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Date: 1-7 September 2013 Monthly payment plans available |
Costs Book Back |
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Location: Join us for a yoga holiday in Tuscany this September. You'll stay in beautiful Benabbio, a quintessentially Italian village nestled high in the majestic hills of northern Tuscany. With stunning views down the Lima valley and the snow capped Appenine mountains as a backdrop, this is a wonderfully peaceful and picturesque location. We have the run of a 17th Century Baroque villa which has been beautifully renovated and restored. It has nine individually designed bedrooms, a private walled garden, its own olive grove and a small dipping pool with mountain views. Programme: On this yoga holiday, you’ll enjoy a nurturing, uplifting and rejuvenating yoga, meditation and breathwork practice with Lisa Sanfilippo, one of London's top teachers in a rare, intimate setting. You'll have just enough challenge to inspire you, and enough rest to replenish you. Between classes our village location lends itself perfectly for some peaceful “you time” and if you feel like exploring there is plenty to see and do. |
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Yoga: Lisa will generally offer two yoga classes per day, plus optional morning meditation, and you'll have a day off for a longer excursion mid-week. Classes will be energising and dynamic in the mornings and more grounding/ meditative in the afternoons. Lisa’s teaching style is playful, poetic, intelligent and engaging. She helps you to move in ways that give you deeper access to your own steadiness and spaciousness. Classes combine fluid movement with alignment and awareness, breathwork, meditation, visualisation and draw upon yoga philosophy in a way that's relevant and powerful. You'll leave with new inspiration and tools to care for yourself on and off the mat once you get home. Lisa welcomes students of all levels on this yoga holiday. Those who are completely new to yoga are advised to take a few classes before their holiday and those who wish to work more deeply on any physical or energetic, health or therapeutic aspect of yoga/ lifestyle may opt for a personal session with Lisa at an additional fee. |
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Other things to do: Our venue is a peaceful location ideal for relaxing, reading, walking and enjoying some quiet time in the private garden, dipping pool and surrounding olive groves. It’s a great sunbathing spot, or you can relax in one of the three lounges or on the covered terrace upstairs which has perfect mountain views. Benabbio village: There are several walks around the surrounding hills and forests or you can wander around the traditional village where you’ll find a couple of local bars and shops. Bagni di Lucca: Bagni di Lucca is our nearest town. It's a pretty riverside town with the thermal spa, a swimming pool, cafes, bars and shops. Thermal baths: This area is famous for its natural thermal waters, so we highly recommend a visit to the traditional thermal baths in Bagni di Lucca, where you can relax in the warm therapeutic baths, take a steam in the caves or have a massage, facial and other pampering treatments. Swimming pool: We have a small dipping pool at the villa, perfect for cooling down during the hot days but if you'd like to have a swim, the local swimming pool in Bagni di Lucca is lovely. With two large pools and fabulous views of the surrounding hills, it's a wonderful place to spend a few relaxing hours. River swim: Ten minutes drive away is a fantastic natural pool, which is part of the Lima river. It’s a great spot to sunbathe on the warm rocks and take a refreshing dip in the beautifully clear river. Days out: The historical town of Lucca is less than half an hour away. Lucca is one of the last walled medieval cities with beautiful cobbled streets, picturesque piazzas and old churches. Lucca is also great for shopping, with many fashion outlets and boutiques. There are trains from Bagni di Lucca or we can arrange taxis. If you are the mood for some hustle and bustle, Florence is around an hour and a half away. Set on the banks of the River Arno and famous for its history, art and architecture, Florence is considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. There are trains from Bagni di Lucca (via Lucca). We'll run a daily drop and pick up for the river, swimming pool, spa, town and train station each day for 10 Euros return. |
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Accommodation: Our villa has nine individually designed stylish rooms, most have their own private bathroom and they all have beautiful views. Restored over the last four years, the owners have retained the original rustic style but upgraded the rooms to be wonderfully comfortable and plush, with carefully selected furniture and fittings, ornate beds with beautiful silk covers and fresh cotton sheets. The bathrooms have fluffy white towels, handmade soaps, free standing baths and big showers. We also have two lovely villages houses located a short walk from our villa in the heart of the village. We have a four bedroom, spacious house in the heart of the village and another one bedroom apartment with a beautiful garden overlooking the Lima valley. |
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Meals: You’ll be served a delicious, healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Meals will mostly Italian style and prepared by our expert chefs, using fresh local produce. Our menus are designed to support your yoga practice, so you can expect tasty meals which are mostly vegetarian, low gluten, sugar and dairy. We can cater for any specialist diets, just let us know when you book. You’ll have plenty of herbal teas and drinking water, and it's easy to power down by having less or no caffeine while you are with us. We don’t serve alcohol but there are a few local bars nearby. |
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Costs: Villa: Large luxury suite £1025 Single ensuite/bath & shower £995 Double ensuite/bath & shower £850pp Single ensuite/shower £925 Twin with shared bathroom £850pp Village houses: A double room in a lovely house with large gardens and stunning views, 2 minutes from the villa is £700 per person (based on 2 people sharing). Single rooms in a four bedroom house 5 minutes walk from the villa are £750 per person. Monthly payment plans available. |
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What’s included:
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Weather: The weather will be hot in September. Average temperatures are likely to be around 26-28 degrees Celsius and it’s unlikely to rain. There may be some light breezes due to our hillside location. |
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Travel information: Trains We encourage our clients to travel responsibly, so if you have the time to make the journey part of your holiday then you can travel by train. With great scenery, no baggage or check in fees, no airport taxes or 2 hour check ins, it’s a less stressful way to travel. There are several options for travelling by train, the best being the Eurostar to Paris and then a sleeper train to Florence, where you can pick up a connecting train to Bagni di Lucca, via Lucca (see seat61 for more details). Fares start at around £175 return, but you'll need to book in advance to get a good fare. Flights The nearest airport is Pisa and you can fly direct from UK with British Airways and Easyjet. Fares will be around £125. We advise that you book early to avoid higher fares. Transfers from the airport Hire a car You can hire a car from Pisa for around £120 plus fuel (we will link up clients who are interested in car sharing) which will give you the freedom to explore the area more widely during your week with us. Catch a train You can also catch the train from the airport (Pisa Aeroporto) to Bagni di Lucca. The journey takes around 90 minutes and costs around 5.20 Euros one way. You’ll need to change twice, once at Pisa Centrale and then again at Lucca. You can check out trains here: www.trenitalia.com. As we are encouraging responsible travel wherever possible, we are pleased to offer a free pick up and return from Bagni di Lucca station. Minibus pick up You can join our minibus pick up which will depart Pisa airport at 4pm on 1st September for around 20 Euros per person one way. We will also have a return minibus departing at 4pm on 7th September. Timings will be confirmed when you book. |
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