5 Top Yogic Tips for Mindful Travelling

All my life, I have loved travelling. This is probably the number #1 reason I ended up working in global business.

But I cannot deny that travelling is a major disruption on my health routine and upon arriving home I often felt more depleted than refreshed. One of the challenges I set for myself for 2025 was to reduce these disruptions and travel more mindfully.

In this post I share five yogic travel tips that are simple, practical and rooted in the same principles that guide me in my life in general.

Keep Up the Practice

I noticed that when I leave my asana practice at home, I quickly get stiff and achy from prolonged sitting on an airplane, long sightseeing walks and carrying luggage.

So I decided it was time to invest into an amazing light-weight travel mat to take my practice with me to new stunning locations!

What are some great poses to incorporate when you travel?

• Cat-cow sequence and a few rounds of sun salutations to keep your spine supple and prevent back pain by stretching both the back and the abdomen and releasing stiffness and tension.

• Crescent lunge or low lunge to stretch out your hip flexors tightened after a long flight. To get some relief after carrying your luggage around, combine it with a chest opener, such as interlacing your fingers at your lower back and pressing your knuckles down.

• To recover after a long day of walking, include a hip stretch, such as a pigeon pose variation or cow face pose, as well as a hamstring stretch like a seated forward bend or head-to-knee pose. These are great for restoring mobility and soothing tired legs.

Practise slowly, focusing on the breath and staying mindful of your surroundings. A few minutes on the mat each day prevents the aches and keeps you grounded.

Don't Stop Nourishing Yourself

Between the "continental breakfasts" full of empty calories, the quick snacks we grab on the go and the self-inflicted pressure to taste the full range of local delicacies, by the end of the holiday it is easy to find ourselves overdosed on sugar and carbs and fat and processed food.

What are some hacks I have to keep my nutrition up during travel?

• Instead of a hotel, these days I'd often opt for renting an apartment, so I can have a kitchen to whip up a porridge in the morning or a curry in the evening from fresh ingredients and my seasonal ayurvedic spices.

  

• I always carry healthy snacks, such as apples or nut bars, so I don't need to settle for a kiosk selling biscuits or pizza slices when hunger inevitably strikes.

• Local farmers markets can be a great source of fresh produce, as well as an exciting and immersive cultural experience.

• Especially for longer trips, I always bring my usual food supplements, to keep up my vitality and healthy digestion.

Take it Easy

If you are a natural "completionist" like myself, it is tempting to squeeze everything into a few days. Yet rushing from one activity to the next leaves us exhausted and disconnected. We deny ourselves the time and space to be truly present and engaged with the locations, people and experiences, and we are never really able to slow down to actually rest.

I am now working on adopting a 'slow travel' mindset: quality over quantity.

A good day isn’t defined by how many sights or friends we saw. It’s about feeling revitalised, spending quality time with our travelling companions or the people we visit, connecting with the local culture and learning something new. When we slow down, we begin to view travel as part of our practice – an opportunity to listen, observe and respond with compassion.

Give Yourself Grace to Transition

Travel throws off routines, and the shift back to everyday life can be jarring. To make transitions smoother:

• Build in buffer days: Fly out on a Sunday and return on Saturday or even Friday. This allows time to finish chores at home and mentally prepare for travelling by not rushing through packing. Upon return, there is time for unpacking and basic chores, as well as a proper night's sleep before getting back to work.

• Ease into work: Give yourself a day to transition and don’t aim for inbox zero on your first day back. It is okay to mark non-urgent things to be completed at a later time.

• Rest at the end of the trip: The last days might not be the best time to push yourself and visit everything you have missed so far, or to have that late night out. Relaxing and having a good night sleep reduces the stress of the travel and maybe we won't arrive home completely drained.

• Plan meals ahead: While we normally want to get rid of all perishables, it is good to always have some healthy options in the pantry for when we return home.

Delegate

Coming home to an overflowing inbox and fires to put out can undo all the relaxation we’ve cultivated. Learning to delegate effectively lightens your workload and empowers your team.

How to master the art of delegation?

• Delegate outcomes, not just tasks:

  Focus on the final result, not dictating the method, to empower your team. 

• Understand your team's strengths:

  Leverage their individual skills and interests to assign tasks effectively. 

• Set clear expectations and boundaries:

  Create parameters within which the person can operate. 

• Be patient and offer support:

  Recognize that developing new skills takes time and be available to coach and mentor your team. 

By empowering others you create space to rest and return from your travels without dread, knowing that everything is in capable hands with your team.

Yoga teaches us to bring awareness to every action, whether it’s flowing from one pose to another, or flying between countries. Carry your practice into your travels. Mindful movement, nourishing food, a slower pace, conscious transitions and thoughtful delegation are amazing travel companions.

Treat your journeys as an extension of your practice: stay present, care for your body, respect your limits and trust those around you. In doing so you’ll return home not only with beautiful memories but also with a deeper sense of ease and balance.

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful week ahead.

Namaste