Welcome to Walla

Updated June 4, 2025

Next week, Circle Yoga will move to a new studio management platform called Walla. After months of research and careful consideration, we chose Walla because it will make running the studio easier and more efficient—and it comes with exciting new features for you, our students!

Starting Wednesday, June 11, you'll begin using Walla instead of CowTinker to reserve space in classes, join online classes, access the video library, and more. We’ll make sure you’re fully supported through the transition, with all the guidance you need to get comfortable with the new system.

In the meantime, here's what you can expect with Walla…

Unused Class Credits and Account Details Will Transfer Automatically

All of your current account details, unused class credits, and upcoming class or private session bookings will be moved from CowTinker to Walla. It may take 24-48 hours for us to get all account details in place. If you have trouble accessing your account or getting into your class, just contact us online or, if it’s urgent, call the studio at 202-686-1104.

*New* User-Friendly App

You can continue signing up for classes using your desktop computer, iPad, etc., and all browsers would work well with Walla — hooray! Also, you’ll now have the option to use Walla’s fully functional, user-friendly app on your phone. So, booking and canceling class reservations while you’re on the go will be a piece of cake!

Spring Session Class & Video Access Continues Through June 22

Spring Session registrants will continue to have the same access to classes and the video library through Sunday, June 22. Beyond that, you can decide what type of membership or class pass makes sense for you.

*New* Monthly Membership Renewal

As we move to Walla, we’ll no longer offer classes in sessions (i.e., winter, spring, summer, and fall). Instead, you’ll have the option to join with a monthly renewing membership, choosing from 4, 8, 12, or more classes per month. This monthly renewal should make it easier for you to track how many classes you’ve used and have remaining for the month—and you can always check your Walla account for these details.

We’re excited about these added perks for monthly members:

◆  When you join with at least 8 classes per month, you’ll get one Guest Pass per month. Guest passes are valid for use by local residents who are new to the studio.

◆  If you use all of your class credits before the end of the month, you can take advantage of a discounted member drop-in rate of $24, compared to the standard $30 drop-in rate.

◆  Members will be able to reserve space in classes up to 60 days in advance, while non-members can reserve space 30 days in advance.

◆  You'll be able to pause your membership for up to 60 days a year without it impacting your member pricing. One membership pause per year is free of charge. Additional pauses in a given year will be charged at $35 each, with a limit of 60 total days paused in a year.

◆  As a monthly member, you'll automatically be a student member of the co-op, which means that you’ll receive a 10% discount on retail purchases in the shop, member discounts on workshops, invitations to special member events, etc. Learn more about the co-op.

*New* Access to Individual Class Recordings

When you sign up for a specific class, you can enjoy on-demand access to the recording of that class for 14 days. All students signed up for a class, whether they attend live or not, will receive the class recording.* (If you are just signing up to receive access to the recording, you’ll sign up as a “livestream” student.) This access to individual class recordings is available to all students, whether they are monthly members, drop-ins, intro offer students, etc. And when you sign up to receive the recording without attending the live class, your teacher will still be paid for your attendance!

Please note that individual teachers choose whether or not to record their classes. Except in cases when there are technical glitches or internet outages, we'll note on the weekly schedule if a class will not be recorded. If there are technical difficulties and you don’t receive a class recording, and you didn’t attend the class live, your class credit will be returned to your Walla account, or your drop-in fee will be refunded.

Changes to the Video Library

Unlimited video library access will continue to be a perk for members who are signed up for 8 or more classes per month (as with our current 2+ classes per week registrants). However, the video library in Walla works differently than in CowTinker. Rather than including every recorded class for 90 days, the video library will include a more curated collection of classes. You can still expect to find a selection of classes with every Circle Yoga teacher who wants to have their classes posted. That said, if you want to be sure you don’t miss a class with your favorite teacher, just sign up for livestream access for their specific classes each week to receive the individual class recording, and you can practice with these recordings for 14 days.

Pricing Updates

As part of our move to Walla, we’re making a number of adjustments to class pricing to support studio health and sustainability. We haven’t raised prices for registered students since 2022, and the per-class price for students who sign up for 3 or more classes a week hasn’t gone up since 2015!

Here are the headlines on the pricing updates you can expect:

1. Students who join us with a monthly membership by July 15 will see a modest increase of $1.50 per class. This $1.50 price bump is for all current Circle Yoga students and anyone who joins us during our “Welcome to Walla” introductory period, ending July 15.

2. The price for Reduced Rate membership will go from $12 per class to $13.50 per class for current students. For those who join after July 15, Reduced Rate pricing will be $14 per class. As always, if you’re experiencing job loss or other financial hardship, contact us and we’ll work together to find a price that works for your budget.

3. We’ll still have a Pay It Forward option to help support Reduced Rate pricing and scholarships, but it will no longer be directly connected to class pricing. More details on how to Pay It Forward coming soon…

4. The 3 for $33 Intro Offer will become a 5 for $55 Intro Offer. Our intention is to give prospective students the opportunity to try more classes and have more chances to settle in, feel connected, and be ready to join the Circle Yoga community.

5. The move to Walla will also bring pricing updates for drop-ins and class passes. Circle Yoga counts on students who commit to regular attendance. Your monthly membership helps sustain the cooperative by enabling us to budget and plan for the future. While we love welcoming drop-in and class pass students, drop-in pricing is really intended for people who are visiting from out of town or who can join a class once a month (or less). Starting next week, the price for a single drop-in will be $30. The 4 Class Pass will be replaced with a 10 Class Pass, priced at $27 per class, and this new class pass will be valid for a full 6 months.

Remember, if you plan to join as a monthly renewing member, be sure to sign up during this introductory period. Standard pricing for monthly membership after July 15 will be 11% to 15% higher than introductory pricing. Learn more about pricing.

 

Shared Family Accounts

Walla currently does not have the capability for family members to share accounts, though they expect to add this option in the near future. For the time being, if you share class registrations with other household family members in CowTinker, here are the changes you can expect with Walla intially:

◆  Parents will be able to sign their kids up for summer camp or kids classes using their own adult account. We’ll track kids’ names and dates of birth in the “notes” of the parent account.

◆  Because it’s not yet possible to share accounts in Walla, household family members will need to purchase separate memberships. While we make this transition, we are offering a 10% discount on memberships for additional family members. The main account holder should purchase a membership for their individual use, then contact us to set up discounted monthly memberships for any household family members.

Studio Breaks

Although we’re moving away from a session-based model, we’ll continue to take two breaks per year: one during the week before Labor Day and one during the holidays at the end of the year. This gives us some extra time for deep cleaning in the studios and for our staff and teachers to take a break. Members will receive details of specific days off at least one month in advance, and, if requested, they will be able to transfer unused credits from the week off to the following month.

Summer Schedule Changes

As always, our class schedule and room arrangements will change for the summer so that we can offer seven weeks of joy-filled summer camp for kids! For weekday daytime classes, all adult classes will be in the upstairs studios. Look for these changes as well:

◆ All kids and family yoga classes will be on hiatus June 23 - Aug 31.

◆ All classes will be canceled for the holiday on Friday, July 4.

◆ Anna is off for the summer, so her classes will be on hiatus June 23 - Aug 31. Yes, you'll still be able to catch her classes in the video library!

◆ The Tuesday 6:15pm Stretch, Strengthen and Align class will become a Yoga Level 1-2 class, and Aida will teach starting July 1.

◆ Stephanie M.'s Tuesday 7:00pm Flow Level 1-2 will become a Flow Level 2 class starting June 24.

◆ Phil's Thursday Gentle Yoga Flow will be on hiatus while he's away for the summer, June 23 - Aug 31. You can still catch him for his virtual classes on Tuesdays at 9:30am and Thursdays and 7:00am.

◆ The virtual Yoga Level 1 class with Mercedes on Saturdays will move to 9:15-10:30am, starting June 14.

◆ Rob will return with a virtual Yoga Level 1-2 class on Sundays, 5:45-6:45pm, starting July 6.

◆ We'll be on break for cleaning and some rest from Aug 25 through Labor Day, Sept 1. Members will have the option to transfer class credits from the break week for use in September.