Meet the Team
Meet our team of Yoga, Meditation, Travel & Photography experts - guiding you on unforgettable adventures
Namastayz grew out of a love of all things travel, adventure, yoga, and self discovery. Out of a deep burning passion to grow spiritually and dive into the rich tapestry of ancient cultures and how they are lived and experienced today. It grew out my excitement to share decades of travel experience, and years of running a yoga studio; teaching countless spiritual seekers the art of yoga and meditation on and off the mat. I have tailor made Namastayz retreats into boutique, spiritually grounded adventures, that offer just the right amount of culture, ritual, adventure, R & R, yoga and meditation.
What makes us stand out from other yoga retreats is our adventurous spirit - journeying into mystical destinations, wandering countries, exploring cities, hiking mountains, and bathing in nature. We choose destinations that you have always wanted to visit, yet going alone feels a little daunting. We choose places imbued with spirit and culture, so you leave feeling inspired, in awe, and in LOVE with life.
What makes us stand out from other adventure retreats is our underpinning of spiritual connection - offerings of yoga & meditation practices, temple and monastery visits, rituals and ceremonies, and the sharing of ancient yogic wisdoms - the philosophy, psychology, and cosmology.
Join us - combine the joy of yoga with your love for travel and adventure. Allow us to guide you, and share years of combined experience, to create you an authentic, safe, inspiring and unforgettable yoga travel adventure that will have you overflowing with everything you need xxx
The Practices
Joining a Namastayz yoga retreat is your invitation to explore both your internal world and the mystical world around you. Each retreat is curated to journey you to places you long for, & to re-unite you with your senses, and your somatic and energetic body. When we leave our everyday environment behind and wake up in new, inspiring, and mesmerising places, our inner landscapes enliven with curiosity & our bodies vibrate with the flow of life force - prana. Harvesting these subtle energies by embodying ancient wisdom practices opens the doorway to the transformative fire of surrender, the empowering process of opening authentically into the SELF (the unconscious and conscious) and the rich textures of BE-ing.
Yogic teachings tell us that the entire cosmos resides inside us, that the body is a a vessel for transformative and sacred practices that reveal the creative play of consciousness inside us. At the heart of this consciousness is love.
Every Namastayz yoga retreat is grounded with gentle daily yoga practices including asana, meditation, pranayama, mantra, mudra, yantra, poetry, myth & story, & philosophical teachings. You can expect to spend 2-3 hours per day in Tantric, Vedic, & or Buddhist practices. No matter what your yoga experience you are welcome to join, and of course all practices are discretionary.
The Lineage
Over a history of thousands of years the practices of yoga have changed and evolved, influenced by different cultures, sages and gurus, wars & politics. Traditions & teachings have merged and morphed to meet the needs of the people "yoking" them to a gracious sense of self, mother earth, & the Divine. The origins of ancient yogic wisdom, the Vedas, marked the beginning of many sacred writings including the Buddhist Tripitaka, Canons, Sutras & Tantras, The Upanishads, The Bhagavad Gita, the Puranas, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, The Shiva Sutras of Vasugupta, and The Vijnana Bhairava Tantra. These many scriptures illuminate the diversity of yoga and emanate the mysticism, myth, and teachings of yoga practices that manifest as embodied wisdom, both on and off the yoga mat.
My style of teaching draws from this giant cup of sacred nectar and I humbly honour the teachers who have trained & guided me, including Gregor Maehle and Monica Gauci (ashtanga vinyasa yoga), Peter Masters (Okido yoga), Bikram Choudhury & Jimmy Barkan (Bikram yoga), Paul Grilley (Yin yoga), Octavio Silvado (tantric hatha yoga), Duncan Peak (flow yoga), Fabio Andrico (Tibetan Buddhist Yantra yoga), Richard Miller (IREST yoga nidra), Lorin Roche (Instinctive Meditation), Tom Knowles & Tom Cronin (Vedic meditation), Nataraj Chaitanya (Trika Shaivism), Tova Olsson (tantric philosophy), Dr Robert Svoboda (yogic philosophy), & Vamadeva Shastri (Ayurvedic Healing & Vedic Counselling).
I also bestow gratitude to my teacher's lineage including K. Patthabi Jois, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Krishnamacharya, Bishnu Gosh, & Swami Lakshmanjoo.
The Yoga
During a Namastayz adventure retreat you will enjoy a cup full of yoga and meditation every day. Most days this will include a gentle asana based practice - hatha , Tibetan Buddhist, or yin yoga, meditation - Vedic based, Buddhist, IREST or guided, and doses of ancient myth and story, mantra & mudra, ritual & ceremony, relevant philosophy talks, or visits to spiritual places -natural landscapes, ancient places, temples, monasteries, and sites imbued with spiritual energy and meaning. Your daily practices will reflect the theme or destination we are exploring. They are curated as a sacred passage into the home of your body, as timeless wisdom to nurture personal growth, & as holding spaces that invite you to embody a lived sense spirituality
As facilitator and guide I aim to offer you moments for personal growth & authentic connection with SELF & others. You will receive opportunities to awaken to your body's language, release habitual pattens of movement & BE-ing, unravel old patterns of contraction and holding, and experience your body and breath as pathways to unitive consciousness. We will explore the the vast array of states of consciousness that arise when we move through each day and begin to delve into the yogic states of consciousness we experience when we practice with authenticity, sincerity, grace and love.
The Meditation
Meditation has been a joyful influence in my life for over a decade. It has been my portal into the cosmos & the oceanic bliss of consciousness. Meditation has gifted me peace of mind, clarity of thought, emotional intuition, physical sensitivity, spiritual insight, energetic awareness and most of all TIME. Research reveals that meditation 'gives us time', it allows us to experience each moment more fully, to spend less time ruminating and catastrophising and more time being where we are - fully.
I have studied the art of meditation with Blue Throat Yoga (Canada), Loran Roche (USA), Tom Cronin (Australia), Tom Knowles (USA), and many of my teachers along the way.
As I am an initiated Vedic meditation teacher from the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi lineage, on your retreat you will learn the essence of a Vedic meditation practice (the art of deep seated stress release) and also experience a diverse variety of authentic meditation, mindfulness and contemplation practices, as I do not believe there is always a one fits all approach to a successful meditation practice (one you are simply willing to actually do every day!).
We will aim to practice 2 x 20 minute sessions of meditation per day so by the end of your adventure you will have established for yourself a regular meditation practice. All meditation practices on retreat are discretional.
The Facilitator
I have been a full time yoga teacher for over 10 years. I have owned my own yoga shalas -The Yoga Hut, The Yoga Hive SouthSide, NorthSide & Central, for 8 years. I have also been the trauma yoga teacher at a specialised women's trauma hospital since it opened mid 2022. I have taught group classes, one on ones, sports groups, corporate classes, and people with disabilities, and still see myself as a constant leaner and student of yoga & life.
My background includes-
a Bachelor Degree in Health Science - Nutrition and Naturopathy, over a 1000 hours of accredited yoga teacher training including Okido Yoga, ashtanga yoga, Bikram yoga, vinyasa yoga, and yin yoga. I also have advanced diplomas in counselling & art therapy. You are in safe and experienced hands when you retreat with me.
Yoga shala owner and head teacher
International yoga retreat facilitator
Trauma yoga teacher
Vedic meditation teacher
Transpersonal counsellor and art therapist
Vedic counsellor
Ayurvedic wellness coach
Words from Wanderers
I have been on multiple retreats with Bec and they have all been personally transformative, fostering a deep sense of connection & spiritual growth. Through my journeys with Bec I have felt consistently safe, supported and inspired. Her thoughtful approach weaves together diverse yoga and meditation practices, creating a rich tapestry of experiences. The retreats have provided invaluable opportunities to connect with like-minded people. Bec has meticulous attention to detail and care for each persons wellbeing - Lucy Pickford
I have had the privilege of attending two yoga retreats with Bec from The Yoga Hive in Wollongong. Both were in India, one in Kerala in the south and one in Ladakh in northern India. Bec was the ultimate professional as she guided us through the physical practice and also shared wisdom about the spiritual and philosophical aspects of yoga making the experience authentic. The group was very inclusive, and It was wonderful to share the adventure with like-minded people. It was truly an experience like no other. The itinerary was varied and fun making both retreats a wonderful adventure. Overall, my experience deepened my yoga practice and also helped me find a greater sense of peace and clarity. I left feeling rejuvenated, with a renewed sense of purpose and connection to myself - Sue Wilson
Not just a retreat, it's traveling yoga! Very well organised small group yoga retreats. Well thought out yoga and meditation classes with some self development workshops. 2 classes a day, morning class energetic and afternoon/evening class more restorative. Fully immersed in the local cultures and traditions, traveling from the sea to the mountains to the lakes, enjoying temple visits, puja and festivals with hiking and swimming. All inclusive food of a high standard along with the accommodation, clean and comfortable rooms, welcoming and friendly staff. Wonderful leader in Bec, good group dynamics with a chance to get to know each other better and to make new friends - Andrea Jones
