The Best 2023 Women’s Retreats For A Midlife Rebooting

by Laura Jackson for Crunchy Tales

If prioritizing your mental health, practising self-care, and rebooting your midlife are on top of your to-do-list this year, this means you don’t need just a vacation but a proper retreat experience.  For some women, it’s yoga. For others, massage and meditation, emotional healing work and sacred ceremonies are essential. 

What is the difference between a holiday and a retreat?

Retreats are purposeful getaways that are aimed at helping you to look inward, restore your vitality, sanity and reconnect with who you really are. Not just some time off from everyday routine. A retreat is always an opportunity to learn a new skill or make a new friend, or even discover something new about yourself.

According to a research study published in Translational Psychiatry (Nature), simple vacations only bring about short-term improvements in well-being; however, a week’s meditation can improve metabolism in the long run.

Retreats attract people with similar concerns or interests and, hence, offer you the opportunity to spend memorable moments with like-minded people who are looking to achieve the same goals as you. These people act as your support system as you work toward your goal and also act as a mirror to help you identify issues that you couldn’t have on your own. Most importantly, they help you realize that you’re not alone.

CrunchyTales has compiled a list of women’s retreat ideas for you that will help shake off your stress and hit that reset button.

Best Mindset retreat by Third Act Quest

Temple, New Hampshire, USA – 27 – 30 April 2023

“Opening Up” is the theme of an amazing spring retreat experience run by life transitions expert and founder of The Third Act Quest, Diana Place. 

It is being held within the beautiful 28 rolling acres of Stepping Stones Farm, nestled in the Monadnock Region of New Hampshire. Expect engaging conversations, workshops and out-of-the-ordinary “quest” experiences along with peaceful walks, Forest Bathing and Sound Mapping experiences, EFT tapping sessions to reprogram negative beliefs, art workshops, that will nudge you out of your status quo, and perhaps a bit out of your comfort zone. You’ll have these precious days to dig in, remember and get clarity about what you want to explore, change and do in your “third act.” You will be inspired to open up, look uncertainty or fear in the face and put your passions at the forefront of your life.

Best Menopause retreat by Meno Heaven

Florence House, Sussex, UK – 23 -24 May 2023

A ground-breaking retreat surrounded by the wonderful English countryside that offers women support before or during menopause. The retreat is meant to help you navigate peri-menopause and menopause, normal stages of life that are still shrouded in outdated taboos and lack of information. 

In the company of supportive women and a team of expert practitioners, including a yoga teacher, a nutritionist, and a Natural Health Practitioner & Homeopath. Menoheaven aims to de-stigmatise and de-mystify peri-menopause and menopause to empower women to manage this significant transition openly and positively. 

This isn’t purely a women’s yoga retreat, nor a women’s wellness retreat, more like a masterful blend of the two- offering life coaching sessions, healthy food, great sleep, and self-care rituals.

Best Writing Retreat by Wendy Goldman Rohm

Paris, France – May 29 – June 2, 2023

If all you need is to find inspiration for your next book, then this is your chance to develop your book, fine-tune your manuscript, and perfect your writing in progress. Acclaimed by The Lonely Planet as “One of the world’s best writers’ retreats“, this 5 day-experience is run by New York Times best-selling author and literary agent Wendy Goldman Rohm, and ticks all the ‘dream writing retreat’ boxes. 

For five intense days, participants workshop structure, setting, style and narration in genres ranging from memoir to romance and psychological thrillers. The sessions are supportive, insightful and challenging, and are followed by guided meditations. The retreat – held at a private loft in the heart of Paris-includes continental breakfast and a “pitch-the-agent” session to present your story and explore its most powerful ingredients. For writers of fiction, nonfiction, memoir, plays and screenplays.

Best Wellness retreat by Reshape Midlife

Larkspur, Colorado, USA – 20 – 23 July 2023

Start putting yourself first by joining wellness Coach Kara Zebrowski of Reshape Midlife and her team for a 4-day experience in the mountain and forested area of Larkspur, Colorado. You’ll learn how to make the most of your blessings, move forward with enthusiasm, energy and self-awareness, and create brand-new healthy habits that will allow you to make the second half of your life, the best half. 

A mix of playful energetic yoga practices, as well as meditation classes designed to release tension from the body and mind, are waiting for you. Additionally, you will be enjoying 2 SUP classes on the lake, one-morning practice and one evening (Glowga) practice and insightful workshop lectures designed specifically for women in midlife to help you “recover, uncover, and rediscover yourself“.

Best Meditation retreat by The Art Of Living 

Boone, North Carolina, USA – Every Month, starting from March.

If you’re looking for peace of mind, and the ability to let go of the past, this retreat is for you. Set amidst 380+ breathtaking acres of pristine forest high up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Boone, North Carolina, the Art of Living Retreat Center is a renowned sanctuary of peace that eases the mind and inspires the soul. 

Watch the sunrise over the mountaintops, rejuvenate with an Ayurvedic body treatment, or feel the quiet of a walk in the forest. Learn the simple, powerful technique of meditation to effortlessly calm the mind, boost immunity, and decrease the physical and psychological stressors you’re experiencing.

You’ll work with an experienced teacher to learn a technique you can easily use at home (or anywhere you may be, at any time), and receive individual guidance during those critical first few days of practice. During your stay, you will also have time for enjoying pottery classes and other on-campus activities. Accommodations include your room, deliciously nourishing meals, and full access to all of their gorgeous grounds and facilities, including the Fitness Room, Steam Rooms, and hiking trails.

There are countless wonderful experiences that midlife women can gain through attending retreats: meeting new friends, kick-starting a detox diet or renewing a spiritual practice. Are you ready to unlock your full potential?