“Will everyone else know each other?” It's one of the most common worries about going on a retreat alone, and one of the main reasons people put it off for another year.
If that's you, this is for you.
Walking companions are optional, and sometimes they find you.
You don't need to arrive as the “best version of yourself”
You don't need new Yoga clothes, flexible hamstrings or a talent for meditation. You don't need to be a hiker, or to know anybody. And you certainly don't need to arrive feeling calm and balanced; that's what the next few days are for.
Come as you are.
Come if you've had a difficult few months. Come if life is actually pretty good, but you'd love four days where somebody else makes the decisions. Come if you're travelling alone and wondering whether everyone else will arrive with a friend.
And if you've spent years saying “I'd love to do something like that” and then finding a reason not to, perhaps this is the year to stop finding reasons.
An unhurried walk, everyone at their own pace.
Going on a retreat alone in your 40s, 50s and beyond
By this stage of life, many of us have spent years fitting around other people: partners, children, parents, work. Going somewhere on your own can feel strange at first. It can also feel like the first time in a long while that the time is really yours.
On a small retreat, travelling alone is completely normal. You can join in at the table and talk late into the evening, and still take yourself off to sit quietly by the river whenever you like. Nobody will think it's odd.
What if I don't know anyone?
Then you'll arrive exactly as most people do. Shared meals, walks and slow afternoons turn strangers into good company surprisingly quickly, often without anyone quite noticing when it happened.
And if you'd simply like some peace and quiet, that's fine too. Everything at A Place to Stop is optional, including conversation.
Come as you are, and do as much or as little as you need.