Boldly Going Nowhere Retreat 2025 Goes to Mexico for the Spirit of the Jungle III

A Transformational Retreat at Chichen Itza, 1 of the 7 Wonders of the World

The jungle has a spirit and it captures you almost immediately. When we first arrived at Hotel Oka'an, we felt a lightness in our physical bodies, a deepening of our breath, and a softening of our hearts. We were just across the canopy from the Mayan city of Chichen Itza, 1 of the 7 Wonders of the World. The name Chichén means "mouth of the well" and Itzá refers to those who founded it, the Itzáes "water witches", around the year 435. We landed in the energy of the ancient Mayans... and we felt it! We felt partially transported back, a few thousand years. It felt like 50 pounds released from our shoulders. The stillness and peacefulness of this sacred place immediately enveloped us. 

What has eluded you will find you here!

We were fortunate to connect to the owner of the property, Celika, whose late husband called himself an astro-archaeologist and was passionate about educating the world about the brilliance of the Mayan culture. He designed Hotel Oka'an with specific connections to Chichen Itza, which we will allow Celika to explain at the retreat. Celika and her son continue to steward the land and property, sharing this everlasting intention to those who will open their spirit to the whispers of the ancients.

We knew at this moment that this was our next retreat location. Boldly Going Nowhere Spirit of the Jungle in Mexico was born. 

This is a little taste of it all: https://vimeo.com/942482797

Boldly Going Nowhere is a simple play on words.

nowhere = Now Here

Quantum physics often says that everything comes from nothing. NoThing. No thing. Yet how do we translate from quantum to human life? 

Why do many of our best ideas come when we are in the shower, or driving, or on an airplane, or doing what we love? Because we are present, our hands our empty, our brains are quieted, and we are available. We are not multi-tasking, running from app to app or store to store or conversation to conversation. We are not saturated with the incoming. Space is open for something to come in.

Boldly Going Nowhere is about making space. 

When we constantly strive, we never arrive. 

Boldly Going Nowhere is about arriving. 

Nowhere. Now Here. 

To begin.

Again.

Our mission is to inspire a path to nowhere. A place where all is manifest, all ideas are born, all possibilities exist. A place where clarity is born, peace lives, and chaos dies. A place many have been seeking - and through perpetual seeking, have perceived it to be unattainable. 

Boldly Going Nowhere is about un-doing. 

We do this by slowing down. We do this by creating space for joy, new experiences, and unforgettable memories that will forever inhabit your soul. This place is where the seeker becomes the seer, the striver becomes the arriver, the questioner becomes the knower.

Come be undone. 

We are honored and excited to share in this sacred journey with you, and to witness the next version of you. 

Go Boldly,

     Now Here.

Bob and Shannon

Each Boldly Going Nowhere event is held in a space of magnificent beauty. Even if we didn’t do a thing, you will be better for having been there. The energy of the earth places we choose will stay with you forever. This one is, by far, the most exquisite place we have chosen to date. It is 1 of the 7 Wonders of the World!

Each Boldly Going Nowhere event is best with limited devices. It’s not always all about the selfie, though we know you will want to snap some photos to remember your visit, the land, and the new friends you meet.

Each Boldly Going Nowhere event is about developing practices. This stuff will stay with you. You won’t go home scratching your head or wondering, "now what?"

Each Boldly Going Nowhere event features delicious whole food cuisine. Everything served will serve you. 

Each Boldly Going Nowhere event incorporates all of the practices and passions of Shannon and Bob that create a truly experiential retreat. There will be music and singing that will usher new depths of meaning. There will be wisdom discussions and meditation. There will be intentional activities that support contemplation and questioning. There will be breathwork. There will be silence and expansion. There will be movement. There will be ritual. There will be connection to the earth. 

Hear directly from the 2023 Spirit of the Jungle participants: https://youtu.be/6vDRMBqnIT4

The retreat activities will be prepared so the flow of events will build upon the last and a story - your story - will unfold. We ask everyone to be present for all sessions, not just for yourself but to co-create with and for everyone else.

Sometime throughout the week, we will:

-- release with a temazcal (Mayan sweat lodge) on site,

-- rejuvenate at a local cenote (sinkhole that accesses the underground river system), 

-- renew with a massage at Spa Oka'an, and

-- remember with a container of love surrounding you

SPECIAL ACTIVITY: We will visit Chichen Itza for the Spring Equinox. It is one of the most sacred days at the site. We will witness a very special event that people travel from all over the world to see. We will see the serpent arrive and receive all the magic of the Equinox energy. 

At the request of previous participants, we are ADDING a 4-day integration experience to the END of the retreat. The integration is limited to 10 people and designed to ensure that the intentions you set during the retreat are further conditioned before returning to the chaos of the world.

You will check out of Oka'an after breakfast on the 25th and spend a free day in Merida for shopping, central square market food and artisan wares, cultural museums, people watching, etc. (Tony will have plenty of ideas to share.)

You will meet Bob and Shannon at the new location (near Progresso) on the waters of the Gulf Coast for dinner that evening. 

We will have a relaxing 3 days together surrounded by water, integrating our commitments and receiving a special gift from an amazing practitioner. It will be less structured between breakfast and dinner, though we will have a few intentional sessions to ensure that your retreat intentions are clear and actionable once you return home!

We'll have breakfast together on Sat the 29th before check out. We will be very close to Merida, though you can fly out of either Merida or Cancun. (Please consider making a late afternoon or evening flight if you plan to leave from Cancun!)

Hotel Oka'an is in the jungle with minimal footprint. Expect wildlife from the area to visit you.

There are no elevators. Be prepared for walking up lots of stairs and between buildings. 

You will be asked a series of questions about room type and preference when you register. There will be 15 rooms with two double beds and 4 rooms with king beds available for retreat participants. We will do our best to accommodate as many requests as possible. Please note that ALL rooms have open-air windows and doors, which means that they are composed of screens with adjustable wooden slats. You will hear the sounds of the jungle and, potentially, your neighbors if the AC or heat is not running. Bungalows (or cabanas) have two rooms per building. The hotel-style building (or main house) has 3 floors with 4 rooms on each floor.

Pathways between buildings are unpaved and the property is not "flat". Flip flops are not the best to walk around the property, so bring some decent walking shoes. 

One of the meeting rooms is up 4 flights of stairs in the main building. The observation deck is the 5th floor and requires climbing a metal spiral staircase to the rooftop.

Airport arrival information and instructions will be added to the WhatsApp group chat within 2 weeks of the start of the retreat. Please add your flight information to your profile as soon as you have it.

The drive from Cancun airport to Hotel Oka'an is about 2.5-3 hours (plus 1-hour time difference). The drive from Merida airport to Hotel Oka'an is about 2-2.5 hours (in the same time zone). Your transportation driver will remind you to have your offerings ready for your arrival to Hotel Oka'an.

The retreat schedule will be available as needed. We want you to focus on getting to Cancun or Merida and meeting your group for transport. The rest will unfold organically. Each "next" activity or gathering location will be announced at meals.

What you may want to bring in your luggage:

1- Binoculars if you like bird watching. You will be standing ABOVE the jungle canopy if you choose to go to the observation rooftop!

2- Long pants and sweatshirt. The jungle floor may several degrees cooler than the top of the observation deck and offsite areas that we will tour.

3- Backpack to take offsite for souvenirs and change of clothes if you swim in the cenote.

4- Flashlight to walk around the property.

Please read (and KEEP) the more detailed FAQs in your registration confirmation email.

Your $555 deposit is non-refundable and due at the time of registration.

You can pay in full at the time of registration or follow the payment plan built into the registration. 

Tiered pricing encourages you to commit early. Each tier has a limited number of available registrations. Once the limit is reached for a particular tier, that price point will close.

• Tier 1: $3333 total. 5 available.
• Tier 2: $3444 total. 5 available.
• Tier 3: $3555 total. 5 available.
• Tier 4: $3666 total. 5 available.
• Tier 5: $3777 total. 10 available.

Payment plans for the balance due will be split into 5 equal monthly payments, the first on 14 October and the final payment on 14 February. If you register AFTER 14 October, your initial registration payment will automatically align with where the payment plan is at that time.

If you wish to guarantee a private room, please add that option to your registration. Otherwise, you will be paired with a roommate.

You will receive automatic payment reminder emails from WeTravel. We would greatly appreciate if you actually read them and respond (if necessary) as you receive them.

Please remember your WeTravel login so you can manage your payment information and complete your registration questionnaire as you have the information available.

By submitting your online registration with the non-refundable deposit, an understanding of and agreement with these policies are implied. You will also be required to confirm that you read and understand these policies in your registration questionnaire. Cancellation Policy is as follows:

• Beginning 1 Nov, 50% refund less deposit.
• Beginning 1 Dec, 25% refund less deposit.
• Beginning 1 Jan, no refund.
• Should the retreat be rescheduled for reasons beyond our control (national or international crisis), you will have the option for a full refund OR for the payment(s) to apply to the rescheduled dates.

Registration closes Sun 16 Feb 2025 so we can finalize payment to Oka'an and release unreserved rooms for booking outside of our retreat group.

We do our best to provide all of the pertinent information for you to make an informed decision about attending our retreat. We spent our time including a lot of detail and trust that you will spend time reviewing that information. Between the retreat description on WeTravel and FAQs provided after you register, we believe most of your questions will be answered. 

Please review the WeTravel description and read through the FAQs before posing questions to the facilitators. If the answer was covered in the retreat description or in the FAQs, you will be asked to refer back to them.

The registration questionnaire will help clarify lodging and meal logistics and is where you will identify your preferences, food allergies, etc. Please trust the process and refrain from sending the facilitators questions until AFTER you receive your registration confirmation email. 

You can always return to complete and adjust the answers on your questionnaire by logging into your account. Instructions are included in the FAQs.

The FAQs are part of your registration confirmation email and are lengthy because they were prepared from questions that we received prior to or during previous retreats. Please save the email somewhere and refer to it before posing questions to the facilitators. 

The FAQs will also be the first thing shared in the WhatsApp group chat two weeks prior to the start of the retreat.