Roses & Thorns
Pleasure, boundaries, and relationship design retreats in the Rose Valley, Bulgaria
You are invited to step out of the pace of everyday life and into a landscape that already knows how to hold and embrace.
May 18th – 25th 2026,
Retreat Experience
Held between two mountain ranges, the Rose Valley is a land in long relationship with roses, whose intoxicating perfume travels far beyond its hills.
For only a few weeks each year, the roses bloom, filling the air with gentle fragrance that softens the body and sharpens perception. Here we gather exactly in this season of beuaty and renewal to explore how relationships grow when pleasure and boundaries are both honoured.
Some arrive to tend what feels strained. Others to deepen what already works.
All relational styles and cultural backgrounds are welcome!
The places are intentionally limited and participation is offered through a simple application process which is designed to ensure intimacy and coherence of the relational field.
The only agenda is presence.
The outcome is not perfect relationships, but ones that can evolve with clarity and care.
Women’s retreat
18-21 of May 2026
Investment and rates:
Early Commitment Rate (paid by February 20th) – €1888
Standard Rate (paid by Mid April) – €2088
Last Places Rate – Mid April onwards – €2288
Couples’ retreat
22-25 of May 2026
Investment and rates:
Early Commitment Rate (paid by February 20th) – €3333
Standard Rate (paid by Mid April) – €3690
Last Places Rate – Mid April onwards – €3990
Roses & Thorns Program
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Afternoon (from 3:00 pm) | Arrival and check-in | Arrival and check-in |
| 6:30 pm | Welcome Dinner | Welcome Dinner |
| 8:00–9:30 pm | Opening Circle: The Scent of Connection |
Guided introductions and gentle movement to arrive in the body. Setting intentions and group agreements around safety, curiosity, and consent with Irina. Symbolic opening ritual with roses |
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 am | Breakfast | Breakfast |
| 10:00–11:30 am | Workshop 1 – Mapping Our Relational Landscapes with Irina |
Exploring how culture, attachment, and personal history shape our way of loving. Reflection: What are the “roses” and “thorns” in my relational garden? The sharpness of my thorns: Exercises on relational intelligence and intercultural patterns of connection and conflict |
| 1:00 pm | Lunch | Lunch |
| 3:00–4:30 pm | Workshop 2 – Moving through Resistance with Gabriella | Somatic exercises to explore boundaries, approach/avoidance patterns, and emotional flow, using the Tango embrace |
| 6:30 pm | Dinner | Dinner |
| 8:30–11:00 pm | Evening Play – The Dance of Shadows with David | A safely held exploration of power, vulnerability, and consent through playful, guided rituals. Optional participation, emphasis on witnessing and embodied awareness. |
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 am | Breakfast | Breakfast |
| 10:00–11:30 am | Workshop 1 – The Language of Intimacy Let my petals dance |
The Dance of Relating (Tango & Energetic Polarity). Practices for conscious dialogue and listening beyond words. For couples: exercises on multilingual emotional communication. For women: inner-dialogue and internal relational mapping |
| 1:00 pm | Lunch | Lunch |
| 3:00–4:30 pm | Workshop 4 – The Body as a Bridge - deepening polarities with David |
The Dance of Power and Surrender. Through guided exercises, participants explore the magnetic interplay between Dominant and submissive energies, direction and receptivity, giving and allowing. Polarity deepening enhances attraction by honoring difference rather than dissolving it. |
| 6:30 pm | Dinner | Dinner |
| 8:30–11:00 pm | Evening Play – Rituals of Pleasure and Presence Gypsy rose the seduction game |
Integration through group reflection, journaling, and sensual mindfulness practice. Sensory exploration using touch, scent, and guided ritual to expand our capacity for pleasure and trust. Integrating the “thorn” and “rose” aspects of self and relationships throughout a dancing game in which in natural turns participants have to seduce the next dancer without using words. |
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 am | Breakfast | Breakfast |
| 10:00–11:30 am | 🌹 Closing Workshop – Gathering the Petals |
Integrative reflection through. Creating personal or couple “Rituals of Return.” Closing ceremony with rose water and blessings |
| 1:00 pm | Farewell Lunch | Farewell Lunch and departures after 2:00 pm. |
The Faculty of the Relationship Design School
Irina Aron PhD – Founder, Relationship Design educator, researcher and practitioner.
Gabriella Ghielmetti – Tango therapist. Dance as therapeutic tool for intimacy and trust.
Deniza Popova PhD – Musicologist. Voice and singing as connecting experience.
Ruzha Stoynova – Yoga Teacher, Hatha Yoga
David Freeman PhD – Educator in Relational, Erotic and Somatic Intelligence.
The Venue & Application
CHATEAU COPSA
The retreat is hosted at a unique venue in the heart of the Rose Valley at the prime time of the roses’ bloom: Chateo Copsa. It is a woman-owned and woman-led business—a place where the roses meet the grapes. The venue offers a variety of experiences for wine and gourmet enthusiasts.
For program details, accommodation, and payment, you are invited to express your interest by email:mail@irinaaron.com
