The Campus

A Traditional Yoga Ashram in the Tropical Hills of Goa

Set across six natural tiers of hillside in Assagao, North Goa, SWAN is a residential Yoga and Ayurveda retreat surrounded by tropical greenery.

The Campus

Cottages, shalas, gardens and a few unexpected corners.

Cottages, Yoga shalas, an Ayurveda centre, gardens, a temple, dining spaces and a few unexpected corners come together in a campus designed for living close to nature.

The thatched dining hall seen through the garden, with steps climbing the slope at SWAN
Six Tiers

A Campus That Follows the Landscape

SWAN is built along the natural slope of the land rather than imposed upon it. The six tiers allow the campus to unfold gradually through trees, gardens, pathways and open spaces.

The boundary between garden and forest is intentionally difficult to define. Mature trees were retained, and hundreds of native trees, plants and flowers have been added over the years.

The result is less like a conventional retreat resort and more like a small tropical settlement where Yoga, Ayurveda, nature and everyday life share the same space.

Each tier echoes a different stage of enlightenment, from the gross to the subtle, and the cottages are placed accordingly.

A mud-plastered cottage with a tiled roof standing beneath a mature tree at SWAN
How it was built

Planned around the trees, not through them.

The campus has been designed according to the principles of Vastu, while respecting the existing landscape and ecology of the land. No mature tree was cut to create the campus. Instead, the layout was adapted around the trees, allowing the buildings, pathways and gardens to exist within the natural setting.

Locally sourced materials have been used throughout the campus, with more than 60 percent of the materials incorporated into the buildings and interiors being reclaimed, reused or upcycled.

The campus itself is almost like a large tropical garden. Alongside the natural vegetation, we grow seasonal vegetables and maintain a herb garden that provides ingredients for the kitchen and some of the herbs used in our Ayurveda therapies.

Facilities

What is on the campus.

SWAN is designed for residential Yoga and Ayurveda programmes, with the practical facilities needed for a comfortable stay.

Ayurveda Centre

A fully equipped Ayurveda facility with treatment rooms and a resident Ayurvedic physician, offering traditional Ayurvedic therapies and Panchakarma programmes.

Two Yoga Shalas

Two dedicated practice spaces allow regular classes, meditation, Yoga philosophy, workshops and smaller group practices to take place across the campus.

Dining Hall

A comfortable shared dining space serving freshly prepared vegetarian food, including Ayurvedic meals when required as part of a programme or treatment.

Our Well

Water drawn from our own well is filtered for drinking and provided throughout the campus.

Temple

A quiet spiritual space dedicated to the Guru principle and used for traditional Havan and Kirtan on Saturday and Sunday evenings.

Juice Bar & Fake Beach

A small, relaxed corner of sand, loungers, umbrellas and fresh juices. There is even a rainwater shower for particularly warm Goan afternoons.

Cottages built from local materials

Made with natural, locally sourced material, over 60% recycled. Total capacity around 30 people.

Geyser hot water

Geyser-heated hot water supplied to every cottage. Every cottage has its own bathroom.

Wi Fi

Wi Fi is available across the campus. We provide it because modern life occasionally insists on following us everywhere. We simply suggest that you don’t let it.

Around the Campus

There Is More to SWAN Than a Room and a Yoga Shala

Walk between the cottages and gardens, sit beneath a tree, have a fresh juice, read a book, meet someone between classes or simply do nothing for a while. The campus is designed to give residential guests enough structure for practice and enough space for everything in between.

The gardens at SWAN Yoga Retreat lit with lamps at dusk
Reception at SWAN Yoga Retreat, Assagao, Goa
The main yoga shala at SWAN Yoga Retreat
Inside a cottage at SWAN Yoga Retreat
A red earth path winding through palms and greenery on the SWAN campus
The juice bar and fake beach at SWAN Yoga Retreat
The temple at SWAN Yoga Retreat, decorated for a ceremony
The havan fire seen from above, with the circle of participants around it
Twin beds in a standard cottage at SWAN Yoga Retreat
A tiled-roof cottage among the trees on the SWAN campus
Guests eating together in the dining hall at SWAN
The juice bar and sand beach at SWAN Yoga Retreat
A wild powderpuff flower on the campus at SWAN Yoga Retreat
Bhairav asleep against the warm earth wall of the dining area at SWAN Yoga Retreat
Stay at SWAN

Come and Experience the Campus

SWAN is open from October through May for Yoga retreats, Yoga Teacher Training, Ayurveda retreats, Panchakarma and residential programmes. You can also explore our retreats or explore Ayurveda.