I do quite a bit of research looking for studios, teachers, and classes to try in Paris.  I follow Parisians' yoga blogs, have a google Alert, and chat with my classmates and fellow teachers all in an effort to find the best yoga for you, my dear readers!

There are many little and -little known- yoga studios in Paris, but for a reason that I can't recall, I decided to try Casa Yoga before the other smaller ones.  

I was welcomed by a lovely woman who knew my name upon arrival, asked me if I had any injuries (I didn't get a -formerly broken arm lecture!), and requested that I fill out their form.  You have to sign up for a trial class 'cours d'essai, so I guess I was the odd man out, the only one she didn't recognize, or maybe just the only one taking a trial course that night.  Actually, you have to sign up for any class you decide to take as it seems that walk-ins aren't encouraged.  They have an interesting system for class payment and scheduling.  You buy credits and use them depending on the length of the class.  The cours d'essai was only 15€, but it was also only an hour, and it felt like the shortest yoga class I had ever taken.  The minimum 'credit' you can purchase is 10hrs of classes for 160€.  When you think about it in 1hr classes, at 16€ a class, it's not so bad, but most studios offer classes of 1.5 hours, and when you add that up, it makes for a 24€ class, and that's a hefty price tag.    

It turns out, she had good reason to be kind because she was teaching the class that night, and you always want return students.  She welcomed us all kindly, shut the door, and started teaching a nice paced Vinyasa flow.  It was a level 2 class, so there were even some arm balances!  But just when I started to get a little sweaty, the cool down began.  One hour was too short!

The entrance is warm and peaceful, and there is free decaf tea (tisane) waiting for the students in a lovely sitting area.  The dressing room is a large curtained off area, and it's nicely lit and furnished, but there is only one, so prepare to share.  And the actual studio is one really long room where the teacher does her thing from the middle of a line of yogi's.  Not the best setup (in my opinion), but it's doable.  If you live in the hood, have the money, and want that neighborhood feel (reception was nice, but not necessarily the fellow students) it's a really peaceful studio to practice in.  I'm not sure if it was the surroundings, or the teacher, but I had one of the deepest savasanas (corpse pose - final resting pose) I've had in a while there, and that is (almost) priceless.   



Casa Yoga Paris 
4 rue de Paradis 
 75010 Paris 
06 17 81 64 91 
Metro:  Gare de l'Est (Lignes 4,5,7), Poissonniere (Ligne 7), Chateau d'Eau (Ligne 4) 

Price:  15€ for a cours d'essai (trial course) 16€ per hour with a minimum purchase of 10 hours
Yoga Styles:  Vinyasa, Restorative, Prenatal
Languages:  French
Changing Rooms:  yes co-ed
Secure Lockers:  no
Mats:  included
Toilets:  1
Showers:  nope
Water:  Free herbal tea (tisane).

SUMMARY:
Pros - Really nice warm relaxing comfortable lovely smelling neighborhood-y studio with good flowy classes. 
Cons - Expensive or short classes, no walk-ins -so no spontaneity, just a few teachers teach all the classes at the studio.  

Big Apple is only a 20 minute metro ride from me and it's small enough that the ambiance is neighborhood-y and not stuffy.   It's really nice to have a great studio so close and convenient, you know, on those days that I just don't want to practice alone at home.   But since I do have a home practice, I can't bring myself to pay full price for a class and lucky for me, they have 10€ classes at 10am, two of which are in English!  They are taught by beginner teachers, but I've taken classes with both Jo (English) and Julia (French) and they're both very competent, so if you're available at 10 am I highly recommend these classes, they're way better than some of the full priced classes I've taken in Paris!


**Please check their schedule for community classes** to verify the days and times!  

For those of you who can't make Lolë's free 'morning' (12:30pm) class on Sunday at Wanderlust, there will be a free candlelit (televised) class from 6:45pm to 7:45 pm near the Port de Solferino.  Don't forget your scarves and leg warmers!  Sign up for your free tickets here.  







Free Yoga with Lolë  (candlelight televised)
Under the passerelle Léopold Sédar Senghor
Port de Solférino in the 7ème Arrondissement.

Date and Time:  December 7 (2013) from 6:45pm to 7:45pm.  Please show up 10 min early.

Metro: Assemblée Nationale or RER:  Musée d'Orsay
Price:  Free
Language:  French
Mats:  included 
Toilets:  none
Showers: none