Japan Yoga + Meditation Retreat April 2025 - Ishigaki Okinawa 12th-18th

Either you have been dreaming about going to visit Japan, or you love Japan and you want to return, Ishigaki island offers something incredibly special. This traditional house, formerly a Kimono gallery, has been transformed into a Yoga wellbeing centre by Maiko-san and Patrick.  It is welcoming, spacious and friendly and offers the authentic experience of living in a traditional Japanese house with tatami floors and sleeping in a traditional way on a futon.  The venue prioritises the environment and longevity and encourages all guests to be part of this philosophy while staying.  The house is reserved uniquely for our group during the retreat.

Shiraho village is famous for its huge coral beach, perfect for snorkelling and diving, and being well preserved by the local community. It is a quiet residential area, with traditional Okinawa houses, great local cuisine and a market. At night, you can see a beautiful sky with millions of stars as well as natural fireflies on the beach.  I cannot overstate how beautiful the house, island and community are.

The typical day starts with half an hour meditation and 90 minutes dynamic yoga practice followed by breakfast, then you have the afternoon free to explore, followed by Yin or Restorative practice and dinner in the evening.

7:00-7:30       Meditation

7:30-9:00       Asana (Dynamic Vinyasa)

9:30                Breakfast

- Free time -

17:00-18:30  Yin Yoga / Restore

19:00              Dinner

- Free time –

Practice & Level

Open level. There may be some challenging poses however we offer alternatives to accommodate all levels, being kind to our bodies through practice of Ahimsa (non-harm). I use a non-competitive approach for every participant to allow you to challenge your own physical and emotional boundaries.

Practice includes Asana (Poses), Pranayama (Breathing) and Meditation (Dharana / Dhyana). Asana styles are originated from Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Rocket, Mandala, Dharma, Yin.  My teaching approach is based on the Eight Limbs of Yoga from Ashtanga philosophy. I have a deep appreciation of Yoga history, philosophy and science,  and in my teaching I share the philosophical as well as the physical aspects of practice, always implementing the “4 Ds” Dedication, Devotion, Discipline and Determination. I aim to teach an appreciation of our present state of being, a mindfulness, to help counteract the stresses of daily life.

Japan is my home country, so I am doing my very best for you to have pure local cultural experience throughout your stay.

Eat

We have an amazing chef who will be spending all day in the kitchen for us, cooking nutritious healthy local food, full of love and passion. Chi-chan strongly believes that local food can connect our body and mind to the soil where we stand to adapt to the new land, so through the local ingredients we connect to the village and environment. We carefully choose seasonal, fresh ingredients to receive rich nutrition from them. Chi-chan believes that sharing the same food builds friendship and connection and always does her best to create the dish that can meet everyone’s requirements and requests.

Dietary requirements

We do our best to accommodate any dietary requirement so please let me know if you have any in advance.

If you have any further information or questions, please do let me know.

Additionals

The house also provides massage, i.e. Ayurveda Yoga massage, Swedish and more that you can book with an additional cost. (I really recommend it!)

There are lots of additional activities you can sign up for separately with the venue and locals.

The island offers many activities – the seas are perfect for snorkelling and scuba diving or you can take an island tour, go hiking, do local cooking workshop, go island hopping, or enjoy a night out in town to mingle with locals. The 7 days will fly by with so many activities -  or you may want to enjoy the quiet time with your favourite books in the sun.

The house provides a very homey and welcoming environment, like coming back to your own or your family home. And it is a very typical home atmosphere for those who choose to stay in the shared room. It is a very spacious house so you will also find your space and a quiet moment whenever you want.

Extra Stay - Travel around Japan

I recommend you stay an extra week or two before or after the retreat to travel around Japan. You can get a special train deal called JR Pass, which allows you to travel around Japan with most JR lines and bullet train lines for 7 or 14 days for a very reasonable price (it is only available for people who are non-resident in Japan. You will need to apply before you depart from outside Japan). April is Cherry Blossom season in Japan, and you see festivals under the trees all over Japan - a real “MUST SEE”.

Bookings

Booking is only confirmed when your non-refundable 50% deposit is paid (we cannot guarantee any booking until the deposit payment is made).  The full payment is required 14 weeks before the retreat. If you are booking less than 14 weeks before the start of the retreat, we require full payment for bookings.  Please see the full terms and conditions here

Price

Price start from £800 pp depending on the room choice. It is first come first served. Private rooms are limited so if you prefer this option, please book sooner rather than later.  We have 3 x Private rooms that can accommodate single occupancy or / and 2-3 ppl shared, and *1 large, shared room that has 6 spaces. (*It is a very large room which is designed to be shared in a traditional Japanese house. There is always plenty of space if you need time for yourself in the house.)

Travel

Retreat participants generally fly to a main airport such as Tokyo or Osaka and then take a domestic flight direct to Ishigaki airport, and a 10 minute bus or taxi ride to the retreat venue.  I am happy to offer advice and ideas about your travel arrangements however I am not a travel agent - I do my best with my knowledge and experience! - so please do your own research and check with a travel professional.

On arrival we welcome everyone  and we share an opening ceremony at dinner time to get to know each other. Check-in starts at 15:00 pm however there is some flexibility so if your flight is arriving earlier, just let me know. And the same for Check-out, it is 10:00am on the last day but again, let me know of your flight details and we will do our best to accommodate. If you would like to stay additional days, at a reasonable additional cost, please let me know.

I highly recommend you buy travel insurance to avoid any stress in case of travel disruption, flight cancellation etc.

Please check your VISA requirement, if you need any documents, please let me know.

I hope to see you soon in my Yoga retreat in Japan!

Lots of love

Namaste

Saori Funawatari

House is impressive with its traditional architectural structure that can hold 4 metre of snow (which was MUST in Gifu) and survived from powerful typhoons that Okinawa receive in autumn season for years