The retreat venue checklist: 24 things to ask before you book

How many can genuinely sit in a circle in the main room? Is there a second breakout space, and is it a real room or a corner? Where do people go to be alone? Is there somewhere to be outside in the rain? Can you leave things up overnight, or does the room get reset?

How many rooms, and how many are shared? Is anyone sleeping somewhere materially worse than everyone else, because they will notice. How far is the furthest bed from the main building in the dark and the wet? How many bathrooms per person?

Is catering included, in-house, or brought in? Can they genuinely handle allergies, or do they mean "we can do vegetarian"? Can your group cook if they want to? What happens if someone is hungry at ten at night?

What is the wifi like under load, with twenty devices? Is there phone signal, and on which networks? How does heating work and who controls it? Where do people park? What is the nearest station and how do you get from it? Is there step-free access anywhere?

And who is on site during your stay, and how do you reach them at eleven at night?

What is the deposit and when is the balance due? What is the cancellation policy in plain language? Is exclusive use included or are there other groups? What is not included that you will end up paying for?