Holistic Holidays To Feed Mind, Body And Soul | |
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The Power Of Circles
A circle, that simple yet profound shape, holds within it a multitude of possibilities and meanings. When people join hands in a circle, they create a powerful sense of unity—a shared bond that transcends individuality.
Our holidays make much use of circles of guests and in our architectural designs.
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Index
- Overlapping Circles
- Concentric Circles
- Future Dancing Circles in Morocco
- Ever Increasing Circles
- Singing In The Round
- Two Semi-Circular Tours
- On A Roll With Art & Photography
- The Ripples Continue
- Find A Holiday For You
- The Winners Circle
- Travel News
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Overlapping Circles
A series of co-incidences has shaped Jane's life, linking together her passions for dancing, permaculture, wildlife conservation, Morocco and sustainability. Key people having emerged from the Circle Dance network, supporting and inspiring her along the way.
On Jane’s first visit to Taroudant back in the 1990s, she loved the permaculture-style haven of the gardens of the former governor’s palace hotel there. When she joined her local permaculture group in the late 1980s it consisted almost entirely of circle dancers and well-known circle dance musicians. And her own training in permaculture was undertaken in West Wales with another circle dance teacher.
In the mid 1990s she also remembers the huge contribution of David Denison. And David particularly deserves to be remembered now since he recently passed away. He introduced Jane to significant people in Morocco including Latifa our wonderful manageress, and Fatima our cook as well as connections with this marvellous charity, the Moroccan Children's Trust, which arose as a result of his work in Taroudant. With these the circle was set in motion.
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Concentric Circles
One of our early guests in the 1990’s was a dance musician who many years later, was, by chance, in an adjacent tent to Jane at Dance Camp Wales. Here the idea was born – to take a group of circle dancers to Morocco the following January (2013) and since then many circle dance teachers have led groups for us.
Since then many other holiday themes have evolved and convened in circles there.
And if you'd like to visit the place where it all started Dance Camp Wales it's not too late to book to experience the magic of this intimate camp in the beautiful Welsh countryside.
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Future Dancing Circles In Morocco | |
Image above: Circle dance in the Activity Room which contain many circular or semi-circular shapes in furniture, ornaments, windows and a rug. | |
The Circle expanded with Dances of Universal Peace, a spiritual practice that beautifully combines singing and dancing with sacred phrases from various world.
We are delighted that our leader Jilani will return to Morocco from
26 February – 5 March 2025
| Read more about our choice of Dance Holidays | |
A healing circle dance holiday
"My recent trip to the Ecolodge was just what I needed after a period of illness. Those of you who have taught/danced there, will know what a special place it is. I enjoyed the dancing so much and also found it cathartic, as we were able to use the dance circle in the garden, both first thing in the morning and occasionally in the evening. There’s something quite different about dancing outside, especially when one is in such beautiful surroundings and the first few mornings we danced at sunrise, which was just magical. The early morning sessions were danced silently. Cindy and Adrian chose simple dances with music which was meditative and calming. Dancing in that circle with the dawn chorus accompanying us and the sun gently warming our bodies was something I will never forget."
Extract of an article written for Grapevine Magazine by Judith Franklin.
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BOOK STEFAN'S HOLIDAY SOON TO GET GOOD PRICES
From 9-16 April 2025 we will welcome Stefan Freedman, an internationally acclaimed circle dance teacher. He is known for his clear, encouraging teaching and original diverse choreography.
Some dance sessions are celebrations and incorporate live music and song, while at other times the group is invited into a moving mandala of deep serenity.
Stefan was among the first sacred circle dance teachers in the United Kingdom. His training includes Rom Dance, Greek, Balkan, Israeli, Salsa, Bachata and Biodanza.
The whole experience supports your joyfulness and revitalisation.
Image below: Stefan Freedman
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LIMITED PLACES remain on Sally Maxwell's Circle Dance holiday in October with a chance to fly from Luton, Gatwick (London flights are cheap) & Manchester, all with easyJet
16-23 October 2024
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Ever Increasing Circles
Singing, Spa and Yoga in West Wales: another circular experience!
If you prefer to travel a little more locally, we run holidays once or twice yearly in Roundhouses and cottages in glorious West Wales. Here we host a great mix of activities.
Our next retreat is from September 23-27, 2024 with our exceptional and longstanding singing tutor Pauline Down and our very own Yogi Marie Aditi. This is currently fully booked but you can join the waiting list for this holiday or you can express an interest in the two holidays in May & September 2025.
NEWS FLASH!
We have just agreed these two 2025 HOLIDAYS IN WEST WALES
Friday 16 - 19 May 2025: Yoga, Sound & Expressive Drawing with Jill Blandford & Amanda Stone
| Friday 19 - 22 September 2025: Equinox Yoga with optional Ecstatic Dance with Louise Cook | |
Images of the circular Retreat Venue in West Wales | |
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Singing In The Round
So many people love to sing but think they don’t have the vocal or musical skills to join a choir. Yet thanks to our sensitive tutors joining a group of singers is now a choice open to all.
Natural Voice practitioners believe that you should celebrate the voice you have rather than training it to fit into a particular genre of music. Nobody is asked to audition or to learn to read music; the group leader is adept at helping you to learn by ear.
It is accessible, inclusive and exciting. Within a short time, you can participate in a group sound which energises and uplifts. Music is chosen from many cultures so that there is something to appeal to everyone.
Singing without instrumental accompaniment (known as Acapella) means that you can sing anywhere and everywhere. Community choirs are now a strong feature across the UK, bringing people together to share their natural voices, to socialise and have fun.
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Images of Choir Leaders Doug Watts and Jenny Goodman | |
Two Semi-Circular Tours
Photography in January. Painting in February
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The semi-circle: Taroudant, Essaouira and Marrakech
We are offering two 8 day holidays next January and February featuring a 5 night stay in Taroudant with a 3 day extension to Essaouira and an option to extend your holiday in Marrakech.
GREAT TRAVEL NEWS! For both holidays you can fly directly from/to Bristol
Enjoy the journey along the Atlantic Coast to Essaouira. There you can wander through the charming medinas, visit the bustling fishing port, admire the fortified ramparts, and even enjoy a camel or horse ride on the beach. Breakfast in your stunning riad is included; for lunch and dinner, select from an array of excellent restaurants at your own expense.
A visit to the bustling city of Marrakech with its iconic landmarks is an optional extra at the end of your tour.
Photography holiday with Graham Parish: 22 – 30 January 2025 (all devices catered for!)
| Painting Holiday with Louise Waugh: 19 - 27 February 2025 | Image: Taroudant's Town Walls | |
Image: Essaouira's fishing port | |
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On a Roll with Art & Photography
Wherever you go in Morocco you see interesting examples of folk art on walls and doors, often created using local pigments.
Traditionally, Islamic art avoided representation of living forms: hence the creation of many geometric patterns, all of which have meaning. Such symbols are richly represented in embroidery, ceramics and carpets. However, many paintings and murals depict scenes of people or animals.
Add some vibrant and ochre tones to your paint box and travel to Morocco where the colour, light and forms will inspire you to experiment with interpretations. Whether natural or man-made, the colours, shapes and textures of your surroundings are full of vivid contrasts.
Morocco has endless opportunities for photography. It also has its own unique challenges. Your photography tutor will be on hand to help you through the process of photographing Morocco’s landscapes and people.
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The Ripples Continue
We have been pioneers in responsible and sustainable tourism in Morocco since we opened in 1997.
Two recent actions to further this aim are:
1) The installation of a substantial Solar PV array big enough to meet our needs: the pool pump uses much more than anything else and then refrigeration. We are moving from gas towards electricity for cooking and of course, use highly efficient LED bulbs. Surplus electricity can't be fed into the national grid yet in Morocco so we will divert surplus energy to heat the pool in the cooler months.
2) The purchase of a new Electric Bike (made in Morocco) is a great asset for the team to get around to collect the fabulous food sourced locally
This policy ripples out into the community through our guests, who help to participate in the holidays and support the community in a variety of ways.
This includes donations to the Earthquake appeal, the purchase of goods direct from local producers including soaps from the project we created in a High Atlas village, the Argan Oil Women’s Cooperative, bee products from the cooperative associated with the Busy Bee Centre that we inspired, high quality Saffron from local cooperatives. All of these are for sale at our small shop in the reception area. All profits go to charity.
The promotion of cultural understanding has created further interlinking circles as the central focus of this community in Morocco. Thank you to all who continue to support our work. The work goes on!
Image: Youssef returning from Market on our new Electric Bike
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Our New Oval Shaded Seating Area
It's a flattened circle! We have created another microclimate on site on the northern edge of our buildings to give both shade and a lovely view of the nearby town walls.
It features the traditional crafts of polished plaster (tadelakt), tables made of tiny hand-cut tiles (zellige) and a woven reed roof (it looks like bamboo) as well as comfy cushions.
A perfect space to unwind and enjoy the warmth of Taroudant in the shade. Whether catching up on your latest book, sharing tales of your adventures in Morocco with friends or using it as an area for group activities, our new shared space is a sheltered haven to enjoy.
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The Winners Circle
We are pleased to announce that we have been recognised once again as a Traveller-Favourite Hotel in Tripadvisor's Travellers' Choice Awards for 2024. The award honours businesses that consistently earn great reviews, placing them among the top 10% of listings around the world on Tripadvisor. We are so grateful for all the lovely reviews we receive from our guests on Tripadvisor.
These five bubble reviews fill our hearts with pride to know that our team's hard work gives our guests such pleasure.
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Travel News
New Routes and Airlines serving Agadir We are very happy to announce that easyJet has launched a Bristol to Agadir route on Wednesdays, our holiday start day. BA is now offering the Gatwick to Agadir route on Wednesdays.
Why fly to Agadir? Agadir is both our nearest airport and our favourite, being small and efficient and under an hour's drive by a quiet road to Taroudant.
Airport Upgrades With major international events coming to Morocco, including the Africa Cup of Nations in 2026 and the World Cup in 2030 football tournaments our guests will benefit from airport upgrades too.
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Warmest wishes,
Jane, Marie & Steven in the Welsh office and the team in Morocco: the two Latifas, the two Saids, Nordine, Rachid, Fatima, Youssef, Zineb, Souad & Naima, the cats Marmalade & Misha and the tortoises.
Tel (UK): +44 1239 615499
WhatsApp +44 7421126439 (this number is only used on WhatsApp)
Our Web Site
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