Self-Care for Women Moving through Loss
Andalucia, Spain - September 2025
Women’s Self Care Workshop
September 21-28, 2025
We all need to tend to ourselves — mind, body, and spirit. This becomes particularly important when navigating natural transitions such as aging and loss. After a loss, the need to care for ourselves is especially pronounced. The loss of a spouse or other loved one stresses the body and may send us into an emotional tailspin.
Over the years, we’ve seen that many women travel with our groups who had previously traveled with their partners. We welcome these folks who look for a bit of guidance, safety, and companionship and we do believe they have enjoyed and benefited from being on our trips.
And yet we have wanted to do more for these travelers who are moving through loss. With this trip to Spain, we are offering a supportive space to explore the universal and uniquely individual experience of loss, all within the structure of one of our tours.
A bit like travel baggage, loss is something we carry with us wherever we go. When our baggage is too heavy to carry, it hinders our ease of movement and ability to find enjoyment. Exploring creative ways to carry these experiences allows us to move through them naturally, with less effort, greater balance, and flexibility.
The Workshop
This workshop will be led by two retired bereavement professionals. Patty Dunn, is a long-time hospice caregiver and bereavement educator. She will be joined by Cicely Carroll, founder of Travel Fever Tours, and a retired clinical social worker and bereavement counselor at the local hospice in Brattleboro, VT.
During the workshop portion of the trip, we will meet for group discussions in the morning and right before dinner. These discussions, led by Patty and Cicely, offer an opportunity to explore creative strategies for managing the challenges of loss, while ensuring that you are giving yourself the care you need.
Beyond this, you will participate in a variety of activities. Some will help you focus on self-care, while others are designed just to introduce you to the wonderful culture of Andalucia, Spain. Some of these activities will include:
A day trip to Seville
Gentle walks through the Andalucian countryside
Yoga with a Spanish yoga instructor
Watercolor painting
A visit to a local olive oil mill
Time to sit on the terrace to watch the sun set over a lovely valley
A trip to Ronda, an amazing town built on a cliff
And in general, we will eat well and enjoy one another’s company.
Note that all activities on the trip are optional. You might like to sit some things out and instead relax beside the pool at our hotel.
Dates: September 21-28, 2025
Location: Zahara de la Sierra (Andalucia), Spain
Cost: $3950 (see below for details)
Single Supplement: No cost for this trip
Maximum group size: 12
More:
See below for full trip details and costs
Meet your workshop leaders
Patty Dunn
Patty Dunn has provided emotional and practical support to people facing the end of life and living with loss for 32 years in professional and volunteer roles. This includes work as a trained hospice volunteer; manager/caregiver at 14-bed hospice residence; founder/care partner of end-of-life caregiving service for people in their homes; managed non-medical hospice programs; guide for people seeking medical aid in dying; peer support counselor/educator for grieving individuals, families and children.
Cicely Carroll
Cicely, the founder of Travel Fever Tours, is a life-long social worker and a retired clinical therapist. She also holds a degree in social work and fine arts and has enjoyed drawing and painting wherever she travels.
Prior to retiring, Cicely was the bereavement counselor at Brattleboro Area Hospice where she ran bereavement groups, organized workshops, and offered one-on-one therapy.
Where We’ll Be Located
Zahara de la Zahara, Andalucia, Spain
The town of Zahara de la Sierra, the home base of this tour, is a classic, white Spanish village. It enjoys fabulous views across a valley and lake and is capped by a Moorish castle. This “Pueblo Blanco” owes its history to a strategic position between Seville and Ronda. This central location, and its breath-taking setting, makes Zahara an unmatched headquarters for this workshop.
The town lies less than 1.5 hours from the modern airport in Seville, where you will arrive. The town is half an hour from Ronda, a town that sits on an extraordinary cliff and was first made known to many Americans by Ernest Hemmingway.
To reach Seville, the meeting point of this workshop, you can fly directly into the airport, or take a high-speed train from Madrid. And Seville can be a perfect place to spend a few days acclimating to Spain prior to the workshop.
Our Hotel
During this workshop, we will stay at the quiet, family-run Los Tadeos Hotel. It is a traditional but modern Spanish hotel. It is small and boasts a delightful restaurant where we’ll have breakfasts and some dinners. Many rooms have a terrace with a westerly view over the hills towards the sunset. There is also a beautiful infinity pool which in September, when we’ll be there, is still warm enough for a swim.
We have had groups at this hotel many times previously and before that we often stayed here on weekend getaways when we lived in Spain. It’s a lovely place and is run by a wonderful family.
See more about the hotel at: www.alojamientoruralcadiz.com
Trip Details
(Click + to expand)
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September 21-28, 2025 (7 nights - 8 days)
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Total cost of the tour: $3950
Supplement for single occupancy: $0 - No cost for this trip.
Deposit required to reserve a place on the tour: $450
(Places in the tour are limited to 12 and are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. We recommend that you reserve your place early!)Payment schedule
$450 deposit. The deposit is refundable through June 1, 2025.
$1750 initial payment (Due June 1, 2025)
$1750 final payment (Due August 1, 2025)
All payments are refundable if we need to cancel the trip due to government restrictions or unsafe travel conditions.
** Earn a $300 discount when you bring or refer a friend.
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The workshop
Excursions and special activities throughout the week
Pickup and drop-off at designated airport
7 nights lodging (with single rooms at no additional cost)
7 dinners and breakfasts, with appropriate amounts of alcohol
Local transportation by van and driver
What’s not included:
Airfare & Travel Insurance
Lunches
Misc. entry fees
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We will stay at the quiet, family-run Los Tadeos hotel (www.alojamientoruralcadiz.com). The hotel is small and boasts a delightful restaurant where we’ll have breakfasts and some dinners. There is also a beautiful infinity pool which in September, when we’ll be there, is still warm enough for a swim.
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Dinners will be taken at local restaurants throughout the week. Breakfasts are at our hotel.
Vegetarian options are available.
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To extend your trip, and take some time to catch up on your sleep before the workshop begins, you may wish to arrive early. Spain offers many options and we're happy to make suggestions for you.
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Your deposit is non-refundable after June 1, 2025 unless of course the trip is canceled for any reason by Travel Fever Tours. Natural disasters, political instability or low enrollment would form the basis for canceling a trip. After that date, payments you make are nonrefundable.
You will be contacted once the trip reaches minimum enrollment so that you can proceed with purchase of your flights and make other travel arrangements. In all cases, review of enrollment numbers will not take place any later than the date of the First Installment payment.
