A young Inis Oírr native is inviting people to step on to the island and slow down. Áine Seoighe the founder of Éalú Aran offers bilingual immersive cultural and wellness experiences on the Aran Islands. A break from the stresses of everyday life through yoga,breathwork, sauna, sea swims, Irish language, crafts, history, and nature, offered in unforgettable day trips, retreats, and bespoke escapes.
The retreats are the perfect opportunity for anyone who just needs a break, “it’s really for anyone who feels they need to slow down and reconnect with themselves.” Áine offers a wide selection of retreats from: day long to overnight retreats, private group and self-guided islands escapes. It’s for anyone craving space to slow down, switch off from the noise, and reconnect with themselves.
Áine offers yoga, breathwork and cultural retreats with the uniqueness of being fully immersed in the island of Inis Oírr. Being on the island adds to the sense of tranquillity that Áine already creates through her work, “the minute you step onto the boat, something changes.”
The island gives people the much needed disconnect from day-to-day life, “it gives people the opportunity to step away from the constant doing of everyday life. Even during our retreats, we don’t use cars. I could drive people around, but it’s about walking, taking time to get places, feeling the ground beneath your feet, breathing fresh air and being immersed in nature.”
While only founded in 2023 Áine shares with the Clare Echo her near 15-year love and appreciation of yoga and breath work. In 2012 Áine faced a devasting accident leaving her unable to partake in many physical activities, “That’s when I discovered yoga and breathwork. I learned how to move my body in a way that wasn’t rigid or aggressive, as it had been through sport. It helped me enormously, physically and mentally.”
Áine speaks to us about the importance of Gaeilge and how it naturally forms part of her retreats. Rather than teaching Gaeilge in the structured way many of us experienced at school, she weaves it gently throughout the experience in a fun, supportive, and relaxed way.
“Learning through movement helps people listen and get out of their own heads. They begin to pick up words naturally. It’s gentle, but it can be very profound. Perfection isn’t the goal. Some people know a few words, some know none at all, and that’s okay. Running these experiences on the island without the Irish language wouldn’t feel genuine to me. The language, the land and the community are all connected.” More information on the wide variety of retreats can be found on www.ealuaran.com.
