So, you are curious about tantra but don’t know where to start or what to expect. Join Tantra retreats, festivals, or workshops to better understand what it is!
In these retreats, festivals, or workshops, you can experience different aspects of tantra.
At first, joining a retreat, festival, or workshop can be intimidating. If you’ve never attended one, you might have some initial hesitancy. But don’t worry. I’ve got you covered.
This article covers tantra retreats, festivals, and workshops. It will make breaking the ice easier than ever!
Table Of Contents
Myths about Tantra Retreats, festivals, or workshops
Many people think that tantra is all about sex, and a tantra retreat, workshop, or festival is a sex party. That’s wrong.
First of all, only 1% of tantra teachings are sex-related, and the rest is about discovering parts of yourself that help you live your best life.
Since tantra aims to bring the unconscious conscious, you will shred a lot of emotional layers. It also helps when it comes to facing your fears.
Thus, you can expect to cry, scream, and sometimes laugh in a tantra retreat, festival, or workshop––always for the purpose of healing.
General rules when attending a tantra retreat, workshop, or festival
There are some practices you must know to make your experience a pleasant one.
Boundaries and Consent Culture
You will be encouraged to express your boundaries and respect the boundaries of others.
You will learn to say “No, thank you” while also respecting the “no” of others. Since a tantric practice is a vulnerable and intimate experience, it’s very important.
You will be asked to keep everything that is happening there fully confidential. This means not sharing details about other participants outside of these sessions to protect the privacy of everybody.
People sometimes confuse a tantra retreat, festival, or workshop with a sex party, but as I already touched on, it isn’t. There’s no sexual activity involved, even though you are free to be intimate with another participant when the sessions end.
If boundaries are crossed, you will find an empathy buddy to share your concerns and challenges and get support.
Facilitators have to respect strict boundaries, too. For example, they usually agree not to have sexual contact with participants/assistants.
Nudity
Some events are clothing-optional, but most tantra workshops are fully dressed.
Don’t worry if you’re concerned about being around naked people or being pressured to be naked. Nobody will pressure you, and you’ll quickly get used to seeing bare-skin people.
Videos and photography are usually not allowed to protect the privacy of everybody,
Community
If you have never experienced life in a community, a tantra retreat, festival, or workshop is a great place to get a sense of it. Living in a community means taking care of each other’s needs and offering each other support.
Being in tantra communities also means sharing resources and cooperating for the good of all.
Connecting with other participants can be so powerful that you get a strong sense of belonging and support.
Mixed or Female/Male only
Most retreats and festivals are mixed-genders, but sometimes, sessions are for just one gender.
On the other hand, it’s more common for workshops to be female or male only, although mixed classes are also available.
As a tantra teacher, I have seen men joining my workshops on womb wisdom and being warmly welcomed by female participants.
Integrity
Some facilitators have taken advantage of vulnerable participants in the past, but as of this year, all events are now strictly controlled and regulated.
In a tantra festival, all facilitators must sign an integrity chart upon selection. Here is an example of a festival integrity chart I signed in the past:
“We acknowledge that not all Tantric facilitators in the field have engaged in practices that were in the best interest of their students. We also acknowledge that people newly entering their Tantric paths are not aware of the consequences that certain practices could have on them. There is a need for awareness around such practices that devastate students’ physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being during their Tantric Journeys. Therefore, we consider the participants to be in a vulnerable position, and we feel the responsibility to protect them.
We require facilitators to maintain the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and honesty in serving those who choose to walk their tantric journeys with us.
Facilitators are responsible for setting boundaries at the beginning of each activity.
Facilitators should understand the inequality of power held relative to participants/assistants and agree not to engage in a dynamic where there is an imbalance of power.”
Differences between tantra retreats, festivals, and workshops
It’s time to choose which is best for you—a tantra retreat, festival, or workshop. Here’s a short explanation of the differences between each.
Tantra retreats
The word “retreat” literally means “to withdraw.” Therefore, a retreat is a place where you withdraw from your day-to-day life and takes time to self-reflect.
A tantra retreat is a short 2 – 7-day trip in which you will disconnect from your daily life. You will join several sessions scheduled over the course of the retreat. Usually, one to three teachers will welcome up to 25 participants, making for an intimate setting.
In a tantric retreat, meals and accommodations are usually included, and you can sometimes share a room with other participants. The meals are most likely vegetarian and made by a cook at the retreat.
A tantra retreat is different from a holiday. While on holiday, you’re pretty flexible with your schedule. In a retreat, you commit to all the sessions. It can become quite intense, and it isn’t necessarily a resting experience, as you can expect to be up from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Tantra festivals
Like a tantric retreat, a festival is a 2 to 7-day gathering with several sessions a day hosted by multiple facilitators. A festival can welcome up to 200 participants, and thus, it’s a less intimate experience and more community experience.
You will find a minimum of 10 facilitators, all with different backgrounds. Most of the time, you will have a choice of sessions, meaning you can customize your experience to meet your needs.
It’s not mandatory to attend all the sessions, and meals and accommodations are optional. You can choose to spend the night outside the festival or attend just one day rather than the whole festival.
This ‘a la carte’ gathering is best for people who not only want to be flexible with sessions but want to experience all of the tantra at once.
Tantra workshops
A tantra workshop is an event that can last from 1 hour to 3 days. It’s usually led by one facilitator with a focus on one topic.
Meals and accommodations are not included, but most of the time, you won’t need it since they will happen near your home, city, or online.
There’s no minimum number of participants, especially when hosted online. Yet, most tantra workshops will gather around 3 to 30 participants.
Best tantra retreats, festivals, and workshops
Here’s a selection of the best tantra retreats, festivals, and workshops worldwide.
1. Best for Beginners
If you’re looking for in-person tantric retreats that are also training sessions, ISTA training is known to be one of the best in the field of tantra and sacred sexuality.
Their training sessions are sorted by level and held all over the world. They usually last for seven days and cost anything from 2,000 to 3,000 euros, depending on your choice of accommodation. In addition, you have a choice of cities and days to attend within the year.
In level 1, you will explore self-love, shadow work, or conscious communication. You will learn shamanic tools and ancient rituals of healing. You will also experience transformational breathwork and emotional release.
- Location: Worldwide
- When: Several times a month
- Duration: 7 days, 6 nights
- Price: 2,000-3,000 euros
2. Best for Singles
I recently facilitated the embodiment retreat by Innercamp this summer in Malaga, Spain, and both the participants and I loved every aspect of it.
Although you don’t technically have to be single to attend, most participants were. These four day retreats are very affordable and located in a beautiful Finca in the southern portion of Spain.
- Location: Malaga, Spain
- When: Dec 13, 2024
- Duration: 4 days, 3nights
- Price: Starting at 800 euros
3. Best for Tantra Yoga lovers
Satyama Lasby hosts this Tantra yoga retreat in a beautiful retreat center in Thailand, focusing on classical hatha yoga. It’s affordable for an immersion of 7 days, including vegetarian food and simple accommodation. Each day has different tantric exercises based on the chakra system.
- Location: Ko Pha-ngan, Surat Thani, Thailand
- When: Sold out
- Duration: 7 days- 6 nights
- Price: Starting at $1,280
4. Best Tantra Festival
The fourth edition of the Tantra Festival Mexico is all about loving yourself. You will have the chance to participate in a rich selection of life-changing workshops, tantric meditations, and rituals made to feed your soul. The event will propel you on your pathway to self-love.
- Location: Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico
- When: Sept 28 – Oct 2, 2022
- Duration: 4 days, 3 nights
- Price: Starting at $560
5. Best Tantra Online Workshops
Every other week, I’m also teaching a tantric workshop online with Innercamp. I personally invite you to join my next Tantric ceremony. Check the website regularly to be informed of my other workshops and those of my co-facilitators.
- Location: Online
- When: Every other week
- Duration: 1 hours
- Price: $25
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By now, you should know everything you need to know about tantra retreats, festivals, resorts, sex retreats, meditation retreats, and workshops. So what are you waiting for? Make the jump and join me somewhere in the world!
Hakima
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