The Big Retreat Returns for 2026 – and It’s Expanding in the Most Feel-Good Way.
There are festivals you go to for the line-up, and then there are festivals you go to because you want to feel better when you leave than when you arrived. The Big Retreat firmly sits in the latter and for 2026, it’s bringing even more reasons to roll out your yoga mat and book the time off.
Now entering its seventh year, The Big Retreat has become one of the UK’s most established wellbeing festivals, quietly redefining what a festival can be. For 2026, it returns to its much-loved spiritual home in Pembrokeshire and launches an exciting new Cambridgeshire edition, offering two very different but equally nourishing escapes.
What makes this announcement particularly powerful is that it comes alongside new research into the real wellbeing impact of attending The Big Retreat. Early findings from Professor Joyce Harper (UCL) reveal that:
- Over 80% of attendees reported improved mental health
- Nearly 80% said they felt happier
- Many also experienced positive physical wellbeing benefits
A full academic study will be released in mid-2026, offering rare, measurable insight into something many of us already intuitively know — that stepping out of everyday life and into spaces of connection, movement and creativity can genuinely change how we feel.
A New Late-Summer Escape in Cambridgeshire
The newly announced Cambridgeshire edition will take place from 11–13 September 2026 at the beautiful Abbots Ripton Estate. Designed as a late-summer countryside retreat, it offers space to slow down, reconnect and recharge without pressure or pretence.
True to The Big Retreat’s “Feel Good Your Way” ethos, there’s no rigid timetable to follow. Instead, guests are invited to build their own experience, choosing from music, movement, creativity, talks and moments of stillness — all set against a calm rural backdrop that encourages breathing out and tuning back in.
Back to Pembrokeshire: Where It All Began
Meanwhile, The Big Retreat returns to Pembrokeshire from 22–25 May 2026, once again opening the UK festival season in the breathtaking surroundings of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.
Expect a beautifully balanced mix of live music, wellbeing, outdoor adventure and thought-provoking talks, with a 2026 line-up already featuring DJ Fat Tony, Rebecca Ferguson and Catrin Finch. It’s a setting that invites sunrise swims, long walks, joyful movement and meaningful conversation — all at your own pace.
More Than a Festival
What sets The Big Retreat apart is its genuinely inclusive approach. With over 300 curated feel-good experiences, it blends fitness, yoga and outdoor adventure with music, creativity and conversation, offering a refreshing alternative to traditional festivals. There’s no pressure to do it all — just permission to do what feels right for you.
Whether you’re craving energy, calm, connection or creativity, The Big Retreat offers a reminder that wellbeing doesn’t have to look one specific way. And with two opportunities to experience it in 2026, there’s never been a better time to see what feeling good your way really means.
Poppy Watt