Yoga Retreats
Joanna Dunn’s unique teaching style is described as accessible, yet challenging to a wide range of students. This video was filmed during a one-day yoga retreat at Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort in Leavenworth, Washington.
If you landed here, something is drawing you to a yoga retreat. What is it you are longing for?
Since 2012, Joanna has served hundreds of individuals who all come on retreat for a variety of reasons: recovering from a stressful event, grieving the loss of a loved one, celebration of a special birthday, time to reconnect with a parent, child, sibling or friend, time to reflect and practice self-care, adventure, or simply a wish to immerse oneself in the practice of yoga and meditation.
Whatever is calling you to come on retreat, you’ll find it in one of Joanna’s offerings.
Each retreat is unique, although we do return to certain special locations every year. You’ll find everything from one-day retreats locally in Leavenworth, to weekend retreats in the Pacific Northwest - and every year at least one special week-long retreat to a beautiful and restful location. Occasionally, Joanna also offers adventure retreats which include hiking, kayaking, or exploring a unique and intriguing part of the world. Always, constant in every retreat is meditation and yoga for all levels, abilities, and experience levels. As a testament to their experience, over two-thirds of retreat participants return for another retreat… and for a lucky few, some return year after year! Read more under testimonials.
Where would you like to go on a retreat? Joanna is always open to ideas. Have a group of friends who want to go on retreat together? Joanna is available for hire to come to your location and provide daily yoga and meditation to make your time more meaningful. Contact Joanna today to explore what might be possible.
All weekend and week-long retreats include lodging, three meals, and yoga unless otherwise specified. Airfare and transportation are not included, except with week-long residential retreats for which shuttles to and from the airport are often included. Carpooling is often an option for weekend retreats.
Payment plans can be arranged for all retreats. Have questions about what to expect from your first yoga retreat? Read below for answers to many frequently asked questions.
Carbon Neutral Yoga Retreats
I am committed to making my yoga retreats, especially those that require air travel, carbon neutral by contributing to Sustainable Travel International as well as making efforts to carpool, reduce waste and buy organic foods.
Joanna Dunn Yoga is now a member of Sustainable Travel International. I am working on minimizing the carbon footprint of my business, starting with offsetting all flights required for my week-long retreats in 2020 and 2021. For each person flying to and from the retreat destination, I will contribute to Sustainable Travel International to offset the greenhouse gases created by air travel.
“Tourism is responsible for roughly 8% of the world’s carbon emissions, making it a significant contributor to climate change. A round trip flight from San Francisco to Paris can produce just over 1.25 metric tons of carbon emissions per passenger. That’s over a quarter of the amount of carbon that the average person worldwide produces per year – just from one round trip flight. Every time you fly on a plane, stay in a hotel, ride in a taxi, or create waste, carbon emissions are being generated. While there are many ways that you can and should minimize your carbon footprint while traveling – from turning off the air conditioner to renting electric vehicles – no matter how sustainable your travel habits are, certain carbon emissions are unavoidable.” - SustainableTravel.org
Carbon offsetting is not perfect. I have heard the voices of criticism. But I still believe it is increasingly important for us to 1) take time to retreat and 2) to experience the world outside of our small bubble of daily life in the U.S. to experience other cultures and ways of being. I will continue to offer transformative week-long retreats while seeking ways to reduce the impact that my services have on the environment.
Retreats: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a retreat schedule like? How much yoga will we do?
First, Joanna’s philosophy is always that everything is optional. At the beginning of each retreat, participants are asked to make an intention and then as the retreat progresses, to keep themselves in alignment with their intention. For some, that may be to get rest and rejuvenate and for others, to immerse themselves in practice in study. Each person’s approach and intention will dictate how much and what they participate in. The person whose wish is to rest may sleep in for morning meditation, for example. Joanna offers a lot during retreats and participants may not want to take part in everything offered.
Sample daily schedule
6:00-6:20am Early morning meditation (ideally 20 minutes before sunrise)
6:30-7:45am Morning yoga practice (active)
8:00am Breakfast
10:00-11:00am Workshop - Usually lecture/discussion on topics such as Intro to Meditation, Neuroscience of meditation, How to create change in your life, Building a home practice, Why self-compassion is essential, Yoga philosophy & history
1:00pm Lunch
4:00-5:00pm Workshop - Usually active on topics such as posture clinic on challenging or complex poses: Downward dog, Handstand, Arm balances, Core strength
5:30-6:45pm Afternoon yoga practice (restorative, yin or gentle)
7:00pm Dinner
8:30pm Evening meditation (silent or guided)
Who goes on Joanna’s retreats? What if I’m a beginner or out of shape?
Everyone 18 years and older is welcome on Joanna’s retreats and children 16-18 with an adult family member are welcome. Historically, the youngest person to come on a retreat has been in her mid-20s and the oldest has been 80. Joanna has had people with zero yoga experience attend her retreats and people with decades of experience as well as professional yoga teachers. The commonality of all participants is that they are curious and open. Joanna’s style is slower paced with attention to building body awareness through alignment and sensation. Her goal is to offer something for everyone and to offer ways to modify poses to make them easier or more challenging for different abilities. If you are out of shape, a week-long retreat may be a great challenge to inspire you to get moving for the sake of your health - body, mind and spirit! You’ll find that the community of people who are attracted to study with Joanna are positive thinking and supportive of one another.
Where does Joanna go on retreats?
In the past, Joanna has led retreats at the following locations:
In Washington State: Carlton and Mazama (Methow Valley), Orcas Island, Whidbey Island, Roslyn, Leavenworth
In Oregon: Breitenbush Hot Springs
In Utah: Red Mountain Resort
In Hawai’i: Wailua, Kauai
International: Belize, Mexico (Baja Mexico, Sayulita, Tulum), Costa Rica
Joanna is always looking for new locations to take her students on retreat. If you would like to go to a specific location, email her to let her know: [email protected]
What is the cancellation policy? What if I have an emergency at the last minute?
Unfortunately, we cannot offer refunds on retreats once payments are made. For this reason, especially for week-long retreats, we recommend that participants purchase travel insurance on their airfare and the cost of the retreat. This protects you, Joanna and the retreat center from financial loss. Of course, if for some reason Joanna has to cancel a retreat full refunds on any payments made will be offered or a credit toward a future retreat. We cannot compensate for travel or airfare in the event of a cancellation.
We cannot recommend any specific travel insurance but suggest you look at what two travel companies say about insurance they recommend.
What style of yoga does Joanna teach?
Joanna has been teaching yoga professionally since 2001, somatic movement since 2012 and meditation since 2013. She started training yoga teachers in 2011. In the course of her studies, she has developed an eclectic and unique approach combining all of her training to help her students access greater wisdom and awareness of their bodies, minds, hearts and spirits. Her approach is slow and mindful, yet can still be physically challenging. On retreat with Joanna, you can expect to be exposed to:
active alignment-based and slow vinyasa using props and the wall
restful restorative yoga
meditative yin stretches
somatic movement (gentle movements and neuromuscular repatterning)
meditation and self-compassion practices
For more information on who Joanna is and what she offers, visit the ABOUT link in the upper right of this page, take a short online class with her on Vimeo, read a blog post, or check her Instagram or Facebook Feed (no Instagram or Facebook account needed). You can also read what other people are saying about Joanna in the TESTIMONIALS section of this site. If you still have questions, don’t hesitate to email, text, or call: [email protected] or 509.470.0542