Answering popular questions

The price includes yoga lessons as per the schedule of every program, study material, yoga utilities, completion certificate, accommodation, and your pick-up from Dehradun airport (DED).

Read more what each course costs · the rooms and the food

Booking & Fees

Flights, personal expenses, extra school activities, and travel to Rishikesh from anywhere other than Dehradun airport — a cab from Delhi airport is arranged on request and charged separately. The pick-up from Dehradun airport (DED) is included.

Read more what each course costs · how to pay

Booking & Fees

No, Air Conditioner and Heater are not included in the standard package. If you require them, they can be arranged at an extra cost.

Read more the rooms, and what heating one costs

Booking & Fees

Yes. Every student and graduate of the school has a referral code, and a link that fills it in for whoever opens it. When somebody you send books a training or a retreat at the published price, pays their course fee in full and arrives here, the school sends you a reward and takes a welcome credit off their own fee. Codes do not expire, so it makes no difference which year you trained with us, and there is no limit on how many friends you send. The amounts, and the conditions in full, are set out on the payment page. If you have studied here and do not know your code, message us on WhatsApp and we will find it for you.

Read more what a referral is worth · ask the school directly

Booking & Fees

Yes, all students must have health insurance of their preferences. However, it is vital to consider that the insurance must cover all unexpected medical expenses, including Covid – 19 expenses. Extra travel benefits like trip interruption, lost checked luggage, and travel delays.

Visa & Travel

Yes. India has been open to international visitors since 15 November 2021. All commercial international flights are running, and tourist visas are being issued normally.

Visa & Travel

Yes. Come on a tourist visa. That is the right visa for every course we run, and it is what our international students use. For a stay of up to 60 days, apply online at https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/. Approval usually takes less than one week. There is no visa on arrival, so apply before you book your flight. For a stay of more than 60 days, apply at your nearest Indian embassy or consulate. You do not need a student visa, and you should not apply for one. A student visa is for long academic study at an institution the Indian government recognizes for that purpose. A yoga teacher training of 2 to 8 weeks is not that, so a student visa application is usually refused and can delay your travel. We are not immigration advisors: confirm the current rules with your own embassy before you pay for anything.

Read more ask us before you apply

Visa & Travel

The nearest airport to the school is Jolly Grant (DED) in Dehradun, and most international students fly into New Delhi first and take a short domestic hop on to it. Pick-up from Dehradun is free, included in your fee, and arranged around your flight rather than around a timetable — send us your arrival details and a car will be waiting whatever hour you land. If you would rather come by road, a taxi from Delhi takes five to six hours up through the foothills; we can arrange the cab, but that journey is charged separately, so ask us for the price before you book it. By train, the stops to aim for are Yog Nagari Rishikesh or Haridwar, about forty-five minutes out, and the school is ten to twelve kilometres further on — a taxi or a tuk-tuk covers it. Buses to Rishikesh leave New Delhi from the Kashmiri Gate inter-state bus terminal.

Read more the airport, the stations and the road, with a map

Visa & Travel

Yes. Pick-up from Dehradun airport (DED, Jolly Grant) is free and included in your course fee. It runs around the clock and it is arranged around your flight, not around a timetable — book whatever arrival suits you, send us the details, and a car will be waiting whatever hour you land. Most students fly to Delhi first and take a short domestic flight on to Dehradun. If you would rather come by road from Delhi airport, we can arrange a cab, but that journey is not included in the fee and is charged separately. Ask us for the current price before you book it.

Read more send us your flight details

Visa & Travel

While in Rishikesh, there is no dress code. Just bring your comfortable clothes for practicing Yoga. In our school, we will provide yoga mats and all other equipment — the mat, the bolster, the bricks and the rest of the props are yours to use for the whole course and stay with the school at the end of it, so there is no need to travel with your own. What you do take home is your study material, your school T-shirt and bag, your notebook, your books, your mala and your yoga pants. Also, you will require clothes that will cover your shoulders and some long pants for visiting some temples. Beyond that, pack for the month you are coming in. From October to February it is winter here and the evenings want a proper warm layer; from March to June it is summer, and June is hot enough that you will live in light cotton; from July to September it is the monsoon, so bring something that dries. And bring any medication you already take, in enough quantity for the whole stay and in its own packaging — that is the one item on the list you should not plan to replace here.

Read more what the school already provides

Visa & Travel

The vaccination half of that is not ours to answer — we are a yoga school, not a medical service. Ask your own doctor or your country's travel health service, and ask them a couple of months before you fly rather than the week before, because some courses of injections need the time. The water we can answer: clean drinking water is provided at the school for the whole of your stay, and it is part of what your fee covers rather than something you buy again every day. So is the food. Everything is cooked in the school's own kitchen, that morning, from vegetables bought from farmers in the hills — you are not eating from a stall, or from a buffet that has been standing.

Read more the kitchen, and the practical questions

Visa & Travel

You stay at the school, and the room and the food are inside the fee rather than beside it — there is nothing to go and arrange once you have landed. No room here shares a bathroom: all of them, private or sharing, have their own attached bathroom with hot water, which is not what ashram accommodation in Rishikesh usually means. The kitchen serves three sattvic vegetarian meals a day, cooked without onion or garlic, and that covers every day except Sunday, which is the lighter day here — tell us if you would rather eat in on a Sunday and we will sort it out.

Read more the rooms and the dining hall, in full

Accommodation & Food

Yes. Every course and retreat here is quoted at two rates — one for a shared room and one for a private one — and you choose which when you book, rather than being put in whatever is left. Both rates already include the room, the three meals a day and the pick-up from Dehradun airport; the private rate is simply the same stay without a roommate in it. The two figures for a given course are on that course's own page, because they differ by course and by intake, and a fee should be quoted in one place only.

Read more the four trainings, with both rates · the two retreats

Accommodation & Food

Yes, absolutely. You do not need to be a 500 hour yoga TTC trained expert to become a best yoga teacher in Rishikesh. Moreover, you do not need to do headstands and Hanuman Asana, to be considered competent. You will be amazed to know that many people go for yoga teacher training at first, to deepen their knowledge. Among the beginner level learners, many get ample time to practice and perfect their yoga poses. The 200 hour yoga TTC is the perfect stepping stone for you to embrace the idea of teaching. You can always take up a job as assistant yoga teacher, after completing the training.

Read more the 200 hour training

The Course

You can become a yoga teacher in Rishikesh very easily, if you learn from one of the renowned yoga schools there. The best schools are certified by Yoga Alliance. It is one of the best qualifications that you can flaunt. After having completed the yoga course, you will be in a position to teach as an intern or assistant, at the very same school where you did yoga TTC. Apart from that, once you get sufficient experience as an assistant, you can look for independent teaching jobs. Yoga is a culture in Rishikesh. Wherever you look, you will find some teaching opportunity or the other.

Read more all four trainings, compared

The Course

Hatha Yoga is very easy, to be exact. Any beginner level student can learn Hatha Yoga. It is a static yoga style. So, if you are looking for more flexibility, balance, and stability, then you have to go for Hatha Yoga. Most classes last from 45 minutes to 90 minutes. So, the classes can be a bit mentally and physically exhausting. You will be amazed to know that Hatha Yoga is the most commonly practiced yoga style across the western world. Being a slower form of yoga, you get more time to focus on your breathing patterns and focus. So, it mainly prepares you for higher forms.

Read more the daily timetable on the 200 hour

The Course

Some of the most popular types of yoga practiced in India, or more specifically Rishikesh are Hatha Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, Vinyasa Yoga, and Kundalini Yoga. Apart from these, you can also do short-term need-based sessions on yoga. During the yoga TTC, you will learn about yoga asanas, Pranayama, meditation, mudras, bandhas, kriyas, and many other aspects. Apart from the practical, you will also be able to learn about the basis of yoga, i.e., the theoretical aspects. The yoga anatomy, yoga physiology, philosophy, and Patanjali Sage's yoga sutras are essential subjects included in the course. You will get comprehensive learning at a yoga school in Rishikesh.

Read more the full syllabus · who teaches each subject

The Course

Start with the 200 hour. It is the foundation qualification, it needs no prior training, and it is the certificate a studio asks to see. If you have never practiced, begin with Hatha; if you already practice, a multi-style course covering Ashtanga Vinyasa will suit you better. What separates one school in Rishikesh from another is not the syllabus, which Yoga Alliance sets, but the size of the batch, what the teachers are qualified in, and whether you are taught in a language you think in. Ours are capped at 15 to 18 students and taught in English by teachers holding an MA or PhD in Yoga Science.

Read more the 200 hour training · what our students said

The Course

If you ask about postures or asanas, we emphasize traditional Hatha Yoga and Vinyasa flow yoga. But as Yoga is something more than just only postures, we teach you all aspects of yoga-like ethics, niyam, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dhyana, and many more.

Read more the full syllabus

The Course

Everybody can join any course without any experience. Practicing is important.

Read more the 100 hour, if a fortnight suits you better

The Course

We teach in English only, although some explanations we can give in Hindi.

Read more the teachers, and what they are qualified in

The Course

Neither. Flexibility is what a training gives you, not what it asks for at the door — you do not need to do headstands or Hanuman asana to be considered competent here, and nobody is graded on how far down they can fold. Everybody can join any course without prior experience; what matters is that you practice once you are here. If you have never practiced at all, start with Hatha: it is a static style, most classes run 45 to 90 minutes, and it gives you time to work on your breath rather than chase a sequence. If you already practice, a multi-style course covering Ashtanga Vinyasa will suit you better.

Read more the 200 hour, which needs no prior training · the 100 hour, if a fortnight suits you better

The Course

This is one of the most common questions that students ask. However, it is not a mandate to be exact. It is a voluntary decision for any yoga school, to register or not. Yoga Alliance is basically a private and non-profit organization, created sometime in 1999-2000. It mainly acts as a standard for yoga education. The organization has a set criterion that schools registered under it, need to follow. After completing a Yoga Alliance course, you can apply for the Registered Yoga Teacher training certification. Moreover, it offers a global platform to the students that helps in attending courses and workshops, almost free of cost.

Read more what the school is registered at

Certification

To be exact, Yoga Alliance does not certify. It gives an accreditation. A school which has received the accreditation can be called a Registered Yoga School. A Yoga Alliance certification lays down a few guidelines that the registered school needs to follow. Among the guidelines, the first thing which acts as a prerequisite is the pre-defined syllabus. Additionally, trained and registered yoga teachers will teach the students. The main focus is on the depth of training. The accreditation mainly lays down the rules that one must follow. So, it essentially maintains unity.

Read more what the school is registered at

Certification

After 2 weeks or 4 weeks of the course, you will get a certificate of completion from Yoga Alliance. After that, if you have some experience, you can become a best yoga teacher, and if not, it is recommended to keep practicing until you get that confidence for teaching.

Read more the 300 hour, for an RYT 500

Certification

Hariom Yoga Vidya School is a Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga School at RYS 200, RYS 300 and RYS 500, and Yoga Alliance is an international registry rather than an Indian one — which is the whole reason schools here register with it. Graduates of the 200 hour can register in their own name as an RYT 200, and graduates of the 300 hour, having completed a 200 first, as an RYT 500. That RYT 200 is the credential studios ask to see across North America, Europe, the United Kingdom and Australia, and the registration is yours to keep wherever you move. Two honest caveats. Registering is a voluntary application you make to Yoga Alliance yourself once you graduate — the school's part is the training and the certificate behind it. And Yoga Alliance is a professional registry, not a government license: if your own country separately licenses fitness or yoga instruction, that is a question for its authority rather than for us.

Read more the certificate, and how anyone can verify it · the 200 hour training

Certification

Yoga tourism is quite popular, especially in places like Rishikesh. It is also called 'the Yoga Capital of the World'. You will be amazed to know that India is one of the safest countries for travelers. In fact, many foreigners call it home. Tourism is an important industry for the development of the youth in India. So, guests from abroad are taken care of, extremely well. You can safely travel in India, for months on end. But just like any other place in the world, you should always be a bit vigilant. Do not go far away from the ashram, after sundown, without a guide from the ashram. Additionally, you should not flaunt your riches publicly. That should be good to go.

Life in Rishikesh

Yes. Hariom Yoga Vidya School is located in Rishikesh, India, a very safe and peaceful place. So you do not have to worry about your security. But if you have any plan to visit other sites, you need to follow the company with whom you are staying and all other advice and preventive measures.

Read more where the school actually is

Life in Rishikesh

In Rishikesh, there are three different seasons: Summer: From March to June, it is the summer season in Rishikesh. June is the hottest month, with temperatures rising to 35 degrees centigrade. Winter: From October to February, it is the winter season in Rishikesh. January is the coldest month. Monsoon: From July to September, it is a monsoon where the average temperature is between 16 to 26 degrees centigrade. Rainfall is moderate, and humidity is high.

Life in Rishikesh

Rishikesh is famous for its natural beauty as well as spiritual vitality. You will get free time for various adventures like bungee jumping, hiking, etc. You can also visit several spiritual places.

Read more photographs of the town and the hills

Life in Rishikesh

Rishikesh is a pilgrimage town and a yoga town before it is anything else, and the school sits up in Tapovan, on the quieter side of it. The practical part of the answer is the shape of the course rather than the shape of the town: this is residential, so you are not traveling anywhere after dark — you sleep, eat and practice on one property, in a batch capped at fifteen to eighteen people who all arrive on the same day. The school's own standing advice is the sensible kind rather than the alarming kind: do not go far from the school after sundown without somebody from the school with you, and do not flaunt valuables in public. Beyond that, the ordinary vigilance you would use in any unfamiliar town is enough. And if you would rather hear it from someone who has done it than from us, the reviews are signed.

Read more what our students said, in their own words · where the school actually is

Life in Rishikesh

There is no closed season here — a batch starts on the 2nd of every month, all year round — so the real question is which weather suits you. October to February is the Rishikesh winter and it is the easiest stretch to practice in: cool mornings, clear days, and January cold enough at night to want a layer. March to June is the summer, warming steadily until June, the hottest month, reaches around 35°C; that is the stretch in which an air-conditioned room earns the extra it costs. July to September is the monsoon, when the temperature sits between 16°C and 26°C, the rainfall is moderate and the humidity high — and when the valley is at its greenest. Whichever month you choose, the syllabus and the daily timetable are the same.

Read more the trainings, and when each intake starts · what heating or cooling a room costs

Life in Rishikesh

Wi-Fi runs in the rooms and in the common areas, and it is included. It deliberately does not reach the yoga hall — that is the one room on the property where a phone is no use to anybody, and keeping it out of range turns out to be easier than asking. The SIM card and the cash are honestly easier sorted once you are here than worried about before you fly, so bring enough for your first day or two and ask us when you arrive. If you would rather have the specifics before you book, message the school and somebody will tell you exactly what is where.

Read more the Wi-Fi, the water and the rest of it · ask the school directly

Life in Rishikesh