* While stocks last. Register at kris@krismcintyre.com to get your free mat.

Rated by the Sunday Telegraph’s Body+Soul as one of the best outdoor yoga classes in NSW.

Located on the shores of beautiful Port Stephens just over 2 hours drive from Sydney and 40 minutes from Newcastle, Peppers Anchorage is the perfect place to relax and unwind for a weekend yoga retreat.

Friday 23-Sunday 25 March 2012: Autumn Retreat
Themes: Autumn cleansing, respiration, elimination, improved digestion.

Friday 17-Sunday 19 August 2012: Winter-into-Spring Retreat
Themes: Spring detox, back strength, flexibility, eyesight and stress release.

Designed especially to suit beginners and intermediate levels of experience, each weekend varies to suit the changing needs of the seasons according to Ryoho (a form of yoga therapy combining traditional Indian Hatha poses with the meridian based healing arts of China and Japan). Yoga, meditation, food talks, beach and bush walks are all part of the weekend.

The weekend yoga escape at Peppers Anchorage isn’t a yoga ‘boot camp’ and we don’t have any ‘rules’. We instead provide a platform for attendees to get as much as they want out of the weekend.

From $536 per person, twin share the weekend retreat package includes two nights accommodation at Peppers Anchorage Port Stephens, six Ryoho yoga and meditation classes, a yoga mat, morning beach and bushwalks and a healthy wholefood menu prepared by Peppers Chefs. Optional treatments (at additional cost) available at Shayna Day Spa.

When not stretching out on the yoga mat, guests can enjoy massage and beauty treatments at the onsite Shayna Day Spa and full use of the resort’s leisure facilities including a swimming pool, sauna and the adjacent beach.

For bookings contact Delise McLean at Peppers Anchorage Port Stephens on (02) 4984 0364 or email delise.mclean@peppers.com.au.

Read about Newcastle Herald journalist, Anita Beaumont’s experience on a recent retreat here.

Dating back hundreds of years, the hamam was to the Ottomans what the day spa is to the modern goddess – a place to bathe, relax, be pampered and gather with other women. Today, modern hamams are scattered throughout the city, but the historic hamams built by the sultans to serve the imperial mosques and the ritual cleansing dictates of the Koran are beautiful examples of the kind of breathtaking marble work and rich decoration that only Islamic architecture can do.

But a trip to the ‘hamami’ (in the local lingo) can be intimidating if you don’t know what to expect. For a start, it’s not a place for the prudish, but its worth baring your breasts and a bit of your soul for the indulgence. Read more

Born in a handbag from scribbled tips shared between holiday goddesses whose work, love and life adventures scattered them all over the globe, it will take you where few women have been before.

Release your inner goddess as you follow Audrey Hepburn′s footsteps in Rome, delve into the secret diaries of shopaholics in New York, learn ′chiconomical secrets′ in Paris, where to love the nightlife in London, and how to find to-die-for shoes, lustworthy cult local brands,the best vintage markets, heavenly spas or sanctuaries to escape the hustle and bustle, the most original art, the best live music, where to eat, love, and eat some more.

Designed especially to suit beginners and intermediate levels of experience, classes for each weekend will vary to suit the changing needs of the seasons according to Ryoho Yoga Therapy.

17-19 February 2012: High Summer Retreat
Themes: good digestion, weight loss, improving energy levels and kicking sugar cravings!

18-20 May 2012: Mother & Daughter Retreat
Themes: women’s health, sugar cravings, stress release and core strength.

20-22 July 2012: Winter Retreat
Themes: lower back strength, stress release and sexual energy.

12-14 October 2012: Summer Retreat
Themes: power & strength, upper back release, blood pressure & circulation, happy hearts!

Based on the teachings of my renowned teachers, Andzej Gospodarczyk and Lisa Foster, Ryoho yoga combines traditional Indian Hatha yoga with the principles of Yin and Yang, the Five Element Theory and the healing arts of China and Japan. In addressing specific conditions through yoga and food advise, it is also efficient and effective in dealing with conditions ranging from back and neck pain to women’s health issues, weight control, joint problems, stress, anxiety, respiratory and circulatory problems.

My aim in creating these retreats with Peppers and the Golden Door was to create a yoga escape that is approachable, both financially and in terms of accessibility of the program – something that sits between the existing offerings of intense, strict and often expensive health retreats and, at the other end of the scale, the more hippie, bunk-style intense yoga camps which aren’t for everyone.

The weekend yoga escape at Peppers Salt Resort & Spa isn’t a yoga ‘boot camp’ and we don’t have any ‘rules’… we instead provide a platform for attendees to get as much as they want out of the weekend.

Priced from $557* per person twin share, the all-inclusive escape includes two nights accommodation, full buffet breakfast daily, five  Ryoho yoga and meditation classes with yoga teacher Kris McIntyre, a yoga mat, workshops and Zumba hosted by The Golden Door, a 50 minute spa treatment at The Golden Door Spa, wholesome meals including lunch supper on Friday and lunch and dinner on Saturday inspired by The Golden Door cook book and prepared by Peppers Salt Resort & Spa’s  onsite restaurant Season, full use of resort leisure facilities, unlimited in-room movies and more.

Non-residential packages are available from $407* per person including all yoga classes, mat, The Golden Door Spa treatment, one dinner and two lunches.

When guests aren’t striking a pose, they can step out into nature and enjoy a network of beachside walking and bicycle tracks, unspoilt surf beaches, the resort’s large tropical beach lagoon pool, or head to The Golden Door Spa for a wide range of soul soothing spa treatments.

Peppers Salt Resort & Spa is located just 15 minutes from Gold Coast Airport, 60 minutes from Ballina Airport and less than 90 minutes drive from Brisbane.

For bookings call Jolene Napper at Conferences and Events at Salt on 02 6670 5027 or email jolene.napper@conferencesandeventsatsalt.com.au.

Read Lance Richardson’s article in the Sydney Morning Herald here.

The retreat is designed for all ability levels from beginners through to experienced.  Based on Ryoho yoga therapy combining traditional Indian Hatha poses with the meridian based healing arts of China and Japan, the Summer Retreat will address specific issues relating to the heart, blood pressure and circulation, whilst at the same time improving our ability to assimilate food, relate to other people and express yourself creatively.

The aim of the retreat is to be a relaxed weekend away in beautiful surrounds with the opportunity to enjoy yoga classes, an indulgent spa treatment and wholesome food. It’s not a ‘hard core’ yoga boot camp’.

Priced from $533* per person twin share, the all-inclusive escape includes two nights accommodation, full buffet breakfast daily, six yoga classes with yoga teacher, author and TV host Kris McIntyre, a yoga mat, Golden Door workshops and demonstrations, a 50 minute Golden Door Spa treatment, wholesome meals inspired by The Golden Door cook book and prepared by Roughie’s Restaurant & Bar, full use of resort leisure facilities, unlimited in-room movies and more.

Non-residential packages are available from $390* per person including all yoga classes, mat, Golden Door Spa treatment, one dinner and two lunches.

Featuring all the luxuries you would expect of one of Australia’s leading resorts, Peppers Salt Resort & Spa offers multiple pools including a large tropical beach lagoon, a network of walking and bicycle tracks, an unspoilt surf beach patrolled 365 days a year at its doorstep, the indulgent Golden Door Spa and award-winning Season Restaurant & Bar.

Providing the ultimate beach break on South East Queensland’s doorstep, SALT is located just 20 minutes from Gold Coast Airport, 60 minutes from Ballina Airport and less than 90 minutes drive from Brisbane through the new Tugun Bypass.

For bookings contact: Jolene Napper at Salt Conferences & Events, phone: (02) 6670 5009 or email jolene.napper@conferencesandeventsatsalt.com.au. For more information visit *Conditions apply. Subject to availability.

I’ve fallen for the private Balinese villa experience. A well-staffed luxury villa offers most of what you get from a 5-star hotel in Bali – lazy days filled with relaxing by the pool in beautifully appointed accommodation with great food, attentive service and on-demand pampering. And with the price of villas starting at less than the cost of a luxury hotel, it’s incredibly good bang for your buck. But for the uninitiated, searching for a villa is overwhelming because there are so many options to choose from. So, what to look out for? Read more …

For more information visit their website at www.ryoho.com.au

Spring is a time for fresh new beginnings and this retreat is the reason to stretch out and relax at Peppers Salt Resort & Spa.

This  Pre-Spring Retreat is designed to shed off the last vestiges of your winter hibernation and prepare you for the arrival of Spring. It is for all ability levels from beginners through to experienced.  Based on Ryoho yoga therapy combining traditional Indian Hatha poses with the meridian based healing arts of China and Japan, the Spring Retreat will address specific issues including detoxification, flexibility, joint problems and eyesight.

The aim of the retreat is to be a relaxed weekend away in beautiful surrounds with the opportunity to enjoy yoga classes, an indulgent spa treatment and wholesome food. It’s not a ‘hard core’ yoga boot camp’.

Priced from $533* per person twin share, the all-inclusive escape includes accommodation at Peppers Salt Resort & Spa, six yoga classes with me, yoga mat, Golden Door Spa treatment, wholesome meals inspired by The Golden Door cook book and prepared by Roughies Restaurant & Bar, full use of resort leisure facilities and more.

Non-residential packages are available from $390* per person including all yoga classes, mat, Golden Door Spa treatment, two dinners and two lunches.

Featuring all the luxuries you would expect of one of Australia’s leading resorts, Peppers Salt Resort & Spa offers multiple pools including a large tropical beach lagoon, a network of walking and bicycle tracks, an unspoilt surf beach patrolled 365 days a year at its doorstep, the indulgent Golden Door Spa and award-winning Roughie’s Restaurant & Bar.

Providing the ultimate beach break on South East Queensland’s doorstep, SALT is located just 20 minutes from Gold Coast Airport, 60 minutes from Ballina Airport and less than 90 minutes drive from Brisbane through the new Tugun Bypass.

For bookings contact: Jolene Napper at Salt Conferences & Events, Phone: (02) 6670 5009 or email jolene.napper@conferencesandeventsatsalt.com.au *Conditions apply. Subject to availability.