The Nosara Yoga Institute (NYI), founded by Don and Amba Stapleton, brought yoga classes and training to the Nosara area since 1994, but teacher training and program participants had to look for accommodations elsewhere. Now the Institute has expanded its facilities to eight acres to include a hotel, restaurant, juice bar, a 25-meter pool, meandering waterfalls and pools, patios, a lounge, garden areas, a gift shop and even a coin laundry.
In a soft opening during the month of January, 40 Teacher Training participants were housed in the facility even as construction continues through February.
The Stapletons found a business partner in Canadian developer Gary Edwards, co-owner of the Nosara Yoga Institute Village, who has overseen the property and facility expansion. Edwards said he has worked with the building company and the architects and done the rock work, concrete, landscaping and many finishes himself.
“I am thrilled to be a part of this”, he said. “I retired early a few years ago and traveled, surfed and did yoga. I took the teacher training here three and a half years ago. When I heard they were looking for a partner to invest and lead building a yoga retreat campus, I felt it was what I was meant to do,” he said.
The hotel sleeps 56 people in bungalows of varying sizes and configurations. Some have private rooms, teak decks and open air showers. Others are dorm style with six twin beds and a shared bathroom. All rooms have air conditioning, open air showers, fans, carved stone sinks and storage cabinets.
“A lot of our training participants are young people without a lot of money. We wanted to have some dorm type rooms to keep the cost down,” explained Edwards.
The campus also includes a 120-seat restaurant with ocean views over the top of the canopy. The restaurant, which will open once the professional kitchen construction is complete, will serve vegetarian food in a buffet style format. Guests will clean their own dishes.
The juice bar will be open to the public. During the months when NYI Teacher Trainings are not in session, the restaurant will also be open to the public with a one-day advance reservation required.
In addition to participants in NYI teacher trainings and their many other programs, the NYI Village will be open to yoga schools and classes all over the world who want a retreat center in which to practice. Individual guests who want to take classes and visit Nosara can also book at the hotel.
Room prices for single guests or small yoga groups range from $100 to $350 per night and include two yoga classes and two meals a day.
Edwards said he expects construction to finish in February. Once finished, the property will be secure by being fully fenced and employing 24-hour guards and security cameras. He said there are long term plans to build another yoga studio on site, but for now, the three main yoga practice studios on the original NYI grounds will continue to be used for trainings, programs and public classes.
The Nosara Yoga Institute is located on the main road to Nosara between Il Basilico restaurant and Café de Paris. It can be found online at www.nosarayoga.com or reached by phone at 2682-0071.
Comments