Yoga teacher training in Goa India | Sampoorna Yoga



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Goa:

Agonda beach, a 3km long stretch of sea and sand located in south Goa, is well known to the locals as one of the most beautiful, isolated, serene, calm and quiet beaches in the state. Much of its appeal lies in the fact that the beach is sheltered at both the ends by small hills and also has the benefit of lustrous, palm fringed backwaters at one parameter. Covered with palm trees and bright, unpolluted water Agonda is a charming clean, green and protected bay.

Amazingly, Agonda is also the only beach in Goa where salesmen, hawkers and the usual suspect ‘masseurs’ are not allowed on the beach, so you can truly relax undisturbed. Its distance from the railway and bus stations also ensure the beach is kept away from the daily influx of day-trip tourists and maintains its peaceful, serene ambiance, even at weekends and holiday periods like Christmas and New Year. There are no nightclubs, commercial hotels or resorts here, although those who want to experience the party scene can do so only 7km away at Palolem beach. Agonda is the perfect beach to unwind, sunbathe, swim and meditate and with its west facing shores you can also experience some of the most extraordinarily beautiful tropical sunsets the sub-continent has to offer!

To see more pictures of Agonda beach please see our gallery

Agonda is located 70km from Goa’s Dabolim airport, 40km from Goa’s main railway station Madgaon, 10km from the local railway station Canacona, 7 km from South Goa’s other two main beaches Palolem and Patnem.

How to get here

Goa is an international destination that can be reached by Air from almost anywhere in the world. Between October and mid April there are direct chartered flights running regularly to Dabolim, Goa’s main airport. You can also reach Goa from all India’s major domestic airports including Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore etc. Goa is also well connected by both train and bus to all major Indian cities. To explore these various travel options visit www.cleartrip.com

Airport to Agonda

Taxi: Please send us your flight details and we will send a taxi for you @ INR 1500. The taxi driver will be there to pick you up with your name plate. He will bring you straight to Agonda beach, to the guest house you are staying in. Agonda beach is 70km from the airport and takes about 90 minutes to reach by taxi. You can also take a pre-paid from the airport @ 1550 INR.

Beach Facilities

Scooters and Bicycles are available for rent. There are plenty of taxis and auto rickshaws available for local travel and for airport pick up/drop off. Agonda has many high speed internet cafes, money exchange points and travel agencies. There is one ATM in Agonda beach and more than 7 ATMs accepting all international bank cards available within 7km at Canacona Market. You can also take cash out against your credit card with the local money exchangers and travel agents at Agonda beach for a commission of 2.5%. There is a pharmacy, a large hospital, a few fruit and vegetable stalls and grocery shops for your daily needs. Agonda also has plenty of good quality, multi-cuisine restaurants where you can find all kinds of top quality food including organic and vegetarian options.

Accommodation

There are plenty of budget options available in Agonda beach. Most of the accommodation is either in beach huts made of plywood or simple basic rooms in family run guest houses. Agonda beach does not have any commercial touristy hotels or resorts. The minimum rent per night for a basic clean room or beach hut with attached shower may start from INR 400 (appx 9 USD/ 7 Euros/6 Pounds) onwards. The room rents can also vary depending upon the tourist season. If you are not looking for anything special then there is generally no need to book a room in advance, as even during the peak season it is very easy to find rooms. Nevertheless, if you are coming for the longer term teacher training course it might be a wise idea to come a day or two in advance to find a suitable room of your choice near to the shala. Overall, we do recommend everybody come a couple of days in advance, not only to find a room matching your budget and preferences but also to acclimatize before the courses start. Many students also choose to stay on site in the Fatima Guest house where the shala is located for convenience. It is also worth noting that there are no hot showers in any of the accommodation options at Agonda Beach due to Goa never really getting very cold.

Note: Please let us know if you want us to book an accommodation for you either in Fatima Guest house or elsewhere.

On-site accommodation

Fatima Guest House where the shala is located is a beautiful, quiet, ocean-facing premises located one minute walk from the beach and surrounded by beautiful trees and small hillocks. It has 13 neat, clean, tiled rooms over two floors, all with attached private showers, western style toilets, double beds with mosquito nets and 220 Volt electric supplies. There is no hot water facility although hot water can be provided in a bucket if required for no extra charge. The guest house has a multi cuisine restaurant offering delicious and healthy food including breakfast, lunch and dinner. There is a Wi-Fi connection available free of cost for its residents and also a high speed internet place just next door. There are 5 rooms on the ground floor, 8 rooms on the first floor and two more rooms in the garden. One room on the first floor is quite big and has two separate double beds. To see more pictures of the guest house please see our gallery or have a look at their website http://fatimaguesthouse.in/

Note: The guest house is handy for long term yoga students wanting the convenience of on-site accommodation so rooms fill up very quickly. We advise that only those certain they will stay here for the duration of the course book a room as there have been instances of people moving on to cheaper options after a short time. If you know you are on a budget and would like a cheaper room then we would advise you to leave these rooms for those who can afford it. Sampoorna Yoga has no business tie up with the running and management of Fatima guest house and guest house related communications should be done with their staff only.

The following approximate rents for Fatima Guest House will not change until the end of March 2012:

Date		Rent per night (INR)

	Room Type A	Room Type B	Room Type C	Room Type D

1st Nov to 29th Nov	600	300	1100	500

12th Dec to 10th Jan	800	400	1100	700

20th Jan to 17th Feb	750	300	1100	600

1st Mar to 28th Mar	600	300	1100	500

Currency convertor: www.xe.com

Room Type A (seven rooms only): Best for singles, total seven rooms on the first floor with nice surroundings and verandah. All rooms have western style toilets and mosquito nets. One room is bigger than the others and has two separate beds.

Room Type B(2 rooms only): Good if you are looking for something cheaper. Its located in the garden, has a small beautiful garden in front. One of the type B room has fridge also.

Room Type C (only one set): Suitable for couples or family or a small group, this is a set of two rooms together and a small kitchen platform, with two separate big beds and big verandah in front. A gas cylinder, small fridge and some dishes can be provided by the guethouse if requested at nominal charges (apprx INR 1000/- for a month).

Room Type D (Five Rooms): Suitable for all. Nice, simple rooms like room type A but on ground floor.

Note: All the rooms have western style showers and toilets, ceiling fan, mosquito net, electrical sockets, a steel safe with locking facility, study table and couple of chairs etc. There are no hot showers in any guest house at Agonda beach. In Fatima, hot water can be provided in buckets without any extra charge if requested by the guest. It’s also possible to use the heating rod which can be purchased for appx 5 Euros locally.

To apply for our 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training program please click here…

Sampoorna Yoga’s 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Course (TTC) is registered with Yoga Alliance USA/Canada and Yoga Alliance UK. Students who will be certified from our school will be eligible to register with Yoga Alliance as RYT 200 (Registered Yoga Teacher).