ALFOXTON AND POETRY RETREAT
Re-trace the friendship and feeling behind the Lyrical Ballads
11th - 14th September 2025
William and Dorothy Wordsworth lived at Alfoxton in 1797–8, near their friend Samuel Coleridge, who lived with his family in nearby Nether Stowey. In that year each of them wrote some of their finest work – the volume of poems called Lyrical Ballads, including ‘The Rime of the Ancyent Mariner’, and ‘Tintern Abbey’, as well as Dorothy’s ‘Alfoxden Journal’. They called it their ‘year of marvels’.
The retreat will combine meditation with reading and exploring poetry, doing some writing, walking in the Quantocks in the footsteps of the poets, and generally reliving the spirit of English Romanticism but without any laudanum.
FACILITATION TEAM
DHIVAN
DHIVAN is a Buddhist practitioner, scholar and member of the Triratna Buddhist Order, currently based at Adhisthana retreat centre in Herefordshire, UK. Dhivan's research is in early Buddhist philosophy, and on the reception of ideas from Buddhist philosophy into western Buddhism. His book, This Being, That Becomes: The Buddha's Teaching on Conditionality was published in 2011.
Timings & TRAVEL
TIMINGS
Unless otherwise stated, please arrive between 3-5pm on the first day. Dinner will be served at 6pm. Our retreats usually finish by midday on the last day.
The exact schedule will be provided either in your confirmation email or when you arrive.
TRAVEL
The nearest railway stations are Bridgwater and Taunton. We are about 1h 15min from Bristol by car.
The 15 bus leaves Bridgwater at 16:50 during college term dates and stops at the Plough Inn in Holford. We are a 15min walk from there.
Please get in touch for further advice with public transport, or for help arranging lifts / carpools.
Make sure to put "Coach House 2, Alfoxton Park" into Google Maps. Other variations will take you to Alfoxton House nearby which is not us. Otherwise use grid reference 51.165187, -3.220080.
The What3Words for our car park are ///soup.candy.huddling
Accommodation & Food
ACCOMMODATION
This is a camping retreat - bring a tent or live-in vehicle. Toilets, showers and a sauna are available. We have limited accommodation indoors for those with specific needs. Please let us know when you book if this is the case for you.
FOOD
Delicious vegan meals will be provided throughout the retreat.
accessibility & diets
We are committed to Alfoxton being a fully accessible venue and are working hard to achieve this. However, while the renovation work continues, visitors with specific mobility or accommodation needs may experience barriers to accessing all areas of the building and land.
If you have any questions or concerns, just get in touch, and please inform us of any significant dietary or accessibility requirements before submitting your booking request.
Costs
Alfoxton Park is a charity and works on the principle of Dana or a 'gift economy'. Read more about Dana here.
A deposit of £78 will secure your place. You will be invited to make a donation to Alfoxton when you attend.
If you are an Triratna Order member and need financial support to pay a retreat deposit, you can apply for a grant from the Abhayaratna Trust.
Technology, alcohol and drugs
All of our events are alcohol and drug free. During the meditation retreats we ask you to turn off your mobile phones and other devices and not contact people outside of the retreat. For all other events and workshops we ask you to be mindful of the use of devices and stay present, in order to make the most of your time here.
Any Questions?
Check our FAQ page or send us an e-mail at events@alfoxtonpark.org.uk