Meet The Team
Radiance Retreats has been offering yoga and wellness retreats since 2002, in some of the world’s most beautiful locations – Byron Bay, Wanaka New Zealand, Ubud Bali, the French Pyrenees, Northwest Spain, and beyond. Each retreat is built around twice-daily yoga and restoration, guided hiking or walking adventures, nourishing food, and genuine care from an experienced team. Whether you’re new to yoga or deepening an existing practice, you’re warmly welcomed and well looked after.
Jessie & the Radiance Team
Jessie Chapman - Founder, Retreat Host, Yoga Teacher & Author
Jessie Chapman has been teaching yoga for over three decades, bringing a wealth of experience and genuine care to every class and retreat. She is passionate about yoga as a nourishing tool for life – and in particular restorative yoga to replenish the body’s systems, quieten the mind, and cultivate emotional stability. Discovering yoga from a young age, Jessie brings both lived experience and ongoing study to her teaching.
In 2002 Jessie founded Radiance Retreats – holistic journeys designed to help people move well, breathe deeply, settle the nervous system, and restore strength and vitality, while enjoying nourishing food, beautiful walks, hiking adventures, connection with others, and the inspiration of natural surrounds and local culture.
Author of four yoga books (HarperCollins Australia and Ulysses Press USA) – including the bestselling Yoga Postures for Your Body, Mind & Soul – and co-creator of the Radiance Yoga DVD Series, Jessie’s teaching meets you where you are, offering practices that both support and challenge, whether you’re new to yoga or deepening an existing practice.
When not guiding retreats, Jessie lives in Byron Bay where she offers Byron Bay yoga classes and on-demand yoga video classes.
Lee Purdie - Yoga Assistant & Yogadance Teacher
Lee Purdie has been part of the Radiance Retreats team since 2006, bringing warmth and connection to everyone she meets on retreat. Lee assists in yoga classes, offers adjustments, and guides walks throughout the week. A dancer and dance teacher, Lee completed her Yoga Teacher Training in 2004 and went on to blend her two passions — creating uplifting Yogadance sequences set to beautiful music that relax the body, open the heart, and are accessible to everyone. Lee is also certified in Yoga Therapy and Kids Yoga Teaching, and lives between Byron Bay and Adelaide with her family.
Anthea Amore - Yoga Assistant, Holistic Spa Therapist & Author
Anthea Amore has been assisting on Radiance Retreats since 2004, supporting yoga classes with adjustments and coordinating spa services for guests. Anthea began practicing yoga from a young age and completed her Yoga Teacher Training in 2002. A passionate and qualified Massage Therapist, Reiki Master, and Natural Beauty Therapist with over 30 years’ experience in holistic therapies, Anthea is also the author of two bestselling vegan cookbooks — Passion and Hungry – and designs the all-organic plant-based menu for our Byron Bay retreats.
Zarn Tazana Karjana - Mantra & Sound Healing
Zarn is a certified Sound Healing Practitioner, multi-instrumentalist, and vocalist. During Byron Bay retreats she guides Mantra & Sound Journey sessions — combining uplifting, easy-to-follow mantras with the healing vibrations of crystal singing bowls. Her sessions are accessible, deeply relaxing, and create a genuine sense of peace and connection. Passionate about the power of sound and music to restore and uplift, Zarn brings a beautiful energy to the retreat.