Retreat venues in Normandy: 3 venues

Organising a retreat or workshop in Normandy

For a group setting off from Paris, Normandy is one of the most convenient regions: Rouen is about an hour and ten minutes by train, Caen two hours. You can choose between half-timbered manor houses in the Pays d'Auge, farms in the Perche and houses near the Alabaster Coast or the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel, now run as group gîtes, practice rooms or group accommodation centres.

They are often handsome old buildings with a large garden, sometimes an orchard, and a practice room set up in a former barn. People come for yoga, meditation, qi gong or training courses, for a weekend or a retreat of several days.

The region is green all year round. The best times are spring, when the apple trees are in blossom, and early autumn. Evenings stay cool, so a wood burner or an open fire is welcome.

Good to know

• For a weekend from Paris, look at the Eure, the Perche or the Pays d'Auge.
• For winter retreats, ask whether the barn or the practice room is heated.
• If the venue is near the coast, add a walk by the sea to the programme.