Get Unstuck in Two Days, Spain
Private life coaching retreat in the Alpujarras with Jessica McGregor Johnson
Available all year round on dates to suit you. Stay for 3 nights.
From £3750 per person including 3 nights accommodation, all coaching on the retreat, morning meditation, all meals, a massage on the first evening of your retreat and transport to and from Malaga or Granada airport and around the local area
One guest at any time
Best for: Getting clarity on what's next in your career or personal life
Not for: Trauma recovery or handling depression
In a nutshell: Mentor and guide Jessica McGregor Johnson is a highly qualified coach who has helped all sorts of people find the right way forward in their personal and professional lives over the last 14 years. Based in Spain, she’s grounded, light of heart and easy to be with, and particularly good at helping you access a truer path in any given situation. Her private 3-night Get Unstuck In Two Days individual retreats take place in one of the beautifully renovated traditional houses of the white-washed village of Bubion in the Alpujarras of Southern Spain or at Casa Ana, a glorious, boutique guesthouse in Ferreirola. Virtual Journeys available.
What’s Queenly?
Jessica has a fun, almost child-like, playfulness to her that keeps the energy light rather than heavy. She helps you see your world from a new perspective and gain powerful insights, and she’s especially brilliant at giving practical help – such as how to manage your diary, find staff to do stuff you don’t want to do or work out how to handle tricky situations. The highlight of these retreats is that there are no set dates - they can be arranged at a time to suit both you and Jessica.
What’s Lowly?
If you are in one of the traditional houses in Bubion you’ll have all the space to yourself but if you are at Casa Ana on a private retreat, you’ll share the space with other B&B guests. Jessica ensures that you always have private spaces to talk and reflect in though, so it never feels like a big issue.
Read our personal review
Caroline Sylger Jones reviews a powerful and super-private three night life coaching retreat at a gorgeous guesthouse in the Alpujarras of Spain
Have a peekRetreat Activities
Before attending a retreat you’ll have a ‘familiarity’ session with Jessica to check that she can help you and that you can connect. You’ll then arrange a mutually convenient time for your retreat, and afterwards will have a follow up session to ensure you are on the right track.
The retreats feature two full days of coaching, and they’re deliberately very intense. Each day begins with a grounding meditation led by Jessica on the terrace if the weather is fine, or inside if not, which Jessica can lead if you’ve never meditated before. Then there’s a four hour coaching session in the morning, followed by a few hours of downtime to digest what has gone on, which can be spent walking the local mule paths or just relaxing – these gaps are deliberately built in by Jessica to enable her clients to ‘get out of their heads’. A shorter follow up session takes place before supper every evening. As it is just the two of you, Jessica can vary the times according to your mood and energy levels.
During her daily sessions with you Jessica dips in and out of an impressive tool kit of techniques she has developed over the years to help you brainstorm ideas, get clarity on your points of confusion and work out a practical way forward. Many of the ah-ha's come through the conversations you'll have with her and she might do a ‘values test’, so you can get clarity on what your life values are and which of those you might not currently be honouring.
She might also use The Passion Test, a method for finding your passions and purpose in life devised by Janet Bray Attwood and Chris Attwood which we found particularly funny, clever and revelatory on our retreat with Jessica. Or Jessica will draw on the The Work of Byron Katie, a form of meditation designed to raise your awareness of your thought processes in any situation.
The retreats are open to everyone, of any age and from all walks of life, but tend to attract professional men and women with a personal or professional issue they want to deal with. Although Jessica tends to work with the bigger issues in life, such as whether to leave your job or relationship, or checking you’re on the right path in life, within that you might need help deciding something detailed, such as what to say at a business talk, or how to handle certain people in your life. Nothing is excluded and she asks you set an intention before your arrival so she can ensure that together you cover everything.
You’ll have one massage with a good local therapist included on the first evening – more can be booked in advance. During your retreat you’ll also visit one of the famous Alpujarra white villages and have the opportunity to buy local crafts and foods. Just a couple of minutes from the house are small meadows terracing the hillsides, and an era – a magical medieval threshing circle – ideal places to sit for quiet meditation and calm thinking, drawing or painting, or doing nothing at all.
Walking solo is a super way to digest everything during this retreat, and from the house or B&B you can walk out on rocky, Moorish tracks through the mountains and enjoy plenty of flowers, fig orchards and mulberry trees. Natural springs pepper the tracks where you can fill your water bottles. Some walks take you along the Trevelez river valley, others up and over the ridge from where you can enjoy spectacular views of the Sierra Nevada’s snow-capped peaks.
Personal spaces
Guesthouses: Jessica books either a lovely traditional white house in the white Alpujarra village of Bubion for your sole use or occasionally Casa Ana, a delectably converted, 400 year old guesthouse with just 12 rooms arranged around a flower-filled garden courtyard in the gorgeous white-washed village of Ferreirola.
Personal spaces
The traditional house in Bubion has been sensitively renovated from a near derelict village house to a lovely luxurious house with chestnut beams, beautiful tiled floor with underfloor heating and fully equipped kitchen. Comfy bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms decorated with traditional tiles overlook the valley and a large comfortable living room with a roaring log fire for the winters become the retreat space for your two days. The terrace looks over the valley all the way down to the sea and on some evenings you can even see Africa.
At Casa Ana bedrooms the bedrooms are all chicly simple and comfortable, with white washed walls, simple dark wood furniture, chestnut wood-beamed ceilings and hand-made terracotta tiles and white rugs on the floors. Locally hand-blended, natural soap is available in the bathrooms too. Each has a view, of the valley or the courtyard garden.
The best is a large double room, with French doors leading directly onto the garden and stunning views of the mountains beyond. It is spacious and comfortably furnished with an ensuite bathroom and is decorated with handmade tiles in patterns by Moorish designs of the Alhambra palace.
Insider Tips
Don’t bring posh clothes – it is all very casual, even in the restaurants. Leave your computer behind and let everyone know that you will be out of contact (except any emergencies) for the duration. Be ready to step away from your world for a while and focus on you.
When to Go
The retreats are available all year round. Spring and autumn suit those who prefer it less hot, summer is good if you love the heat and in the winter you can spend your days toasting your feet with a log fire. The area does get busier with walkers in spring, but never enough to take away from it's quiet and contemplative atmosphere.
Shared places
The house: Just arriving up in the Alpujarras gives you the feeling of groundedness, of leaving the rest of the world behind so you can focus on yourself and your life. In the traditional house in Bubion you and Jessica have the whole place to yourselves. There is a garden that is shared with the house next door but you have a beautiful terrace that looks straight down the valley to the sea which is where on warm days the coaching takes place. If it is too cold - or too hot in the sun - there is a comfy attractive living room to work in with traditional stone walls and a roaring log fire for the winter. You have your own kitchen so it is easy to make your own drinks and snacks.
Casa Ana, a 400-year-old house that was once an important family home with a wine press, olive oil store, barn and stables, is set around a pretty, flower-filled courtyard with various terraces on which you can sit and admire the inspiring, unpoint view across the Alpujarra mountains. Coaching takes place on one of the terraces in warm weather or in a spacious light sitting room on cooler days that guests have shared access to. It has an open fire, armchairs and a small kitchen with a fridge and a kettle so you can make your own hot drinks. There's underfloor heating so it's toasty in the winter months too.
Sustenance
In the village house in Bubion you will have breakfast in the house that Jessica will cater depending on your wishes including of course local freshly squeezed orange juice. Lunch is at a lovely local restaurant, on their pretty terrace when the sun shines. In Casa Ana breakfast starts with an amazing-tasting fresh juice made from the local oranges, followed by fresh fruit, cereals, eggs and lunches are simple and created by Jessica.
In the evening Jessica takes you out to eat at one of the local restaurants – you’ll drive to neighbouring white-washed villages for dinners in lively Spanish squares. You can drink or not drink alcohol – it is up to you. All the meals are included in the price of the retreat.
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Sustainability
The area of the high Alpjujarras is a National Park, where natural flora and fauna are taken care of and all new buildings are required to use traditional building materials and styles. Both houses employ local people to help support the the local economy. Jessica offers two pro bono places to local people in Spain who can’t afford to work with her but who need a helping head.
Virtual Journeys
Join mentor Jessica McGregor Johnson on her virtual two-day retreat and discover the clarity you need to get life moving again.
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LOCATION
Ferreirola/Alpujarra white villages
Airport: Malaga or Granada
Transfer time: 2.5 hours by road from Malaga or 1.5 hours from Granada.
Jessica McGregor Johnson is quite simply an outstanding individual and a gifted
coach, guide and mentor. A weekend retreat with Jessica, in the peace and
tranquility of the Spanish mountains, has changed my life from both a personal and
a career perspective. She helped expand my horizons and showed me that the
answers lie within. We just have to be brave enough to take the next step and she
makes those steps exciting not frightening.
Can it be done in a weekend? You bet! All you need is a guide like Jessica and your
expectations will be exceeded – as mine were.’ November 2016
I have just completed my third one-to-one retreat with Jessica in 18 months and consider it to be the best gift I can give to myself.
Jessica has had a significant effect on the growth and success of my business and has gently guided my personal growth. Jessica is wise and supportive yet always challenges me to challenge myself.
Put yourself first for once. Take a long weekend to work with Jessica in the peace and majesty of the Alpujaran mountains and I promise you won’t be disappointed! May 2018
Thanks Sheelagh, it was great to work with you and I love our repeat retreats that deepen the work that you do.
A friend of mine recommended Jessica as someone who may be able to help me sort out the tangle of issues I was wrestling with at work and at home. I looked at the options on her website and after speaking with her for probably an hour, decided that the 2 day retreat sounded like the sort of thing I needed: space away from my usual surroundings, with peace and quiet and most importantly, time. It was not something I have ever done before.
The retreat gave me time to reflect and talk through the things that have been troubling me and which I was not able to find my way through on my own. Little things really, not great big issues but things which, cumulatively, were enough to give me cause for concern. She was able to help me identify some key actions to take in the immediate, short and medium term to help me re-balance the things that are important to me. Nothing massively revolutionary, just small, manageable tweeks.
Jessica is excellent – she has a really open and friendly style which immediately put me at ease. She is very thoughtful – everything on retreat is about you – the two days are a mixture of 1:1 sessions and down time for relaxation. We talked, walked, read. All in all, I really valued my time away with Jessica. Her subsequent check-ins help keep you focused too!
Thanks N, it was a great pleasure to work with you and so glad that you found it useful, I can’t wait to see how things evolve:-)
I have just done the Two Days to Get Unstuck retreat with Jessica. It was awesome and she literally saved me from my worst, doubting, deeply wounded self in so many ways. I simply cannot recommend this wise, wise woman highly enough! And no – therapy haters – it does not include impossible rules and boundaries and your time is not up in an hour! Quite the opposite! Easily in the top five of the BEST experiences of my life – from my heart! Highly recommended for anyone at a crossroads, in serious pain or experiencing a hard wake-up call. She will guide you to make sense of it all and get back on the joyful road of life!
Thanks for the recommendation H, I really enjoyed your retreat and am so glad that you found it so good.
Jessica is a wise soul with a gift for helping others identify their needs and desires, see the way forward and feel excited about life. She knows more about human nature, how we limit ourselves and, more importantly, what we can do about it, than I thought anyone could.
In less than two days with Jessica she helped me understand my needs and values and I learned that happiness, for me, is having those needs met and living and working in a way that is aligned with my values. In my decades on this planet, I had not learned these basic truths about myself. She took less than two days to get me there.
And the whole experience was fun. I had a fantastic time with Jessica; she is funny, kind and clever. She has chosen a special place at Casa Ana. I left with more energy and optimism than I would have thought possible; and with practical advice and a plan.
I wish I could tell anyone who has found Jessica how lucky they are – and to seize the opportunity to spend time with her.
I loved both times you came out on retreat E, seeing the amazing progress you had made and then deepening that commitment to yourself to live the life you choose was great to be part of, thank you.
At first I thought a life coach could not really make an impact on my life, as, after all, it is only a set of discussions…and words can’t change anything…..
I have been proven so so wrong!
Words can’t change things but they can change your mindset! Life coaching is all BUT ethereal and philosophical, Jessica’s approach combines putting everything out of the table and tackling of these issues one by one with practical methods.
I have been able to use these methods immediately, and 4 weeks later feel that I am not drifting away feeling sorry for myself but able to take actions and chase away negative thoughts when I want to! This is is just so powerful! The notes Jessica sends are extensive and a strong anchor to get started in your new life!
I recommend the retreat, it is like being awaken out of bad dream and seeing some blue sky out of the window. Now the job of focusing of the blue sky is down to me!
At the beginning of the retreat you wonder if 2 days to get unstuck is enough – it is more than enough and the walk in the mountains allowed me to drop every piece of luggage that I have been wearisomely dragging around with me in case I let someone down. What a feeling to leave it all on the mountains and to allow the waters to wash over me and refresh my soul. I walked down off the mountain with the key in my pocket and the knowledge that from now on it is hand luggage only.
I am still working with Jessica upon my return and this is the second key – it is so easy to slip into old ways and feel that you must pick up the luggage that you dropped off as people are accustomed to you doing it for them. But just like those airlines – hand luggage only …. something has to come out if something extra has to go in. Keeping the focus on this is the start of me living my life.
Thank you Jessica for enabling me to drop the baggage, to showing me that I can have a life that I want – you have a beautiful office in the white villages – and a gift which enables people to know we are important , we can have the life we want and to fulfill our passions. I grateful that I meet you at such a time in my life when I needed to become unstuck…….
To anyone wondering if this is for them – stop and listen to your heart.. my heart told me to go even when my mind was fearful I can honestly say it was the best flight I took in a long time and I only had hand luggage going. …….. and I will continue to travel with hand luggage only….
Seeing you lob all that baggage off the side of the mountain was a highlight of our time together. The lightness in your step when we walked back was so visible and continuing to work with you and see your huge progress in creating the life you choose has been a privilege
I spent a snow bound two days on retreat with Jessica during which she helped me understand my values and needs, some of them not so surprising, others a realisation.
More importantly she helped me sift through recurring, backwards and forwards thoughts about my future, and I’ve come away knowing that I do indeed have some realistic do-able options, not just vague “if onlys”.
On a personal level, I found Jessica incredibly easy to talk to and I’ll remember our two days in the snowy mountains with fondness.
It felt very special sitting by the fire with you and you gaining the clarity you needed about what was possible, I really enjoyed our time together.
For me, serendipity and Jessica go hand in hand. I worked with Jessica in 2014 when I was recovering from breast cancer. I knew I wanted guidance to help me cope with this almighty wake up call but I couldn’t find anything that suited my need for the future focused thinking I so craved. Until I stumbled across a magazine article and there it was, or should I say there she was. Jessica’s coaching and guidance helped me beyond measure and resulted in me changing the course of my life. I have never looked back.
Fast forward to 2016, I have given up the corporate life to pursue my dreams, I have found the love of my life who I didn’t even think existed and I have removed so many of my self limiting beliefs that I had once lived my life by. However, there is only so much changing once girl can do without sometimes getting a bit stuck.
I felt stuck on something – I had no idea what – that was holding me back from pushing the button on my well planned and calculated new career.
And there she was again, in the form of an email. A retreat had come up at the last minute due to a cancellation and it clearly had my name on it.
I came to Spain, we eliminated some groundbreaking fears and I went home and I conquered. I feel like I should start wearing my pants on the outside with a cape to match. Not only did I feel like a different woman but my partner noticed as soon as he picked me up at the airport and I have been told by many people since that my eyes are sparkling so much with energy that it’s infectious – all in a good way.
The weekend was a flurry of ‘aha’ moments and insights about my fears and worries, what they really are and how to get rid of them – so much so I left me feeling like I’ve lost about two stone in weight.
I felt like the luckiest girl in the world being able to spend a weekend in the Spanish mountains with Jessica, spending time just on me. Having Jessica help me unpick the web of uncertainty I had carefully spun all on my own was invaluable. I arrived full of self doubt and frustration and I left full of energy, excitement and passion for the future. I’m now ready to push the button on my new career and more importantly to not give myself a hard time anymore.
I was well and truly unstuck and reinvented in two days.
Thank you Jessica! Your red carpet VIP invite will be with you before long.
I decided to fly 7,000 miles to a two-day retreat with Jessica based on nothing more than a review of her website and half hour phone conversation – this from a serious, responsible woman who doesn’t do anything without intensive due diligence and a huge, heaping helping of common sense.
It took three months before I could make the journey to Spain from my incredibly intense job, life, international travel schedule. I arrived feeling emotionally spent and physically and mentally exhausted. My, “wheel of life” looked like a crazy squashed snowflake rather than a beautiful bountiful circle. It was time to ask for help in reestablishing a healthy emotional, work-life balance, and building a more fulfilling life. I had gotten myself in over my head in many ways and needed direction, but had absolutely no idea where to begin or what to do.
Jessica is a wizard. In 48 hours she helped me on so many levels. She helped me to realize that my ideal for a much happier life was in my power all along. I had all the ingredients I needed, but the recipes needed to be rejiggered. There were so many, “ah-ha” moments – epiphanies of clarity and insight into unlocking blocks and turning around disappointments and frustrations so that they could become positive forces to move forward and build a wonderful future. Jessica gave me the insights and tools to achieve my goals and continue moving forward on this healthier and happier path.
The time spent with Jessica was uplifting and wholly constructive. It was never painful or destructive. She takes you as you are, the good, the bad and the ugly, and through unbelievable insight and teaching you simple tools, turns you into a swan. I left our two days together feeling empowered, hopeful, happy and recharged. I have a simple game-plan and a new set of tools to keep me on the path.
Time with Jessica is not cheap but wizard work is priceless.
I really enjoyed your retreat A, we covered so much and you were just flying by the time you left. Been great to see your progress too.
Thanks A, it was a joy to work with you and to see how you have literally taken off once you discovered your ‘what’. Look forward to seeing you continue on the wonderful path you have embarked on.
I felt totally comfortable with Jessica from the moment I met her – she’s a classic person you feel-like-you’ve-known-forever. I was quite relieved (although she did get me to meditate!) she also didn’t even slightly fit the hippy model I’d been worrying she might be!
Instead I found her focused, positive, and practical. She was very intuitive about the right exercises for us to do, she listened, was kind, full of original ideas and – practically – she helped me sort my messy life into positive affirming plans for the future, which I’ve actually managed to follow at home. I can’t thank her enough. The retreat was a life changing experience! And I couldn’t imagine a lovelier place to have done it than Casa Ana (imagine orange trees against a white-wash-walled village, in warm mountains). It was like going on holiday with the fun, generous, interesting friend you wish you had!
Thanks K – glad you had such a good time – and that you managed to continue with what we discussed once you were home.
I decided to go on Jessica’s retreat at a time in my life when many things weren’t working out, I had driven myself into a state of poor self esteem and I was well and truly stuck in terms of my life direction. I’m very glad I made the leap as the retreat helped my hugely , it enabled me to clearly identify and see the areas that were blocking me and begin to look at them differently. I feel excited about the future and about the kind of life I can create for myself. It was an absolute pleasure working with Jessica, she’s great company and good for a few hearty laughs also!
I really enjoyed our retreat J, and as you said we had some great laughs amongst all the insights and releasing of the blocks that stopped you in the past. Looking forward to seeing your progress as it unfolds.
When I arrived at the retreat I had been hiding from life for quite some time, was feeling run down, exhausted and depressed. 48 hours later I left Spain with a spring in my step, after having reconnected with myself again and ready to make my life loud and colorful! And I have the feeling that there is even more to unfold from this retreat when everything we’ve worked through will have settled in.
Now ten months after the retreat I can see that when I did my retreat with Jessica, I was hiding from life and feeling miserable about everything life threw at me. Today, less than 10 months after the retreat, I am truly and thoroughly enjoying life, and grateful for all the beautiful things unfolding in my life and for the person I have become. Jessica has always been extremely supportive, and I am hugely thankful for her wise guidance along this process. I can recommend her to everyone who wants to make their life a better and a more playful place to be.
It was great to have you on retreat D and to see the subsequent unfolding of you life was not only inspiring but also fun. Looking forward to hearing more wonderful things!
Attending Jessica’s retreat was one of the best decisions I’ve made. Her straightforward, no nonsense yet empathetic approach makes it relatively easy to approach situations and decisions with which you have been circling unproductively for years. I was mildly terrified at the thought of going on a retreat. In fact I found the time I spent with Jessica in a lovely location in Spain totally enjoyable. The experience and many insights from the follow on coaching will stay with me for ever.
It was really good to work with you C, and to see you go home with more trust and confidence in your future was a credit to your commitment.
I really enjoyed our time together C, and it has been great to watch how life has shifted for you since, long may it continue!
I went on a two day individual retreat with Jessica to assess where I am in my life and think through each dimension holistically. I needed to decide what actions to take around each element of Jessica’s “wheel” and make sure that I learned the appropriate lessons for the future.
Jessica had been recommended to me by a friend, but I was not sure what it would involve and I was concerned about taking two days away. However, the retreat exceeded my expectations. Jessica does not have a set program but allows the process to unfold and we covered all the points I needed clarity on plus I learnt some very valuable tools for life that I would really have benefited from far earlier in my life! Jessica is not a typical coach, she pushed me on the difficult issues in a sensitive and thoughtful way and gave me valuable input and insight when needed, allowing me to see the situation in a new light. I left the retreat wishing I had been to see her several years earlier.
Being up in the mountains in Spain away from the “noise” of life made a big difference. The peace and the ability to spend time outside in beautiful and calm scenery was thoroughly worthwhile. On the second day we had a fantastic walk in the high peaks which allowed me to consolidate my thinking after the intense conversations.
If you are at a crossroads in your life either personally, professionally or both, I thoroughly recommend going on a retreat with Jessica. She will help you cut through the frustrations and put you on a fulfilling long term path.
It was a pleasure O to have you on retreat and I am so glad that you got the input and insight you needed
Working with Jessica was a life-changing experience for me. I travelled thousands of miles after chatting with her only once, and embarked on an incredible journey of self-discovery with her. The retreat itself was like an amazing reboot of my brain and I felt like I reconnected with the person I truly was, someone I had clearly lost on my way to becoming an adult, a spouse and a mother. Jessica helped me re-open that door and ever since, so many fulfilling and wonderful things have happened in my life. Don’t think twice, just jump because we all need a Jessica in our life and this will certainly be the best thing you will do for yourself in a very long time.
Thank you A, it really did feel some magic was going on and seeing you take off and fly has been great
I came across Jessica’s website years ago through Queen of Retreats but it wasn’t until I was feeling particularly stuck last October that I remembered the link and actually made contact. I felt like I was blocked in making decisions to move forward in many areas of my life and needed to get everything out on the table and unravel it and this takes time, so I knew I would really benefit from being on retreat. I couldn’t believe that after only a 30 minute call I booked it but this time I trusted my instincts and I am so glad I did. The retreat really begins before you even arrive in the beautiful mountain village in the Sierra Nevada and the house and surroundings were perfect for disconnecting from normal life. Jessica coached me in sessions and also our meals and walks together were moments where I gained a lot from her insights and life experience shared. What I really love about Jessica’s work is that she is very down to earth in her approach and practical and at the same time the wealth of wisdom of her own personal and spiritual journey gives it great depth. I felt huge relief from the life mapping we did, got clarity and renewed focus and was amazed how quickly things shifted in my life afterwards! The follow up sessions were an essential part of the process to make sure I actually followed through the changes I needed to make, the inner ones as well as action steps. Thank you wise lady Jessica for all your support and for reminding me to lighten up and have fun!!