Solo Retreat in Lisbon: Why Portugal Is the Perfect Place for Black Women to Heal
When I tell people I moved to Lisbon and opened a healing retreat space for Black women, I always get the same question:
Why Portugal?
It's a fair question. Most people associate Portugal with the transatlantic slave trade and colonization. They also associate wellness retreats with Bali, Tulum, or Sedona. Portugal doesn't immediately come to mind when you think of a "healing destination," but that's exactly why it works.
You're looking for a place where you can finally exhale. Where you don't have to stand out as the “only black one,” or be hypervigilant. You need a place that feels safe enough to let your guard down, but also different enough to relax and try something new.
Most "wellness destinations" fail on at least one count. Bali is far, and the flight is expensive. Mexico can feel unsafe, depending on where you go, and if you get caught in a tourist trap. Domestic retreats in the US don't offer enough psychological distance from your real life. Also, in many European cities, you'll be the only Black woman in the room.
Lisbon is different. It's a gem of a destination: safe enough to exhale, Black enough to belong, and foreign enough to disconnect. Let me show you why burnt-out Black women from the US, UK, and Canada are choosing Portugal for their healing retreats.
Portugal Is the 7th Safest Country in the World And You Can Feel It
Before I moved, I had visited 3 times and read all the statistics. Portugal consistently ranks among the 10 safest countries in the world, according to the Global Peace Index. It has low violent crime rates, political stability, and a general sense of peace that can be hard to find. Coming from the US, it’s hard to even imagine what I’m talking about until you feel it for yourself.
Let me explain: I walk home from late nights at the studio at 1:30 AM far more often than I’d like, but I’m never scared. I walk by groups of men and never assume they’re going to catcall me, make a comment about my body, or generally try to catch my attention. That's not something I could say living in California.
I'm not saying Portugal is some post-racial utopia where nothing bad ever happens, because that’s not accurate. Petty crime exists, and the government heavily polices black and brown immigrants outside of Lisbon. Pickpockets target tourists in crowded areas, and the far right is becoming more vocal. But the baseline of safety, the ability to move through your day without that constant low-level dread, happens here. And for Black women specifically, the racial hypervigilance we carry in the US is much lower here.
You can walk through Lisbon's historic neighborhoods at night and see women, solo or in groups, everywhere. We sit at outdoor cafes alone, walk home from the metro, and jog along the river without fear. It's totally normal. You won't become a target or stand out as vulnerable just because you're by yourself.
The city is incredibly walkable. The streets are well-lit, but let me warn you…every direction in Lisbon is uphill! Public transportation is reliable and safe, and English is widely spoken, so you won't struggle with language barriers if something goes wrong. And honestly, people here just leave you alone. There's a respect for personal space that I didn't realize I was missing until I had it.
Safety is the foundation, and you can't heal if you don't feel safe. But safety alone isn't enough if you still feel like you're the only one.
You Won't Be the Only Black Woman in the Room
Here's what nobody tells you about most wellness retreats: you'll probably be the only Black woman there. Maybe one other if you're lucky, and even if the facilitator is warm and the other participants are nice, there's an exhaustion that comes with being the only one. You're code-switching without even realizing it, you're holding yourself in to see if it’s safe to share, and you're managing everyone else's comfort with your Blackness. You often have to give the backstory so people get the present story, and there are just some things you shouldn't have to explain… especially while healing.
That doesn't happen in Lisbon.
Portugal has a significant African diaspora population because of its colonial history. Communities from Angola, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé, and Brazil are woven into the fabric of the city. You'll see Black Portuguese people at the grocery store, African restaurants in many neighborhoods, and Black families at the park on Sundays. You're not exotic here, you're not "the only one."
Can you get your hair done? Yes. There are salons that specialize in textured hair. Can you find a Black esthetician? Yes. Can you find shea butter, coconut oil, and the hair products you need in regular stores? Also yes.
I want to be clear: Portugal is not post-racial. Colorism and anti-Blackness exist here, too. The colonial legacy is real, and not everyone has processed it. But the exhausting, ever-present racial tension you feel in the US or UK, the kind that lives in your body and makes you tired before you even leave the house, is significantly lower here.
What this means is that you can stop performing and simply be.
And at Asha's Place, my studio has become a gathering space for Black women, locals, expats (I hate this word; we’re immigrants, but for SEO, here it is), and travelers. When you come for a retreat, you're not walking into a white-dominated wellness space where you have to translate your experience. You're walking into a home where someone gets it.
Distance from Your 'Real Life' Is What Makes Transformation Possible
You can't become who you're meant to be in the same place where everyone expects you to stay the same.
This is the piece people don't talk about enough when they're choosing a retreat location. They focus on safety, logistics, and the quality of the accommodations. But the real magic of Lisbon is this: it's foreign enough to give you psychological distance from your real life.
When you're in your regular environment, your nervous system expects you to be the same person you've always been. Your body remembers the stress of your apartment, your neighborhood, and your commute. Your family and friends will unconsciously pull you back into old roles because that's what's comfortable for them and what’s familiar to you. You can't break patterns when you're surrounded by all the triggers that created those patterns in the first place.
A new place gives you permission to be a new version of yourself.
Lisbon is 5-8 hours ahead of US time zones, depending on where you're coming from. That time difference creates a natural boundary with work. You physically cannot be on Slack at the same time as your team, and you can't respond to emails in real time. The world keeps moving without you, and that's the point. You get to step out of the stream.
But here's why Lisbon works better than, say, Bali or Thailand: it's not so foreign that you can't relax. It's still Western Europe. The infrastructure works, and you can drink the water. You're not dealing with massive culture shock on top of the emotional work you're already doing.
The city itself is beautiful without being overwhelming. It's slower-paced than London, Paris, or New York. The light is magic, the food is fresh, and the energy is magnetic. The azulejos, those hand-painted tiles everywhere, are art you can see just walking down the street. But Lisbon isn't demanding; the people won’t move fast, and restaurants won’t rush you to finish eating. It doesn't require anything from you other than to slow down.
When a hermit crab (a person in transition) is between shells, it needs a safe place to be vulnerable while it searches for the next one. Lisbon is that place.
You Don't Need a Trust Fund or a Month Off Work
Let's talk logistics because I know this is where people get stuck.
Lisbon is accessible in ways that Bali and other "wellness destinations" just aren't. There are direct flights from New York, Newark, Boston, Miami, DC, London, Toronto, LAX, and SFO. The flight from the East Coast is 6-7 hours, and it’s only three hours if you’re coming from the UK.
US and Canadian citizens don't need a visa. You get 90 days automatically when you arrive. No paperwork, no stress, no wondering if you'll get turned away at the border.
And you don't need a month off work to make this worth it. The HELD retreat is 4-5 days. You could do it over a long weekend if you planned strategically. I've had clients fly in Thursday night and leave Tuesday morning. It's doable without burning all your PTO or quitting your job.
Cost-wise, Lisbon is significantly cheaper than most major US cities. A great meal out costs €20-25, not $50. Transportation is affordable, and wine is cheaper than water. If you're coming from New York, San Francisco, or London, you'll be shocked at how far your money goes here.
Compare this to other wellness destinations. Bali requires a 20+ hour flight and serious jet lag. The time difference is so extreme that you'll spend half your retreat adjusting. Thailand has similar issues. Tulum has become expensive and overtouristed, and depending on where you are in Mexico, safety can be a real concern. Sedona and other US destinations don't give you that necessary distance from your real life.
Lisbon checks all the boxes: accessible, affordable, safe, and far enough away to create real separation from your day-to-day.
What Makes a Healing Retreat in Lisbon Different from a Vacation
Most people come to Lisbon as tourists. They see the viewpoints, ride the tram, eat pastéis de nata, take photos for Instagram, and go home. That's fine, but that's not what we're talking about here.
A healing retreat in Lisbon is different because you're not just consuming experiences. You're going inward with a guide who holds the container. You have intentional space for rest, not just sightseeing hustle. You're supported in the vulnerable work of remembering who you are beneath all the doing and proving.
At HELD, my private healing retreat, you're not staying in a random Airbnb, Googling "best massage Lisbon" and hoping for the best. You have private accommodations in Bairro Alto, one of the most beautiful historic neighborhoods in the city. You have me, someone who knows you before you even arrive, because we've talked about your story. You have curated healing sessions chosen specifically for you based on what I sense you need: breathwork, Reiki, massage, sound healing, tarot, craniosacral therapy, and ancestral healing practices.
You have daily check-ins with me. You have someone who sees you, who gets it, who's not going to let you “perform” your way through this experience.
And you have integration time built into the structure. You're not rushing from activity to activity trying to "maximize" your trip. You have space to rest, to journal, to sit in the garden and do absolutely nothing, because that's actually the point.
Yes, the city is beautiful. The light is magic, the tiles are stunning, and the food is incredible. But they're not the point. The point is this: you get to remember who you are when you're not responsible for everyone else.
You get to ask yourself the questions you've been avoiding. What do I actually want? What would my life look like if I stopped performing? What does freedom mean to me? Who am I when I'm not trying to earn my worthiness?
Those questions require space. They require safety. They require someone who can hold you when the answers are uncomfortable.
That's what a healing retreat in Lisbon offers. Not a vacation, a homecoming.
Who This Is For (And Who It's Not For)
This retreat in Lisbon is for you if you're a Black woman from the US, UK, Canada, or anywhere in the diaspora who's burnt out and knows it. If you're in your 30s, 40s, or 50s and in some kind of major life transition: a career change, grief, identity crisis, geographic move, relationship ending, the wheels falling off in whatever form that takes for you.
It's for you if you've "done everything right" but feel lost, disconnected, or exhausted. If you're the responsible one, the strong one, the one everyone calls when they need help, and you've forgotten how to receive. If you're tired of performing and ready to just be.
It's for you if you're curious about ancestral healing but don't know where to start. If you've never done this kind of work before and you're nervous but also relieved that someone's offering it. If you want to be held by someone who gets it without you having to explain.
This isn't for you if you're looking for a party trip. Lisbon has incredible nightlife, but that's not what this retreat is about. It's also not for you if you want a fully DIY solo travel experience where you plan everything yourself. HELD is curated. I make the choices so you don't have to.
And it's not for you if you're not ready to go inward. This work requires vulnerability. It requires being willing to sit with discomfort. It requires letting someone see you when you're not in control.
If that feels scary but also like exactly what you need, then this is for you.
The Invitation
Lisbon won't fix you because you're not broken, but it will hold you while you remember who you are beneath all the doing, proving, and performing.
Portugal gave me my life back. I wake up most mornings without an alarm. I have time for coffee and journaling. There's no separation between who I am and what I do. I pull tarot cards for myself and for my clients. The bolder I am about sharing what works for me, the more I attract the right people.
I'm living the life I journaled about during the pandemic when the wheels first started wobbling. I didn't know I was painting this picture, but I wrote about every feeling I'm experiencing now.
That's what I want for you, too.
I know what it's like when the wheels fall off. I had everything I was supposed to want: tenure, financial security, respect, and still, I was dying inside. I didn't have examples of people who had walked away from "success" to find something different. Especially not people who come from "respectable" Black families whose parents and grandparents were the sons and daughters of the Civil Rights Movement. The life I was living was the one they placed their lives on the line for me to have.
But standing in front of the Door of No Return at Elmina Castle in Ghana, I realized: all my people have ever wanted is to be free. If I could get myself free, free in every sense of the word, I'd be honoring them.
Freedom is what they fought for, and modern-day history has taught us that to find it, you need a "good government job," a high-paying salary, and endless amounts of self-sacrifice. But somehow, I made the choice to remove the heavy cloak of social expectation and embark on a quest to find my own version of freedom. A life that felt good, was expansive, and aligned with who I was and who I was becoming.
That's what this retreat offers: a journey home to yourself.
If you're ready to be held, Lisbon is ready for you.
Ready to plan your retreat? Book a free discovery call to talk about whether HELD is right for you, or learn more about the HELD retreat experience here.
Not sure if you're ready? Download my free guide: When the Wheels Fall Off: A Survival Guide for the Black Woman in Transition.