Ayọ̀ means joy in Yorùbá!
Ayọ̀ Retreats are intimate luxury wellness, yoga, art, and meditation retreats taking place in Africa and Southern Europe. They are specifically curated for beings who aim to reclaim joy and pleasure as their birthrights. Through ancient healing practices rooted in Yorùbá Òrìsà Ìṣẹ̀ṣe, mindfulness, and connection with the land and nature, Ayọ̀ Retreats create space to realign our lives with our higher selves and to connect with the Earth, our ancestors, and our community. The aim of our series of retreats is for everyone of you to leave feeling connected to your divinity, your source of joy, and your ancestors.
Ayọ̀ Retreats stemmed from a need to create a safe space for Black women to heal, grow and experience joy and pleasure without guilt and shame. It was inspired by our founder Adéolá Naomi Adérèmí’s trip to Benin in 2020, exploring art, spirituality and collective resilience. This felt divinely ordained. As a certified yoga therapist, Olorisa Ifa devotee, and healer, our founder has always wanted to share her joy and the beauty of our ancestral lands with other beings of light who are working with their ancestors and ready to align with our collective ancestral wisdom.
She wants us all to be home in ourselves and our lands. While in Benin, every place Adéolá went to whispered a deep calling and every land she set her feet on kept claiming her. This experience culminated when she visited the Dahomey palace in Abomey. She felt aligned and filled with love, joy, and assurance that the Earth and her ancestors are continuously supporting and protecting her from this society that is constantly against the elevation of women like her.
It is through Ayọ̀ Retreats that our founder would like to share this precious gift with beings from the world who are eager to reconnect with themselves and the land of their ancestors through sacred healing circles, joy, pleasure, art, and divination.