Soma Yoga InstituteReviews of somayogainstitute.com

The courses and teacher training offered are genuine, mindful ,insightful and scientific. The instructors are highly experienced and guide you tap into your unique voice and true potential. Absolutely loved completing my 300 hrs teachers training at Arcata by Soma. Would highly recommend.

Yoga teacher training was something I had promised myself I would do when I retired. The only challenge with that was that I had not been practicing much over the past few years. And I was a bit afraid that I would not be able to do this - would hold other back - would be the outlier (in a negative way) in the group because of my age and ability. I was so wrong. The teachers at SOMA made this an experience of a lifetime. Never once did I feel any of those things. In fact, I felt surrounded by people who wanted me to succeed, were encouraging me at literally every twist and turn and could not have been more genuinely supportive and kind. An environment to learn in with teachers who were exceptional - each bringing different expertise to the classroom - and with a very similar ethical approach to us and to yoga. The experience opened my mind (and body) to the true meaning of yoga and provided me with a community of exceptional women. I am so grateful to have taken my training with SOMA. I cannot imagine a better place to learn. Thank you Liz, Peggy and Jess.

I had an extremely disappointing experience for a myriad of reasons. I am going to be very direct in this feedback to hopefully help others save their time and money. The biggest thing to note is that a participant started exhibiting symptoms of a psychotic break/psychosis (paranoid delusions and auditory hallucinations, which can be fatal) and the faculty did absolutely nothing…for days, citing “what can we do we’re in Greece.” After 4 days of this being an issue and many people raising concerns, including the hotel staff at the retreat, they finally removed her from classes and gave a bullshit speech about how everything is taken care of and manipulating yoga jargin to defend their lack of action. We went on to find out that even after this they had still not contacted her emergency contacts. Cannot even begin to process how appalling this is. They could not care less about anyone's safety and wellbeing, and went against everything they claimed to preach. Absolutely delusional and not in touch with reality, we were met with faculty reacting saying "everyone has their own personalities" and "yoga training can be stressful and things come up," followed by no action. One of the program participants begged the partcipant for her mother's contact, and when they got ahold of her, she knew nothing of the situation. Worrying about her and being met with a lack of action greatly took away from the experience. Another major issue was the mixed messaging in teaching. Liz and Meg were the faculty at this training. Multiple key things Liz would teach us *not to do* were regular patterns of Meg’s. Meg’s teaching was extremely scattered and her energy was disregulating and off-putting. It did not feel like she was an experienced teacher, and seemed very frustrated with students as well as herself. Liz was extremely passive aggressive and constantly contradicted herself, but at least I learned something from her. I could not say the same for Meg. The food situation was also ridiculous. For a program focused on all day movement, not having the option of 3 meals a day or even fruit out in the morning before classes was not adequate. Liz made it clear she didn’t want to pay 11 euro more per day so we could be properly fed. Not to mention having barely any protein and fiber at the meals... Additionally, there was another retreat that overlapped with ours at the end, and they very clearly had 3 meals… After Liz got feedback about the food situation early on, she completely dismissed it and did everything possible to not make a grocery store trip. She constantly made passive aggresive comments about it, until she finally got a few students to go in her place and shop for everybody. They had to pay 25 dollars each for the taxi. On our one full day off. Liz had plenty of time off since she and Meg did not teach at the same time. Additionally, we were deceived about class size. Since going over the cap would bring in more money, they of course did, then threw those extra people *across the bay* in separate housing, without so much as a warning. They had to walk back and forth constantly (including in the dark) and pay the *same price as those staying on the premises*, with no heads up. Then to add insult to injury, we were told there were just way too many of us to get personal alignment corrections..After advertising so much about teaching proper alignment, the reason many people came. In conclusion, I’d advise spending your money and time anywhere else

Went to August 2026 Greece YTT. Just was not what I expected. I felt like the teaching and curriculum lacked. I went to learn proper pose study and alignment & and there wasn’t much offered of that. Accommodations were ok, food not great. I don’t feel like I’m leaving this experience confident enough to be a teacher.

Amazing 300 hour intensive YTT in Blue Lake California with Liz, Peggy and Jess! Went well beyond my expectations--not just learning more about yoga, but more about myself. Highly recommend!

If you're looking to deepen your yoga practice, or learn how to teach others, I highly recommend the Soma Yoga Institute. Peggy and Liz have a deep knowledge and experience in a wide range of modalities, so what you get with them is the wealth and gems of all that yogic wisdom, and how to avoid common mistakes. They have really created a practice that honors each unique body in a way that is sustainable for life. They immerse you in the spiritual and philosophical wisdom that has been passed down through the ages. I don't think there is a better place in the world to get a through and well-rounded yoga teachers training! Wonderful meals, and all the awe-inspiring elements of nature you could hope for, ocean, river, and the redwood forest. This is the experience of a lifetime! It changed me in profound and unexpected ways, and I know it will do the same for you!

The California 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training was absolutely everything I was hoping for. Authentic yoga in all of its different aspects, combined with the incredible knowledge and experience that Liz and Peggy bring to every class. I loved how we were teaching right off the bat. I feel so empowered and practiced that I now know I can teach. The space was held with such kindness, positive feedback, and extremely helpful guidance. The balance of chanting, meditation, pranayama, philosophy, nourishing food, and alignment education was amazing. The concept of imperfect action took the fear out of it for me. I had my doubts before coming, but the information on the website and Liz's intro video were so inviting. This experience helped me grow. I would definitely do another training with Soma Yoga Institute and I already recommend it to others.

The instructors are highly experienced and knowledgeable. They empower you to teach as your most authentic self, and give you a strong, biomechanics foundation to be a confident teacher. Loved what I learned and I apply it everyday.