Are you yearning for a summer full of yoga, live music, spiritual community, and transformation? Then pack your bags and roll out your mats yogis—we’ve got the complete 2016 yoga festival lineup below! Almost every weekend from May through September there is a yoga festival happening somewhere in North America. Since most festivals offer early bird discounts, now is the time to pick out your faves and dish out the cash for your tickets.
The summer yoga festival scene continues to thrive with many festivals on their 6th, 9th, or 12th year of operation. The Hanuman Festival was started in Boulder, Colorado in 2010 by local yogis who wanted to create a community-based yoga and music festival. While they have expanded and improved over the last six years, their intention of the festival remains the same: “to create a sacred space for conscious community and growth, with a mix of yoga and music.” Since 2007, the Telluride Yoga Festival has been working to bring yoga, in all of its forms, to Colorado for a weekend “filled with world-class instructors, philosophers, scholars, artists, and musicians.” While this year’s festival will attract over 600 participants and include over 40 presenters, they strive to retain the intimacy and magic of previous events. For the past 12 years the Esalen Institute’s Annual Yoga Festival has been celebrating the summer solstice through yoga asana, pranayama, kirtan, meditation, dance, and satsang. Resting on the cliffs of Big Sur, this is probably the only yoga festival where you can soak in hot mineral springs while taking in a majestic view of the Pacific Ocean.
You will find that each yoga festival offers something different and unique. Most yoga festivals include yoga classes and workshops, live music (from chanting to rock and roll), as well as outdoor activities. The Hanuman Festival has recently expanded their offerings to include hikes, slacklining, rock climbing, inspirational speakers, a vendor village, free bodywork, and a community tent. The Telluride Yoga Festival’s small venue offers an intimate yoga experience in an amazing mountain ski resort setting. This year they are offering stand up paddle board yoga, acro-yoga, hula hooping, guided hikes, sunset concerts, and mountain biking.
Many festivals incorporate seva (selfless service) and dana (charitable giving). The Hanuman Festival actively gives back to local and global causes. Each year they collaborate with the Give Back Yoga Foundation to identify non-profits to donate a percentage of the festival’s income. In 2013 the Hanuman Festival hosted a flood benefit for the local high school, and proceeds from the 2015 festival supported earthquake relief in Nepal. At Michigan’s YogaFest each presenter, musician, and coordinator participates through seva. By being a 100% volunteer-powered festival they are able to raise funds for the yoga retreat center that hosts the festival.
We have scoured the web to find every multi-day summertime yoga festival in North America. Check out our list below, and let us know which ones will you be attending.
2016 Summer Yoga Festival Calendar
Dates | Festival Name | Location |
April 29-May 1 | Dubuque Yoga Festival | Dubuque, IA |
May 13-15 | Shakti Fest | Joshua Tree, CA |
May 28-30 | Downtown Yoga Festival | Salt Lake City, UT |
May 28-29 | Ozark Mountain Yoga Festival | Low Gap, AR |
May 28-29 | Miami Beach Kundalini Yoga Festival | Miami, FL |
June 3-5 | Wanderlust | Snowshoe, WV |
June 9-12 | Hanuman Festival | Boulder, CO |
June 16-19 | Wanderlust | Bondville, VT |
June 17-19 | The Groove Yoga Festival | Sydenham, ON CA |
June 19-24 | Esalen Yoga Festival | Big Sur, CA |
June 24-26 | Breathe Yoga Festival | Fort Collins, CO |
June 30-July 3 | Wanderlust | Snowmass Village, CO |
July 8-10 | Maine Yoga Fest | Portland, ME |
July 21-24 | Telluride Yoga Festival | Telluride, CO |
July 8-10 | Nantucket Yoga Festival | Nantucket, MA |
July 14-17 | Wanderlust | Lake Tahoe, CA |
July 28-Aug 1 | Wanderlust | Whistler, BC CA |
August 4-7 | Denver Yoga Festival | Denver, CO |
August 4-7 | YogaFest | Vanderbilt, MI |
August 11-14 | Wanderlust | Mount Tremblant, QC CA |
August 17-21 | Sat Nam Fest | Lenox, MA |
August 26-28 | Santa Fe Yoga Festival | Santa Fe, NM |
August 26-28 | Big Bear Yoga Festival | Big Bear Lake, CA |
September 2-4 | Floyd Yoga Jam | Floyd, VA |
September 2-5 | Sukhava Bodhe Yoga & Music Festival | Paw Paw, IL |
September 3-5 | Downtown Yoga Festival | Salt Lake City, UT |
September 8-11 | Bhakti Fest | Joshua Tree, CA |
September 17-18 | Vegas Gone Yoga Festival | Las Vegas, NV |
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