Retreat Centers
Partner Centers
Centers and monasteries where IMH practitioners have deepened their practice, trained as teachers, and found trusted dharma communities. Organized by region and tradition.
Core Insight Tradition Centers
Insight Meditation Society (IMS)
Barre, Massachusetts
Retreat Center
Co-founded by Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, and Jack Kornfield in 1975, IMS is the founding center of Western Vipassana. Rigorous, traditional, world-class teachers. Offers retreats ranging from a weekend to three months. IMH’s lineage connects directly through IMS-trained teachers.
IMH’s first teachers trained here. Our highest recommendation for serious practitioners.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center
Woodacre, California
Retreat Center
Founded by Jack Kornfield in 1988. Spirit Rock is known for warm, psychologically sophisticated teaching that integrates dharma with Western insights. Beautiful land in Marin County hills. Ginger Clarkson trained here under the Community Dharma Leader program.
Ginger Clarkson trained here. Excellent for practitioners integrating dharma with psychological work.
Insight Retreat Center (IRC)
Santa Cruz, California
Retreat Center
Founded by Gil Fronsdal, IRC emphasizes the classical Theravada teachings with particular attention to the jhanas and traditional sutta study alongside intensive meditation. Smaller and more intimate than IMS or Spirit Rock.
Particularly recommended for practitioners interested in classical Theravada and jhana practice.
Insight Meditation Center (IMC)
Redwood City, California
Urban Center & Online
Gil Fronsdal’s urban dharma center offering free weekly sittings, dharma talks, and workshops. Audio Dharma (audiodharma.org) is their vast free teaching archive — thousands of free dharma talks available online.
Their free online archive (audiodharma.org) is an invaluable resource for any practitioner.
Monasteries & Forest Tradition
Birken Forest Monastery
Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada
Monastery
Thai Forest tradition monastery in the lineage of Ajahn Chah and Ajahn Mun, under Ajahn Sona. Travis Hicks completed his Upasika (lay teacher) training here. Known for rigorous, joyful practice in stunning natural surroundings. Offers retreats for laypeople as well as long-term monastic training.
Travis Hicks trained here under Ajahn Sona. IMH’s most direct monastic lineage connection.
Bhavana Society
High View, West Virginia
Monastery
Founded by Bhante Gunaratana (author of Mindfulness in Plain English), the Bhavana Society is a forest monastery in the Sri Lankan Theravada tradition. Offers retreats for laypeople and monastic training. A wonderful environment for practitioners wanting deep forest practice in the Eastern US.
Particularly accessible for practitioners in the Eastern United States. Deeply traditional.
Texas & Regional
Austin Insight Meditation
Austin, Texas
Meditation Center
A sister Insight Meditation community in Austin. Offers weekly sittings, dharma talks, and occasional local retreats. For Houston practitioners who travel to Austin, or for Austin-area seekers who find our website — this is our closest geographic sangha partner.
Dallas Meditation Center
Dallas, Texas
Meditation Center
Theravada-rooted meditation community in Dallas serving the DFW metroplex. Another Texas Insight community worth knowing for practitioners in that area.
Planning a Retreat?
Talk to an IMH teacher before your first retreat. We can recommend the right center and retreat type for your practice stage.