Retreats for Personal and Spiritual Growth

in one of the most beautiful settings in europe

Whether you are looking at a specific issue or exploring your life's purpose, a Retreat allows you the time and conditions for contemplation, inner development and clarity.

You can come to a personal or a group retreat with Richard. For group retreats see Time for Yourself—Cultivating Spaciousness, Contemplation and Tranquility in Everyday Life. The rest of this page gives details of individual retreats.

You stay in the Mountain Yurt at Cortijo Llano de Manzano or in nearby accommodation (for which you pay a little extra). The setting is in unspoilt Natural Park, close to Cañar, near Órgiva, (Granada) Southern Spain.

A retreat lasts one week, including the day of arrival and departure. You have a one-hour session with me each morning and a half-hour follow-up session in the evening. Your time between sessions is spent in inner work and working in the garden, the house, or building. You may take meals communally or on your own.

People come to a Retreat to focus on a wide range of issues: health, relationships, career, personal development, a sense of meaninglessness, lack of purpose, challenges of aging, coping with emotions, anxiety, crisis and spiritual enquiry.

Please read on for further information, and see the prices and booking section at the end of this page.

The Location

The Yurt at Cortijo Llano de Manzano, Retreat Location in Spain

The cortijo and outbuildings are set in a beautiful and tranquil three acres of walnut, peach and cherry trees, rocky outcrops and stone-walled terraces in the Alpujarras in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The air is the cleanest in Europe, the views are breathtaking and on a clear day you can see the Atlas Mountains of North Africa over the Mediterranean Sea.

Llano Manzano is bordered by beautiful acequias (water channels) which create enchanting little waterfalls. There are many places where you can relax and reflect and beautiful mountain walks in all direction. We are a 15 minute walk from the beautiful unspoilt mountain village of Cañar. The unspoilt Andalucian countryside here is both rugged and tranquil and we are surrounded by spectacular scenery and wildlife.

The Mountain Yurt

You sleep, have sessions and live in the Mountain Yurt. The circular structure gives a feeling of wholeness and harmony which lends itself to restfulness and relaxation. Warm light is diffused from the crown during the day and at night you can lie in bed and see the stars in the night sky. The yurt is made of natural wood and canvas. There is a wood burner for the winter months and comfortable beds with cotton linen and duvet, and lanterns for light. A compost WC is nearby and showers are available in the house.

Inside the Yurt on a Personal Retreat with Richard Harvey

The Retreat Schedule

Your retreat schedule includes physical work, inner work and session time with me, punctuated by meal times, periods of relaxation, walking and time for contemplation. Extra therapy sessions are available to you during your retreat if you feel the need for more individual time.

Extra Activities

A wide selection of alternative and complementary therapies is available in the area. We can help you to arrange massage and other therapies during your retreat. Walking and rambling are readily available as well as cooling off in our small non-chlorinated pool.

Cortijo Llano de Manzano

Cortijo Llano de Manzano is a center for personal growth and spiritual development with a program of courses and workshops on personal and spiritual growth. It is also a family home and a small-holding where we aim to be as self sufficient as possible in the long-term; sustain the land by nurturing rather than depleting; pursue organic and eclectic farming methods; and create a beautiful, nurturing environment for ourselves, our friends and visitors.

An Eco-Friendly Life-Style

We lead an eco-friendly low impact life-style, using composting toilets and solar energy. As well as growing vegetables, flowers and trees on our organic smallholding, we keep goats, sheep and chickens. Occasionally we have water shortages and have to restrict our consumption. In the winter months we provide you with a certain amount of fuel but ask that you collect your own wood when it has run out. The climate here is very agreeable, but August and July are usually very hot and February is the coldest month. Please bring and use only bio-degradable toiletries and soaps.

Travel

If you are coming from abroad, the nearest airports are Málaga and Granada and frequent and cheap flights are available to both. We can usually arrange transport to and from the airport for a small charge. Please see more details on our travel information page.

Your Goals for the Retreat

After booking your retreat, write down what you wish to achieve and send this information to me for a confidential assessment. I will send it back to you with comments. Work with these comments to refine your goals and bring it with you to the retreat.

Prices and Booking

A Week-long Retreat costs 880 euros. The price includes five days of individual sessions, with a day for arrival and a day for departure, accommodation and full board. Extra sessions and additional days can be arranged.

How to Book

Apply for your retreat,
page, giving us your preferred dates and any alternative dates.
We will confirm your dates by email or discuss alternative dates with you if we cannot meet your preferred dates.
Pay a 50% deposit to secure your retreat, using our secure Paypal payment facility (if you don't have a credit card or a Paypal account, contact us for bank details to make a transfer or for other arrangements). Note that all bookings are made subject to the payment terms below.
You will receive a confirmation email, with instructions and directions, once we have received your deposit.
Pay the balance, either in cash on arrival (in euros) or online before arriving, using our secure Paypal payment facility.

Payment Terms

Deposit: A 50% deposit (440 euros) is payable to secure your booking and is non-refundable if you cancel for any reason.

The Balance: must be paid by the start of your retreat. You can pay it in cash on arrival (in euros) or online before arriving, using our secure Paypal payment facility (if you don't have a credit card or Paypal account, contact us for bank details to make a transfer or for other arrangements).