The Best Men's Retreats in the USA, From $450 to $6,900

The best men's retreats in the USA are not one thing. They run from a $450 five-day ritual held in a state park to a $6,900 clinical week with a licensed therapist in the room, and the gap between those two is not quality, it is what you are actually there to do. This page covers six established programs that have been running long enough to have a track record, what each one is really like, and how to work out which category you belong in before you spend the money.

If this would be your first retreat of any kind, read what to expect on a first retreat alongside this, and confirm every date and price directly with the organization before booking, because schedules move through the year.

The six programs, compared

1. Illuman, Men's Rites of Passage

Five days. $450 requested minimum, scholarships available. Multiple US locations.

The Men's Rites of Passage is a five-day retreat run by Illuman, inspired by the work of the Franciscan writer Richard Rohr. It is deliberately unadorned: no phones, no comfortable hotel, largely outdoors, structured around ritual and reflection rather than workshops and talks. The organization frames it as a chance to reflect, discover a deeper sense of who you are and what matters most, and step more fully into the man you want to be.

What makes it unusual is the price. Illuman asks $450 as a minimum from those who can cover it, and states plainly that scholarships are available for those who cannot, which puts a serious five-day program within reach of men who would never look at a retreat otherwise. Regional groups run it in different states: 2026 dates include Texas at John Knox Ranch in Fischer, September 30 to October 4, and the Great Lakes gathering at Pilgrim Park in Princeton, Illinois, August 12 to 16.

Go if: you want depth and ritual, you are comfortable with a contemplative Christian frame even if you are not religious, and you would rather spend on the experience than the accommodation.

2. ManKind Project, New Warrior Training Adventure

48 hours. $850 to $1,195 depending on location. Across the US and Canada.

The New Warrior Training Adventure is the best-known men's initiation program in North America, and the numbers say why: more than 65,000 men have completed it since 1985. It runs from Friday evening after 5pm to Sunday afternoon after 3pm, with a group of between 15 and 40 other men, supported by 20 to 50 staff and leaders. That ratio is the giveaway; this is a staffed, structured, high-intensity weekend, not a workshop.

Prices vary by region, from $850 to $1,195, and 2026 trainings are scheduled in North Carolina, California, Missouri, Colorado, Texas, Michigan and British Columbia among others. The organization describes it as a modern male initiation and self-examination aimed at a healthy sense of masculinity and connection to others.

Go if: you want the intensive end of the spectrum, you have heard about it from someone who did it, and 48 hours is what you can realistically take off. Read the material properly first: it is confronting by design and it is not for everyone.

3. Omega Institute, Men's Retreat, Rhinebeck NY

Six days. $890 tuition for members, $990 standard, plus accommodation. Rhinebeck, New York.

Omega's Men's Retreat, led by David Elliott, is the most conventional retreat format on this list, and that is a point in its favor if the initiation model does not appeal. It runs as a healing circle of men on Omega's 200-acre Hudson Valley campus, built around Elliott's breathwork meditation, partner work and open circle sessions, covering purpose, family relationships, emotional blockages and self-love.

Watch the pricing structure: the $890 or $990 figure is tuition only. Accommodation, from dormitory to private cabin, is added on top, which can double the total. That is standard for Omega and Kripalu and it catches first-timers out.

Go if: you want six days rather than a weekend, you would rather work through breath and group process than ritual, and you like the idea of a large campus with other programs running alongside.

4. Kripalu, Stockbridge MA: three different men's programs

Three days to a long weekend. Tuition plus accommodation. Berkshires, Massachusetts.

Kripalu, at 57 Interlaken Road in Stockbridge, runs more than one men's program a year, which makes it the most flexible entry point on this list.

• Kripalu Retreat for Men, led by Micah Mortali, who founded Kripalu's School of Mindful Outdoor Leadership, with Kripalu faculty member Chris Holmes. It is the outdoor one: making fire with flint and steel, meditating outside, yoga on the mat, traditional archery, and evening council around a fire.
• The Way of the Empowered Man, a three-day retreat with Johnny Gillespie of Empowered Wellness, built on yoga and movement fundamentals, meditation and fitness. The most physical of the three.
• Permission and Refuge, a Healing Retreat for Men of Color, facilitated by Reggie Hubbard, Stephon Bradberry and Chance York, with 2026 dates of May 25 to 29 and October 30 to November 1.

Go if: you want a well-run center with good food and a real bed, and you would like to pick the flavor rather than take whatever is on offer. As at Omega, tuition and accommodation are priced separately.

5. Esalen Institute, Big Sur CA

Varies by workshop. Big Sur, California.

Esalen has been running since 1962 on the Big Sur coast, and its schedule includes men's workshops among a much larger general program: Intro to Esalen Massage for Men, with Sam Sebastian and Malachi Stone, runs May 15 to 17, 2026, for example. Esalen's men-specific offerings are occasional rather than a standing annual retreat, so it rewards checking the calendar rather than assuming.

Go if: the setting matters as much as the program, and you are content to take a general workshop with a men's element rather than a dedicated men's retreat.

6. Onsite, Living Centered Program, Tennessee and California

Six days. $6,900 including lodging and meals. Two campuses.

Onsite is the outlier here, and the one to consider if what you are dealing with is heavier than burnout. The Living Centered Program is a therapist-guided group therapy program, running six days across campuses in Tennessee and California, in small cohorts of six to ten people. The daily structure is explicit: meditations, psychoeducational lectures, six hours of experiential group therapy with your cohort, and guided community activities. It works on trauma, shame, family dynamics, codependency and relationships, using experiential and psychodrama modalities.

It is not men only, and it is not cheap: $6,900 covers lodging and meals as well as the program. But it is the only entry on this list with clinical staffing, and for some men that is exactly the right level of support. If you are closer to exhaustion than to crisis, see burnout recovery retreats instead.

How to pick the right category

Three questions settle it faster than reading twenty websites.

What are you actually there to do? If the honest answer is rest and reset, a general wellness retreat will serve you better than any men's program, and it will cost less. If the answer involves something specific about being a man, about fatherhood, work, anger or a transition you are in the middle of, the men's format earns its place because the room is not doing translation work for you.

How much support do you need in the room? Peer-led circles, staffed initiations and clinician-led programs are three different levels, and the price roughly tracks it. Be honest about which one you need rather than which one you can afford.

What can you actually take off? A 48-hour weekend that you attend beats a six-day program you cancel. That is the most common failure, not picking the wrong retreat.

Two practical notes. Almost everyone arrives alone at these, so the solo question resolves itself, though going on a retreat alone covers the rest of it. And check the total cost, not the headline: Omega and Kripalu quote tuition separately from accommodation, while Onsite and Illuman quote inclusive figures. Our page on what a wellness retreat costs breaks down where the money goes.

Before you book anything, read the red flags worth walking away from and how to choose a wellness retreat. For the counterpart list, see the best women's retreats in the USA, or start from the Retreat Central homepage. Program details here were taken from mankindproject.org and eomega.org among other organizers' own pages; confirm current dates and prices with them directly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best men's retreat in the USA?

It depends on what you want from it. The ManKind Project's New Warrior Training Adventure is the best known, a 48-hour staffed initiation that more than 65,000 men have completed since 1985, priced from $850 to $1,195. Illuman's five-day Men's Rites of Passage is the best value at a $450 suggested minimum with scholarships. Omega's six-day Men's Retreat in Rhinebeck is the most conventional retreat format of the three.

How much does a men's retreat cost?

The range is wide. Illuman asks a $450 minimum for five days, the ManKind Project charges $850 to $1,195 for a weekend, Omega's tuition is $890 for members or $990 standard before accommodation, and Onsite's clinically staffed six-day program is $6,900 including lodging and meals. Always check whether accommodation is included, because at Omega and Kripalu it is not.

How long do men's retreats last?

Most fall into two shapes: a 48-hour weekend, like the ManKind Project's training which runs Friday evening to Sunday afternoon, or five to six days, like Illuman's Rites of Passage, Omega's Men's Retreat and Onsite's Living Centered Program. Kripalu runs shorter three-day formats as well. A weekend you actually attend is worth more than a week you cancel.

Are men's retreats religious?

Some carry a spiritual frame and most do not. Illuman's Men's Rites of Passage is inspired by the work of Richard Rohr, a Franciscan writer, and has a contemplative Christian lineage, although men of any background attend. The ManKind Project, Omega, Kripalu and Onsite programs are not religious. Read the organization's own description rather than assuming from the name.

Do I need to be in crisis to go on a men's retreat?

No, and most attendees are not. These programs are generally aimed at men in transition or stuck rather than men in acute distress. If what you are dealing with is closer to clinical, Onsite's Living Centered Program is therapist-guided and staffed for it, and that is a materially different level of support from a peer-led circle.

Will I be the only one there on my own?

Almost certainly not. Men's retreats are built around a group that forms on arrival, and most participants come alone, which is why shared meals and structured sessions do so much of the introducing. Group sizes vary: the ManKind Project runs 15 to 40 participants, while Onsite works in cohorts of six to ten.