The Santiago de Compostella Camino (often referred to as The Camino) throughout history has enticed countless illustrious pilgrims from all over Europe to take up the trail. It is an ancient - and often enchanted - pilgrimage. People from Saint Francis of Assisi and Charlemagne to Ferdinand and Isabella to Dante and Chaucer have taken the journey, which comprises a nearly 500-mile trek across highways, mountains, cities and fields.

Now it's our turn.

Beginning and ending our journey at Mas de Carrié, an ancient estate overlooking the Célé river valley in mid-Southern France, we'll walk five days of the ancient pilgrims' path (approximately 45 miles), visiting sanctuaries from the Middle Ages, and deeply experiencing the magic of this ancient tradition. We'll walk in silence, we'll sing in joy, we'll share meals and tears and laughter and insights and in the process we'll come to "see" with new eyes and find the tools needed to move powerfully back into our life with a deeper sense of joy and an enlivened sense of being.

Join experienced facilitator, Karen Ely, and a small, like-minded community of women for a quiet, deeply personal exploration, surrounded by the beauty and spiritual traditions of an ancient pilgrimage. We'll convene at Mas de Carrié for a day's retreat before our five-day walk on The Camino under the experienced guidance of our hostess, Suzanna van Vliet. Each morning and every evening we will convene in circle to set intentions and share experiences and insights. At the end of our five days of walking, we'll return for a day of retreat and celebration at Mas de Carrié before heading home (or to further adventures) the following morning.

This retreat offers the unique opportunity to step back from your busy life for eight days of quiet contemplation, intentional living, and conscious activity in a community of like-minded women. Over the eight days, you will gently get back in touch with yourself and the still, small voice within you that whispers the truth. Through the beauty of nature, silence, walking, journaling, laughter, large and small group exercises, and ceremony, you will rekindle a quiet sense that anything is possible.

This unique retreat has space available for only nine women to participate. Please be aware that you have to be able to walk approximately nine somewhat hilly miles per day for five days (approximately 45 miles in all) and, because this is a pilgrimage that winds through small, ancient villages, the lodging will be quite basic. We will have simple meals and picnic lunches each afternoon with plenty of time to rest and enjoy our environment and each other every evening.

Karen Ely is the founder and director of A Woman's Way, one of the country's premier women's retreat and workshop program located in Sedona, Arizona. Karen is the author of: Daring to Dream: Reflections on the Year I Found Myself published in 2006, which chronicles the end of her 32-year marriage, A Retreat of My Own, a women's personal retreat guide published in 2008, and Breathing Space: Mini-Retreats for the Heart & Soul published in 2011. Karen is an experienced facilitator with a commitment to assisting women in creating and living authentic lives of passion and joy.

Click here to learn how you can bring Karen Ely's workshops to your area.

Suzanna van Vliet ~ sculptor, painter, gardener, mother and grandmother ~ will be our hostess at Mas de Carrié and our guide on the pilgrims' path. Suzanna and her husband Peter, a retired ambassador, acquired Mas de Carrié in 1996. Their dream of restoring the old farm and turning it into a beautiful venue for seminars, art workshops and a place for rebalancing with nature is now a reality that we will be able to share.

While on the walk, we will be staying at simple inns in small ancient villages along The Camino. While lodging will be simple and accommodations shared, our time together will be meaningful and life-enhancing with plenty of time for silence and contemplation, as well as joyous community.

I will be in Paris for the month of May and for anyone wishing to fly to Paris prior to the retreat, we'll plan to connect and board the train together on May 31st for Figeac. But, whether you fly into Toulouse and catch the train to Figeac or join me traveling by train from Paris to Figeac, our hosts will meet us at the Figeac train station and transport us to Mas de Carrié.

The retreat fee includes:

~ Current Retreat/Workshop Schedule ~