Hoffman at the French Retreat

Our Spring and Summer Retreats with Matthew and Emma Pruen has been designed to offer the chance to work on specific issues and to support you manifesting your personal goals using a mix of Hoffman tools and the benefits of downtime – relaxing with kindred spirits in beautiful surroundings.

Some practical information about timings, transport, meals and health can be found below, and there is additional information on the French Retreat website here.

When you book a stay at the French Retreat, we’ll email you a link to a short enrolment form and ask you to return it to us in advance. Please take the time to complete this, as it lets you tell us when you’re planning to arrive, any special dietary requirements etc.

If you have any other questions about your time with Matthew and Emma not addressed below, please contact Emma by email: emma@retreat.fr or by calling +44 (0)7508 920 583.

Location

The French Retreat is located in Yviers, 16210, Charente, France (map below).

Timings

Spring Retreat 2023: Arrival is on Sunday 9 April from 3pm-7pm. The course ends at 2:00pm on Friday 14 April
Summer Retreat 2023: Arrival is on Monday 31 July from 3pm-7pm. The course ends at 2:00pm on Saturday 5 August

Arriving by plane

The cost of your course includes time-limited transfer to and from Bordeaux (also known as Merignac) airport. Places are limited and offered on a first-come, first-served basis, so please let us know as soon as possible on your enrolment form if your plans involve an airport transfer. Alternatively, you can hire a car from Bordeaux Airport, or take the airport bus to Bordeaux St Jean train station and from there, a train to Chalais.

  • British Airways fly from Gatwick to Bordeaux daily.
  • EasyJet fly to Bordeaux from London (Gatwick/Luton), Bristol, Manchester, Belfast and Glasgow airports.
  • RyanAir fly from Stanstead, Manchester and Edinburgh.

Prices can be cheaper if you fly midweek and add a few days to your stay.

Please do not book return flights that depart earlier than 5pm on the day of your departure to ensure airport transfers.

We have allowed comfortable travel times for airport transfers. However, we cannot accept responsibility for travel arrangements (including missed, delayed or cancelled flights) and strongly encourage all attendees to arrange adequate travel insurance cover.

Arriving by car

Please note start and end times above. For car sharers, the car share website BlaBlaCar might be of interest. There is ample parking at the house.

The venue is marked on Google maps as The French Retreat. From Chalais 16210 – our nearest town – take the D731 (Brossac Road) from the roundabout beneath the Chateau. After approx 1km, take the second left after the sign indicating you’ve left Chalais (Chalais crossed out). The turning is a single track road, signed La Loge.  You’ll see a group of old stone houses and barns, and a sign for The French Retreat. We’re the third house you come to.

Car hire

Car hire is available at all airports. EasyJet and BA both offer deals when booking flights.

Arriving by train

    • Our nearest station is Chalais and we support all rail travellers with free transfers from Chalais train station to the French Retreat. Trains to Chalais can be reached from Paris via Angouleme and Bordeaux, but they are best planned in advance, as trains are infrequent.
    • Our nearest TGV stop is Angouleme. Angouleme is on a TGV line between Paris and Lille to the north and Bordeaux to the south. From Angouleme you can take a direct local train to Chalais.
      If you are coming from Bordeaux,  the main station (also known as Bordeaux St Jean) to Chalais takes an hour and costs around €20. You can book your tickets online here.
      If you are travelling from London by Eurostar, you can change in either Lille or Paris. You can book TGV tickets here.

Timings:
From Paris Montparnasse, Depart 12.37 / Arrive Angouleme 14.34 then Depart Angouleme 17.45 / Arrive Chalais 18.12
From Bordeaux, Depart 16.50, Arrive Chalais 17.47

If you would like to be collected from Chalais, please use the enrolment form to let us know when you are planning to arrive.

Contact details

  • Email: emma@retreat.fr
  • Emma’s mobile: +44 (0)7508 920 583
  • Matthew’s mobile: +44 (0)7976 843 715
  • Landline: +33 5 45 78 04 79
  • Website: retreat.fr

Accommodation

Accommodation is shared with maximum of one other same-gender attendee. You are also welcome to attend this retreat with friends, family members if they are also Hoffman graduates. Just let Emma know when making your booking, if there’s somebody that you’d like to share a room with.

Dietary requirements

The French Retreat will provide nutritious, wholesome food throughout your stay. We do not recommend that you use this retreat to detox or to alter your diet significantly from normal. Please use the enrolment form to tell us about any special diets you may require or allergies you may have. An additional fee of £55 will be charged for special diets.

Health

You are responsible for your personal wellbeing throughout the retreat. You will be staying in a rural location, so please ensure you bring an adequate supply of any medication or other personal items you may need. The course has been designed to be accessible to as wide a range of physical abilities as we can. With adequate notice, some adaptations are possible to accommodate any special needs. Please use your enrolment form to advise us.

Terms and Conditions

  • We ask that all attendees agree to keeping the names and experiences of others confidential. Please feel free to share your own experience as feels right for you, but to do so in such a way as ensures no other attendant is identified. This of course, means not mentioning names, but also involves asking permission before taking photographs, videos or using recording devices.
  • This retreat is a no alcohol/no recreational drugs event. We ask all attendants to commit to this and to refrain from bringing alcohol or drugs on site or consuming them for the duration of the week.
  • Equally, we ask that attendants refrain from sexual relations, masturbation, flirtation and romantic intrigue for the duration of the event.
  • The event is not non-smoking, however, smoking is only allowed out-doors and we ask that it is done with consideration for others and the environment.
  • We have allowed comfortable travel times for airport and rail transfers. However, we cannot accept responsibility for costs arising from disruption to travel arrangements (including missed, delayed or cancelled flights) and strongly encourage all attendees to arrange adequate travel insurance cover before setting off.

If you would like any further information or help with registration and booking, you can contact the office by email or by telephone on (+44)1903 889 990