Join Devon, ERYT-500, founder of Day Yoga Studios and Ryan Taylor, CRC, LPCC-S, EMDR Certified Counselor and owner of Empowering Wellness LLC for a week-long yoga and wellness retreat in beautiful Trelawny, Jamaica. Up to two yoga or reflection practices will be offered daily. Morning practices are typically energizing all-level vinyasa classes to help you get ready for each day. You will end the days with gentle, restorative, yin, reflections or group sangha to help encourage a restful evening on your retreat.
You can make your time in Jamaica as relaxing or as adventurous as you like. When you’re not practicing yoga or eating nourishing local cuisine, you can relax in one of the pools, hike on one of the trails in the lush mountains, visit the nearby beach or participate in a karma service project. Optional group excursions will also be offered. You are sure to leave this retreat with a sense of balance, vitality and overall well-being.
- 6 nights accommodations
- 3 meals per day (excluding alcoholic beverages) starting with dinner on the first night and ending with breakfast on the last day
- Group Ground Transportation to/from Donald Sangster International Airport (MBJ) Airport to Retreat Center
- Karma Yoga Service Project
- Complimentary Rentals for SUP and/or Kayak
- Luminous Lagoon Excursion
- Daily yoga practices
- Personal retreat time (having time to nap, explore, walk, read, and just be)
Accommodations
The retreat venue is nestled on a 2000-acre historic property in the beautiful Jamaican countryside.
Surrounded by lush hills and valleys, a pristine river running through it, and the sun shining on the majestic landscape, this retreat location calls you to slow down, listen, and let go.
This retreat venue also includes a private section of the beach with a beach house that is 25 minutes from the venue for your ocean getaways during your stay. Here you will have a sense of Total Jamaica – the mountains and the sea. Complete fulfillment.
Whether you are practicing yoga, overlooking the endless mirage of lushness, eating the fresh local cuisine, hiking or horseback riding the trails, or learning pottery while overlooking the river, this Jamaican sanctuary is all about the full experience that can happen while on retreat.
Devon Schmidt, ERYT-500, owner of Day Yoga studios
It was in 2003 while enrolled at the Columbus College of Art and Design, that Devon Schmidt first discovered her love for yoga. Through Hatha yoga classes at the YMCA in downtown Columbus, she came to enjoy the physical and mental benefits of the asanas and noticed how wonderful she felt after class. It was while learning about yoga’s spiritual side that Devon was inspired to become a yoga teacher.
In 2010 Devon completed the World Peace Yoga 200hr Teacher Training Program in Springboro Ohio. In 2016 Devon also completed the 300hr Advanced Teacher Training Program at Yoga On High and is registered with Yoga Alliance as an ERYT-500. She has completed the Shanti Mom Prenatal Yoga and Color Me Kids Trainings, as well as Yoga Therapy and Yoga Nidra Level I. Along the way she has been fortunate to study with David Swenson, Doug Keller, Richard Freeman, Karina Mirsky, and many more inspiring teachers. She completed Ayurvedic and Thai Yoga Massage Trainings with Kelly Lewis and Annette Dennis respectively. She has also completed an Ayurvedic Health Counselor program through Shakti School with Katie Silcox.
In 2011 Devon opened Day Yoga Studio in Dayton, Ohio to provide yoga and wellness services to the community. Along with teaching open yoga classes, she also facilitates workshops, conducts private individual yoga sessions, directs the 200-hour and 500-hour RYS teacher training programs at Day Yoga, and offers Ayurvedic Massage and Reiki sessions. A second location in Beavercreek was opened in 2018.
Devon teaches many various yoga styles and loves to incorporate the more spiritual aspects of yoga into her classes, encouraging her students to delve into self-inquiry and staying present through pranayama. She is also the director of the Day Yoga Community Outreach program which brings yoga to those in need in and around the Dayton area including schools and women’s shelters. All the while Devon still finds time for her most important job: being a mom to four kids.
Ryan Taylor, CRC, LPCC-S, EMDR Certified, owner of Empowering Wellness LLC
Ryan has been a licensed clinical counselor supervisor and certified rehabilitation counselor for the past seventeen years. She offers individual counseling services for clients who are looking to break through and make progress in navigating their stress, anxiety, depression, and trauma. She provides discrete and supportive therapy to high achievers, business owners, students, academics, physicians, and military members. Ryan has offered national and international seminars on teacher education, resiliency, and community engagement.
Ryan trained in how to utilize Brainspotting in 2020; which led her to more extensive training in EMDR, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing in 2022 to better help her clients process adverse experiences and trauma. She is an EMDRIA-certified EMDR therapist. While on this journey of Brainspotting training and EMDR certification, she became more focused on holistic care and trauma healing. Ryan expanded to offer nature-based therapy, EMDR Intensives, retreats, education, and Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy, KAP, at her Mongolian Yurt in Yellow Spring, Ohio.
**Ryan will not be offering clinical counseling while in Jamaica. She will be leading classes on self-reflection and awareness.
The gift of this retreat center is it allows you to do what you feel you want to do. There is space to be quiet or high energy, space to wander in nature or soak in the river or pool. Read a book, stare into space all day, or get up and be so active that you are exhausted by the end of the day.
Some of the possible options include:
- Pottery
- Painting
- Stand-up paddleboard
- Horseback riding
- Kayaking
- River and Beach access
- Karma Yoga Service Project
- Spa Services
*Price of some activities are not included in tuition
Please be sure to review Our Policies.
For technical questions or alternative payment options, please contact us.
Getting There
You will be booking your flights for the Donald Sangster International Airport (MBJ). Before booking tickets, please be sure you have received your official confirmation note that the retreat has met its minimums. There will be one group airport shuttle each way based on our flight window guidelines. Be sure your flights align with the provided flight windows if you wish to use the group shuttle. The drive time to the center is approximately 2 hours.
Travel Insurance
We cannot emphasize more the importance of travel insurance. As we all know, especially as travelers, “life happens.” Whether it’s family, work, mother nature, or a change of heart, it is important to be prepared in case you need to unexpectedly change your travel plans. Often for less than $150, you can purchase a travel insurance policy and be protected in the event that you need to make a change or need to be covered financially prior to or during your trip.
We have partnered with two insurance companies: Trawick International and CSA Travel Insurance (available for U.S. Residents only).
Read more about our insurance partners and their policies here. We encourage you to research the insurance company and policy that best meets your needs.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Do you have questions about traveling abroad? After you register, we will provide you with a Participant’s Package with helpful information. Also, be sure to check out our Participant FAQs. If you have other questions, feel free to write to us at info@truenaturetravels.com and let us know how we can help!
Save $200 on full-price (shared only) of $3695 USD ENDS Oct 1!
Shared Accommodations – $3495 USD (Full Price $3695)
Single Accommodations – $4895 USD
Paying an initial non-refundable deposit of $350 and $35 Payment Processing Fee (added to the tuition rate upon registration) will lock in your tuition rate and hold your space for the trip.
If you select Deposit Payment, depending on when you registered, your remaining balance will be split into 1-3 payments and processed with your credit card on file on the dates indicated on your Confirmation Letter.
Follow this link to review our payment schedule policies.
For technical questions or alternative payment options, please contact us.
Cancellation
- Initial deposits and the $35 registration fee are non-refundable and non-transferable.
- 50% of payments are refundable up to 90 days before a retreat excluding the initial deposit and the $35 registration fee.
- 89 days prior to a retreat, tuition is non-refundable and non-transferable.
- Full tuition is refunded* if the trip is canceled due to low enrollment. The $35 registration fee is not refundable.
- True Nature Travels is not responsible for any loss incurred due to currency conversion rates.
*Refundable amounts do not include applied credits.
If you wish to cancel your spot on a trip you must submit your cancellation by email to info@truenaturetravels.com.
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