A few years ago, in February 2020, I planned a retreat for the summer of that year. A bunch of people paid deposits to come along, and we were due to have a great weekend!

However, my timing was “sub-optimal”, and a few weeks later it effectively became an illegal endeavour. Thanks Covid!

Anyway, it’s back.

What is it?

I’ve often been frustrated by the fact that most retreats tend to be very focused on a particular religion, or spiritual belief. Or maybe an activity or practice (yoga, creative writing, leadership…). But I think as humans we need space to gather and reflect, regardless of whether we’re spiritual or not. I’ve always craved a weekend where I can talk to interesting people, discuss some issues I’m wrangling, and take time to reflect in nature. When speaking to friends it seems a really popular idea.

So, on the weekend of 8th-10th Sept 2023, about 15 interesting and thoughtful people (if you’re reading this, that means YOU!) will be in a beautiful farmhouse in Monmouthshire for a weekend, using the time to talk about some stuff that’s important to us, in a semi-curated way. Talks and discussions at the beginning and end of the day (bring your own topics!), chatting around the firepit in the evening. Some walking if the weather’s good. Star-gazing. Plenty of time to sit on your own and reflect, too.

It will also be a case of mucking in together a little bit, in order to keep costs down. Shared rooms, all cooking together etc. But I think that will be an important part of bringing us all together, too.

I’d like to find a way to do this that wasn’t too pretentious and pseudy, and hopefully would bring some people together to be inspired, maybe remove “blockages” on a current project, maybe spark some new ideas…..

We’ve booked a LOVELY farmhouse, which has loads of space, and is in some GORGEOUS countryside. I’ve attached photos to give you an idea.

We’ve also priced it to make it as affordable as possible. This isn’t a profit-making venture.

Where will we sleep?

UPDATE – We know not everyone wants to share, so we’re offering the option to take a whole shared room to yourself.

Option 1 – Bed in a shared single-sex room. (£220)

Option 2 – Take whole shared room to yourself (£275)

Option 3 – Book with a friend and take a shared room together (£180ea)

Option 4 – Separate beautiful apartment with double bed, next door to farmhouse. Sleeps 2. (£475)

Food is included in these prices (we’ll be self catering, but food will be provided). We’ve tried to make this work so that it is pretty much break-even.

So you don’t need to worry about any further costs. Literally everything is included apart from the travel to get there.

How to attend?

If you’re interested, please fill in this very quick form. I offered first refusal to those who were coming in 2020, and most rooms have already sold out. And while we need to ensure a good diverse mix of people, so I might need to be slightly selective, I’m anticipating the rest will sell out pretty quickly on a first come first served basis.