7 Serene Silent Retreats

Find your quiet place at one of these sanctuaries across the country

Travelers can try a vow of silence at these retreats across the country.

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Veronica Stoddart,

AARP

En español

Published June 06, 2024

In our age of tech-fueled overstimulation, silence might be just the ticket for travelers in 2024. Enter silent meditation retreats, which provide places to relax and reset by dialing down the noise. These retreats vary from religious to secular, from guided to freestyle, from total to partial silence. But they all offer quiet as a possible way to enhance our well-being.

Silence may indeed be golden. Research has found that it may help decrease stress and lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol. In one study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, spending some time each day in silence, specifically in mindfulness meditation, reduced insomnia and fatigue in older adults. Studies show noise can disrupt sleep and trigger anxiety and depression, among other serious health conditions. One study published in The BMJ, the British Medical Association journal, found that long-term traffic and railway noise exposure in residential buildings in Denmark put older residents at higher risk of developing all-cause dementia.

As the Global Wellness Institute projects a 17 percent annual growth in wellness tourism through 2027, silent retreats are meeting the moment by providing places for people to tune out the cacophony of modern life.

Here are seven facilities around the country that offer wordless refuges.

Abbey of Gethsemani, Kentucky

Famous as the longtime home of the monk Thomas Merton, author of The Seven Storey Mountain, the abbey is a community of about 40 Trappist monks, which has been receiving guests in need of a quiet respite since its founding in 1848. Merton wrote of such a monastic milieu that “all … need enough silence and solitude in their lives to enable the deep inner voice of their own true self to be heard.”

Gethsemani retreats are unstructured, which means guests are free to design their own programs, although they can participate in the Eucharist and monks’ prayer. Retreatants must limit their speaking to designated areas only. But the monastery, located about an hour from Louisville, offers plenty of opportunity to commune silently with nature in the 1,500 adjacent acres available for long walks and hikes.

Dates: Open year-round for individual retreats. Guests must stay a minimum of three nights for weekday retreats and two nights for weekend retreats.

Cost: Free. Contributions to cover the cost of meals and accommodations in the guesthouse are voluntary.

woman on a mat at The Drala Mountain Center

The Drala Mountain Center overlooks the forest from its location in the Colorado Rockies.

Courtesy Drala Mountain Center

Drala Mountain Center, Colorado

Perched high in the Colorado Rockies at 8,000 feet, the Drala Mountain Center sprawls on 600 acres of forests, meadows and broad valleys, making it an ideal refuge to embrace the sounds of silence. Its campus combines wilderness and crisp mountain air with modern comforts, such as bathrooms with towel warmers. Setting the tone is the Great Stupa of Dharmakaya, standing 108 feet tall and one of the most significant examples of sacred Buddhist architecture in North America. Experienced instructors guide two- and seven-day silent retreats, which may include sitting and walking meditation and meditation instruction.

Dates: Seven-day retreat: June 14–21 and Dec. 6–13. Two-day retreats: Sept. 6–8 and Oct. 11–13.

Cost: Two-night tuition is $215 and seven-night tuition is $665, plus lodging, which ranges from $99 to $329 per night, depending on type of accommodation, from a seasonal tent to a suite in the lodge.

The Springwater Center in New York is surrounded by more than 200 acres of land with access to streams, meadows and forest.

Courtesy Springwater Center

Springwater Center, New York

Looking for a self-directed retreat with “no rituals, required beliefs, or assigned practices”? That’s the mantra at Springwater Center. Located an hour south of Rochester in the Finger Lakes region, the center offers silent meditation retreats on 212 rural acres dotted with streams, meadows, forests, a pond and miles of walking trails. Each retreat is organized around a daily schedule that includes timed sittings, a talk in the morning and meetings with teachers. All activities are optional, but retreatants must adhere to silence and contribute an hour of work each day, such as cooking or cleaning.

Dates: Four-day and seven-day retreats as well as design-your-own quiet weeks and silent all-day sittings are available throughout the year.

Cost: Retreat fees for nonmembers, which include accommodations in shared or single rooms and meals, start at $107 per night. Studio apartments and guest cabins cost an additional $50 per night. All-day sittings cost $30 for nonmembers.

a person on a mat in their room at the Dharma Treasure Retreat Center

Guests design their own schedules at Dharma Treasure Retreat Center but must observe noble silence, which means refraining from all forms of communication.

Courtesy Dharma Treasure Retreat Center

Dharma Treasure Retreat Center at Cochise Stronghold, Arizona

A small Buddhist community tucked into the base of southeastern Arizona’s Dragoon Mountains, Dharma Treasure offers a quiet place for anyone pursuing spiritual development. Its five acres of wild landscape are bordered by the Coronado National Forest. While the center focuses on Buddhist meditation, it welcomes people from all spiritual traditions and secular practices. Individuals design their own schedules but must observe noble silence, which means refraining from all forms of communication including body language and writing things down. Trained teachers are available for support and meditation instruction.

Dates: Open year-round for individual retreats. Minimum retreat length is three nights.

Cost: Retreat fees only cover lodging, which ranges from $65 to $150 per night, depending on type of accommodation from a yurt to a two-bedroom casita. Guests make their own meals and are asked to donate about one hour of work per day, such as landscaping, cleaning and gardening. Guests also can leave money for the resident teachers who provide meditation guidance.

aerial view of The Rolling Meadows in Maine

The Rolling Meadows meditation retreat in Maine is surrounded by nature and close to the water.

Courtesy Rolling Meadows

Rolling Meadows, Maine and Vermont

Surrounded by nature, Rolling Meadows meditation retreats let participants unplug and disconnect from technology (all electronic devices including smartphones are prohibited). Whether in the rolling hills of Vermont or on the rugged coastline of Maine, silence rules at these retreats, which include meditation, breathwork, meditative movement and yoga. The Vermont property is adjacent to 100 acres of wooded trails for hiking, while the Maine facility covers 100 acres overlooking the coastal hills, where guests stay in a restored 1840s farmhouse.

Dates: June 19–23 in Cushing, Maine, and Nov. 8–11 in South Newfane, Vermont.

Cost: Retreats include accommodations and vegetarian meals. In Maine, a four-night retreat costs $1,295 per person for a double room. In Vermont, a three-night retreat costs $995 per person for a double room.

vacationers sitting on mats during a class at Siddhayatan Tirth & Spiritual Retreat in Texas

Guests can choose to work under the direction of a monk or try a vow of silence on their own at the Siddhayatan Tirth & Spiritual Retreat in Texas.

Courtesy Siddhayatan Retreat Center

Siddhayatan Tirth & Spiritual Retreat, Texas

Siddhayatan, an ashram, monastery and spiritual retreat center, is surrounded by 250 acres of rolling hills in the countryside about 90 minutes outside Dallas. Here’s your opportunity to read a book, write in your journal, enjoy a guided meditation, take a yoga class and chant healing mantras. Retreats are unstructured: You can take a vow of silence under the direction of a monk or choose your own level of quiet. Either way, you’ll be surrounded by resident monks and nuns dedicated to their own spiritual paths.

Dates: Open year-round for individual retreats. Minimum retreat length is two nights.

Cost: $15 fee plus lodging. Accommodations range from $95 for a single room with a shared bath to $185 for a classic double room, including vegetarian meals.

aerial view of the Mercy by the Sea Retreat and Conference Center in New York

An aerial view of the Mercy by the Sea Retreat and Conference Center on Long Island Sound. The property includes a chapel, art gallery and silent sitting areas.

Courtesy Mercy By the Sea

Mercy by the Sea Retreat and Conference Center, Connecticut

A destination that once served as a school and home for young women taking religious vows, Mercy by the Sea is now a Long Island Sound retreat center. You won’t easily find words to describe the 33 waterfront acres with multiple areas for quiet reflection: a sandy beach for strolling; landscaped areas with lawns, gardens and a labyrinth; woodlands with a short trail; and forested wetlands. Facilities include a chapel, art gallery, dining room and silent sitting areas to read, meditate or simply gaze at the water. The directed silent retreats include daily guidance from a spiritual director.

Dates: Retreats run throughout the year.

Cost: Retreats, which include meals and accommodations in single or double rooms, cost $500 for a four-day retreat, $700 for six days and $800 for seven-day retreats.

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Veronica Stoddart is the former travel editor for USA Today who has written several travel stories for AARP The Magazine and AARP.org.