BookYogaRetreats

It was my first time booking a yoga retreat with bookyogaretreats.com (Tripaneer). My sister and I chose a retreat in southern Turkey and paid our deposit back in February. We left for Turkey in early October (of this month). After much planning, saving and anticipation, we finally headed to Turkey from Western Canada, travelled for 24 hours, stayed overnight in an airport hotel to help us overcome jet lag, then the next day took a domestic flight from Istanbul to Bodrum. And then our dream of having a relaxing and restorative yoga retreat came to an abrupt end. The "organizer" and her partner picked us up at the airport for an extra $50USD expense to us, and then rather than taking us to what we thought was a retreat centre, we were in utter shock when they took us to their home. They had turned their living/dining room area into a yoga space. We were then shown to our sparsely decorated shared bedroom which consisted of 2 single beds that were about as comfortable as sleeping on cardboard. Their back yard faced a busy highway below and there wasn't even a comfortable chair to sit on outside or any cozy spots indoors where we could have some privacy unless we retreated to our "dorm room" with the 2 uncomfortable beds. We were in utter shock. Days before leaving Canada for Turkey, we were told by the organizer that actually, we were going to be the only participants attending. Although I thought it was very odd at the time and wondered how they could proceed with the retreat anyways with only my sister and I attending, our bags were packed, flights booked, time off work already planned, we headed to Turkey. The landing page for this so-called retreat had shown the organizer outdoors in a green space with a building in the background teaching yoga to 8 people in downward facing dog position. The reality couldn't have been further from the truth. My sister, aged 61 and I (aged 58) tried to hide our shock and disappointment and after having a pathetic "welcome dinner," we retreated to our room and neither of us could sleep a wink all night on those uncomfortable beds. We were in tears, disappointed, shocked and knew that we could not stay. We spent the whole night trying to find a hotel room or AirBNB in the area and touch typing a long email to Bookyogaretreats.com explaining the situation and asking for our deposit back. We left in the morning and continued communicating with Bookyogaretreats.com over the next few days documenting everything that we had experienced. Initially bookyogaretreats.com sounded very empathetic and responsive. We trusted that based on all the information that we had provided and our fact-based responses to the organizer's counter-comments that they would proceed with integrity and give us our deposit back, given the $1,000s of dollars we had already shelled out for our trip and our dream for a restorative yoga retreat basically disappearing. To our complete and utter shock, they responded by saying that the $438 deposit we had paid was still unrefundable. I am writing my story so that all followers on bookyogaretreats.com understand that this company really does not vet any yoga retreat organizer that lists on their website. I made the biggest mistake thinking that retreat organizers need to go through a process with bookyogaretreats.com to list their retreats and that bookyogaretreats.com provides some protection to consumers. But I have since discovered that that is not the case at all. Anyone can list a retreat they slap together on this website. Bookyogaretreats.com just wants to take their cut. I trusted this company and I've been so let down and bled financially. My warning to all of you is to do your due diligence when signing up for a retreat from bookyogaretreats.com. Contact the organizer and ask numerous questions and find out exactly what the space looks like. Viewing the company's Instagram account that shows stunning pictures of people at yoga retreats surrounded by natural beauty and in beautiful yoga spaces just filled me with heartbreak all over again. That was what my sister and I had longed for: a restful, peaceful and restorative yoga retreat, not an vastly overpriced stay in someone's home doing 2 yoga classes per day with no retreat space to relax in. All it felt like what that we were just cash registers for them, 2 North Americans that could be duped into forking over lots of cash while they underdelivered a retreat for us. It all made sense after that fateful evening when we'd arrived at their home, why they waited until the last minute to tell us that we were going to be the only participants and why they kept postponing sending me the retreat address (for my luggage tag) until the last minute when I was so busy preparing for my trip that I never thought to put the address in Google maps. Bookyogaretreats.com would not accept any responsibility here and even after sending so much factual information about what we found, the discrepancy between the retreat listing and the reality, they sided with the organizer leaving the consumer assuming all risk. This is unethical and shocking behaviour from a company that promotes yoga. Yoga is not just about postures but about consciousness, ethics and right behaviour. Be forewarned here and do your due diligence before paying any deposit to this company, as they don't have your back.

I trip was booked by mistake, and the organization is inflexible about making adjustments or refunds. It is important to note that the entity who is actually hosting the event was completely fine with making the adjustment, it is BookYogaRetreats who is not. Where most organizations are hyper-focused on customer experience, BookYogaRetreats is hyper focused on the profitability of one-time transactions above all else. Do yourself a favor: bypass this third party service and go directly to the provider. There is no need to deal with BookYogaRetreats.

In response to what I expect to hear from the vendor: Just because a policy is "stated" does not mean that the policy is right or just. If you hope to enjoy repeat business, a little empathy and customer focus goes a long way.

I searched for a teacher training course on this website, and more than half of the items did not match the program description. I filed complaints on Day 2 of my trip and they simply forwarded me the replies from the organiser, which is "all items (including daily yoga class) are subject to the organiser's own discretion" therefore the organiser has the right for not giving all the items that I paid for! As a yoga teacher myself, I have been to a few yoga trips and have never encountered such irresponsible agency and yoga school (Indepth Academy in Phuket). In the end, they just replied there is a non-refundable or the cancellation policy is invalid. They do not assign a specific CS to address your case, so I had to repeat again and again what happened to me. All in all, I could be kidnapped in a small rural area at Thailand without anyone noticing. That was how bad it was and the platform SHOULD validate all the information is correct on the course description (even the accommodation described was not the real accommodation I was put in!)

I could find a wonderful yoga retreat in India through the site. I could compare different ones and review comments from participants. Examples of daily schedule and the teachers details are very useful. Thanks for making it easy!

I was promised a refund my deposit by the event organiser and the site refused to refund me. Terrible service, think twice about booking here it's not worth the hassle.

I accidentally booked a retreat for the wrong dates. I immediately started trying to undo my booking. While the retreat organizer kindly voided her invoice, the staff at BoookYogaRetreats told me I had exceeded the refund window and encouraged me to book other dates. I wrote to them as soon as I realized my mistake, so their refund window must be about 40 seconds. I take ownership of my mistake in booking the wrong dates, but most vendors won't charge you $170 for hitting the wrong key. I'll never use this site again.

WARNING!

My booked yoga workshop was canceled by the organizers (not because of Corona, but because there were difficulties with the location). BookYogaRetreats does not want to repay my deposit of 300 EUR and I am only offered a voucher, which is out of the question for me.

This behavior is not fair and it is certainly not yogalike.

I have already informed PayPal about the matter and if that doesn't help, I'll count on my legal protection insurance on the case.

This site has a lot of different yoga retreats to choose from and I found it very easy to use. I had a number of questions to ask before I booked and the communication and response was always very prompt and easy to follow/understand. Payment details and instruction were clear and concise and made it easy for me to know exactly what I was getting for my money. Will use them again to book my next Yoga Retreat. Thanks.

My retreat was canceled, and book yoga retreats is trying to keep my $422 deposit. That is obviously illegal, you can't charge money for an experience that didn't occur. The organizer refunded what they charged, as is customary and ethical, but not Book Yoga Retreats. Although this is easiest to dispute via my credit card company, I would really like to dispute this legally.

Great site with much choice. Super smooth booking experience to a well selected retreat. So glad I found this site.

Even though it is a little more expensive to book through this website, I would do it again because this really helped me find the perfect YTT that I was looking for. What an amazing website that lead to me having the best experience of my life! I'm so happy this site exists I hope they can continue to operate for years to come.

One advice, do not book with them. If you really need it to find a yoga retreat here is 2 advices:

1- don't trust all the packages they offer you might be extremely disappointed and regret spending your money. Don't trust the review under each offer, they Cleary don't match with what you will get

2-if you find something interesting, go directly to the website of the organizer(look in Google) and book with them. Bookaretreat. Com will give you different condition such as non refundable when the organizer have much more flexible condition.

Poor costumer service, don't buy from them

Making the booking with bookyogaretreats.com by Tripaneer is easy and reliable!

First of all, 7 Chakras Yoga School in Rishikesh is truly welcoming and offers support to its students 24/7: they all really make you feel like home, and are approachable.

Secondly, I must emphasize the highly talented teachers they count on, learning and relearning was an absolute pleasure.

Thirdly, the food was always way above my expectations: safe for westerners and absolutely delicious and healthy.

Finally, the accommodation was satisfactory, my bedroom was beautifully sunny and pretty clean when I got in. I would very much like to highlight that the bed was incredibly comfortable, ideal to rest after a very long day of training and learning

In a nutshell, I would really recommend 7 Chakras Yoga School to anyone around the world that wishes to become a highly qualified yoga teacher.

BE CAREFUL! Yoga-scam!
I booked a sailing and Yoga trip which awes9mely had the option of a private cabin. After having booked and paid, I was informed by the hist, Ana, that it was no longer possible to get that private accomodation. I asked if I was at least gonna share with a girl as my husband and I would not feel comfy otherwise. I got the response that this Ana does not think this trip is for me as sailing is a social activity. Obviously afterwards I also no longer feel comfy to go there. I now asked for a refund as the host herself told me not to come. She first offered me an overpriced retreat in Barcelona that had nothing to do with sailing. Then bookyogaretteats took over. They also only offered store credit. I made it clear that I am not sure if I ever wanted to book with them again after this experience. They now say they requested a transfer of my money back to me but so far I do neither have it nor a guarantee thus will be resolved. BE CAREFUL they take your money and you get NOTHING!
There are so many awesome, trustful retreats, don't make my mistake and trust this website, they don't make anything easier or safer, it will just cost you more

This website really helped narrow and filter down what I wanted in a Yoga Retreat. I was very happy with my choice and would highly recommend the Bhakti Yogshala Retreat: 22 Day 200-Hour Multi-Style Yoga Teacher Training Course in Rishikesh to anyone. I could not have found it without the BookYogaRetreats by Tripaneer website.

Best site to find best retreats in the world. Trustworthy. Easy payment and nice navigation. I will use it again.

Spend your money and precious holiday somewhere else

Bookyogaretreats unfortunately have some terribale organizer on their site, so I find it highly unreliable and I would never again book a retreat through their site.

The package is overly expensive compared to a lot of other similiar packages AND the organizer does not live up to what is promised in the itinerary.
The yoga is terrible - if even existing. I only had 2 out of 8 yoga classes and it was not by the teacher promised me but by a guide that the organizer had not previous experience with. And the two times yoga I even had to ask for myself.
Furthermore you can get a similiar trek for 1/3 of their price, so dont book this trip for the trekking part. There are plenty of good offerings for the exact same trekking.
I could go into plenty of details why you should not waste your money on this organizer. One thing that stood out was the unprofessional way of handling my complaint, bringing untrue facts, accusing me of things, and in general not giving it much effort to make up for a 10 days holiday, that did not at all live up to what I paid for - hence what I was in my good right to expect.
One thing is the money wasted. More importantly is my time. My holiday that was not what I could have expected.

I am so grateful for the training I received from Yoga Union in Bali. Everything was organised super well in terms of the food, accommodation and transportation from the airport. The teachers are such fantastic educators with a deep love and passion for what they are teaching. I left this training feeling wholesome and prepared to teach. You will learn so much about yourself through this experience x

I booked at 5 day Ayurvedic cooking / yoga retreat with Renuatum Spa in Puerto Rico. Many things that were promised were not provided. There were no cooking classes,
There were only two meals per day as opposed to three advertised, and the accommodations that were described as "luxury" were not.

After returning from the retreat, I wrote a review giving zero stars and I know at least 3 other retreaters wrote reviews describing their experience as being poor. Unfortunately, I know two out of three did not book through bookyogaretreats so their reviews were not published. In spite of my zero star review, info of bad experiences with two other people and a phone call with another retreater, BYR still gives Renuatam Spa an excellent rating. They only have 9 ratings so mine should have had some sort of impact but it didn't.

I don't think I'll book through BYR ever again since I cannot trust their ratings. I will always look to TripAdvisor or other sites for reviews of any retreat that I consider in the future.

I would never use this company again!
I booked under the condition that my deposit is 100% refundable if I cancel 60 days prior to the arrival date.
I cancelled and asked for a refund but they only offer a voucher valid until July 2021. Due to a medical condition, I will not be able to use the voucher. I communicated very clearly that I don't accept the voucher and ask for a refund. They just keep on sending copy and paste text blocks refusing to process the refund. Under the EU consumer law, this is illegal! I wish I would have never trusted this company in the first place!

J'ai passé un séjour extraordinaire à Ban de Sapt. Et plus qu'une envie de ouvrir la France à travers d'autres séjours!

Legitimate booking platform. I had some complications with my visa and had to delay my trip; bookingyogaretreat helped me reschedule at no charge.

I was doing some research on this website before booking a retreat and I decided to go with BookRetreats instead, because they offer a full refund no matter the issue, and I know many others who have used the site before with a lot of success. From what I've gathered, it seems like BookYogaRetreats isn't a very ethical, yoga-like company which is very disheartening. I just wanted to share my wonderful experience with BookRetreats on these reviews because I don't want anyone looking for a retreat (a trip to BETTER themselves) to get scammed ever again. Hoping others read this before they end up regretting it. Stay safe out there, ya'll!