Escape to Thailand
and Follow your dreams!

Iyan & Claude
With Iyan Yaspriyana and Claude Chouinard
This special Escape the World retreat in Thailand will introduce you to Buddhism while enjoying daily yoga and discovering the Northern part of Thailand. The retreat will be held in Chiang Mai and in Pai. It will also be an opportunity to experience the "Loi Krathong ceremony", the Thai festival of the lights.
Korakot Punlopruksa
Korakot Punlopruksa – Better known under the name of Nym, Korakot is a writer and photographer based and born in Bangkok. Nym will be accompanying us while traveling in her country. Her passion is travel, food, people and new experiences. From the Croatian coast line to the Andaman archipelago, from the bicycle town of Amsterdam to the ancient modern Kyoto in Japan, from the dirt brown wide open space of Mongolia to the verdant terraces of Bali... She has excuses to go anywhere. Nym has written for ELLE DECOR, MARIE CLAIRE, BANGKOK POST and others. We are privileged to have Nym with us during this retreat.

Retreat Inclusion

  • 8 days/ 7 nights' accommodation in Chiang Mai and Pai, Thailand
  • Transfers to / from Chiang Mai (and airport) to resort
  • Transfers from/ to Chiang Mai and Pai
  • Loi Khratong 'Festival of lights' ceremony
  • Daily "Follow your Dreams" sessions
  • Twice daily yoga and meditation sessions
  • Daily breakfasts, lunches and dinners
  • Thai cooking class
  • 2 Spa treatments
  • Bamboo water rafting
  • Natural hot spring bath
  • Bicycle ride in Pai
  • Elephant ride
  • Tax and service
The Price
The price is inclusive of everything described above
The tuition fee is calculated in US$ .
Use the following exchange converter for today"s accurate rates.

CURRENCY CONVERTER

Currency Single Twin/per person
US$
 $1,950.00 $1,550.00

 

"Escape to Thailand" for 8 days and 7 nights

General Information
Led by Iyan Yaspriyana and Claude Chouinard this retreat to Thailand will introduce you to Buddhism while enjoying daily yoga and discovering the Northern part of Thailand. The retreat starts in Chiang Mai where you will experience the Loi Khratong ceremony, the annual festival of the lights. On this day people go to nearby canals, light a candle and make a wish before setting their candle on a float onto the water. It is a belief that whatever is wished for during the Khratong festival will come true. In Chiang Mai you will also practice daily yoga and meditations, enjoy a spa treatment and learn Thai cooking. Iyan and Claude will be taking you "deeper within" with their daily “Follow your Dreams” sessions.

After three nights in Chiang Mai we will be taking you to Pai, a small village at the foot of the northern mountains. The following days you will explore the Pai river in a Bamboo raft, cycle through the village, go on an elephant ride and visit the hot springs. Daily yoga and meditation and a spa treatment are also part of the program.

For the last night we will be taking you back to Chiang Mai where the retreat will end the next morning.

A perfect retreat to discover the northern part of Thailand, practice daily yoga and go deeper within the self.

THE YOGA
The daily meditation and yoga sessions are a soft approach to what may become part of one's daily life. Through meditation and yoga, people from around the world and all levels of society have reached incredible results in balancing the body, mind and spirit therefore achieving more focus and in control over life's daily events.

Iyan’s bimonthly Escape the World retreat has pleased more than 200 people in 2009 and 20 retreats are planned for 2010.

ACCOMMODATION

   

In Chiang Mai you will be staying at the Butterfly, a resort on the shores of the Ping River that combines design, luxury and privacy in a homely independent environment. The rooms are tastefully designed with unique interiors and with their lap pool, Jacuzzi, library and wireless internet they offer all the facilities needed for a luxurious stay.

   

The Pai Herbs resort will be our base in Pai. This resort combines classical Lanna influences and local Shan architecture with the magnificent natural beauty of the valley to provide a truly unforgettable experience. Every room on the resort has all the amenities one would expect: air conditioning, wireless internet access, a private balcony and large private outdoor shower.

MEALS

Daily breakfast, lunch and dinner are inclusive. All meals preferences are catered for. Inclusive in this retreat is a Thai Cooking class.

SPA TREATMENTS

   

Inclusive in the Escape to Thailand Retreat are two spa treatments.

PROGRAM ITINERARY

Day 1 – Loi Krathong

Transfer from the Chiang Mai airport or elsewhere in Chiang Mai to the Butterfly resort.

Orientation Program - Meditation - Stretching

Snacks will be served after the orientation program

Loi Krathong Ceremony

   

The Loy Krathong ceremony is held every year on the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. We are fortunate to be able to witness this beautiful ceremony at the start of our retreat.

"Loy" means "to float" and "krathong" is a raft traditionally made from part of a banana tree trunk. Sometimes these rafts are made of bread as it protects the environment. The raft is decorated with banana leaves, flowers, candles, incense sticks etc. The Thai people set the raft afloat to honor and pay respect to the goddess of water. Also, they apologize to the goddess of water for any bad things they have done to the river during the past year.

We will watch this ceremony from a boat on the river and set our own rafts afloat. It is a belief that whatever is wished for during the Kratong festival will come true.

Dinner - After the ceremony we will have dinner in Chiang Mai

 

Day 2 - Follow Your Dreams - A day to go deeper within

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Follow your Dreams Session

Lunch

   

Afternoon Yoga and meditation class

Dinner in Chiang Mai

 

Day 3 - A day for ''Me Self''

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Follow your Dreams Session

Lunch  

Spa Treatments in Chiang Mai

After lunch we will be taking you to Chiang Mai where you will enjoy a relaxing spa treatment.

   

Learning Thai Cooking and dinner
Discover the exotic spices and ingredients of Thai food. Explore cooking techniques, alternative ingredients and fascinating kitchen myths of this unique culture. After the class we will have dinner in town.

   

Meditation class

 

Day 4 - Discovering North Thailand

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast with Joe Cummings
Joe Cummings is an accomplished writer whom through his words and knowledge of Thailand has greatly influenced Claude"s drastic life changing experience in 1992. Among his work, Joe has written and updated the Lonely Planet Thailand for years, he is an expert in South East Asia"s culture and Buddhism. It will be most interesting to have breakfast with Joe.

Follow your Dreams Session

Lunch  

Check out from Butterfly and leave for Pai

Stop at a special gallery on the way to Pai

Follow your Dreams Session - By the waterfall

Arrival in Pai - Stop at a shop for snacks/water/etc

   

Check in at Pai Resort

Dinner

 

Day 5 - The Adventure

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Follow your Dreams Session

Bamboo Water Rafting

   

Lunch in Pai

Massage in Pai

Natural Hot Spring Bath

Meditation and Follow your Dream Session at a Temple

   

Dinner

 

Day 6 - The Backcountry

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Morning to relax at the resort

Lunch

Cycling within Pai

   

Elephant Riding in Pai

   

Hot Spring Bath

Afternoon Yoga and meditation class

Dinner with Nee

 

Day 7 - Return to Chiang Mai

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Checking out from the resort in Pai and leaving for Chiang Mai

Lunch between Pai and Chiang Mai

Tea with Niki, a foreigner established in Chiang Mai for many years, Niki exports some of Asia's finest tea, and he has a few stories to tell!

Check in at Butterfly

   

Afternoon stretching and meditation class

Dinner at the resort

 

Day 8 - Retreat Closing

Morning Yoga and meditation class

Breakfast

Closing Ceremony

12:00 - Check Out - End of the retreat

Transfer to the Chiang Mai airport or elsewhere in Chiang Mai.