People ask me why this retreat costs $2,495.
Fair question. Most men's retreats charge between $500 and $5,000. Some charge more. The range is absurd because the experiences are absurd — everything from a guy with a podcast renting a cabin for the weekend to a luxury resort in Costa Rica where you do breathwork between massages.
Here's what I can tell you about our number: I didn't start with a price and build backward. I started with what the experience needed to be and then figured out what it cost.
What $2,495 covers
Everything. That word gets thrown around, so let me be specific.
Lodging. A century-old stone lodge on a private lake. Private bedrooms — not bunk beds in a church basement. The kind of place that has a history most people will never know.
Food. A private chef for the entire weekend. Seared steaks. Lobster. Fresh seafood. Gourmet breakfasts. Soup and chili on the stove around the clock for the guys still talking at 2 AM. Locally roasted coffee from Ember Coffee Co. Charcuterie and snacks 24/7. This is not camp food. When a man's guard is down, he deserves to be nourished — genuinely.
Transport. Private bus from the meeting point to the venue and back. You don't drive yourself. You don't know where you're going. That's part of the design.
Programming. Three days of structured emotional work. Guided conversations led by men who've lived it. Home Fire groups of five. The Silence. The Fire Ceremony. Physical ordeals designed with intention. Everything that makes this what it actually is.
The extras. Wood-fired sauna. Live acoustic guitar by the fire. Hand-forged keepsakes — an iron token placed in your hand at the closing circle. A letter you write to yourself that arrives in your mailbox 90 days later. Locally roasted coffee. Craft sodas and herbal teas (this is an alcohol-free weekend).
What's not included: Nothing. There is no upsell. No add-on. No "premium tier." Every man gets the same bus, the same table, the same fire.
Why it's not cheaper
I could make this cheaper. I could serve pizza instead of steak. I could use a church camp instead of a historic lodge. I could skip the private chef and do potluck. I could cut the transport and tell men to drive themselves.
But every one of those cuts removes something that matters. The food isn't a luxury — it's a tool. When men sit at one long table and someone passes them a beautiful meal they didn't have to earn, something shifts. The lodge isn't set dressing — the land does half the work before any program element begins. The bus ride isn't logistics — it's the first act of surrender.
I looked at what actually works at men's retreats and what fails. The programs that change men don't cut corners on the container. The environment is the curriculum.
The scholarship
Money should never be the reason a man doesn't get help. The Heroes' Journey Scholarship Fund covers 1-2 men per session. The application includes a phone interview. If you're selected, no one at the retreat will ever know. Same bus. Same table. Same fire. Apply for a scholarship here.
Is it worth it?
I can't answer that for you. I can tell you that a man who spends three days without his phone, sitting at a fire with other men who stopped performing, eating food someone made for him, hearing stories that crack something open — that man goes home different.
Not fixed. Different. And sometimes different is worth everything.
See what the weekend looks like. Or if you're ready, apply now.