Free Guide for Retreat Hosts
So You Want to Run a Retreat
What I wish someone handed me before retreat three.
Eight chapters on the offer, the sales, the urgency, the go-to-market, and the venue relationship — pulled from real retreats, real numbers, and the one I almost didn't survive.
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"I built a burnout recovery retreat. By retreat three, I was the one who broke."
Nobody warns you what holding space for a week actually costs the person running it. This guide is what I wish I'd known before it broke me — and everything I had to learn the hard way to make sure it never happened again.
What's Inside
Eight chapters, no filler
I Almost Burned Out Building the Burnout Retreat
The morning and evening reset that's now non-negotiable, every retreat.
Nail the Offer First
The six-part anatomy of an offer that actually sells, plus a worksheet.
Case Studies
A Week Awake's $500K → $2M turnaround, and Surf & Shanti's value-first funnel.
Selling Seats
Why you listen to guests without letting them design the retreat for you.
Urgency Without the Ick
Real scarcity vs. manufactured pressure — and why guests can tell the difference.
Go-to-Market, Round One
What actually filled seats, and what was a waste of ad spend.
Working the Venue
Dress rehearsals, communication cadence, and reading incentive mismatches early.
What Building This Looks Like
A free calculator to run your numbers, and an open door if you want help.
"It's all of the little details that make this space so special and sacred — the way it's nestled in the jungle, the attention Ben put into every room, and the willingness of every single staff member to help. The space is configured to make you feel like you're in a safe healing cocoon."
Leah Hester — Surf & Shanti, on staying at re:center
Proof, Not Promises
Hosts who nailed it
★★★★★
"Ben transformed our business foundation — and our revenue reflected it immediately. We grew from $500K to $1.2M in less than 15 months."
Mona Picasso — Co-Founder, A Week Awake
$500K → $2M+ today, pipeline booked a year out.
Leah was invited as an influencer for a three-day stay. She fell in love with the venue; we fell in love with her. No pitch — the retreat grew out of the relationship, and the funnel flipped: women started begging her for the next one.
Leah Hester — Surf & Shanti
Sells out every season. Repeat guests, every time.
Written By
Ben Lee
Founder of re:center, a nervous system regulation lodge in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica, supporting high-performing founders and global CEOs. Ben has built and sold multiple businesses, and has coached retreat founders like A Week Awake from six figures into seven — with his own retreats featured in Men's Health, Rolling Stone, and Robb Report.
Get the guide before you build anything.
What I wish someone handed me before retreat three.
Free. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.