Yoga retreat in Greece

Planet

Welcome to our Greek Garden: our mission is to sustainably maintain a glorious mountain retreat where the bounty of nature abides. We grow and harvest Koroneiki olives which produce extra virgin olive oil, Kalamon eating olives, oranges, lemons, limes, pomegranates and a stunning variety of aromatic, therapeutic and medicinal herbs to soothe the body and soul. The fertile earth is organically farmed and nurtured through sun and rain to produce intensely aromatic and therapeutic herbs and incredibly flavoursome fruits that everyone can enjoy.

Our goal is to provide an excellent range of seasonal produce, creating wholesome organic foods and healing therapeutic gifts from our smallholding and to share them with customers who care about the quality of their food and wish to replenish both body and soul.

Energy efficiency: We heat our properties by using wood-burning stoves to burn our own wood which has been naturally pruned each year from our olive trees. We heat our water with solar panels.

Recycling: We provide separate recycling bins for our guests at Lavender Lodge and we dispose of these appropriately, recycling as much paper, plastic cardboard and glass as we can.

Water use and conservation: We encourage all guests to save water through the use of appropriate signage. We use waterbutts and onsite underground reservoirs around the property to conserve natural rain-water for irrigation of the land and for any other use.

Local projects with environmental benefits: We run trips in conjunction with Archelon (Turtle Conservation) where travelers learn about such issues as the environmental threat to turtles. We organise trips to visit the local Watermill where visitors learn about the local production of bread, herbs, citrus products and aromatherapy products .

Gardening: We grow plants, herbs and flowers organically to attract pollinators and use our plants to create herbal healing remedies and aromatherapy products.

The packages we offer entirely support and uphold the preservation of ancient monuments and archaeology, culture and cultural practice in our local area of the Peloponnese.

Social Responsibility

Social and Political: Before each trip all guests are given information covering the history (both social and political) of the place to be visited in the form of a talk followed by a guided tour and they are provided with access to up to date guide book material.

Minimising negative impact: We run every trip from a standpoint of environmental conservation, highlighting issues of pollution, litter or any action contrary to the preservation of the ancient artifacts or cultural importance attached to the sites which we visit.

We are local guides,: Bill is an Oxford Classics graduate with an in-depth knowledge of Greek archaelogical sites and 40 years experience in teaching and taking trips to Greece. Our retreat has a certificate in botanical herbal remedies and aromatherapy massage with 25 years teaching experience in Ancient Greek Theatre and Drama

People

We run a mountainside olive-grove smallholding sustainably in the southern Peloponnese in Greece, selling our produce locally and online. Our goal is to provide an excellent range of seasonal produce, wholesome organic extra virgin olive oil and fresh garden foods, citrus products and healing herbal therapies all grown on our single estate. We aim to share our experiences of this beautiful area of the Peloponnese with visitors who care about the quality of their food and the preservation of the natural environment.

Lavender Lodge is intended to be a tranquil retreat for guests to enjoy local foods, explore the bountiful wildlife and nature in our gardens and grove and to receive therapeutic wellness treatments such as massages and aromatherapy days as well as participating in cultural archaeological visits and appreciating nature in areas of outstanding beauty such as waterfalls and island coves.

Social projects: We run educational guided cultural trips to Olympia (site and museum), the museum of Hora, Nestor’s Palace, Pylos Castle and harbour, Epidauros ( ancient amphitheatre), Messene and Mycenae with the intention of patronising relevant social and cultural tourist establishments.

Economic responsibility is important to us - we aim to work in accordance with local practices, customs and expectations regarding olive farming and sustainable living. We employ local olive pickers and farm maintenance workers when necessary and use the local press for our harvests.

We also support our local business by buying exclusively from them for all of our farming requirements. While we grow most of our own food, we obtain the rest from local suppliers.

We have made substantial donations to Archelon, the Sea Turtle protection society of Greece which operates along Kyparissia bay and we include a conservation visit in our itinerary of activities when appropriate. We employ local professional skippers for our boat trips and support all local tourist conservationist enterprises.