What's Included
- Four-nights accommodations at the centrally located and charming Don Orione Artigianelli Cultural Center
- An intimate group of 6-8 moms from all over the world. Our group will run alongside Pink Pangea’s writing retreat.
- Breakfast each day
- Daily journaling sessions and reflective discussions
- Tours throughout Venice, including: Peggy Guggenheim Museum, Doge Palace, and the Rialto Market
- Tour alum discount of $50 for each tour you’ve taken prior to 2016
In Venice, we’ll take vaporetto boat trips along the Grand Canal where we will be able to see the front doors of palaces built when Venice was the world’s richest city. One trip will end at Piazza San Marco where we will visit Doge’s Palace and the Basilica San Marco. We’ll also spend one afternoon at the Rialto Market feasting our eyes on the abundance of vegetables, fruits, and other market specialties.
What's Not Included
- Airfare to Italy
- Transportation tickets within Venice
- Lunches and dinners
Itinerary
Day 1
We’ll get together at our charming hotel at 5pm for a welcome and orientation discussion session. We’ll go over the schedule in detail, meet our fellow moms, and start getting to know each other. After, we’ll head to a nearby plaza for dinner and eat our first of many delectable Italian dishes. Some of us will be jet lagged and others will be raring to go. For the latter, we recommend exploring Venice’s romantic alleyways and snapping photos of the canals, sparkling in the moonlight.
Day 2
We’ll wake up to a beautiful morning in Venice and enjoy a breakfast of croissants, coffee, and juices. Then, we’ll head to the stone courtyard, where we’ll enjoy our first journaling and discussion session in the warm Venetian breeze. Our daily sessions are designed to help us explore where we are in life, rediscover our own personal identities, connect with other moms in a meaningful way, and process the transformation that happens when we travel.
We’ll break for lunch, indulging in mouthwatering Italian delicacies once again. Then, we’ll hop on a Vaporetto water taxi to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, which houses some of the best modern art from Picasso to Dali to Pollock. We’ll linger in the gorgeous sculpture garden, and then head to dinner.
Day 3
Once again we’ll begin our morning with breakfast followed by a discussion and journaling session. In the afternoon, we’ll make our way to Saint Mark’s Square, a bustling area filled with top-notch restaurants and exquisite Gothic architecture. We’ll head to Doge Palace, the impressive headquarters of the Venetian Republic, which existed for more than 1,000 years.
We’ll tour the frightening prison located inside, and then decompress by taking in the gorgeous art. For dinner, we’ll find street side cafes, watching the gondolas pass—or fulfilling our dreams of taking a ride in one ourselves!
Day 4
Following another magical morning session, we’ll ride a vaporetto, admiring the water glistening and snapping photos of the extraordinary views. We’ll land at the Rialto Market, taking in the mountains of seafood and fruit, stopping for a frothy cappuccino, and stepping in and out of glass and leather shops. We’ll end the day with a celebratory dinner of red wine, caprese salads, pasta, and tiramisu. Delizioso!
Day 5
We’ll savor our last breakfast and conclude our retreat with a final discussion session. Get ready for laughter, tears, hugs, and promises that you make and keep to reconvene in new exotic locations.
Itinerary specifics subject to change.
Reviews
“I finally remembered what I really need, and who I really am.”
— Alex Pendleton
“The trip did everything for me. Planned by the amazing team behind Pink Pangea, I can officially say the trip changed my life for the better.”
– Kathryn Cardin
“The retreat was, to this day, one of the best things I’ve done.” — Hana LaRock
“And just like that, things I’d struggled to articulate started to flow out of me. Each day I wrote with these women, alongside them. I realized we were all holding each other up. We weren’t just sharing stories on the page; we were gifting each other pockets of our past.”
— Leonora Barton
“We’d discovered the joy of finding people in the same boat as ourselves, as well as the pleasure of sharing our stories in a supportive environment. Above all, I had taken inspiration from this now familiar group of strangers, who shared my love of exploring and writing, and had grown in confidence before my eyes.”
— Sara Chardin
Who Participates
Pink Pangea’s Travel Retreat for Moms is a transformative experience for moms who:
- Have an itch to self-reflect and be inspired
- Want to share thoughts and ideas with a small, intimate group of other moms
- Love to explore new places, or have always wanted to but have but never tried
- Are going to Venice for the first time, as well as frequent travelers
Facilitators
Cori Widen
Cori Widen is the mom of two young boys and works full-time in hi-tech marketing. She is the founder of a large network of career-oriented moms and after mentoring hundreds of moms professionally, she’s focusing on creating personal development experiences for moms through travel. She accidentally discovered her passion for the transformative magic of traveling with other moms and has been on a mission to share it ever since.
Cori is an experienced public speaker, a late-blooming traveler, and an American expat living in Jerusalem.
Weather in June
Venice’s weather is delightful in June. The days are mostly sunny and rain–when it comes–doesn’t last for long. Days will be in the mid 70s F (24 C). The nights are breezy and in the low 60s (about 16 C). We recommend packing layers, as well as an umbrella or rain jacket.
Pre-Trip
Pink Pangea’s staff will provide all of the information and support that you need to make this experience exceptional.
FAQ
How will we divide the time between reflective sessions and exploring Venice?
Our sessions will last around 1.5 hours per day, and we’ll spend the rest of the time enjoying Venice.
Will I get any time to myself?
Absolutely! You can have as much or as little alone time as you’d like. Feel free to sit out of organized touring when you feel the need, or choose to stay in at night and recharge if you prefer.
Who are the other women on the trip?
In our group and for all reflective sessions, you’ll be with other moms from anywhere in the world. For most of our organized tours, we’ll be joining another small group of women of all ages from all over the world who are attending a concurrent Pink Pangea Writing Retreat in Venice.
How will I get to the hotel?
From Marco Polo Airport in Venice, take the water bus Alilaguna and get off at the stop Zattere. Walk along the wide street in front of you for about 150 meters. You will find the entrance in front of the S. Agnese church.
In Conversation with Author & Researcher Majella Mark
