COVID Safety Protocols for In-person Retreats
We are delighted to officially welcome you back to Spirit Rock for in-person retreats starting in August 2021.
Our first priority is to protect the health of everyone who comes to Spirit Rock, including practitioners, staff, and teachers. When we reopen in-person retreats on campus in August 2021, we will be following county, state, and federal (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines that are in place at that time, and with additional significant safety protocols, including limited capacity for retreats.
The Spirit Rock campus will remain closed except for in-person retreats. During retreats, the campus will be closed to all except staff, retreat teachers, and retreatants.
Safety Protocols
The following are Spirit Rock’s primary required safety protocols:
- Vaccination: All staff, teachers, and practitioners must be fully vaccinated with vaccines for COVID-19 two weeks or more before arrival. We require everyone to show proof of vaccination.
- Negative COVID-19 Test: All practitioners, teachers, and retreat staff will take an antigen test on the opening day of a retreat upon arrival. Individuals will not be admitted to the retreat if the test result is positive for COVID.
- Single Rooms: All retreatants will receive a single room, and retreats will be limited to 80 practitioners.
- Masks Required: Marin County Public Health Officer has now ordered that masks are required for all persons gathering indoors regardless of vaccination status. Teachers are exempt from this mandate while actively offering Dharma teachings. Masks are not required in your personal dorm room or in outside spaces.
- Ventilation/Air Filtration: We have upgraded air filtration in all the meditation halls, and have provided small air purifiers in all dorm rooms and public spaces.
- Surface Cleaning: Sanitizing of all high touch areas will be done twice daily and hand sanitizing stations will be placed in convenient locations across campus.
- Dining: Physical distancing will be maintained in the dining hall with additional indoor and outdoor seating options for dining.
- Physical Distancing in Meditation Hall: Cushions and chairs will be arranged to maintain physical distancing in the meditation hall.
- Symptom Check: All practitioners, staff, and teachers will receive a personal kit that includes a symptom checklist and thermometer. All are to monitor their symptoms daily and notify a staff member if their symptoms indicate COVID.
- Sick Policy: If a practitioner or teacher becomes sick, they will be asked to remain in their room, and if serious, return home. We will also ask them to take an antigen self-test onsite, and if they test positive for COVID-19, they must exit the retreat. If they cannot return home due to travel restrictions, we will support their quarantine to the best of our ability.
Caring for the Community
Spirit Rock welcomes people from around the U.S. and the world to participate in our retreats. Our intention is to include as many people as possible. We have chosen to require COVID-19 vaccination for in-person retreats. This is not a decision we have made lightly. It reflects our obligation to keep our workplace and practice spaces as safe as possible.
If you are not vaccinated, we invite you to participate in our online retreats and programs to deepen your practice and connect with our community. We will revisit all of our safety guidelines in the fall for retreats in 2022.
If you have any questions, please contact us at srmc@spiritrock.org. Thank you for your practice and dedication to Spirit Rock.
Upcoming In-person Retreats
December
Sun - Thurs, December 12–16
The Practice of Choosing Forgiveness
Noliwe Alexander, Carol Cano, MA, Amana Brembry Johnson, Tere Abdala-Romano, Vance Pryor and Jonathan Relucio
Engaging with forgiveness practices, no matter the trauma, loss, grief, or anger, will move us forward in our journey toward liberation. Learn More
January
Tue - Sun, January 4 - 9, 2022
Waking Up in the Midst of It All
Howard Cohn, Susie Harrington, Tara Mulay and Hakim Tafari
Wake up to a sense of your well-being, presence, and true nature that does not depend on circumstances. Learn More
Mon - Mon, January 10 - 17, 2022
Metta Retreat
Donald Rothberg, PhD, Pawan Bareja, PhD, Kaira Jewel Lingo, Gullu Singh, JD, Sylvia Boorstein, PhD and Melvin L. Escobar, LCSW, RYT
In this retreat, we will learn the formal practice of mettā along with its companion practices of compassion, joy, and equanimity. Learn More
Tues - Sat, January 18 - 22, 2022
The Four Elements Retreat
Kate Munding and Bonnie Duran, MPH, DrPH
Using the Four Elements, cultivate a grounded, embodied practice that leans toward concentration, direct experience of anatta (not-self), and impermanence. Learn More
Sun - Fri, January 23 - 28, 2022
Cultivating Wisdom and Insight
Brian Lesage, Dawn Scott and Vance Pryor
Explore insight meditation (vipassana) to cultivate an embodied presence and mindful awareness that embraces all of the human experience. Learn More
View Full On-Land Retreat Calendar
Cancellation Policy
To offer participants greater flexibility as we make our way out of the pandemic, we’re offering a more generous cancellation policy for On-land Residential Retreats (Aug.-Dec. 2021) and Online Multi-day Retreats (4+ days):
- $100 fee when you cancel more than 2 days before the retreat (fees reduced to half for scholarship participants)
- No refunds when you cancel less than 2 days prior to the retreat (applies to all participants)