Bucket List Retreats - The Podcast
It’s a podcast—but it’s also your planning pep talk. Hi, I’m Kelly Morgan Merly, welcome to Bucket List Retreats-The Podcast: We are taking you through the fun and joy that is planning retreats, group trips, girls getaways, reunions, and more. Want to organize something unforgettable.? Skip the stress and focus on what really matters—connection, transformation, and adventure. Join us for fun retreats reviews, positive and inspiring guests and, of course, the ins and outs of group travel and organization.
Episodes
Is Fun on Your To-Do List Yet?
In this episode, we’re putting fun right where it belongs: on your actual to-do list, next to the bills and the errands. Because “after” never shows up. Your list is never done, so the fun you’re saving for later keeps getting pushed back.
In this episode:
✔ Why “someday” isn’t a destination
✔ The surprising truth about where retreat breakthroughs really ...
Have you ever said, “That’s just not me”—then tried something new and surprised yourself? Discover how going on a retreat can open the door to self-discovery, personal growth and interests you never knew you had.
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, I’m exploring why it’s not too late to become someone new. Stepping outside your routine can give you room to try solo travel, creati...
What goes into planning a retreat beyond choosing a beautiful destination?
Welcome to Season 2 of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast! Kelly Morgan Merly takes you behind the scenes of retreat planning—from understanding your community to finding the right partners, shaping the itinerary, and making room for guests to enjoy the experience.
With three new retreats taking shape, Kelly shares an early look at Brazil and how her coll...
Five conversations. Five lessons. One invitation to stop postponing the experiences that make you feel fully alive.
In this season finale of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly Morgan Merly revisits meaningful moments from conversations with Sheri Rosenthal, Karen Talavera, Frances Star Graham, Azaya Vega, and Cynthia Morgan.
Together, their stories explore retreat transparency, psychedelic research, Qigong, creativity, connecti...
Have you ever found an incredible retreat, trip or experience—and immediately started searching for someone to go with you?
One friend can’t get the time off. Another can’t fit it into her budget. Someone else says, “Maybe next year.” Suddenly, your bucket-list experience depends on somebody else’s calendar, comfort zone and willingness to say yes.
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podca...
Nothing is wrong. Life is good. So why do you still feel a little…blah?
Sometimes we don’t need a whole new life—we just need something in our life to look forward to.
Kelly had spent months anticipating a September RV adventure through the western United States. Then fires, smoke, gas prices and RV repairs pushed the trip off the calendar. Nothing was terribly wrong, but the excitement she had been carrying disapp...
Why do so many of us feel lonely when we’re more connected than ever?
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly Morgan Merly explores the power of shared experiences—and why meaningful connection, shared laughter, adventure and simply doing something together can give us what scrolling never will.
Research suggests that even a simple experience can feel more powerful when we share it with someone else. ...
Can astrology and Human Design reveal your life purpose—or help you recognize the clues that have been there all along?
Lace up your running shoes, grab the dog’s leash, or pour another cup of coffee, because today we’re taking a fun, slightly “woo,” and surprisingly meaningful look at astrology, Human Design, and finding your purpose.
After having my charts read, one phrase stopped me in my tracks: Left...
What is the one thing you could talk about for hours—even when nobody asked?
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly Morgan Merly explores how almost any passion, skill, interest, or community could inspire an immersive retreat or bucket list experience.
We’re talking about real people gathering in a real place to experience something they genuinely love.
Kelly shares how a simple interest can become so...
Think an Italian art retreat is only for “real artists”? Think again.
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly Morgan Merly travels—at least conversationally—to the heart of Umbria, Italy, with Cynthia Morgan of Umbrian Art Retreats for Italy Lovers.
Cynthia shares how a love of travel, an Italian villa, a printing press, and creative synergy grew into immersive art retreats where guests don...
Have you ever found a retreat that looked beautiful—then wondered, “Is this actually worth the money?”
Choosing a retreat involves more than finding a gorgeous destination or exciting itinerary. You’re investing your money, energy, time off, and a meaningful piece of your life. How can you tell which retreat is right for you?
In Episode 1043 of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly Morgan Merly introduces T...
What if your bucket list has almost nothing to do with travel?
Somewhere along the way, we turned bucket lists into lists of destinations—Paris, Machu Picchu, an African safari, the Northern Lights. Those are incredible dreams, but what if the place isn’t actually what we’re searching for?
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast, Kelly explores why a meaningful bucket list is less about passport stamps ...
Have you ever come home from a vacation feeling like you needed another vacation?
This isn't that.
In this special episode, I'm joined by retreat co-hosts Frances Graham and Adriani Lobo as we take you behind the scenes of our Find Your Happy Again Women's Retreat, happening January 17–24, 2027, at the breatht...
You've built a beautiful life... but have you been putting yourself last?
You don't have to be burned out, overwhelmed, or at a breaking point to benefit from a retreat. In this episode of Bucket List Retreats – The Podcast, Kelly explores five subtle signs that it may be time to step away—not to escape your life, but to reconnect with it.
If you've been saying, "After this project..." or "After life slows down..." this c...
🇺🇸 Happy Birthday, USA! 🇺🇸
This Fourth of July, we're asking a different kind of question...
What does freedom really mean to you?
Is it a passport full of stamps? A career you love? Time with family? The courage to start over? Or maybe it's finally giving yourself permission to slow down.
In this special Independence Day episode of Bucket List Retreats – The Podcast, Kelly shares personal stories, reflections, and one simple...
Have you ever returned from a retreat and thought, "Why did that feel so different from a vacation?"
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats, we're exploring one of the most overlooked reasons retreats can feel so powerful: the opportunity to stop making decisions.
Many of us spend our days managing careers, families, finances, relationships, schedules, and endless responsibilities. The mental load can be exhausting, even when we're ...
What happens when you realize you don't need a vacation—you need space?
In this episode of Bucket List Retreats, Karen Talavera shares her experience taking a solo retreat to Cancun and the surprising lessons she learned about solitude, self-discovery, and the blissful retreat experience many people are searching for.
We explore the difference between a vacation and a retreat, why intentional time alone can be transformational,...
She packed her bag, booked her flight, and went — alone. No agenda. No itinerary. No one to answer to. And what happened next? She came back more herself than she'd been in years.
Welcome back to Bucket List Retreats: The Podcast! I'm your host Kelly Morgan Merly, and today I am SO excited to welcome back the one and only Karen Talavera — The Accidental Seeker — for a conversation that honestly had me leaning into ...
Unlocking the Muse: The Rise of the Creative Intensive
Published May 29•S1 E1035
Are you ready to stop dreaming and start doing? This is the bucket list podcast and travel podcast hosted by Kelly Morgan Merly — your go-to retreat podcast for women who travel with purpose.
Exploring it all in Retreat News & Reviews!
This is not just a retreat podcast. This is your permission slip.
Off-grid bookings are up 25% — and your clients are leading the charge. We unpack exactly why the demand for rugged, tech-free, elemental retreat experiences is skyrocketing in 2026, and more importantly, how to deliver them safely and beautifully.
Join Kelly on the next Dominican Republic Experience - Find Your Inner Happy Again Womens Retreat
— this is the episode that protects your guests and elevates you...
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