FAQ
The payment gateway WeTravel’s refund policy is such that if you cancel within 30 days of the festival you will receive a 50% refund of the fees you paid. After the 30 days, there can be no refund. Your sisterkind will sorely miss your shakti energy in the red tent. Your ticket funds will go toward sponsoring a volunteer participation in the event.
Room, bed in a 6-person female dorm, or bed in a 6-person tent. Single bed with sheet, blankets, extra blankets, pillow, 3 meals, 2 chai or coffee, unlimited pure drinking water, warm shower (double shared room in guest house has private bath. All others share the bath house). Entrance to festival and all activities on campus including yoga classes, puja and satsang and evening entertainment. Sporadic wifi 1 hour daily in fixed environment inside the fortress.
A notebook is essential for collecting your learning during and after workshops. If you do not have a favorite, the ashram has them in their Bazaar stall.
To review the topics being covered at festival in workshops and key note speeches, please see the website.
You can send all the information at [email protected].
Bus shuttle is provided to all guests on 27 and 30 Dec to pre con or festival @ 3 PM (approx) from Jodhpur airport; and 31 Dec and 4 Jan from ashram to Jodhpur airport @ 11 a.m. (approx); and 5 Jan 10:30 a.m. from the camel camp to Jodhpur airport. Should they not want these shuttles, or miss it, private transport can be provided by Jai Vashnev company or Bajrang Gaur. Arrangements should be made prior to arrival via email. Phone #’s will be provided. Free call is permitted from Jodhpur airport for all ticket holders.
To your transport to ashram, probably. But to your ticket, probably not unless there are beds available under a different option.
Anand: 9680477625 Shreejan 99288 50795; Guruji 9799772211, Malji 9799788999 or 9928094877 (Hindi only), Premnath 9928155896 (Hindi only)
Subjected to seat availability
Yes. Pay at the gate INR 3,500 (village residents) or INR 5,000 (city residents) by donation. Includes communal tent stay. Guest house reservations for Indian are also available at the international fixed rate.
Pure vegetarian, organic, locally grown either in the ashram’s large garden, or disciple farms.
Schedule is pending. Yoga classes begin at 6:30 a.m
Yes, yoga classes will be provided to all level of practitioner, from Introduction to Yoga to Advanced Asana and Vinyasa. There is something for everyone.
Most workshops, classes and speeches will be provided in English. A translator will be provided for many of the experiences so that Hindi speakers can take advantage of the education. Several Hindi only workshops will also be provided.
Girls 13 years of age or older are welcome to the festival with their mother or guardian. The ashram bears no responsibility for safety of children so they must be attended at all times by an adult
Men are welcome to join the pre conference. Men are not allowed in the festival workshops or classes. But if they want to accompany their spouses to the event, they will be provided a separate room in the men’s quarters. During the day they can work Karma Yoga with the male members of the ashram in the garden or grounds. The evening entertainment segments are open to the general public where men, women, and children can all join in the audience.
Yes. Email [email protected] and you will be provided with a link to book just the 28 – 30 December pre conference ‘SEED Films’
Anand: 9680477625 Shreejan 99288 50795; Guruji 9799772211, Malji 9799788999 or 9928094877 (Hindi only); Premnath 9928155896 (Hindi only)
No. There are no immunizations recommended for north Rajasthan in the winter (or any other time of year!)
During the day you will need only a sweater. But at night it will drop considerably in temperature. You need to wear ‘long underwear’ or liners under your pajamas while sleeping. Then these layers can come off once the sun is up.
Women should wear loose fitting natural fibers to keep warm, which extend to ankle and elbow. Women should protect their psychic centers when in temple as there are ‘samadhis’ buried therein – previous gurus. Please bring a simple head scarf.
No. Please bring a non-disposable water bottle. The ashram does not sell plastic water bottles. Do not bring any materials or objects which need to be disposed of which will not degrade and benefit the earth, eg. styrofoam, plastics, and glass.
Yes, the children need pencils and pens for school, pencil cases, sharpeners and erasers, ‘bouncy’ balls of all sizes or small hand toys that we can give out after the summer children’s camp, and crazy socks! It’s a big fad. The women love perfume and nail enamel in red shades, lightly used fashionable hand bags, and pretty bras (no wires). gently used tennis and badminton rackets, balls and birdies are also appreciated
UM reccommends the Blue turban Hotel ( Zostel Jodhpur ) https://www.zostel.com/zostel/jodhpur/
For early arrival, you can directly pay at the Ashram and the room’s price includes room, breakfast, yoga, and water, and warm shower. Additional meals are INR 350 each.
The main festival will draw 300-500 foreigners, 300-500 Indian women from surrounding villages for the daily events, and 2,000-3,000 for the nightly entertainment segments which are open to the general public – men, women and children.
yes, it is all inclusive of room, linens, meals, yoga, all campus activities
The presenters and content for the main festival is provided on the website www.utsavamaa.org on the main page, just open each tile and you can read all about it. There is currently no page loaded which explains the pre-conference.
The nearest domestic airport which you can get to from any international hub is Jodhpur. All relevant travel information together with travel agent contact will come to you after securing a seat.
All the necessary info can be found on the adventure page – https://utsavamaa.org/adventure
Winter in Rajasthan is a fickle beast! During the day temperatures require a light to medium sweater. But at night in the desert it can get quite cold. Bring a heavier sweater or jacket for evenings, plus long underwear to wear during sleep. Other packing considerations: bring your own reusable water bottle, we do not sell packaged water. We provide unlimited, pure R.O. or Himilayan filtered water from our own reservoirs. We do not have a recycling program so do not bring anything other than items that can go back to Mother Earth in a reasonable amount of time. This means no plastics or Styrofoam items please. If you would like to donate anything to the community, the girls and women like hand bags, book bags, back packs, school supplies, nail enamel, perfume, and crazy socks!!! If you have a musical instrument that travels well, bring it and add to the nightly kirtan.
All foreign travelers arriving at the ashram will have to register with the Indian government within 6 hours. You will sit with a volunteer and reveal your current, valid passport and Indian Visa, together with a current, original passport size photograph to affix on the registration document. Please bring this photograph with you.
28 – 30 Dec: Pre-conference ‘Seed Films’ featuring many female directed and produced documentaries about feminism and ecology. Feature Liz Gilbert in a screening and guided conversation about her book/movie ‘Eat Pray Love’
31 Dec – 3 Jan: Utsava Maa, full festival beginning with Big Creativity workshop by Liz Gilbert and many more amazing speakers on feminism, ecology, and creativity.
4 Jan: overnight camel safari (SOLD OUT)
Indian Tourist Visa is required:
https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/tvoa.html Destination to report on the visa application is ‘Shri Jasnath Asan (ashram), Panchla Siddha, Nagaur District, Rajasthan, 341025’ Phone: +91 09799-788999
Flight Destination: Jodhpur airport, Rajasthan
Travel agent: bring him proof of your best price and he’ll beat it! Sebastian Hodge, [email protected] (855) 370-3451 ext 1356. Tell him it’s for ‘Utsava Maa’ and he’ll know where you’re going.
Transport to/from airport to/from ashram is provided free at fixed times on a group shuttle, with no exceptions:
To ashram from Jodhpur Airport: 27 Dec 3 PM, 30 Dec 3 PM
To airport from ashram: 31 Dec 10 AM, 4 Jan 10 AM
