A quiet canal in Venice in the early morning light

Host a retreat in Venice and the lagoon

Venice is considered one of the best cities in the world. One may disagree, but we shall all agree that it is unique. And we want you to live it in an even more special way. We take groups to the edges: a garden on the Giudecca, a vineyard on Mazzorbo, a boat that leaves at dawn when the lagoon is flat as a mirror.

Plan your retreat here

Why Venice and the lagoon

Everyone has seen Venice. Very few have practised yoga in a cloister at seven in the morning, before the city wakes up, and then taken a boat to an island where the only sound is the water. That is the Venice we work with.

The lagoon is forty kilometres of islands, marshes, orchards and villages. It gives a retreat something no other city can: water everywhere, light that changes every hour, and the feeling of being far away while the airport is twenty minutes behind you.

Venice for a retreat is not the Venice of the postcards. It is quieter, and it is ours.

The places we work with

The city and the islands each give something different. We mix them depending on the group.

Venice, the quiet sestieri

Castello, Cannaregio and Dorsoduro, away from San Marco. A palazzo with a private garden, a cloister, an altana on the roof. We practise early, when the streets belong to the residents.

Giudecca

The long island facing the city. Gardens, a former convent, wide views across the water. A short boat ride from everything and very calm at night.

Burano

The coloured houses are real. So are the fishermen and the lace makers. We go for lunch, for a walk at sunset when the day visitors have left, and for the light.

Torcello

Almost empty. A cathedral from the year 639, a few houses, fields and silence. The place we choose for meditation and for the one afternoon that changes a retreat.

Mazzorbo

A walled vineyard on an island, a restaurant in the garden, a bridge to Burano. Tastings of a wine that grows nowhere else and a lunch that lasts.

Lido

The beach of Venice. Long, sandy, with a pine wood behind it. Sunrise practice on the sand, a swim, and the city ten minutes away by boat.

Where your group can stay

Venice has a venue for every kind of group. We pick the one that fits yours.

A palazzo with a garden

A historic house in the quiet sestieri, with a private garden or a cloister for the practice. Exclusive use for the group.

8 to 14 people

Island retreats

A former convent on the Giudecca, an estate with a vineyard on Mazzorbo. Quiet nights, boats to the city.

10 to 18 people

Boutique hotels

Small hotels with a courtyard or a terrace, and a practice space we arrange nearby. Good for groups that want their own room and the city at the door.

12 to 20 people

Day venues

Gardens, cloisters and a garden hall we use for single-day events. Practice, lunch and a boat in one day.

up to 20 people

Beyond the practice

Private boat at dawn

The lagoon at six in the morning, before the traffic. Islands, birds, the city waking up behind you. Nothing else on the programme that morning.

Kayak through the canals

Venice from the water, at the pace of a paddle. Quiet canals, low bridges, a different city.

Lunch on Mazzorbo

A vineyard on an island, a garden table, a wine made from the only grape that survived the floods. One of the best afternoons we know.

Hands in the kitchen

Cicchetti and lagoon fish with a Venetian cook in a home kitchen. Then aperitivo on the canal.

Culture, like a local

We can organise guided visits, private too, to live Venice the way a Venetian does. A church with a Tintoretto, a foundation on the Grand Canal, a glass furnace on Murano. Small groups, early hours, no queue.

Reformer in a palazzo

We can bring reformers into a piano nobile or a garden hall, and practise mat on an altana with the rooftops around you.

When to come

Venice is best in the mid seasons. We rarely plan a retreat here in high summer.

March to May
Cool, bright, the gardens in bloom. The city still breathes. Our first choice.
June to August
Hot and crowded in the centre. Possible on the islands and at the Lido, with early practice and boats in the evening. We advise it only for certain groups.
September to October
Warm water, soft light, the lagoon at its best. The film festival in early September fills the Lido, then it empties. Book ahead.
November to February
Fog, high water some days, and a Venice that belongs to the Venetians. Cloisters, candlelit dinners, very few visitors. Beautiful for a small, quiet group.

Getting here

The lagoon is the easiest of our three landscapes to reach. Land, step onto a boat, arrive.

Venice Marco Polo (VCE)
20 minutes by private water taxi, 30 by bus and boat
Treviso airport (TSF)
40 minutes by car to Piazzale Roma, then boat
Venice Santa Lucia station
You are already there. Boat or a walk to the venue
Milan, Florence, Rome
High-speed trains to Santa Lucia in 2 to 4 hours

Questions about retreats in Venice

Is Venice not too crowded for a retreat?

The centre is, in the middle of the day. We work early, in gardens and cloisters, and on islands where the crowds never go. Most of your group's days will be spent away from San Marco.

Can we combine Venice with the hills or the mountains?

Yes. A week that starts with two nights in the lagoon and continues in the Prosecco hills or the Dolomites is one of our most requested formats. Transfers are included.

Where do we practise?

In private gardens, cloisters, garden halls and on altane, the wooden rooftop terraces. On the islands, and on the beach at the Lido. There is always an indoor option.

How do transfers work with luggage?

A water taxi takes the group and the bags from the airport dock to the venue door. Nobody drags a suitcase over a bridge.

Is it expensive?

Venice costs more than the hills, and we say so from the first proposal. A mid-season date, an island venue and early booking make a real difference.

Or choose another landscape

Tell us where you want to take your people

Dates, number of participants, type of practice, an indicative budget. We reply with a first proposal.