island)
- Ayurveda treatments (US$ 400 per week)
- additional massages (US$ 50 - 75 depending on length - one hour minimum)
- entrance fees to cultural sites and meals and extras on excursions
Travel
For flights from the UK
For direct flights with Sri Lankan Airlines contact Dash at Paradise Travel on 020 8434 0411.
It helps if you mention Ulpotha. Please be aware that departure is one day before the start of the holiday due to the time difference and journey time - note transfer info below.
Airport transfers
We will meet you at the airport and return you to the airport after your holiday. The cost per vehicle (maximum of 4 people) is approximately $100 each way. The transfer cost should be paid to the driver. Please enquire should you wish to be collected or dropped off at a location in Sri Lanka other than the airport.
Excursions
An excursion to some of Sri Lanka's outstanding cultural heritage sites is organised every week from Ulpotha. The cost is included in the price of your holiday (not included are entrance fees and any meals, drinks or extras taken outside of Ulpotha). Ulpotha is located in Sri Lanka's incredibly rich Cultural Triangle nearby to the following intriguing sites:
- Anuradhapura
- Arankale
- Aukana
- Dambulla Golden Temple
- Hatthikucchi
- Kandy
- Pollunarawa
- Ritigala
- Sasserewa
- Sigirya
- Yapahuwa
Trips around the island or to the beach can also be organised for you once you arrive in Ulpotha.
Additional Information
Accomodation
At the centre of the village is the Walauwwa, the traditional main house now restored around a central stone courtyard with an ancient well. The adjoining Ambalama, an open sided pavilion, provides a covered sitting area with mats, cushions, and beautiful views towards the surrounding hills and which is where meals are served. Accommodation is provided in exquisitely but simply detailed wattle and daub huts. These are built using traditional methods and materials, and consist of open sleeping/living areas covered with a pitched roof of thatched palm fronds. Each accommodates two people.
Much use has been made of clay, stone, wood, pottery and fabrics which reflect traditional village aesthetics. By design there is no electricity and life is lived by the rhythm of the day.
Though the loos [toilets] are modern and clean and the showers are open-air, they are not en-suite in keeping with traditional village practice.
Eco Policies
Ulpotha uses natural materials for all its buildings, while following organic farming practices that follow the lunar cycle and use no mechanical means. All crops are hand planted and harvested, while the fields are ploughed and the rice is threshed by buffalo.
However, the most fundamental of Ulpotha’s environmental policies is to limit the number of guests it accepts (no more than 19 paying guests at a time) and to do so for a limited period in any given year (a maximum of 26 weeks).
Though there is no electricity, light is provided by flares, lamps and lanterns, lending Ulpotha an ethereal quality at night. Similarly there are no fridges either, since they were deemed by one of the founders of Ulpotha as little more than a means of eating un-fresh food.
Community
In Ulpotha, the villagers who live and work there are part and parcel of the experience enjoyed by guests. Though they have deliberately not been given any training in any aspect of hotel-type service, they are gracious, hospitable and a lot of fun.
Ulpotha is largely run by the villagers themselves.
Meals
Local village life is based on a vegetarian tradition, with the staple diet centered on highly nutritious strains of red rice. Meals are cooked in clay pots over open fires and are produced from the organic crops grown in Ulpotha. Vegetables, yams and melons fill the gardens, along with mature banana, mango, papaya, jack and breadfruit trees.
All meals are cooked in the indigenous style featuring rice, curries, salads, buffalo curd, local savories and sweets and, of course, fruits.
Facilities
There is a treatment centre where one can have complete Ayurveda treatments administered by Ulpotha’s resident doctor. Proceeds from these go towards funding Ulpotha’s newly created Free Clinic for the surrounding local villages. There is also Yoga available twice a day taught by some of the world’s leading Yoga teachers. In addition, one can go for walks in the mountains, swim in the lake, participate in meditation and Pranayama sessions, go bird watching, have massages with our visiting massage therapists, indulge in herbal steam baths, or go on excursions to some of the many intriguing cultural sites that surround Ulpotha. Alternatively, one can do what Ulpotha is most amenable to – relax and hang out in one of the many hammocks and hanging beds that dot the grounds or in our lovely tree-house or lake huts.