What Insurance Do You Actually Need to Run a Retreat?

Insurance is the least glamorous part of planning a retreat. Nobody gets into this work because they love reading regulations. But it's the part that protects you, your guests and the business you're building.

Before I ran my first retreat, I assumed my existing cover would stretch to it. It didn't. And the bigger surprise wasn't the insurance at all. It was discovering that, in the eyes of the law, I was running a package holiday.

That's the most common story we hear from yoga teachers, coaches and wellness professionals stepping into retreats. So let's walk through it calmly, in plain English.

Is your retreat a package holiday?

The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 (often called the PTRs) define a package as a combination of at least two different types of travel service for the same trip. There are four types:

1. Transport, such as flights, coaches or transfers
2. Accommodation
3. Car or motorbike hire
4. Any other tourist service

Yoga classes, coaching sessions, breathwork, workshops, guided walks, excursions, spa treatments and chef-led experiences all count as "other tourist services". When they're advertised as an essential feature of the trip, or make up a significant part of its value (government guidance uses 25% as a rule of thumb), combining them with accommodation creates a package.

Think about how you describe your retreat. "Four nights of yoga, coaching and nourishing food in the Cotswolds" sells accommodation plus a programme that is the whole point of the trip. That's a package.

It also counts as a package when the services are sold together, for example through one booking, at one inclusive price, or advertised as a retreat.

There are only a few exceptions. Trips under 24 hours with no overnight stay are outside the rules, as are trips organised occasionally, on a not-for-profit basis, for a limited group. If you run retreats as a business, the exemptions are very unlikely to apply.

What being the "organiser" means

If you put the package together and sell it, you're the organiser. Under regulation 15, you're responsible for the proper performance of every service in the package, even the ones delivered by someone else. If the venue double-books, the chef lets you down or the excursion is cancelled, your guests can look to you.

You also need to:

• Give guests the prescribed information before they book and a clear contract or confirmation afterwards (regulations 5 to 7)
• Follow the rules on price changes, alterations and cancellations, including refunds
• Offer assistance if a guest gets into difficulty during the retreat

Linked travel arrangements

If you don't sell everything as one package, but help guests book another travel service separately, such as sending them to a partner's link to book flights or transfers, you may be creating a linked travel arrangement. Linked arrangements come with their own information rules and require you to protect any money you take.

Protecting your guests' money

This is the question most retreat leaders forget to ask: "If something happens to my business before the retreat, how do guests get their money back?"

Under Part 5 of the Regulations (regulations 19 to 25), package organisers must have insolvency protection in place. For packages without flights, there are three routes:

• A bond, held through an approved body
• Financial failure insurance that names the travellers and pays them directly
• A trust account, where an independent trustee holds guests' money until the retreat has taken place

If flights are included, protection comes through the Civil Aviation Authority's ATOL scheme instead.

None of these routes is quick or simple for a solo retreat leader. Bonds and insurance usually involve business plans, accounts, affordability checks and ongoing reporting. A trust account means you can't use guests' money until after the retreat, which makes paying venue deposits much harder.

Some breaches of the Regulations are criminal offences, so this isn't something to leave to chance.

The insurance policies you'll need

Alongside financial protection, most retreat leaders need:

• Tour operator liability insurance. Because you're responsible for the whole package, this covers claims arising from any part of it, including services delivered by your suppliers.
• Public liability insurance. Covers injury or damage to property involving third parties, such as a guest who trips on a yoga mat.
• Professional indemnity insurance. Covers claims arising from your teaching, coaching or advice.
• Cancellation cover for you, to help protect the costs you've already paid out if you can't run the retreat.

Then make guest travel insurance a condition of booking, and keep copies of every supplier's own insurance on file.

Check that every policy names retreats, the country you're travelling to and every activity on the itinerary. A policy written for weekly classes rarely covers a week-long residential retreat.

Why we built Elite Retreat Engine

When I saw what it really takes to run a retreat legally, I wanted to make it easier for retreat leaders to do the right thing. That's why we built the agency side of Elite Retreat Engine.

When you host through us, qualifying retreats run through our agency with the right insurance, financial protection and paperwork already in place. That gives your retreat:

• Financial failure protection for your guests' money
• Seller of Travel compliance
• Tour operator liability cover
• Booking and payment infrastructure, with ERE customer terms and documentation
• Industry expertise and guidance
• A listing on the Elite Retreat Engine website

There are no full business plans, affordability checks or monthly paperwork for you to create yourself. We've already built the process. You keep your brand, create your retreat and lead your guests. You simply don't have to build the entire back end yourself.

You'll still provide the information needed for your retreat to be reviewed and approved, such as risk assessments, your public liability and professional indemnity insurance, relevant qualifications, supplier information and emergency procedures. Hosting is subject to application, approval and applicable terms.

Your insurance pre-flight check

Before you open bookings, make sure you can tick every one of these:

• I've checked whether my retreat is a package under the PTRs 2018
• Guests' money is protected by a bond, insurance, a trust account, ATOL or an agency like ERE
• I have tour operator liability cover for the whole package
• My public liability and professional indemnity policies name retreats, the country and every activity
• Guests receive the required information before booking and a clear contract afterwards
• Guest travel insurance is a condition of booking
• I hold copies of every supplier's insurance

This post is general guidance, not legal or insurance advice. Always confirm your position with a specialist travel lawyer or broker. You can read the Regulations and the government's guidance for businesses for yourself.

Ready for take-off?

If you'd love to run retreats legally without becoming a tour operator yourself, visit our Host With Us page and apply to host through Elite Retreat Engine.

Your Retreat Captain, Emma

Frequently asked questions