Unique Walking Retreats

Solo or Small Group Camino de Santiago Walking Retreats in The Southwest of France

Solo (one-on-one) Retreats (with horses)

Private Rebooted and Realigned Retreatthis 3-day/2-night, bespoke, one-on-one retreat on the Camino de Santiago in the sun-blessed southwest of France enables you to press pause, connect with a small herd of Friesian and Falabella horses, recalibrate your inner compass, and return to your life rested, rooted and realigned with who you are now.

Private BreakUp and Divorce Retreat – a 3-day/2-night, 100% private, bespoke retreat on the Camino de Santiago in the sun-blessed southwest of France offers a purposeful pause to rediscover yourself and reconstruct your life, reconnect with nature and a small herd of Friesian and Falabella horses, and return to your life with more purpose, confidence, and intention.

Private Fast and Feast Weight Loss Retreat – a 3-day/2-night, 100% Private, One-on-One, Medically-informed, Results-oriented, Weight Loss Retreat Hosted by a medical doctor is the perfect way to kick-start a weight loss program that will enable you to lose weight and keep it off permanently

If your soul is craving fresh air, meaningful movement, and a chance to reconnect with nature, join me on a 5-day/4-night CrossRoads Camino de Santiago Walking Retreat – a powerful, natural reboot for your body, mind, and spirit. No fitness requirements. No forced bonding. No pressure to have a breakthrough. Just one foot in front of the other, and finding your way to a brighter future.

Small Group Retreats (without horses)

Discover the Camino -a Walking Adventure (5 days/4 nights) – Three days of simple, straightforward walking to give you a taste of what walking this exquisitely beautiful part of the Camino in southwest France involves, but without having to carry a heavy rucksack or worry about where you are going to eat/sleep each night.

Reading and Camino Walking Retreats (5 days/4 nights) Have you been burning the midnight oil, lost in the pages of your favourite novels, after a stressful day’s work, only to wake up feeling like a zombie the next morning? Treat yourself to rest, relaxation and reading to your heart’s content at this retreat!

Writing and Camino Walking Retreats (5 days/4 nights):  – walk part of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela and find insight and inspiration with every step. During this retreat, you will be able to write undisturbed, every day, for as long as you like. The retreat provides writing time, not writing instruction.

If you’re both constantly juggling responsibilities, and the conversations that used to come easily now feel like one more thing on the to-do list, this 5-day/4-night retreat is for you. The 5-day Camino de Santiago Couples Hiking Retreat offers a complete escape from routine, side by side, giving you the space to reconnect with each other and remember what drew you together in the first place.

Escape the noise, the endless to-do lists, and the pressure to have everything figured out for 5-days and 4 nights with the Uncensored Journaling Retreat — a few precious days to slow down, pick up your pen, and finally sort out your thoughts. Surrounded by the peaceful beauty of Gascony, you’ll enjoy quiet mornings, delicious food, gentle Camino de Santiago walks, meaningful conversations, and the freedom to write without rules, expectations, or anyone peeking over your shoulder.

 Christmas Reading Retreats (4 days/3 nights) How often during Christmas holidays have you wished you could read your book in front of a roaring fireplace, with a mug of hot chocolate to hand, a Christmas tree twinkling in the corner and a soft rug warming your knees?

Any of the retreats above can be booked, at an additional charge, as solo retreats.

To find out more/book a walking retreat/have a chat, email me at MargarethaMontagu@gmail.com

Equine-guided Experiences

Teach Mindfulness and Meditation with Your Horse(s) – based on equine-facilitated mindfulness and meditation, you’ll discover how to help your friends, family and clients to minimise the detrimental effects of stress , by connecting with your horses in an enriching, compelling, and transformational way (5 or 7 days)

Would you like to find out more? Let’s chat!

Not sure which retreat will suit you best? I’m happy to chat about the different options, so you can choose the best retreat for you. Each retreat is different, and one might suit you better than another, so I like to chat with each guest before they book, to ensure the best possible match. I love these chats, they allow us to get to know each other a bit beforehand, and offer you the opportunity to ask all the questions you may have, for example how to get here, before you pay the deposit. Just email me at MargarethaMontagu@gmail.com.

Your Retreat Host: Dr Margaretha Montagu

The most awesome and precious experience I can offer you is a walking retreat away from the hustle and bustle, in the sun-drenched southwest of France, in a 200-year-old farmhouse, set in lush meadows on the edge of an ancient forest, so that you can relax, without a care in the world, recharge your batteries and reconnect with your authentic self and with nature in the presence of my Friesian and Falabella horses and by walking sections of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela. Especially if you are currently struggling with some tough challenges.

Working all hours as a medical doctor, I was overwhelmed and exhausted, and in desperation, I attended my first retreat. I was hooked from the moment I arrived, and I have since attended a variety of retreats. I so profoundly believe in the beneficial effect of attending retreats that I have made hosting retreats – online and onsite – my life’s work. At Esprit Meraki, the little French farmhouse I always dreamed of owning, you can release emotional baggage, confront difficulties, contemplate current challenges, aspirations, and areas ripe for improvement, cultivate greater resilience, and reevaluate your life choices while you walk the Camino de Santiago.”

Dr Margaretha Montagu

Solo, Slow and Sustainable Tourism

During our retreats, I do my best to foster an environment where everyone feels understood, valued, supported and inspired. This includes providing opportunity and access for people of different races, ages, colours, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disabilities, and socioeconomic orientations. I actively invest in my own development to help me create an anti-racist, anti-oppressive, equitable and inclusive setting.


To find out more/book a walking retreat/have a chat, email me at MargarethaMontagu@gmail.com

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