I worked at a retreat center in Costa Rica and led dozens of domestic and international retreats, so friends and family often ask me about how to find “the best” wellness retreat. Here’s a quick guide to vetting a getaway that both suits and recharges you.
Is a wellness retreat right for you? Here’s what to consider:
Do you need a vacation but also need a little TLC?
Are you traveling alone and want to connect with a community?
Do you want to take a trip with your mom, sister, or friends but dread the group planning?
Or, do you completely hate trip planning and prefer to show up and have activities, classes, and meals organized for you?
Are you willing to get up early on your vacation? (On a typical retreat, there are yoga/movement classes before breakfast.)
If you answered ‘yes’ to more than one of the above questions, here are the questions to ask:
What are the teachers like? Do they have content on social media so you can get a sense of their style? Pro tip: read the bio on their website because most likely they wrote it. Are they flowery, spiritual, or therapeutically focused? How they write is how they’ll sound in their classes.
Are the classes taught for a range of body types, ages, and abilities? For a yoga retreat, you might be eager to jump into fast-paced vinyasa classes, know Sanskrit pose names, and want to focus on esoteric themes. Or you might need to address a nagging injury or need to more slowly get back into movement. Know what works for you before you commit to a week of classes.
Has the teacher led a retreat before? Teaching yoga and running a retreat are two very different skill sets. When I’m leading a retreat, I’m the “cruise director”. I coordinate the schedule, handle social media marketing, and organize the transportation. I enjoy that role but it's very different from anything I learned in yoga teacher training.
What’s the balance between yoga and non-yoga activities? With a schedule filled with breathwork classes and sound baths, some groups barely leave the retreat center. During my Italy retreats we always include guided hikes, visits to local wineries, and opportunities to go to the local towns and shop for souvenirs because we define “wellness” broadly.
From rustic or bougie, what accommodations will be comfortable for you? Some retreats offer camping or dormitory-style bunk beds while others are single rooms with en suites. Know what kind of space you need.
What’s included in the price? Often retreats do not include ground transportation, optional excursions, and additional treatments like massages. They rarely include the cost of airfare. Double check to see what’s covered.
Is the basic info communicated clearly? Especially if you are traveling abroad, you will want to know basic arrival and departure information, options for getting to a meeting point—or to the retreat center—from the airport, what to pack, and what your options are for pre- and post-retreat travel.
Are the other attendees people you want to share meals (and downdogs) with for a week? The community that surrounds a teacher is a difficult but important factor to suss out. My friend attended a retreat in which several influencers were invited who seemed more concerned with their TikTok videos than the actual retreat experience. The best case scenario is that you end up making new friends!
The most important question: What’s the food like? Is the cuisine centered around detoxing or going vegan? I recently heard about a retreat that assumed everyone wanted to fast after the evening meditation and only served broth for dinner. Make sure you know what you will be eating and if the menu sounds good to you.
Some follow-up food questions: Will there be alcohol served? And more importantly, will there be coffee?
It's worth doing your research, asking lots of questions, and finding a retreat that de-stresses and replenishes you not only through the yoga, but also the accommodations, the activities, the food, and the people.
