Our pick of the ultimate London yoga spaces for stretching, sweating and chanting
If there’s one thing the UK’s capital isn’t short of, it’s yoga studios. With an almost endless array of clubs and classes whichever borough you find yourself in, London has something for just about anyone looking to get their downward dog on.
For many Londoners, though, yoga has morphed from being an exercise you’d do once a week at your local gym to a lifestyle – and a physical and spiritual ideal to which you aspire. As a result, more and more people are looking to up their asana game at smaller, yoga-dedicated venues, which are perhaps more focused on quality classes that offer world-famous teachers, unique and more obscure forms of the practice, and all the proper equipment you need.
But with so many to choose from, how do you find the right studio for you? Well, we’ve tried and tested some of the newest and best-known venues in the capital to find out.
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Best on a budget: MoreYoga
Location: Across London
Once upon a time, before yoga became more of a business opportunity, classes would be held in small community centres and cost about a fiver. These days it’s a different story. Since yoga became a buzzword, it’s been swept up in health and wellness craze and luxury lifestyle sphere. And so came the swanky studios charging upwards of £20 per class, pricing out those looking to practise without breaking the bank.
The good news, however, is that not all boutique yoga studios are exclusive. Take MoreYoga, for instance. When the studio started out, its goal was to make practising your sun salutations more affordable and accessible to all, and it worked. The chain is now probably one of the fastest-expanding boutique yoga studio brands in the UK.
And there’s a reason it’s doing well. Offering a surprisingly varied array of classes, MoreYoga serves up a wide range of well-renowned yoga teachers, and even then, memberships are available from a low price, starting at just £32 per month. There aren’t any showers, but the venues are easy-going, accessible and low-key with a great vibe and welcoming atmosphere.
Big-name yoga teachers: Yogarise
Location: Peckham, Covent Garden and Streatham
Yogarise started out in Peckham five or so years ago and has grown to have quite the following among London’s hardcore yogis. With some of the best yogis in the business gracing its studios on a regular basis, such as Dharma hero Emi Tull and Rocket legend Dave Pearce, Yogarise is proving a force to be reckoned with.
You’ll find classes from 6.30/7am-9pm weekdays and 8am/8.30am-7pm weekends, offering a whole host of styles from Ashtanga, Jivamukti and Restorative yoga to Yin-Yang, Mindful Flow and Mandala Vinyasa. Be sure to check out its super special rooftop yoga classes at the Peckham studio in summer, too, for an extra treat for the senses.
Community vibes: Level Six
Location: Peckham
If the potential for a post-workout treat is on your list of priorities when looking for a yoga studio, then Level Six is right up your street. The large, airy studio sits atop the highest floor of Peckham Levels, a once multi-storey car park that was recently converted to become of London’s hippest joints. The yoga studio itself is of decent size, and feels super friendly and relaxed. But the best bit? Once savasana is over, you can roll off your mat and step instantly into a cultural melting pot, home to a plethora of bars, restaurants and creative workspaces that’s buzzing with feel-good vibes.
Better yet, Peckham Levels is part of a grassroots project called Bold Tendencies and over the coming months and years, working with community members and other local people, the space will continue to evolve, change and develop, so you’re also contributing to a thriving community by practising your yoga there. Namaste.
A unique venue: TripSpace
Location: Haggerston
This modest yoga studio, nestled under some rustic railway arches on the East London Line, is one of our favourite spots for getting a good stretch on. Known for its homey vibes, Tripspace welcomes visitors with a cosy seating area strewn with cushions, which leads on to the charming, industrial brick arch of the main practice space. It’s the perfect studio for some vinyasa flow, be it invigorating or relaxing, because the unique setting is such a pleasure to practise in. Wooden sprung floors offer support, while a huge glass frontage keeps the space flooded with natural light. It’s a beautiful looking studio, and the teachers are great there, too.
Yoga classes at Tripspace run every day of the week and are drop-in, so operate on a first-come first-served basis. There is no need to book – just turn up, although you should probably arrive early as some classes have limited capacity.
Best for mixing up your workouts: Blok
Location: Clapton and Shoreditch
Not strictly a yoga-only studio as there’s many a HIIT and boxing class on the schedule at Blok, but we’re willing to make an exception here because, to be honest, Blok yoga classes are da bomb, mainly because of the great teacher line-up and uber-hip setting.
The workout spaces at Blok are also super impressive, especially the Clapton studio. Located in a refurbished Victorian tram depot, it’s teeming with original features such as bare brick walls, vaulted concrete ceilings and cast iron pillars. Probably our favourite venue to vinyasa in.
Rocket yoga and Dynamic Vinyasa classes with Laura McVickor are a particular highlight, but be ready to sweat!
An institution: Indaba
Location: Marylebone
Known as one of London’s most loved yoga studios, Indaba is kind of an institution in its own right. Recognised for its line-up of top-notch yoga teachers and strong community of dedicated yogis, there are probably more yoga styles on offer here than you’ll find anywhere else in London. Indaba is therefore a great place to discover and try out new styles, especially since its introductory offer is such great value: 30 days of unlimited yoga classes for £30.
If you’re wondering what’s on offer, there’s heaps of different classes to try, from beginner and alignment based classes for newbies to more advanced practices such as Dharma and Rocket yoga for those looking for a more challenging session. There are also restorative classes for those wanting to recoup a bit.
One of the most celebrated teachers at Indaba is yogi legend Stewart Gilchrist, who’s known throughout London for his crazy, fast-paced Yogasana class. This fiery 90-minute class is not for the faint hearted, joining an incessant Vinyasa flow with lectures that will leave you thinking for hours afterwards. Yogasana has become something of a cult, but after just one class you can see why.
Best teacher line-up: Triyoga
Location: Across London
Triyoga has quite the following in London, probably because it has some of the capital’s best yoga teachers in its ranks. It’s also been around for nearly 20 years, so is one of the longest standing on this list.
What’s evident in all of Triyoga’s centres is that it’s sought to honour both the history of yoga as well its ever-changing landscape. The brand works with the best teachers who offer a broad range of authentic styles, so that people can find a class and teacher that suits them. There’s also a studio in each corner of London, based in Camden in the north, Shoreditch in the east, Ealing in the west and Chelsea in the south west.
Total body detox: HotPod yoga
Location: Across London
Okay, so yoga isn’t for everyone, but at least HotPod makes it more accessible. Heating the yoga studio to just 37 degrees, as opposed to the 40.5 degrees seen in a Bikram class, HotPod isn’t as intense but still helps the body to melt into the practice, warming the muscles and aiding flexibility while the heart works harder – all without making you feel like you’re going to pass out.
As you’re zipped into a an otherworldly cocoon of glowing purple lights, heady aromas and enveloping soundscapes, you’ll realise HotPod Yoga is like nothing else you’ve experienced before. Well, in terms of yoga, anyway.
They say that by reinventing yoga like this, it helps you to breathe deeper into your practice, stretch further, sweat harder, and really melt into it. And we’d have to agree, you find yourself twisting and bending further than you would in a standard class.
Classes are rooted in Vinyasa Flow, so follow a familiar structure if you’ve done yoga before. Even so, every teacher brings a bit of their own personality and style to mix things up a bit. There are also locations across Europe, so it’s ideal if you want to practise while traveling but prefer to stick with a company you know well.
Total immersion: FLY LDN
Location: Aldgate East
FLY LDN in Aldgate is one of the most unique yoga offerings in London in that it has attempted the union of traditional teachings with modern technology. While many more traditional yogis might flinch at the mere thought, they’d be relieved to know it’s been done in a way that doesn’t go against the philosophies of yoga, a discipline that’s not about measuring how many calories you’re burning or what zone your heart rate is in.
The studio has been clever in the way it’s gone about introducing innovation into yoga; by enhancing the experience and how the practice is performed as opposed to changing it. FLY does this by offering vinyasa yoga classes set against a gigantic 4K display – measuring 20ft diagonally – that projects immersive and vibrant cinematic visuals (think Himalayan mountain ranges one minute and ocean swells the next) alongside curated playlists, both of which have been designed to elevate the feeling of escapism and relaxation. And it really works, helping to transport you to another world and take your mind elsewhere while you practice.
A sensory experience: ChromaYoga
Location: Shoreditch
Referring to itself as a “revolutionary new approach to practising yoga”, ChromaYoga is a small but cutting edge yoga studio based in East London that combines light and colour therapy techniques and brain-stimulating soundscapes to create a multi-sensory experience.
Based on the latest scientific research on the effects that specific light frequencies can have on our bodies, ChromaYoga classes are held in an ergonomically-designed room bathed in a specific colour of light. There are six different coloured classes to choose from, each with a teacher that guides the class through a set of sequences which correspond to the healing properties of that colour. Take the yellow class, for example, and you’ll experience an energising flow designed to aid your digestion and balance your mood swings. A red class will fill you with light that interacts with the body by penetrating the first 2mm of skin tissue, allowing it to be absorbed and increase energy generation on a cellular level, while a pink hue will lead you through a gentle stretch to help release physical tension.
Okay, so we may not know how scientifically accurate that is, but after being saturated in a deep red hue during a 60-minute vinyasa class, we were left feeling both mentally and physically stimulated. Psychosomatic or not, we’re sold.
