OVERVIEW

YOGA + SELF CARE + CUISINE

Join us for a restorative and healing retreat in the Italian countryside on this special collaboration with yoga teacher and wellness enthusiast, Amy Commander. In our private boutique villa you will be surrounded with breathtaking views, mesmerizing sunsets, and a wonderful sense of peace - the perfect setting to nurture yourself and your spirit.

What better place to be inspired by fabulous cuisine and local organic farming. We’ll enjoy daily yoga, meditation, wellness tips and tricks, cleansing juice/smoothie recipes, cultural sites, spa day, tips on how to live a more balanced wellness lifestyle, healing meditations, and astrology readings, as well as other healing modalities! Yoga with Amy and EPM founder Erin Lewis will be offered each day to get our bodies and minds ready to experience the present moment and get the most out of our week. The wellness workshops will be included to get close guidance from Amy as we start each day with healthy mindset. As we set off on our day trips (many focused around cuisine), we can try out our new tips to help digestion while indulging in the Italian lifestyle.

ACCOMMODATION

Located on the border of the regions of Tuscany and Umbria, Porsenna Hotel & Spa is a grand country house amid the fields and rolling hills of the countryside, just a short distance from Lake Chiusi and Lake Trasimeno. Our group will enjoy an exclusive stay and private book-out of the hotel during our week together. The hotel boasts spacious guest rooms, the on-site restaurant and an outdoor pool, as well as massage rooms. Beautiful gardens surround the buildings with various areas for us to meet and relax, as well as stretch out in the daily yoga classes that will be offered to guests. Here, we are surrounded by historic and ancient Etruscan towns, hilltop villages, and storybook scenery. It gives us a perfect home base to explore the area on our day trips and see what this green heart of Italy has to offer.

ACTIVITIES

Our day trips will allow us to experience the many unique landscapes and activities that this area has to offer. We will begin our week with a visit to the nearby Etruscan hilltop town of Chiusi, where we’ll enjoy a walking tour and a stop for a pizza lunch. Later that day, we’ll head to another beautiful village and an award-winning design hotel for an olive oil tasting. We will learn from an olive oil sommelier about the nuances and profiles of this elixir before enjoying a gourmet dinner with a stunning view.

The next day, we’ll venture a little further afield towards the Val d’Orcia and its iconic rolling Sienese hills to a hidden winery in a stunning architectural setting. Here we’ll have a tour and tasting followed by a visit to a thermal spa where we can enjoy a treatment and time in the healing Italian “terms” waters. By the middle of the week, we will recharge with downtime on site where we can enjoy the scenery, the pool, some yoga, astrology readings, and a food class for lunch before heading out that evening to explore a beautiful Umbrian town and have a cozy dinner out.

We will also fit in a visit to the town of Cortona, famed from Under the Tuscan Sun, and a visit a cheese farm with a tour and tasting lunch. Finally, we’ll enjoy an energetic reset in an intimate sound bath before our final farewell dinner.

CUISINE

Healthful food is part of the retreat, drawing on the in-season harvests from the local area. Daily breakfast is prepared on-site, and the itinerary includes most dinner and lunches as well, many incorporating a visit or experience in the nearby area. We've carefully chosen delicious and fresh meals from renowned restaurants and chefs that will give guests an expansive experience of the cuisine. Throughout the week, we will get to sample several of the regional specialties like olive oil, coffee, wine, pecorino cheese, maybe even some truffle if we are lucky!  We'll relish in a range of local eateries, like cantinas, family osterias, and award-winning chefs, and we’ll have hands-on experiences with an Italian cooking class.

Plus on this WELLNESS + HEALING + SELF CARE week, Amy will be incorporating some of her food tips and recipes of YOGI BITES into our experience.

WELLNESS + HEALING + SELF CARE

Daily meditation and yoga classes will be offered in a way to relax, stimulate, and help guests grow in their own personal practice. Classes are open to all levels, beginner to practiced, and can range from gentle, restorative, and more vigorous vinyasa flow and ashtanga styles.* Style and class levels will be determined and moulded to fit participating students' needs, and with a small intimate retreat class size, students will be able to get personalized attention and comfortability to deeply explore their practice. Depending on each retreat location, classes will be held in a dedicated indoor yoga space and some also offer outdoor options as well for us to use if the weather is agreeable.

AMY COMMANDER

Amy found yoga in 2003 after a knee injury from long distance running. Following the advice of a friend, she started taking classes in an effort to help get her knee healthy enough to continue running in marathons and racing. It did not take long for her to realize that yoga was a much healthier and more sustainable form of mental and spiritual exercise, eventually leaving running behind in favor of yoga. In 2008, Amy opened her first yoga studio that she successfully ran for over twelve years. In addition to being a studio owner and having over 14 years experience actively teaching, Amy is an accomplished intuitive. Having completed her advanced training with Astrologer Debra Silverman, Amy enjoys providing in-depth astrology readings to support members in their healing journey. She is also a certified master Reiki healer, an oracle/tarot reader, and certified holistic nutrition counselor. After losing one of her closest friends to cancer in 2020, Amy went back to school for nutrition, successfully graduating from IIN (Institute for Integrative Nutrition). Amy has since started a new business, Yogi Bites, offering nutrition services of all kinds, including home baked goods. She is the owner of “The Studio”, in St Augustine Florida.

ERIN LEWIS

Erin is the founder of EAT.PRAY.MOVE and now calls Italy home. She loves to share this amazing country with guests and finds that there is a yogic spirit of connection (to oneself, others, and the present moment) by traveling and experiencing new things. In addition to carrying this practice throughout the week and allowing our senses to be heightening with our activities, meals, and time together, Erin will also offer yoga to help us relax and restore and reconnect. Besides teaching in studios, Erin has led thousands of guests around the world for over 12 years on yoga retreats. She continues to evolve in her personal practice which naturally makes its way through her teaching. She loves sharing not only the asana (movement) limb of yoga with others, but also the many other facets which lead to life-changing shifts in our daily habits.

* Participation in classes and activities is optional throughout the retreat. All levels welcome!

WHAT PAST GUESTS ARE SAYING

DETAILS / PRICING

• 6 days / 5 nights (Jun 2-7, 2024)

• Inclusive Retreat Price = $3,395 Single Room, ($150 discount per guest for sharing room. 2 shared rooms available)

• Deposit to hold space = $950

• Max # Guests = 14
  ** Final balance due 60 days before retreat start date.
  Read full cancellation policy in our Terms & Conditions.

INCLUDED*:

• Private villa accommodation (spacious bedrooms each with private bathrooms, linens)

• Daily Breakfast

• Selected Lunches & Dinners

• Welcome Aperitivo & Orientation Reception

• Transportation to/from day trips

• Daily yoga/meditation class

• Daily healing classes

• Use of yoga mats

• Use of hotel amenities (pool, gardens, etc.)

• Regional Tastings -  winery, olive oil, cheese, etc

• Olive Oil Tasting / Aperitivo

• Wine Tasting Lunch

• Cheese Farm Visit, Tour, Lunch

• Walking tour of Etruscan hilltop town, Chiusi

• Thermal Spa Visit + Spa Treatment

• Visit and dinner to Umbrian town

• Visit to Cortona

• Cooking Class

• Healing Sound Bath Experience

• Personalized Astrology Reading

• Taxes

  * airfare not included **activities may change based on weather or unforeseen circumstances such as weather, etc

LOCATION / TRAVEL:

• Located just outside of Chiusi, Tuscany, Italy

• AIRPORTS: Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO), Florence Peretola Airport (FLR). From both airports there are easy train connections to the station nearest the hotel. Full details on how to best arrive will be given to guests.

• TRAIN STATION: Chiusi/Chianciano Terme

• We can provide recommendations for a private driver or public transportation. Taxis are available at any time from Chiusi Station, and private cars are available for door-to-door service from airports. Train station is just 15 min from hotel.

SUGGESTED PACKING:

Besides the basic packing and travel needs, here are a few things to think about bringing with you.

• YOGA MATS & STRAPS ARE PROVIDED

• Bathing suit (on-site pool)

• Yoga clothes

• Plug adaptors / converters

• Comfortable walking shoes