I am writing this because I would not want another traveler to experience what happened to me…read more
On April 13, 2026, I booked a weekend retreat at the Art of Living Wellness Retreat Center in Boone, NC--approximately 350 miles from my home. I received an immediate confirmation and was charged $1,594 in full.
During the week of the retreat, I received no pre-retreat information. I emailed three times and received no response. I then called twice with basic questions about what to bring. On both calls, staff took my name and answered my questions. Not once was I told the retreat had been cancelled.
So I drove approximately seven hours to the center.
When I arrived, the registration employee could not find my reservation. I offered to show her my confirmation email, but she declined. She asked me to wait, then disappeared from the reception area. About five minutes later, the manager, Christy, came to the desk.
She told me the retreat had been cancelled on June 24 because of low enrollment. I was stunned. I had just driven seven hours to attend a retreat I had paid $1,594 for. Her response was that there had been "no other way".
I asked why no one had successfully notified me. She said the reservation notes indicated that a voicemail had been left for me on August 1. No voicemail ever reached me. I reminded her that I had spoken with staff twice during the week immediately before the retreat, and neither person mentioned the cancellation.
The only immediate alternative offered was to sell me a room and a meal for the night. As I stood there trying to process what had just happened, another employee walked by and said, in what I felt was a remarkably dismissive tone, "Everything will work out."
I left and began the seven-hour drive home.
After I regained cell service, I received a voicemail from Christy. I expected an apology--for the wasted trip, the expense, and the fact that I had been allowed to drive 350 miles to a cancelled retreat without being told. Instead, she maintained that the center had sent two emails I never received and continued to insist that the situation had been handled appropriately.
I understand that retreats can be cancelled because of low enrollment. What I cannot understand is cancelling a retreat, waiting weeks to notify paid participants, then speaking with a customer twice in the week before the retreat without mentioning the cancellation--and ultimately allowing that customer to drive seven hours to the facility before learning the truth.
This was not simply an inconvenience. It was deeply upsetting and, in my view, completely avoidable.
At a minimum, I believe I deserved a sincere apology.
