Travel Plans
Passports
You must have 6 months or more left on your passport before it expires, from the date when you plan to return home, in order to enter most countries. If your passport is due to expire in less than 6 months from your planned return date, it is vital that you have it renewed before travelling.
Visas
It is the responsibility of each individual to check on the visa requirements in regards to their nationality and ultimate destination.
A tourist visa of up to 30 days will be issued upon entry into Indonesia for US, Australian, EU and UK citizens.
For all other nationalities and destinations please check the immigration laws pertaining to the passport you hold. Please check with your closest Indonesian, British or Mexican Embassy as the laws change frequently. This site is an excellent source for finding the locations of embassies and visa requirements, for Indonesia and all other destinations: World-Wide Visa Information.
For all Heaven and Earth workshops, you only need a tourist visa.
Travel Insurance
We highly recommend that attendees get travel insurance in case, for any unforeseen reason, they are unable to attend. Our cancellation policy is below and will be adhered to. The company we prefer is World Nomads, but there are many other reputable ones to be found.
Travel insurance will assure you that your airfare will be reimbursed, in case for any reason you need to cancel, and there may well be policies that cover additional expenses. In the event of the organisers themselves cancelling, they will not be held responsible for reimbursing any expenses aside from the workshop costs (you would be reimbursed the full amount you paid for your Heaven and Earth Workshops deposit or reservation).
Many credit card companies have built-in travel insurance for any purchases made through them. It is advisable to check on this before purchasing another policy.
Cancellation Policies
Cancellation Policies apply to everyone out of fairness to all participants.
For ALL cancellations more than 75 days before a workshop there is a $500 cancellation fee.
For some workshops the non-refundable deposit may be more than this.
For ALL cancellations 31 - 75 days before a workshop, the fee is 50% of the workshop package price.
For ALL cancellations 0 - 30 days before a workshop, the fee is 100% of the workshop package price.
If a situation arises where a workshop has to be cancelled, 100% of monies received will be refunded.
Miscellaneous Travel Information
DESPITE THE WORRY ABOUT RISING AIR TRAVEL PRICES, IT IS STILL POSSIBLE TO FIND GREAT DEALS, ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE PLENTY OF GOOGLE PERSISTENCE!
It helps immensely if you have some flexibility on dates, and can play around with them somewhat, plus travel mid-week can be more reasonable.
We recommend that you check the frequent flyer program for the airline you choose. For example, China Air is affiliated with Delta, so through their SkyMiles programme, you can accumulate almost 18,000 miles on a roundtrip ticket to Bali from Los Angeles. Cathay Pacific is affiliated with American Airlines and is quite generous in their mileage requirements to Asia.
Affiliate frequent flyer programs can be found on the respective airline's website. Joining these programmes is free.
Evelyn is happy to assist, in whatever ways she can.
BALI
Flights to Bali arrive in Denpasar (DPS). There are no direct flights to Bali from the USA, and the usual countries to be routed through are Taiwan, China (Hong Kong), Japan, Thailand, or Dubai, depending on the airline used. Total travel time can be anywhere between 17 and 22 hours. Plenty of time to catch up on those books you never have time for!
There are of course direct flights from Australia to Bali, and from all other countries, routing will depend on the airline used. Special prices can be found on-line or through promotional offers from the individual airlines. If we become aware of any we will post them immediately.
ENGLAND
Cornwall
For the workshops in the Cornish towns of Liskeard, and Penzance , the closest international airports to Liskeard is Exeter Airport, (EXT) only an hour away. However, this may not be the most convenient route for international travellers.
The nearest major airport to Penzance is Land's End Airport (LEQ / EGHC). This airport has domestic
flights from St Just in Penwith, United Kingdom and is 7 miles from the center of Penzance, United Kingdom.
Another major airport, which is also International, is Newquay Cornwall Airport (NQY / EGHQ), which has international and domestic flights from Newquay, United Kingdom and is 43 miles from Penzance.
There are several direct trains a day from Paddington Station to both Liskeard and Penzance.
London Heathrow International Airport (LHR) is an easy 15-minute express train journey directly into Paddington station, with a train connection every 15 minutes.
There is an Express Train every 15 minutes from London Gatwick International Airport (LGW) to Victoria Station in Central London (taking half an hour). Victoria to Paddington is a 15-minute tube or a 5-minute taxi journey away.
The London Heathrow connection is slightly easier, but once at Paddington station, there are fairly frequent trains.
If driving here is Google Maps: London to Liskeard.
Shropshire
The closest international airports to Church Stretton are Manchester (MAN), Liverpool (LPL), each approx. an hour and a half drive away, or Birmingham (BHX), an hour and 10 minutes drive. All are fairly simple drives to and from Church Stretton.
Flights from any other location in the world to the UK - it is advisable to use any airline you have "miles" with or shop around the on-line discount travel sites.
Once you have arrived in the UK:
Church Stretton is situated quite close to the border of England and Wales, on the A49 between Shrewsbury and Hereford.
By car, the route from the north and east is via the M6 and M54 motorways, and from the south and south-east cross-country via the A49. The town is marked by the only set of traffic lights between Shrewsbury and Hereford. By train, the town is located on the Manchester to Cardiff route.
A branch line from Craven Arms (just 7 miles south) links south and west Wales to the town.
There are the usual myriad car rental agencies, and online reservations are often the better way to go. As England even outdoes the US on gas/petrol prices, an economy car might be the ticket.
For those who would rather not drive, there is always the option of a train, a wonderful way to see the glorious countryside you will be entering.
RAIL SERVICES TO CHURCH STRETTON STATION
The principal service is between Cardiff and Manchester, with connections at Shrewsbury for the Birmingham services and Chester and the Welsh coast, and at Crewe for Liverpool and other mainline services.
National Rail Enquiries can be found at
National Rail Information and +441 845 748 4950
Train information is available on:
Live Departure Boards
INDIA
For 1st time travelers to India, we realize how daunting it can be to arrive in a completely different culture. We are committed to making the travel experience as comfortable and unintimidating as we possibly can.
Some of the Indian Heaven and Earth Workshops are held in Goa, a small state on the west coast of Southern India. The state of Goa's coastline is relatively small and only about 100 km long. The location we have chosen is called Palolem Beach, to the very south of the state. It takes some time to get there, but the journey itself is a fascinating one, and well worth the effort.
The closest international airports to Palolem are Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai (BOM), and Dabolim Airport (GOI). Although Dabolim is an International airport, only certain budget European airlines, Qatar and a limited number of other airlines fly there. See here or here for a list of all airlines that fly directly into Dabolim.
Dabolim airport is about 65 km from Palolem, which is a drive of around an hour and a half away by road from the workshop location.
Travel from Australia and Europe to India is not so complex and we are very happy to assist with these arrangements, please contact us directly.
For connecting flights from Mumbai to Dabolim please check here.
Those who decide to spend time in Mumbai and then take the train to Goa are advised to book their tickets well in advance, an extremely reliable and simple way to book train tickets is through Clear Trips. Those arriving by train will disembark at Margao station, and we will arrange car pick-up if you would like us to. It is about an 8-hour train journey from Mumbai to Margao, and very comfortable in either a 1st or 2nd AC class compartment. If you are lucky enough to be in one with clean windows you will have a splendid view of the countryside, and since many trains leave Mumbai in the morning, you will travel primarily in daylight hours.
From Margao to Palolem takes about an hour and 10 minutes by taxi.
There have been some positive changes in acquiring Indian visas lately, for most countries they can now get them online. Indian Visa Information. We will try and keep this page up to date with any changes, and please don't hesitate to contact us if you need assistance.
MEXICO
San Miguel de Allende is located in the mountainous region of Central Mexico, in the state of Guanajuato. It is located about a 4-hour drive to Mexico City, 1 1/2 hour drive to Guanajuato, and about 2 1/2 hours from Leon.
San Miguel de Allende has two nearby international airports. The Aeropuerto del Bajio (BJX) is served by Continental Airlines, American Airlines, Aeromexico and Delta Airlines. The BJX airport is located 170 km (about 110 miles) from San Miguel, between the cities of Leon and Guanajuato, the state capital.
Aeropuerto Internacional de Queretaro (QRO) is about 70 km (40 miles) from San Miguel de Allende, is served by Continental Airlines and Aeromexico with once-daily direct non-stop flights from Los Angeles (LAX) and Houston (HOU).
A third option is the Benito Juarez Airport (MEX) in Mexico City, which is about 4 hours from San Miguel de Allende. The Mexico City airport has a larger choice of flights and is served by a broad range of international airlines from across the world. In general, flights to Mexico City are cheaper than flights to BJX or QRO, however, flying into Leon or Queretaro is more convenient.
Buses and Airport transport to San Miguel de Allende
For very affordable door to door transportation from all airports to any address in San Miguel de Allende, check here
To/From Mexico City: It's a 4-hour trip to San Miguel from Mexico City's Terminal Norte, on a first-class bus (with one stop in Queretaro), and there is Internet on some of these buses! Primera Plus, Satelite, ETN, and Omnibus de Mexico all have one to six deluxe buses per day. Flecha Amarilla and Herradura de Plata have buses that leave almost every half hour (most are first-class). Make sure that your bus is a "directo". If you can't get a quick departure, catch a bus to Queretaro and change buses there.
San Miguel de Allende's Central de Autobuses, (the bus station) is 1 1/2 miles west of town on the westward extension of Calle Canal, called Calzada de la Estacion. Taxis from the bus station to the center of San Miguel are 30 pesos during the day and usually 40 pesos at night into town and available at all hours.