Sexual Wellness Retreats In India: What Are They And Are They Worth It?

And when we talk about sexual wellness, it’s not just about avoiding STIs or treating dysfunction. It’s about exploring a deeper, more personal relationship with your own sexuality, learning to understand, accept, and enjoy it.

In India, several sexual wellness retreats, mostly in places like Rishikesh, Goa, and Kerala are now offering guided programmes aimed at helping people do just that. But they don’t come cheap. Many of these retreats last only a few days, yet cost as much as a full vacation. So why are people willing to spend so much for such a short experience?

To find out, we spoke to sexuality coach Pallavi Barnwal, founder of getintimacy.com, who broke down what actually goes on at these retreats and why more and more people are signing up.

We also reached out to Dr Chandni Tugnait, a renowned MD (A.M), Psychotherapist, Life Alchemist, Coach, and Healer, and the Founder and Director of Gateway of Healing, to understand whether these retreats are effective from a psychological perspective.

What Are Sexual Wellness Retreats?

Sexual wellness retreats are immersive programmes designed to help individuals or couples explore and improve their intimate lives. These retreats often include guided sessions on topics like sexual health, emotional intimacy, boundaries, and body image. Practices such as yoga, meditation, therapeutic touch, and open discussions are commonly part of the experience. Led by trained professionals or coaches, the goal of these retreats is to foster deeper self-awareness, enhance sexual satisfaction, and create a healthier, more positive relationship with one’s sexuality and emotional well-being.

How Do These Sexual Wellness Retreats Work?

Forget the usual spa-and-detox scene, sexual wellness retreats are all about helping people reconnect with their bodies, desires, and emotional intimacy in a hands-on way. And no, it’s not just long talks about sex. These retreats are designed to help you feel more than just think, through breathwork, body awareness, movement, and sometimes, powerful realisations that stick with you long after you leave.

“I’ve held over 100 retreats in places like Delhi, Goa, Chennai, and Bengaluru, and worked with more than a thousand participants,” says sexuality coach Pallavi Barnwal. “Most of them leave with a whole new understanding of what intimacy really means.”

She says a big part of her work is helping people unlearn the warped ideas they’ve picked up from society and porn. She shares an example from her sex-positive Telegram group called 'Pleasure Talks', where members talk openly about sex. "A message shared in Hindi this morning compared a woman’s body to a pot that only gives milk if a man puts curd in it first. That’s how pornified and violent some of our ideas about intimacy are in India. My work in these retreats is to help participants unlearn this thinking and experience intimacy that is respectful, body-centred, and emotionally healing."

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Breathwork and Body Awareness

One of the key takeaways from these retreats is that you don’t need to talk your way into better intimacy, you need to feel your way into it. A lot of that starts with tuning into your body in simple, even unexpected ways.

Pallavi shared an interesting exercise with us that she often uses during her sessions: conscious yawning. “Yawning might seem like a sign of boredom, but it’s actually your body asking for more oxygen,” she explains. “When you yawn consciously, you invite more breath, more energy, and more presence into your body.”

Here’s how to try it:

• Sit in a relaxed position.
• Begin by faking a yawn, stretch your mouth wide open and breathe in deeply.
• Keep going until real yawns start to happen.
• As you inhale, notice how your throat and chest open up.
• Exhale with a soft sigh and let your shoulders drop.

Try this for a few minutes. It may leave you feeling lighter, calmer, and more tuned in to your body’s sensations, exactly the kind of presence that creates deeper connection, both with yourself and with a partner.

Another area these retreats focus on is releasing tension stored in the pelvic region, something many of us don’t even realise we’re holding onto. Long hours of sitting, stress, and emotional suppression can cause stiffness and numbness in this part of the body, which in turn affects how we experience pleasure and intimacy. That’s why movement is a big part of the healing process.

“At the retreats, we guide people through specific exercises that help loosen the pelvic area,” Pallavi explains. “It’s not about doing intense workouts—it’s gentle, mindful movement that reconnects you to parts of your body you may have tuned out.”

These could include hip circles, shaking exercises, and slow stretches, often done to music or breathwork. The idea is to help participants soften into their bodies and feel a sense of aliveness again. Over time, this physical release can also shift the emotional and energetic blocks many people carry around sexuality.

“Pleasure isn’t just in the mind—it’s in the body,” Pallavi says. “When your body feels free and safe, it’s much easier to experience intimacy without fear or pressure.”

What Happens After the Retreat?

One concern I had was, what happens once people go back home? Isn’t it easy to fall back into old patterns? Pallavi addresses that too.

“We don’t leave people hanging,” she says. “There’s a members-only WhatsApp group for continued guidance, regular topic-based workshops, and options for personal intimacy coaching. Intimacy isn’t something you fix once; it’s an ongoing practice.”

From what I understood, the retreat acts like a reset button. But the real work continues beyond the retreat space, in everyday choices, habits, and conversations.

Do They Actually Work? A Psychologist’s Perspective

Dr Chandni Tugnait echoes this sentiment, noting that retreats can spark meaningful change but only if the learnings are integrated afterwards. "These short-term experiences can open people up emotionally and help them access parts of themselves they’ve long suppressed. But the real shift comes in how they apply those insights in daily life," she says.

"If a couple returns home and uses what they’ve learnt to communicate differently, acknowledge each other’s needs more honestly, and make space for physical and emotional intimacy, then yes, it can create lasting change. But if they fall back into old patterns, the effect fades."

She also points out that while the retreat space creates a temporary escape from real-life pressures, sustaining intimacy in day-to-day life is where the real transformation happens. "Retreats can ignite the spark, but it takes consistent effort to keep the flame alive."

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So, Are These Retreats Worth It?

Honestly, after everything I’ve read and heard, I think it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re expecting a quick fix, then no retreat, no matter how expensive is going to give you that. But if you are ready to begin a more honest and embodied relationship with your sexuality, then yes, it might just be worth it.

The retreat is not the answer in itself. But it can be the nudge many people need to finally begin asking better questions.

Keep reading Herzindagi for more such stories.

Credits: Pallavi Barnwal/Freepik