What do you look for in a retreat?

I have been lucky enough to attend two retreats this year already. The first was in January and organised by Jersey Modern Quilt Group (JMQG) and the second was last weekend and organised by Modern Quilt Club (MQG). There are still a few spaces left for the July Modern Quilt Club retreat - more details here.

The two retreats could not be more different: 

JMQG retreat is local to me, the venue is a youth facility with bunk rooms and communal showers, it is a budget retreat and one of our members provides all of our food.

MQG retreat is in Leeds which means a flight to Liverpool or Manchester and a night in a hotel before and after retreat. There is usually a tutor during the weekend who shares a technique or project and a full menu to chose your food from for dinner.

Having tried a few other retreats, these are my priorities:

1. I don't want to share a room. Often there is a single room supplement which I'm happy to pay and at our local retreat, many chose to sleep at home so there is usually one person per bunk room.

2. I don't want to cook or clean. At our local retreat we have a rota and serve once and wash or dry up once, which is to be expected on a budget retreat. I do like a lunch which isn't carb heavy with a few choices.

3.  I like space and a large table for myself and my mess is perfect. Not all premium retreats have the space.

4. Numbers of attendees - I haven't been to one of the large retreats, mainly US based, but MQG keep to 36 people which means you can get to know new people and renew acquaintances with old friends.

5. Swaps - not compulsory and I have participated before but choose not to participate currently. The gifts are inspiring, and I love a good bag pattern, so have plenty of ideas for future retreats.

6. Freebies - nice but not essential. I love a good game of Aurifil bingo which MQG hold, the JMQG bingo has much smaller prizes but is equally as fun and quicker! A lot of work goes into asking for donations to goody bags and Aurifil and Hantex are always generous to both groups and it's always interesting to try new products.

7. Classes - do you want to learn new techniques or work on your own project? Some retreats only have space for hand sewn projects and I prefer to use my Atelier 7. At MQG you can hire a Janome sewing machine which is handy and £10 for the weekend is a nominal amount. At JMQG attendees unanimously voted to not have a tutor but we often have a small make and take on Friday. 

8. Transport links to retreat - I would prefer to keep extra costs to a minimum so if I can travel on the day of the retreat that is a bonus. Some retreats are not easily accessible by public transport, but most attendees travel by car. 

9. How much are you willing to spend? Travelling to the UK for a retreat is more expensive for me, but living on an island, you have to either fly or take the boat to get anywhere.

It is unlikely that you will find a retreat with everything on your wish list but it's good to define your priorities. What do you look for in a retreat?