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Root to Rise Retreat
Cape Town, South Africa
10 - 16 March 2027 | Starting at £1,995A 7-day yoga and wellness retreat to reset, reconnect and explore.
In the noise of daily life, it’s easy to lose sight of who we are beyond our roles, responsibilities, and routines. Root to Rise is a guided retreat designed to help you pause, reset, and reconnect with the truest version of you. Together, we’ll create a safe, restorative space where you can release what no longer serves you and rediscover what lights you up.
This retreat moves between two carefully chosen locations - Aquila Private Game Reserve in the Karoo and Vida Nova Retreat in Hout Bay. Each one has been chosen to take you deeper into both the landscape and yourself. The week is structured with real intention: the first phase slows you down and lands you; the second opens you back up.
This is not a retreat to escape life… It is an invitation to reconnect with it.
❋ Thoughtfully sequenced yoga
❋ Nature immersion and soulful travel
❋ Quiet, considered luxury
❋ Genuine connection and integration
Our Locations
❋ Aquila Private Game Reserve
Two hours from Cape Town, the Karoo opens up in a way that stops conversation. Aquila sits within this vast semi-arid landscape. Big skies, granite mountains, and a silence so complete you can hear your own nervous system decompress.
This is a working conservation reserve with the Big Five. Game drives here are genuine wildlife encounters. Elephants moving through scrub, lions resting in the afternoon heat, rhinos grazing at dusk. These are moments that recalibrate your sense of scale and remind you what it means to share a planet with other living things.
The first three days are devoted to arrival. Morning yoga practices are grounding and breath-centred, held in early light as the reserve wakes up. Afternoons are yours. Relaxing in the Tranquila Spa, long walks, journaling, or simply sitting still. Evenings close with restorative practice and star-filled skies that make you feel both very small and entirely held.
❋ What you can expect
❋ Grounding morning yoga: grounding, breath-led, accessible to all levels
❋ Safari game drives in the Karoo wilderness
❋ Time at the Tranquila Spa or simply resting in nature
❋ Evenings of restorative yoga and quiet reflection
❋ Nourishing meals shared slowly and with care
❋ Nights under some of the most spectacular skies in South Africa
By the time we leave Aquila Private Game Reserve, your nervous system will feel steadier, your heart more open, and your body deeply grounded.
❋ Vida Nova Retreat, Hout Bay
Hout Bay sits in a horseshoe valley between the Sentinel and Chapman's Peak, looking out over the Atlantic. Vida Nova is tucked into the green of this valley with mountains on one side and the ocean on the other. A genuinely beautiful location that earns its reputation as a sanctuary.
After the openness of the Karoo, Hout Bay offers a different kind of spaciousness. Softer, closer, more intimate. It's where the retreat deepens. Yoga here becomes more expansive and dynamic, moving from the grounded foundation built at Aquila into strength, fluidity, and joy. Evenings remain gentle.
The final days also move beyond the mat. These excursions aren't just fillers; they're carefully chosen moments that connect the inner work of the retreat to the extraordinary world just outside the door.
❋ What you can expect
❋ Table Mountain — cable car ascent for panoramic views across the Cape Peninsula
❋ Chapman's Peak Drive and Boulders Beach, home to a resident African penguin colony
❋ Constantia Winelands and Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
❋ Expansive morning yoga practices building strength and openness
❋ Restorative evenings focused on integration and closing the retreat
❋ The Yoga
The practice at Root to Rise is thoughtfully sequenced across the full week; not a collection of standalone classes, but a single continuous arc.
It begins with grounding: slow, breath-centred morning practices that settle the body after travel and anchor attention in the present. As the week progresses, the practice builds. Introducing strength work, deeper mobility, and more dynamic vinyasa, before turning in the final days towards integration and embodied ease.
Maz teaches with precision and without performance. The emphasis is always on sensation and intelligent movement, not aesthetic shapes. Every session includes pranayama. Workshops across the week explore breath, awareness, and nervous system regulation in real depth; not as add-ons, but as central to the practice.
Root to Rise is open to anyone who wants to reset and reconnect. Whether you aren’t just starting your yoga journey and are comfortable with foundational postures, or are an experienced practitioner or teacher. All sessions offer modifications. Non-yogi partners are welcome to attend at their own pace or skip sessions entirely.
❋ What’s Included
Your retreat investment includes a fully hosted, thoughtfully curated experience designed to allow you to arrive, soften, and be completely held throughout the journey.
❋7 days / 6 nights luxury accommodation
❋ 2 nights at Aquila Private Game Reserve, immersed in the vast wilderness of the Karoo
❋ 4 nights at Vida Nova Retreat in Hout Bay, a tranquil sanctuary nestled between mountains and ocean
❋ Daily yoga practices (morning and selected evenings), thoughtfully sequenced to support arrival and grounding, nervous system regulation and strength, openness, and integration
❋ Workshops and guided mindfulness sessions exploring breath, awareness, and embodied presence
❋ Multiple safari game drives offering the opportunity to encounter South Africa’s extraordinary wildlife in its natural habitat
❋ Day trip to Boulders Beach, home to its iconic penguin colony and pristine white sands
❋ Cable car journey up Table Mountain, offering panoramic views across Cape Town, the ocean, and beyond
❋ Visit to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, widely regarded as one of the most beautiful botanical gardens in the world
❋ Exploration of the historic Constantia Winelands, one of the oldest wine regions in the Southern Hemisphere
❋ All meals throughout the retreat
❋ All transfers between retreat locations and included excursions
❋ Curated welcome ritual pack
Yes! All of the above is included in the price!
❋ What’s NOT Included
To keep the retreat flexible and transparent, the following are not included in your retreat investment:
❋International flights to and from Cape Town - Suggested airlines include British Airways (direct), Norse Air (direct), Qatar Airways (via Doha), Emirates (via Dubai), and KLM (via Amsterdam)
❋ Pre-retreat and post-retreat accommodation if arriving earlier or leaving later (we can help find the best prices for accommodation upon request)
❋ Private airport transfers outside of scheduled group transfers
(These can be arranged on request at an additional cost)
❋ Taxis or Uber outside of the included group excursions
❋ Laundry services
❋ Gratuities (tips)
❋ Spa treatments (Massage or wellbeing treatments are available at an additional cost)
❋ Independent yoga classes done outside of the retreat at local studios (for those who want to practice more)
❋ Alcoholic beverages, speciality drinks and food outside of included experiences (including Mini-bar or incidental charges at the accommodation)
❋ Personal purchases or souvenirs
❋ Travel insurance (essential) - All guests must have comprehensive travel insurance
❋ Medical insurance (essential) - Including cover for overseas medical treatment and emergency care
❋ Costs incurred due to personal changes to travel plans
❋ Liability for personal injury, illness, or loss of personal belongings
❋About your Retreat Hosts
Maz Bryden - Founder of Cuoro Yoga · Retreat Host & Yoga Teacher
Maz was born and raised in South Africa and has always been part of Maz's heart. She knows this country - its light, its rhythms, its complexity - in a way that no guidebook can replicate. Hosting Root to Rise is personal for her. This is her home, and she brings to it the care and honesty that that entails.
Maz teaches Vinyasa, Flow, Yin and Yoga Nidra, alongside breathwork and sound baths. Her classes move between strength and surrender. Some are mindful, flowing practices that wake the body up. Others are slow, restful spaces where the nervous system can finally let go. Whatever the practice, she teaches with care and clear, thoughtful guidance, so you always feel held.
On this retreat, Maz looks after the whole journey, from the moment you arrive to the closing circle. She works alongside Yvette and a small group of local guides and teachers who share a genuine love for this place. Together they create a space to slow down, breathe and come back to yourself.
Yvette Stander - Retreat Co-Host & Yoga Teacher
Yvette is a South African living in London, and bringing this retreat home to Cape Town feels like coming full circle for her. Yoga has been her quiet companion since 2013. It has travelled with her across the world, from Bali to London, and gently shaped the way she lives.
She trained in Yin with Norman Blair and later immersed herself in Tantra Hatha Yoga at Samyama in Bali. There, meditation, breath and the deeper teachings of yoga became the heart of her practice. She now teaches Hatha and Yin at Surya Hot Yoga in London.
Yvette's classes are an invitation to slow down, soften and listen inward. She holds space with warmth and a grounded calm, drawn from her years as a Chartered Accountant and her work supporting young people through education. With her, stillness becomes a place to come home to yourself.
£1995 per person — shared accommodation - Please enquire about Single occupancy (limited availability)*
❋ Securing Your Place: A £150 non-refundable security deposit is required to secure your space on the retreat. The remaining balance is due 60 days prior to the arrival date. The balance may be paid in full or spread over instalments by prior arrangement. See our FAQ here.
❋ How to Book: To reserve your place or to receive further information, please contact Maz directly via email at marian@cuoroyoga.com. Maz is happy to support you with: Booking the retreat and securing your deposit; Payment options and timelines; Guidance on the best international flights to book; Any additional questions you may have about the experience.
❋ A Gentle Note: Places are limited, and this retreat will be confirmed on a first-come, first-served basis once deposits are received. If this retreat is calling you, we encourage you to reach out early to avoid disappointment.
❋ Anyone and everyone is welcome to take part, regardless of age, though you should be over 18 years old and have a good basic level of physical fitness. The retreat is not designed to accommodate children. The trip is ideal for couples or friends travelling together. Non-yogi partners are very welcome, and they do not have to take part in the yoga practices, but can still enjoy an amazing African experience, as well as fantastic golf courses, walks and shark cage diving!
On confirming your interest in this retreat, you are asked to share a few details with us:
❋ A brief bio about yourself and why you want to join us in South Africa
❋ Your level of Yoga experience (eg. beginners, intermediate, advanced, teacher)
❋ Any physical issues, including accidents, injuries or mental or physical illness
❋ Any specific allergies and dietary requirements
❋ Any other specific requirements
* Please note: Single-occupancy accommodation is available at both locations. Single or double beds can be arranged at your preference for shared accommodation.
❋ Prices & Booking
This retreat is intentionally small and carefully held, with limited spaces to preserve depth, connection, and quality.