Retreat on Iona
Thriving in Care
Rest and Restoration
A Retreat on Iona for Health Care and Frontline Workers
Arrival Sunday 23rd March 2025, departing Friday 28th March.
Booking opens Monday 2nd September 9am EST (scroll down to book)
Welcome!
Your first question might be, why Iona?
Situated in the Inner Hebrides, Iona has a very long lineage of drawing in travelers. It is known as a place of pilgrimage for those who wish to visit or volunteer at the historic Benedictine Abbey. Those who make the journey to this remote place of beauty notice it holds a lasting fascination not easily put into words. This is attested by a local saying that once you have been, you are likely to return.
The idea for this retreat germinated after attending a retreat in March of this year in which your planners, Liz and Karin met. Back home for weeks afterwards the sense of elation, adventure and widening perspectives was surprisingly still present. We wondered what it would be like to offer this kind of backdrop combined with a gentle agenda to our healthcare and frontline friends and peers. While celebrating our resiliencies, new complexities have magnified how often we find ourselves in pockets of survival mode facing problems unsolvable on our own. What would the possibilities of taking a journey to far flung shores in the company and connection of a small group of peers unlock for a revitalized and wholehearted return to workplaces, communities and homes?
It is with huge gratitude to Rev. Prof. Stephen G Wright, Dr. Shona Johnston, Retreat Coordinator Pat Bennett, and our hosts at the St Columba Hotel, that
we will have the opportunity to collaborate, support each other and explore those possibilities.
Since the journey itself to arrive on Iona is an extraordinary part of the adventure, below is a list of planning suggestions. We look forward to hearing about your journeys and sharing ours.
See you there!
Planning:
If you are travelling from North America or Europe, you will most likely be landing in Glasgow or Edinburgh. Your route from there would be to Oban by car, bus or train. Onward by ferry to Craignure on the Isle of Mull, travelling across Mull by bus to Fionnphort, then the short ferry at Fionnphort to the Isle of Iona. The journey from Glasgow to Oban takes around 3 hours; the ferry to Mull is just under an hour and the bus across Mull about an hour and 15 minutes.
The trainline app is very user friendly.
https://www.thetrainline.com/
There are frequent trains from Glasgow to Oban or Edinburgh to Glasgow to Oban; the train arrives at the waterfront at the center of town and is beside the ferry dock.
West Coast Motors https://www.westcoastmotors.co.uk/services is the bus line available. The terminus in Oban is only a short walk from the ferry terminal.
The CalMac ferry has an app and a website
https://www.calmac.co.uk/
so that you can book ahead, keep an eye on the times and the possibilities for delays.
Although it is possible to fly, travel by train, bus or private transport to Oban and onward to Iona all in one day it will be exhaustive, require tight timelines and ultimately will be counterintuitive to a slowing down process. A low stress option is arriving in Oban a day early in order to catch the next morning ferry from Oban to Craignure. The St Columba Hotel is providing a private bus service across Mull from Craignure to Fionnphort and a timetable will be sent to you closer to the arrival dates.
(Similarly, on the return journey if you plan to travel straight back home- ferry delay or cancellation back to the mainland is a possibility and flexibility in your plans would be a helpful buffer.)
You may prefer to rent a car and make your own way to Iona. To do so you will need to book a ferry ticket in advance for the journey from Oban to Mull and pay for parking at Fionnphort as you will not be able to take your car onto Iona. Driving across Mull is a single track road with passing places; here is an Iona and Mull Tourism video with advice about driving across Mull. https://visitmullandiona.co.uk/guides/driving-on-mull/
You may prefer private transport from Glasgow and in this case, one option is a wonderful service from Brian Sutherland at Sutherland Tours. See below for his details. It would be optimal to book him by email as far in advance as possible.
Food along the way: the train has inconsistent trolly services from Glasgow to Oban, people tend to bring a picnic to enjoy along with the fantastic scenery. The ferry from Oban to Mull has a cafeteria with hot food. Oban is renowned for its seafood restaurants, and there are several hotel choices near the dock and train station.
Dress for the weather, which famously can be anything from sun, rain, wind and snow all in the same day. Good options are layers, hats, scarves, rain gear and weatherproof footwear.
You may prefer to slow down further by staying on Mull in which case there is a hotel 5 minutes walk from the Craignure ferry terminal https://www.crerarhotels.com/isle-of-mull-hotel-spa/
The St Columba Hotel website also has resources listed of how to make your travel plans.
https://www.stcolumba-hotel.co.uk/
A note from the hotel on how to book:
Bookings will open at 9am (EST) on 2nd September. To book please visit the online bookings page on our website St Columba | Book Now (guestline.net). Click on the ‘promo code’ link and enter the code RAR2025. Select the check-in date (i.e. the retreat start date 23rd March 2025) and the check-out date will automatically be indicated for you to select, giving a stay of 5 nights. Select the number of people in the room and then search. Your search will show the room types that are available and you can then proceed to book and pay securely online. Please note that the retreat can only be booked as a 5-night package. Should you wish to book any additional nights before or after the retreat you will need to make a separate booking, subject of course to availability. If you have any difficulty with any of this then please feel free to call us on 01681700304.
Rates are per person for a 5 night stay. They include dinner, bed and breakfast, and the course fee. Prices do not include: travel to and from Iona, other lunches, additional teas/ coffees, bar drinks with dinner etc
.