The Yoga Studio (with locations in Mill Valley, Larkspur, and San Francisco) tempts its clients with several yoga retreats in exotic locations with celebrity yogis, like Brazil with Rodney Yee and India with Kirtan master Jai Uttal. (Kirtan is a form of traditional singing.) But in the interest of retaining all that serenity, avoid a long trip and indulge in the studio’s Yogaway Near By program. It’ll plant you in downward dog at the Mayacamas Ranch, a short drive north in Calistoga. Favorite Yoga Studio instructors (like Betty Roi, who conducts January’s New Year session in 2008) lead three-hour classes in the morning, two-hour classes in the afternoon, and evening meditation.

From individual, cabinlike setups to more hotel-like rooms, there’s variety in the ranch’s accommodations, but all participants can enjoy the pool, hot tub, fire pit, and freshly prepared gourmet meals—not to mention hiking trails through 80 acres of chaparral, redwood forests, and manzanita groves and canoeing on secluded Hidden Lake. Add a massage to the mix, and your transcendent experience will be complete.

Having a great time! “It was the perfect location and instruction to take me deeper in my practice,” says Bob Kustel of Mill Valley.

-Sarah Mueller Bossenbroek

BETTY ROI’S “INSPIRATION AND AWAKENING FOR THE NEW YEAR” RUNS JAN. 11–13, 2008, AND COSTS $695 FOR THREE DAYS AND TWO NIGHTS, INCLUDING MEALS AND ACCOMMODATIONS. 415-380-8800, YOGASTUDIOMILLVALLEY.COM.