Summer Opening 2025

For us, our ideal, our hope can only be realized if we have a solid, beautiful community.

Thich Nhat Hanh

From July 10th – August 2, 2025, Plum Village will build beloved community for families with children and teens, and practitioners of all ages.

The teachings and practices will be for all ages with tailored programs for children and teenagers.

To create space for more families, all retreatants (including children and teens) can register for one week only.

Please plan your retreat carefully to arrive and depart on the designated dates, especially if you are coming with children or teens so they can start the retreat together with their new friends. A weekly retreat will be 7 days. 

Programs for children aged 6-12 years old and teenagers aged 13-17 years old will take place in the different hamlets of Plum Village, according to language and gender. These hamlets are situated in different towns in the region.

Each program will have limited space and will require an application process, of which will follow a random selection. More details about this will be below.

Each child and/or teen would need to have an accompanying parent or adult guardian included in their application process. In some cases, your family may need to stay in different hamlets if the programs that you need for your children do not take place in the same hamlet (and therefore ensure an adult is registered in each hamlet with your child). During the week, there will be around four mornings when the whole community of three hamlets come together for the Dharma talks, walking meditation and picnic lunches.

Children’s Program (aged 6-12 years old)

• French children’s program – Upper Hamlet only – Week 1, 2 & 3
• Italian children’s program – Upper Hamlet only
  • Week 1: 6 – 9 ages only
  • Week 2: 6 – 12 ages only
  • Week 3: 9 – 12 ages only
• Spanish children’s program – Upper Hamlet only – Week 1, 2 & 3
• English children’s program – Lower Hamlet and New Hamlet – Week 1, 2 & 3
• German children’s program – Lower Hamlet only – Week 1 & 2 only
• Dutch children’s program – Lower Hamlet only – Week 3 only

Teens’ Program (aged 13-17 years old) 

• Teen boys’ program – Upper Hamlet – Week 1, 2 & 3
• Teen girls’ program – New Hamlet – Week 1, 2 & 3

The children and teens will need to be these ages at the time of the retreat. The program teams are not able to accept those who are younger or older than these age brackets.

Families are also welcome to bring children 5 years and younger, but there will be no dedicated program offered.

Please also note that camping is the main option for families in each hamlet. Teen boys in Upper Hamlet are also required to camp separately with their teen program members (however they remain close to the adult/family camping areas). Upper Hamlet and New Hamlet have some limited rooms reserved for families and can be requested during the application process.

Parents and adults coming without children will be able to enjoy the adult program together which includes dharma talks, meditations and group sharings.

More information about joining us for a retreat

• Sample schedule
• Information about our hamlets
• Accommodation and contributions
• Transportation, what to wear, what to bring, and meals

Application for Children | Teens’ Program

Dear friends,

Thank you for coming to Plum Village each Summer and growing our sangha family together. 

We are aware that we do not have the physical capacity to accommodate all the families that wish to attend. We would like, as much as possible, to offer an inclusive registration experience.

The initial date for applying for the Children and Teens Program in the Summer Opening in Plum Village France will now be: 20th January 3pm CET. If you are coming with children aged 5 or under, you can also go through this application process.

From 20th Jan – 3rd Feb (a 14-Day window), families can continue to apply. 

From 3rd Feb – 8th Feb, a random selection process will take place. During this period, families that are selected will be contacted. 

Applications that were not selected will remain on a waiting list and will also be notified. Families can choose how long to wait.

We will continue to be open for new applications after 8th February, as there may still be available space in some programs.

Registration for singles and couples

Spaces for single individuals and couples coming without children will be available in all 3 hamlets.

We will aim to open registration for individuals and couples later on Saturday 15th March 3pm CET France time.

Volunteering for the Summer Opening

The Summer Opening is not possible without the support of our volunteers. In order to truly offer stability and peace to the retreat, we prioritize volunteers who can make a one month commitment (arrive on July 4 and depart on August 5).

The registration for volunteers will open on 1st January 2025.