General Retreat Information

Date of Arrival and Departure, Length of Stay

For the deepening of the practice to occur and for mindful living to take root and become a vital part of daily life, we request a minimum stay of one week. If you wish to stay for more than two weeks (up to a maximum of three months), please arrange with us in advance, by writing to us expressing your motivation and your wish for staying extended time at Plum Village.

To help make our practice stable and solid, Friday is our one arrival/departure day each week. We will give orientation about our practice to new arrivals each Saturday. If you cannot stay for a week, you can participate in our weekend program, which starts on Friday afternoons and ends on Sunday afternoons.

A Sample Retreat Schedule

Practice at Plum Village helps us weave mindfulness into all daily activities, not focusing just on sitting meditation in the meditation hall. This enables us to meditate throughout the day, while eating, walking, working, and enjoying a cup of tea together. Retreatants are invited to help in communal activities, such as preparing meals, general cleaning, and washing dishes, as a way of continuing mindfulness practice while performing everyday tasks.

The daily sample schedule will be as follows:

During the Summer Retreat Plum Village opens its doors to families with children. During the rest of the year, Plum Village practices and observes a monastic way of life. For this deepening of the practice to occur and for mindful living to take root and become a vital part in daily life, we request a minimum stay of one week. Since the teachings emphasize practicing with the Sangha in order to enjoy its collective energy, retreatants are encouraged to participate fully in all scheduled activities. We also ask our guests to observe the Five Mindfulness Trainings, and thus to refrain from smoking and drinking alcohol. Please do not bring non-vegetarian foods or alcoholic beverages to our practice center.

One day per week at Plum Village is Lazy Day, when there are no scheduled activities and the bells are only invited to announce meal times. Lazy Day is an opportunity to let the day unfold in a natural way while still maintaining mindfulness. People can enjoy making a picnic with friends, taking a walk, reading a book, or just relaxing and enjoying the day in mindfulness within the retreat boundaries. Meditation halls may be used for purposes other than meditation only with specific permission

English, French and Vietnamese are the principal languages used in Plum Village.

Transportation

Click here to get more information on How to get to Plum Village

Plum Village is about 85 km east of Bordeaux (which has an international airport), and four hours from Paris by train. There are frequent high-speed trains (TGV) leaving for Bordeaux from Montparnasse station in Paris and there is at least one TGV per day direct from Charles de Gaulle airport to Bordeaux. Some of these trains stop in Libourne (one stop before Bordeaux) where you may get off, otherwise continue on to Bordeaux. From Bordeaux (St. Jean station) or Libourne take a local train in the direction of Bergerac or Sarlat and get off at Sainte Foy la Grande.

If you travel by plane, you can ask your travel agent to book your flight with final destination being Bordeaux airport. From Bordeaux airport take the shuttle bus to St. Jean train station then take the local train to Ste. Foy la Grande.

We will arrange for your transportation to and from Ste. Foy la Grande station only on Fridays. The cost for this service is 5 euros each way to provide for fuel and maintenance of our vehicles. The most convenient time for us to pick you up at the train station, selected according to the most common arrival times of our guests, are 9:30, 12:00, 15:00, 17:30 and 19:00. Please indicate on the registration form or call us to let us know your exact arrival time and departure time.

If you come at other times, taxis are available by telephoning 05.57.46.02.47. The fare is about 23 euros (one way) and is 50% higher at night and on holidays. Please make sure that you have arranged your return journey beforehand as Plum Village cannot make travel reservations for you.

Visit the French Railway Website, http://www.sncf.com  under the heading Planning Your Journey/France and Abroad/Time Table, to check on exact train schedules. Places of departure and arrival are: Paris (Montpartnasse 1 train station) <-----> Libourne (Connecting station) <-------> Ste Foy La Grande if you leave from (or go to) Paris; Aeoroport CDG 2 (Charles de Gaulle airport) <-----> Libourne (Connecting station) <-------> Ste Foy La Grande if you leave from (or go to) Charles de Gaulle aiport.

From Bordeaux Airport, take the Airport Shuttle to St. Jean Train Station in Bordeaux. Get train going to Ste. Foy la Grande, with connecting station at Libourne.

For travel information and services in local areas near Plum Village, France, please contact Dordogne Tourism in Bergerac, +(33) 5.53.57.00.27.

Accommodation, Food and Cost

The lodging in Plum Village is simple with only shared rooms (double, triple, quadruple and dormitory). Not all rooms are close to the toilets and showers. In the rooms, you are provided with a pillow, a pillowcase and a mattress cover. Please bring your own linen and blankets; else you may request the linen service at 5 euros per person. Men reside in the Upper Hamlet, women reside in the New Hamlet and Lower Hamlet.

What to Bring

Towels, personal items, slippers, alarm clock, flashlight and umbrella, warm clothing and footwear for rainy, windy and cold weather in winter, earphones with a long extension cord (approximately 5 meter) to be used with our translation equipment, slip-on shoes that can be easily removed for entering meditation halls. Please bring any items that are necessary for your comfort as well as enough Euro cash you might need here (e.g. in our bookshop). We do not accept credit cards or exchange foreign currencies.