Retreat terms

Cancellation and refunds

If you need to cancel, please tell us in writing at registration@kathy-fish.com. Your refund depends on the date we receive your notice:

• Before January 4, 2027: 100% of what you have paid, minus the $500 deposit.
• Before March 1, 2027: 50% of what you have paid, minus the $500 deposit, unless we are able to find a replacement for your place. Then a full refund minus the $500 deposit.
• On or after March 1, 2027: no refund, unless we are able to find a replacement for your place. Then a full refund minus the $500 deposit.

The $500 deposit is non-refundable in every case.

If we cancel the retreat

If we cancel a retreat session for any reason, we will refund everything you have paid for it, including your deposit. We are not responsible for other costs you have incurred, such as flights, trains, or accommodation before or after the retreat, which is one reason travel insurance is required.

Missed payments

If a balance payment hasn't arrived by its due date, we will send you a reminder. If payment is not made within 48 hours of that reminder, your place will be forfeited and the cancellation and refund schedule above will apply as of that date.

Changing weeks and transferring your place

Your place is for the week named in your invitation. Changing to the other week is not possible.

If you can't attend, you may send another writer in your place with Kathy's approval. Your replacement agrees to these terms, provides the same information as other participants (including proof of travel insurance), and takes on any payments still due. Any money between you and your replacement is for the two of you to arrange.

Shared rooms

If one of two writers sharing a room cancels or forfeits their place, the other writer may choose to:

• keep the room on their own at the single-room rate of $2,695;
• find a replacement roommate, with Kathy's approval; or
• cancel, with the cancellation and refund schedule above in effect.

Travel insurance (required)

Every participant must have travel insurance for the retreat. Your policy should cover:

• Trip cancellation and interruption
• Emergency medical care in France
• Emergency medical evacuation and repatriation

Please send proof of coverage (your policy certificate or policy number and insurer) to registration@kathy-fish.com with your final balance payment, on or before March 1, 2027.

Travel insurance is what protects the money you've paid if illness, a family emergency, or travel disruption keeps you from coming after our refund dates have passed. We recommend buying it soon after you pay your deposit: many policies only include cover for pre-existing medical conditions, or “cancel for any reason” upgrades, if you buy within a short time of your first trip payment. Check your own health insurance too; many plans, including US Medicare, give little or no cover outside your home country.

Some places to start:

• Allianz Travel Insurance — Single-trip plans with cancellation, medical, and evacuation cover.
• Travel Guard (AIG) — Plans with optional Cancel For Any Reason upgrades.
• World Nomads — Available to residents of many countries, not only the US.
• Squaremouth — A comparison site for plans from many insurers.

We don't endorse these companies or receive anything from them. Compare policies and choose the cover that suits you; the right plan depends on where you live and your health.

Health, fitness, and risk

The house is a nineteenth-century village home with no elevator. Every bedroom is one or two flights of stairs above the shared rooms. The village streets are cobbled in places, and the excursion involves walking on uneven ground.

By taking part, you confirm that you are able to manage these conditions and that you take part at your own risk. Please tell us before the retreat about any medical, mobility, dietary, or accessibility needs so we can plan for them where we can. You are responsible for bringing any medication you need.

Conduct and the workshop space

These retreats depend on trust. We ask everyone to treat fellow writers, Kathy, our hosts, and the house with respect and kindness.

• Work shared during the retreat belongs to its author. Please don't share, quote, or publish another writer's work without their permission.
• Personal stories told in sessions and around the table stay there.
• Feedback is given with care and focuses on the writing, not the writer.

We may ask anyone whose behavior disrupts the retreat or makes others feel unsafe to leave, without a refund.

Photos and recordings

We may take photos, and occasionally short video, during the retreat and use them to share and promote Kathy's retreats and workshops, for example on her website, in newsletters, and on social media. Your writing will never be recorded or published without your permission.

You can opt out at any time. Just tell us at the retreat or write to registration@kathy-fish.com, and we won't use images of you.

Program changes

We'll do our best to keep to the schedule as described, but details may change because of weather, strikes, illness, or the availability of our hosts, chef, or excursion venues. If something changes, we'll replace it with something of similar value where we can. Changes like these are not grounds for a refund.

Arrival and departure

You are responsible for getting yourself to and from Tarbes, France. We will coordinate pickup and drop-off times between Tarbes (the train station or Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport) and the house with each participant, based on your arrival and departure schedules. Please send us your travel plans once they're booked.

Alcohol

Local wine is served with dinner and an evening apéritif is offered. Drinking is always optional, and non-alcoholic drinks are available. If you choose to drink, please do so responsibly and with consideration for others.

Privacy

We use the information you give us only to run the retreat. We will not sell or share your personal information with third parties, except where needed to provide the retreat: for example, payments are processed securely by Stripe, and we pass dietary or accessibility needs to our chef and hosts.

Limitation of liability

You take part in the retreat, the excursion, and all activities at your own risk. We are not responsible for injury, illness, loss, theft, or damage to personal belongings, except where caused by our own negligence.

We are not responsible for the services of independent providers, including airlines, trains, and other transport, or for delays, cancellations, or costs arising from them.

We are not liable for failing to provide the retreat, or any part of it, because of events beyond our reasonable control, such as natural disasters, severe weather, pandemics, government action, strikes, or travel disruption. If this causes us to cancel, the refund in “If we cancel the retreat” applies.

To the extent the law allows, our total liability to you is limited to the amount you have paid for the retreat. Nothing in these terms limits rights you have that cannot be limited by law.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Colorado, United States. If any part of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the rest remain in effect.