El Camino Retreat Portuguese Coastal Route — 6 to 20 July 2026 by Carmen Balacianu
What if your most important coaching conversation happened while walking?
There is something that opens in a person when they are in motion. The body is engaged, the usual defences soften, the mind loosens its grip on what it already knows. It is in this state — unhurried, grounded, present — that the real questions find their way to the surface, and the real answers begin to arrive. The El Camino Retreat is a coaching retreat in motion. It happens to take place along one of the world's most beloved pilgrimage routes, the Portuguese Coastal Route, and the landscape is a gift. But the heart of this experience is not the walking. It is what becomes possible when skilled coaching meets you exactly where you are — on a dusty path, at the edge of the ocean, in the stillness after a long day on your feet. This is not a walking holiday with some coaching added. It is a deep, sustained coaching immersion that unfolds over days, in the open air, in the company of others on their own inner journey.
Coaching in Motion
Most coaching happens in a chair, in an hour, in a window carved out of a busy week. The El Camino Retreat turns that model inside out. Here, coaching is woven into every dimension of the experience. It happens in one-to-one conversations as you walk side by side. It happens in group reflection at the beginning and end of each day. It happens through somatic embodiment practices and Prananadi energy work that bring the body into the process, not just the mind. It happens in the silence between steps, when something you have been circling for months suddenly becomes clear. The route becomes a mirror. The rhythm of walking day after day creates a kind of inner momentum that sitting still rarely produces. What you are carrying — the decisions unmade, the patterns unexamined, the parts of yourself set aside in the service of getting things done — begins to surface naturally, gently, and with the support of a skilled coach present throughout. You do not need to prepare anything. You do not need to arrive with the right questions. You only need to show up and walk.
How Long You Walk Is Yours to Choose The retreat is offered in three formats, so you can choose the depth and duration that fits where you are right now. The full journey runs from 6 to 20 July, fifteen days of continuous coaching, walking, and transformation along the entire Portuguese Coastal Route. This is the complete arc — the fullest possible immersion, for those who feel ready to give themselves wholly to the experience. The first half runs from 6 to 13 July, opening the journey from the beginning and moving through the first stages of both the route and the inner work. It is a complete and deeply nourishing experience in its own right. The second half runs from 13 to 20 July, joining the retreat as the coaching deepens and the route moves toward its destination. Those who arrive for this segment enter a container already alive with reflection and connection, and are welcomed fully into that space. Whichever format you choose, you will receive the same quality of coaching presence, the same depth of accompaniment, and the same invitation to meet yourself honestly along the way.
What You Will Carry Home People who have been through a coaching retreat like this often describe something that goes beyond what they expected. Not just clarity on a specific question, but a different relationship with themselves. A steadiness. A sense of having been genuinely met, and having met themselves in return. You may leave with decisions made that you could not make before. Patterns named that had been invisible. A way of being in your own life that feels less automatic and more chosen. Some arrive at a crossroads. Some arrive exhausted and looking for more than rest. Some simply feel the pull without being able to name it yet. All of that is welcome here. The coaching will meet you wherever you are.
Who This Is For
This retreat is for anyone who wants more from a retreat than scenery and rest — who is ready for a real process, held by a skilled coach, in an extraordinary setting. You do not need prior experience with coaching, retreats, or the Camino. You need a genuine willingness to show up, to slow down, and to engage honestly with what arises. No prior walking experience is required. A spirit of openness is. Places are limited to ensure the intimacy of the group and the depth of the coaching container.
Practical Details Full journey: 6 to 20 July 2026 First half: 6 to 13 July 2026 Second half: 13 to 20 July 2026 Route: Portuguese Coastal Route, Camino de Santiago Format: Coaching retreat in motion — individual and group coaching integrated throughout Investment: Available upon inquiry Location: Portugal
Ready to take the first step? If something in you has already said yes, trust that. Book a discovery call to explore which format is right for you and whether this is the right next step. [Book a discovery call — cb-coach.ch]
Carmen Balacianu is an Awakened Leadership Coach based in Switzerland. She has walked the Camino de Santiago herself and has spent years developing a coaching practice that integrates somatic embodiment, Prananadi energy work, and deep inner inquiry. The El Camino Retreat brings all of that into the open air, over days, in one of the most remarkable walking landscapes in the world. cb-coach.ch