The COVID-19 Pandemic has been quite a ride, and it has taken us all for a spin (or two).
With the virus uncertainty looming, most retreat leaders felt forced to cancel and postpone their retreats.
As some countries and regions begin to reopen and travel restrictions are slowly being lifted, the big question is:
How and when can I resume my retreat plans?
When the pandemic hit, we were unsure how the lockdowns would affect retreats and businesses in general.
A few months in now, we know that while the virus is still very much here, some local governments and regions have decided to reopen their economies.
Of course, this reopening is happening in stages, and the degree of reopening varies quite a bit depending on where you live.
I believe there are two ways we can look at reopening our retreats and businesses.
On the one hand, there are short term modifications we need to make to how we operate and host our retreats as we navigate the pandemic.
On the other hand, I believe there are more long-term changes we can make to help us build a more resilient business that can thrive through difficult times.
In part 2 of this blog series coming up next, I have some advice to help you think through some big picture changes to design a better retreat and wellness business in the future.
Ok, here goes Part 1 of this series!
Part 1: Key Steps to Reopening Your Retreats
As you start to resume your retreat plans, we know that things will not be the same as they were before COVID-19 in the immediate future.
I want to acknowledge how difficult and how overwhelming some of these changes may feel, but know that these modifications are temporary.
Don't give up on your retreats just yet! We will move closer to some sort of normalcy eventually, and only time will tell exactly when.
With patience and resilience, we will find our way through these times.
Here are the areas you will need to think about modifying and adapting when resuming your retreats in the near future:
Client Communication
This is such an important aspect of reopening your retreats. Before you start planning your retreats again, make sure you are checking in with your current clients, students, and the wider retreat community.
How are they feeling about going on a retreat?
Are they comfortable being in a group again?
Are they open to any modifications and new safety guidelines?
What do they expect from your retreat as you adapt to the current situation?
Take the temperature of your community to see how they feel before you decide on the overall direction of your retreat.
You can conduct surveys, polls, one-on-one phone check-ins, emails, or text/message trusted students to get their input.
The important thing here as a first step is: don't guess or assume, instead ask for feedback.
If you are not sure about how to communicate better with your retreat community, here is a previous blog post I wrote about it.
Local Retreats
As we are slowly reopening the economy and travel, it's a good idea to keep your retreats local and at a driving distance, if possible.
You want to avoid having to get on an airplane, or try to convince your clients that's safe, or have to worry about other regions' travel restrictions. Local retreats are a great way to ease back into your retreats and help your clients feel more comfortable retreating with you again. This is the path of least resistance!
Smaller Groups Sizes
When planning your local retreats, you also want to consider risk mitigation and how to reduce exposure. Smaller group sizes will help you keep things safe and comfortable for all participants.
Many local health and government officials are adding restrictions on the group sizes allowed at businesses such as gyms and yoga studios. This is something you will need to take into consideration when reopening your retreats.
Health + Safety Practices
Think about what you can do to add on layers of safety at your retreats.
I know some of these practices can feel odd as a retreat host and even as a customer. After all, retreats are about coming together in the community. But keep in mind this is not forever - eventually, we will ease up on these practices as we return to some normalcy.
Here are some ideas to get you thinking, but you may not need to implement all of these, it will depend on your local restrictions and the current situation of COVID-19 where you are hosting your retreat.
Temperature check at the very beginning of your retreat
Hand washing breaks and sanitation stations around your venue
Clear sanitation guidelines for your staff, caterers, vendors, and co-teachers
Distance between participants when/if applicable
Private rooms for every retreater (hence smaller group size)
Clear communication with your retreat clients about your temporary health and safety guidelines in the pre-retreat email communication, on your website, and during your retreat
Adding hand sanitizer, mask, and soap to your gift bags if applicable
Asking your clients to provide health insurance information for you to have handy
Disclaimers and advisory on your website, retreat sales page, and registrations forms for people who may have higher health risks
Waivers & Insurance
This has never been as important as it is now, reopening your retreats and in-person services.
Your retreat waiver should have a clear and comprehensive COVID-19 provision. You also want to modify any retreat contracts and your terms and conditions on your website. Investing in an attorney to help you refine your legal docs is worth the investment, so do that if you need to.
It would help if you also had good travel and liability insurance. Make sure you read through your policy to see what it includes and make changes as necessary.
Travel Restrictions
As you start thinking about traveling a bit further when travel restrictions start easing up, you will most likely have to navigate the scattered and sometimes confusing world map of restrictions.
Think about the following:
Researching the travel restrictions in the region you are planning to host your retreat. What phase of reopening are they in? What activities and venues are open, and what is still under restrictions? What venues are open and operating according to the safety precaution guidelines?
Looking at travel restrictions that could be imposed on the country you and your clients are traveling from (country of origin). Are they allowing people from your region to travel into that specific location or region?
Looking at airlines, flights, and other transportation are available and open to and from your country of origin and the retreat destination.
Retreat Planning and Logistics
Taking time to carefully plan your retreats and making sure you have a good handle of your logistics will help you cover all of these health and safety precautions without getting too overwhelmed.
Get all of the information you need about the venue. What are their new health policies and practices? What is their new cancellation policies in cases of any changes to the restrictions?
Research vendors, chefs, and catering to see what precautions they have in place to keep staff and clients healthy.
Budget and price your retreat correctly to reflect any additional costs of doing business with some of these practices and restrictions.
There are a lot of pieces to planning a retreat, and with some of these new practices in place, it is a good idea to take your time planning your retreat to avoid stress and more uncertainty.
If there are areas you need to learn more about, now is a perfect time to dig into learning all about retreat planning.
If you need some help, you can get access to my Free Retreat Resources HERE.
Leadership Role
Last but NOT least, think about what it means to be a retreat leader. Times like these call for us to really step up as leaders for our community and clients.
What areas of leadership do you think are most important right now?
What do you need to practice as a retreat host to keep your clients comfortable, happy, and safe?
Modeling resilience, understanding, open communication, and kindness, I think we can all agree on is a good starting point.
Planning ahead for any practical, physical, and emotional challenges that may surface at your retreat and understanding that even if you have most things under control, there will be areas where you will need to improvise as a host.
Ok, I hope part 1 of this blog post gave you some ideas on how to think about resuming your retreat when you are ready to do so.
I would love for you to share below some of the practices you have been thinking about implementing as you reopen your business and retreats.
Are you thinking about resuming your retreats anytime soon? If so, what parts of your retreat do you have to modify and adapt?
And don't miss part 2 of this blog post coming up next week, where we'll talk about the key lessons and structural changes to implement as you think about growing a better retreat and/or wellness business post-pandemic.
XO
Paloma