My Retreat Hosting Journey
I’ll let you into a little secret - I didn’t start teaching Yoga thinking that I would be running multiple sell-out Retreat year! In fact, it hadn’t even crossed my mind that running a Retreat would be possible when I started teaching in 2014.
I first went to a Yoga class in 2009, when a friend suggested it, because a “local celebrity” had spoken on the radio about going to a new Hot Yoga Studio that had opened nearby. At the time I was working full time in a very stressful job, I had out-of-control anxiety and huge flare-ups of eczema on my body that I didn’t know how to manage. We decided to go to along to this Hot Yoga class, just to see what it was all about.
After that class, something happened, I started to crave that feeling of not thinking about anything, other than being on my mat. The feeling of physically moving my body, syncing that movement with my breath an then a (desperately needed) relaxation at the end soon became a way of life for me.
In 2014 I left the corporate world and deep dived into a Yoga Teacher Training. This is still one of the best life decisions I have ever made! I wanted to help women like me, who were stressed out and anxious, find some peace and calm in their lives through Yoga, and so I started teaching as soon as I qualified.
My Yoga following grew steadily and consistently and in 2016 I ran my first weekend Yoga Retreat which SOLD OUT! Like I said, this wasn’t really on my agenda, but a class member returned from a Yoga Retreat and was excitedly talking about to other class members and they asked “would you run a Retreat, Ruth?” Put on the spot, with all these faces staring at me, I was sort of like “why not?!” and that got the ball rolling!
My first Retreat was at a family run place in Warwickshire, with loads of character and very quirky. It was a brilliant venue to start at, because they had been running them for a while and could recommend local caterers and therapists, so that saved me loads of time searching. They also only charged me per head, which made it a very risk-free opportunity for me and this really helped me find my feet and build my Retreat Host confidence!
This first Retreat didn’t go without some hitches though - I didn’t go and look at the venue before I booked it and one of the bedrooms was basically a junk room in the attic! This is why I ALWAYS tell you to go and look at a venue before booking it!
The chef I hired for this Retreat didn’t do breakfasts or desserts, which meant I had to dash out of the morning Yoga class midway through, to put the breakfast I had prepared in the oven! After 2 Retreats doing this, I vowed never to do this again and only booked chefs that did all the meals going forwards because I really hated that extra stress making the breakfast added to my hosting.
Other than those blips, my first Retreat went well and I rebooked the venue for another Retreat 6 months later. This sold out again and I didn’t use the attic room this time! After using the venue for my 2nd Retreat, I felt like I had outgrown this venue and my guests were starting to change and grow - they wanted more of a luxurious, rather than quirky space, ensuite rooms were requested and more comfy, communal areas. This was where my love for finding Retreat venues began!
I seemed to be spending a HUGE amount of my time searching for venues online, with a very specific list of wants & needs for my Retreat venue. I would travel the length & breadth of the country to find the perfect place, only to be disappointed when I got there - they had failed to mention a busy road nearby or the rooms were much smaller than the photos made out!
In 2017 I ran my first luxury Yoga Retreat weekend in The Peak District - a place close to my heart as I have been going hiking there since I was a child. I planned this Retreat at the same time as I was planning my wedding - I like to put myself under a bit of pressure!
This 2nd venue was a beautiful, luxury barn conversion and completely different from the first venue I had used. It was also much more money to hire it, which was quite a bit of a worry if I’m honest. I visited the venue this time before I booked it and met the owners and booked a chef who would take care of all the meals for me. This Retreat sold out, but was the first time that I had to manage cancellations - late ones at that AND from friends who I hadn’t taken deposits off.
This Retreat booking was a steep learning curve and taught me so much about boundaries and the importance of having my admin and terms & conditions in order. After all that stress, the last remaining space sold out as I was driving TO the venue - literally hours before the Retreat started! What a relief, although I had been dreaming about giving myself that room!!!!
That venue really showed me that my guests value luxury, comfort, loads of space and great views and these are things I still look for in my venue searches today. Since then, I have run Retreats regularly around the UK in Shropshire, Derbyshire, Wales, Somerset, Lincolnshire, Staffordshire & Worcestershire to name a few. I started running 2 a year in 2017 and as the demand grew for them, I added more each year. In 2024 I am running 5 Retreats - all sold out and I’m already fully booked for a Retreat in 2025.
Some venues I use regularly in my rotation of venues, where as others didn’t work so well for us - not enough room, noisy roads, uncomfy accommodation, unfriendly owners etc. But you sometimes have to experience these things before you know about them and I always learn something from each venue I use. The ones that don’t work for us just spur me on to find more venues!
The reason my Retreats sell out so quickly (sometimes less than 24 hours after advertising them!), is because people know what to expect. They know the quality of the accommodation will be high, they know the food will be amazing because I use the same chef every time and she is perfect and they trust me to create an itinerary that they will enjoy.
I do regular market research on my guests, to find out what they are looking for and build my Retreats around that. This means that when I advertise a Retreat, I have a queue of people who know it’s EXACTLY what they are looking for and are ready to sign up & pay their deposits. At the end of every Retreat I send out a feedback form so that I can look at what could be improved next time - this is always so insightful and if you are running Retreats and aren’t doing this already, I highly recommend it.
I wouldn’t be able to sell out multiple Retreats every year without all the hard work I put in behind the scenes - showing up week in, week out at classes for years, building genuine and authentic relationships with people, putting my all into every Retreat and event that I run and not rushing the process! If you’re thinking about running a Retreat, start with the background work first and don’t rush things. Rushing this step is only going to make your job harder down the line, when you’re desperately trying to fill spaces on your Retreats!
Here’s to another 8 (hopefully more) years as a Retreat host, constantly learning, evolving, growing and creating sell out experiences that my guests love!