Tips for Choosing a High-Quality Yoga Teacher Training in Bali
Location, price, style, the teachers, standards, ethics, accreditation, duration, authenticity, honesty, integrity, inclusions, support, food, and accommodation options. These are all things you are probably considering, or should be if you are looking for a good quality yoga teacher training in Bali.
I honestly hope I can help you to choose the right training in Bali, or at least give you some information and advice on what you probably should be aware of when trying to sort through the hundreds on offer.
Some choices are personal of course or depend on your circumstances. Like your preferred location, available time, asana style you would like to learn, and affordability.
Location For Yoga Teacher Training In Bali
Bali is an amazing place to do your Yoga Teacher Training (YTT). It’s a fairly big island, and as you will be spending around a month based in one place, you should consider if you prefer to be in a busy tourist area, an inland center, beachside, or a more remote location. Basically, there are many options, mainly between the inland hub of Ubud, and several beachside villages. Ubud and Canggu are very busy tourist areas. Most other areas are probably more peaceful, so really, it is a personal choice.
Cost For Yoga Teacher Training
In most cases, you get what you pay for. Since the pandemic, many budget operators are offering cheap yoga teacher training in Bali. Between USD 1200 to around USD 2000, supposedly all-inclusive. Be careful if you are looking for a good quality training. They just don’t deliver, despite the claims and gloss on the websites – in most cases, they have no standards or ethics, are blatantly dishonest or deceptive, and primarily are just motivated by money. Some run non-stop, with 50, 100, 200, 300 hour YTTs at the same time. Finishing in only 21 days, say they are all-inclusive, accommodation and meals, but use the cheapest hotels they can find. Maybe have just one main teacher or a couple of friends.
If you are just interested in gaining the certificate, as quickly and cheaply as possible, then these trainings will provide that. If you want a better experience, and to really learn to teach, choose a better-established school, which will usually be around USD 2500, to USD 3000, for a month’s intensive training. (200-hour YTT).
Yoga Teaching Styles
The yoga style you choose is very personal, really. It’s just about the asana technique, so the bulk of the courses are all similar and should cover all the main aspects of yoga. Hatha is a good foundation for all the modern styles. Vinyasa and Yin are fairly popular these days. Just beware of the fancy add-ons, tantric, kundalini, or schools claiming to cover it all, with lineages, all by apparent masters.
Importance Of Specialised Teachers
Are the teachers on the website actually going to teach you? Many schools have pictures and bios of teachers that are not even there or may appear once or twice. Apparent Indian gurus/masters.
To meet new standards, even Yoga Alliance is trying to require schools to have teachers with at least the E-RYT 500 qualification, actually teaching the bulk of the hours. You should ask who will be doing most of the contact hours (160hrs by the lead teacher, which is Yoga Alliance’s new requirement), and inquire about their experience. The budget schools often use recent graduates, and many of the transient, hotel-based trainings, are also run by relatively inexperienced teachers. Running a training is much more than teaching yoga classes, and reading out of books or manuals.
How many truly experienced teachers will really be there? Are there real experienced and qualified visiting experts for certain subjects? Do they have a good support team, and assistants?
Why Standards & Ethics Are Important
This is obviously very important, and really encompasses all aspects of the training, and the school itself. What is the motivation of the school? Is it primarily commercial, or do they really care about delivering the best training they can, and are capable to do so.
How long has the school been established? Do they have their own studios and an office based in Bali, or are they transient, online, hotel based? Are they really well reputed, not just cherry-picked, paid-for reviews, or best of blogs? Check how long they have been registered, if at all, and how many real graduate reviews are on their Yoga Alliance profile if they have one. Do they have an ethics policy in place?
How many students do they take at one time? Are they trying to run multiple pieces of training at once – 50, 100, 200, 300 non-stop every month? How long are the trainings, and actual contact hours with senior teachers? Less than 4 weeks is not enough time to really absorb all the information, while also having some time off, to rest and enjoy the experience. Dancing, hugging, and singing, although very enjoyable, are not part of any serious YTT.
The teacher, standards, and curriculum are very important, as is the established reputation of the school, particularly if you want to get a job and require references, as most good schools will want to know where you did your training. Would you rather go to a reputable university or an unknown one? Many come and go, so will they even be online to provide a reference or support 6 months after you finish? Even if you are simply doing a training to deepen your personal practice, learning from quality teachers at a school with high standards and ethics is important for the overall experience.
Choosing The Right Accommodation
Stay options and good food are of course very important to consider, and part of the overall cost. There are so many options to suit all budgets, but you need local advice. Does the school have a dedicated support team, and course coordinator, to assist and provide advice on various options, and all the other things to ensure your trip and experience are safe and enjoyable? Bonus inclusions like dinners, spa treatments, free classes if they are a public school, intern programmes, and ongoing support if you would like to be part of alumni to connect for job opportunities, or advice and references, can also be important to enhance the quality of your training experience. Be careful if they are just using a villa or cheap guest house, and don’t have a real studio, base, and support team of their own.
Two Important Factors: Honesty and integrity
Probably the most important aspect is simply honesty. Is the information on their website true? Do they have integrity and authenticity, or are the glossy website, claims of mastery, add-on gimmicks, and basic information – more smoke and mirrors – fake or deceptive pictures? “Book now. Limited places. 3 spots left, payment plans, Indian gurus, and worldwide trainings.”
Unfortunately, many apparent YTTs are primarily commercially driven, by fairly slick online people, and agents. They do not live here or support the local community. They will ask you to pay the money to an overseas account to avoid tax, as they are foreigners, illegally working here, and give nothing to the community. Money, ego/power, and sexual predators are all too common in the modern yoga scene, so do your research, and be aware. Have you watched the Netflix documentary – “Bikram, yogi, guru, predator”?
Finally, beware of the agents. Bookyogaretreats, Bookretreats, Yovada, and others. They have no standards or ethics and are simply commercial online booking agents that list all of the transient, illegal, poor-quality trainings. They just want your deposit, that’s their commission, and they don’t refund. They are not Bali-based, and won’t respond if issues arise. It’s free to list with them, that’s why generally, all the dodgy trainings are there. You won’t see the established, reputable schools on those sites.
It is much safer to book direct with an established school, ideally Bali based, with its studios and local support team.
Some of the bigger established schools, also do genuinely support good causes and the local community. Consider making a conscious decision and assist locals that may be less fortunate. Karma Yoga.
So, don’t get me wrong. Bali is truly a unique place to visit and a great option for learning and practicing yoga. The people, culture, and sense of community, together with all the iconic Bali landscapes are amazing experiences to enjoy. I hope this information helps you to find the right training, and you do enjoy your visit.
About the Author
I have lived in Bali for around 15 years and practiced yoga for over 30 years now. I apologize for any negative judgment in this article, which is an opinion piece. I felt compelled to write this, to genuinely help prospective students avoid the rip-offs and charlatans in the yoga industry here. There are many good schools and dedicated yoga practitioners here also. I hope you find them.