RETREATS
When the question is what comes next.
Applications for 2026 are closed. All places have been allocated.
We will open the next round of applications in September. If you would like to apply when the next round opens, sign up to our newsletter to be notified.
Bliss & Stars is a small, off-grid retreat. It costs what it costs because of what it is: 1,350 hectares of privately maintained land, infrastructure that takes constant upkeep, no grid connection, food made from scratch, and never more than ten guests.
Which means access depends, almost entirely, on income. We find that straightforward and uncomfortable in equal measure. So every year we set aside at least ten retreat spots at no cost or a heavily discounted rate, for South African residents.
We are not looking for a particular profession or a particular kind of difficulty. We are looking for people whose work matters to other people and takes more from them than it gives back, who genuinely need time away from everything that is pulling at them, and for whom the cost is the real and only barrier.
In practice, this tends to be people working in sectors that ask a great deal and pay very little in return: caregivers, teachers, social workers, people in the arts, community practitioners, NGO workers, people carrying more than they are resourced for. But it is not limited to any of these.
Open to South African residents only.
WHAT IS COVERED
01
The retreat fee is waived or heavily reduced. Accommodation, all meals, all facilitated sessions, everything a paying guest gets, you get in full.
02
Travel to and from the Cederberg is the applicant’s own arrangement and cost. We are about 4.5 hours drive from Cape Town. We are happy to help with logistics on request.
10
Minimum ten bursary places per year. Distributed across Silent Retreat, Burnout Retreat, and Women’s Retreats.
HOW TO APPLY
Process
01
Complete the questionnaire
02
We read it and reply
Usually within eight weeks.
03
You confirm a date
If the cost is the only thing in the way, this is for you.