Our Yotopia presents · April 2027
The Yunnan
Tea Mountain Retreat
Eight days of intelligent yoga, ancient tea culture, expressive craft and long-table dining through Kunming and UNESCO-listed Jingmai Mountain.
A deposit secures one of 10 places. Review the confirmed dates, room options, refund terms and payment schedule before checkout.
A sensory journey, not a checklist
Feel more alive.
Move at a human pace.
This is a retreat for people who want to care for themselves without withdrawing from the world. Yoga gives each day a rhythm. Tea, food, craft and local stories bring you into relationship with the place.
Mornings begin with purposeful practice. Days open into markets, tea forests, family-run farms and creative workshops. Evenings return you to the table, the mat and enough quiet to hear yourself think.
What makes this journey different
Wellness rooted in place
Every part of the itinerary has a job: energise, teach, connect, delight or leave room. Nothing is there simply to make the schedule look full.
Yoga that teaches you something
Effective sequencing, strength, mobility, pranayama, restorative practice and meditation, adapted to the bodies in the room.
Ancient tea, living culture
Walk Jingmai's tea forests, meet local tea makers, taste slowly and learn how land, lineage and daily life remain connected.
Food worth travelling for
Market breakfasts, regional ingredients, thoughtful tasting menus and generous shared tables where the meal becomes part of the story.
Craft with context
Make with local hosts and practitioners. The experience is participatory and credited, not culture used as decoration.
Freedom with support
Airport pickup, trusted local partners and clear logistics, balanced with unscheduled time and the choice to opt out.
A genuinely small group
A maximum of 10 guests keeps long-table dinners relaxed, hosting personal and connection natural without forcing constant togetherness.
The culture
The mountain is not a backdrop
Jingmai Mountain is a UNESCO-listed cultural landscape shaped by centuries of tea cultivation and the communities who tend it. We enter as guests: guided by local knowledge, moving slowly enough to notice, and remembering that every beautiful view is also somebody's home.
In Nuo Gan village and the ancient tea forests, the invitation is not to collect another attraction. It is to understand how tea, architecture, food, belief and land are woven together.
Retreat without feeling isolated from the land.
The food
A meal is never just the food
As a first-generation immigrant from Asia, Evelyn builds the dining experience around a familiar truth: the table is where care becomes visible. Ingredients have a source. Dishes have memory. Conversation is part of the nourishment.
Expect fresh market finds, Pu'er flavours, Yunnan coffee, seasonal tasting menus and street-food moments selected for pleasure, not restriction. Dietary needs will be gathered before travel and discussed with the culinary team.
Come hungry for flavour, story and the extra half-hour nobody rushes.
Sample itinerary
Eight days, with room to breathe
The final order may shift with weather, harvest conditions and local partner availability. The pace will not: one meaningful adventure, one purposeful practice and protected space each day.
Arrive and exhale
Complimentary airport pickup, boutique hotel check-in and time to settle. We meet for a gentle arrival practice before a warm welcome dinner.
First shared table
Market morning, city appetite
An embodied morning flow prepares us to wander a local farmers' market with a guide, taste regional breakfast favourites and explore a historic neighbourhood. The late afternoon is deliberately free.
Market-to-table tasting
Scent, craft and creative energy
Pranayama and a slow-burn practice open the day. We gather inspiration in Kunming's floral world, then make with a local craft practitioner. Evening practice is lively, optional and followed by dinner out.
Hands-on craft workshop
From city pulse to tea mountain
After a short mobility practice, we travel south toward Pu'er and Jingmai. The transfer includes pauses, lunch and a soft landing at our mountain stay. Sunset meditation closes the transition.
Mountain arrival
Walk the ancient heart of tea
We move before breakfast, then join local tea makers in the forest to learn, pick and taste. A guided visit to Nuo Gan village brings the cultural landscape into focus. Evening yin gives the day somewhere to settle.
Tea forest immersion
Yunnan coffee, another story of the land
A strength-and-mobility class begins the day. Later, we visit a coffee-growing site, meet the people behind the cup and taste Yunnan's evolving coffee culture. The afternoon belongs to you.
Farm visit + cupping
Space, surprise and celebration
Sleep longer or join quiet meditation. The middle of the day is open for rest, journaling, a walk or tea. One secret creative experience and a generous farewell feast bring everyone back together.
Farewell tasting menu
Integrate and carry it home
Our final practice connects the week to ordinary life. After brunch, shared transfers begin for onward travel. You leave with simple practices, full senses and stories that belong to more than a camera roll.
Closing integration
Sample only. Exact April 2027 dates, hotels, internal transport and activity order will be confirmed before deposits open.
The yoga lineup
Tradition respected. Modern bodies included.
This is not generic hotel yoga. Evelyn sequences the week as one progressive experience, balancing energy and restoration while offering options for different bodies and practice histories.
1,000-hour trained teacher
3,000+ teaching hours · 100+ wellness events · 10 years of experience
Arrival: Ground and Orient
A low-intensity practice for circulation, breath and settling after travel.
Radiant Hatha Raja Vinyasa Krama
Purposeful sequencing that builds steadiness, mobility and a clear relationship between poses.
Slow Burn: Stress Management in Motion
Strength without frenzy, using pace, breath and choice to stay present under appropriate effort.
Rocket Happy Hour
A playful, energising flow with accessible pathways and no pressure to perform advanced shapes.
Hip and Shoulder Honey
An effective-sequencing workshop for common areas of gripping, with mobility supported by strength.
Restorative Yin and Sound
A long-form downshift with props, stillness and sound to create conditions for deeper rest.
Breath, Meditation and Integration
Short daily pranayama and meditation practices, ending with a repeatable home ritual.
What the crew says
Restful enough. Interesting enough. Held throughout.
“Evelyn's approach is so unique, with versatile yoga and mindful, delicious food. This is more than a yoga retreat. Host more, please!”H · Yunnan retreat, spring 2025
“I felt so refreshed wrapping up the retreat. I loved the energy.”Qi · Tengchong retreat, spring 2025
“The events blended into the yoga retreat at such a nice pace. You are never bored, but still feel rested enough for the nourishing yoga.”Rainbow · Japan retreat, spring 2025
Hosted by Evelyn
Evelyn has lived across three continents and travelled through more than 40 countries. She builds retreats the way she builds a thoughtful sequence: each day prepares the next, intensity has a purpose, and nothing is filler.
The practical care
Freedom feels better when the details are handled
Final inclusions will be confirmed before booking opens. This is the planned package for priority-list guests to review first.
Planned to be included
- Seven nights across two carefully selected stays
- Airport pickup during the official arrival window
- All listed yoga, breathwork and meditation sessions
- Tea, coffee, market and cultural experiences in the final itinerary
- Trusted local guides and hosts
- Internal transport between Kunming and Jingmai
- Daily breakfast and most hosted meals
- Pre-retreat welcome call, travel guide and group connection
Not planned to be included
- International or domestic flights to Yunnan
- Visa or entry-document costs
- Travel insurance, which will be required
- Meals and activities during personal free time
- Alcohol and personal purchases
- Airport transfers outside the official window
- Optional single-room supplement
April 2027 priority access
Dates and rooms are being finalised.
Open the deposit portal to review the booking sequence and continue to secure Squarespace checkout. Confirmed dates, room choices, pricing, refund terms and the payment schedule should be reviewed before payment.
Before you decide
Yunnan retreat FAQ
Good questions are part of choosing well. Here are the ones solo travellers and new guests usually ask first.
Can I come alone?
Yes. Many guests join alone. A pre-retreat call, group connection and thoughtful hosting help everyone arrive with a point of contact. You will have opportunities to connect without being expected to socialise constantly.
How many guests will join?
The retreat is capped at 10 guests. The smaller group supports more personal yoga guidance, easier cultural hosting and enough space for everyone to connect without feeling crowded.
What level of yoga do I need?
The retreat is planned as mixed level. You do not need to be flexible or able to perform advanced poses. Evelyn teaches adaptations and encourages guests to choose the version that suits their body that day.
Will the schedule be hectic?
No. The itinerary is intentionally built around one main cultural experience per day, purposeful yoga and protected free time. Some travel days are naturally fuller, but this is not a race between attractions.
How connected is the retreat to local culture?
Local tea makers, guides, farmers, cooks and craft practitioners are part of the experience. We prioritise credited relationships and activities that help guests understand the place, rather than treating culture as entertainment.
What will the food be like?
Expect regional ingredients, shared Chinese meals, market discoveries, tastings and thoughtfully designed dining experiences. Dietary requirements will be collected before travel; final accommodation options will depend on what local kitchens can safely support.
How physically active is the journey?
You should be comfortable walking on uneven village and forest paths, using stairs and spending time on your feet. Activities are slow-paced rather than athletic. Exact altitude, accessibility and walking guidance will be provided in the final retreat guide.
What are the exact dates and price?
The retreat is planned for April 2027. Confirmed dates, room categories, total rates, deposit terms, refund policy and the payment schedule will be shown before payment. The deposit is credited toward the retreat balance.
Will I need a visa and travel insurance?
Travel insurance will be required. Entry requirements depend on your passport and can change, so the final travel guide will direct guests to current official information. Each traveller remains responsible for obtaining the correct documents.
What happens after I pay the deposit?
You will receive a Squarespace order confirmation, followed by a personal booking email with the retreat agreement, room-selection steps and preparation timeline. Your place is confirmed when the deposit payment succeeds.
Our Yotopia · Yunnan 2027
Practice deeply. Explore slowly. Eat beautifully.
Travel solo, feel supported, and meet Yunnan through the people, flavours and practices that give the place its rhythm.
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