Northern New Mexico’s rugged landscape—with its vast mesas, ancient pueblos, and spiritual energy—has long attracted those seeking solitude and inner peace. The region’s unique blend of Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo influences creates a distinctive cultural backdrop for contemplation and renewal.
The high desert’s stark beauty and crystalline air provide the perfect setting for disconnecting from daily noise. Here is a list of 17 silent retreats where you can escape the constant chatter of modern life and rediscover your center.
Ghost Ranch
Just north of Abiquiú, this 21,000-acre retreat center sits surrounded by the same rust-colored cliffs that captivated painter Georgia O’Keeffe for decades. The ranch offers both guided and self-directed silent retreats throughout the year, with simple accommodations that keep you focused on the stunning natural environment.
Participants often spend days hiking among junipers and piñon pines, journaling beside the Chama River, or meditating while gazing at Pedernal Peak—O’Keeffe’s favorite mountain.
Upaya Zen Center
Nestled in the foothills of Santa Fe, this Buddhist sanctuary welcomes practitioners of all levels for silent meditation retreats ranging from weekend intensives to month-long immersions. Founded by renowned Buddhist teacher Roshi Joan Halifax, Upaya combines traditional Zen practice with social engagement.
Their meditation hall—with worn wooden floors and enormous windows framing the Sangre de Cristo Mountains—creates an atmosphere where silence feels almost tangible.
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Christ in the Desert Monastery
Reaching this Benedictine monastery requires a 13-mile drive down a rough dirt road—the first step in leaving worldly distractions behind. The brothers maintain a rigorous schedule of prayer and work, yet welcome guests to join their rhythm of silence.
Simple rooms face the towering sandstone cliffs that line the Chama River canyon, while the award-winning chapel—built of native stone and massive wooden beams—seems to grow naturally from the earth.
Dar al-Islam
Outside the tiny village of Abiquiú sits this Islamic retreat center with its distinctive adobe mosque and madrasa. The architecture—designed by renowned Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy—harmonizes perfectly with the surrounding mesa landscape.
Their silent retreat programs combine Islamic contemplative traditions with the natural quiet of the high desert. Participants stay in simple adobe rooms and often practice meditation while watching dramatic thunderstorms roll across the vast New Mexico sky.
Vallecitos Mountain Retreat Center
Hidden away on 135 acres within the Carson National Forest, Vallecitos offers silent retreats in true wilderness. With no cell service and limited electricity, the center focuses on mindfulness meditation in nature.
Their rustic cabins sit scattered among ponderosa pines, while group meditations happen in a converted ranch house with views across mountain meadows. Wildlife sightings—from elk to black bears—often become unexpected moments of connection during silent walks.
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The Mandala Center
Perched on a mesa near the Capulin Volcano National Monument, this northeastern New Mexico retreat offers a profound sense of spaciousness—both physically and spiritually. The Mandala Center’s individual silent retreats take place in cozy adobe-style cabins that look out across the vast plains toward distant volcanic peaks.
A network of walking trails weaves through piñon and cedar groves, leading to meditation spots designed for reflection in solitude. Their circular meditation hall, inspired by the mandala symbol, invites retreatants to move inward while surrounded by panoramic views of the high desert sky.
Hummingbird Community Retreats
Tucked in the forested hills near Mora, this eco-spiritual community blends silence with sustainable living. Retreatants stay in off-grid cabins or yurts nestled among ponderosa pines and aspen stands, each designed to harmonize with the natural surroundings.
Silent retreats here emphasize Earth-based mindfulness—whether meditating by a mountain stream, tending organic gardens in contemplative silence, or walking labyrinth paths inspired by Indigenous land wisdom. The community’s solar-powered sanctuary, built of natural materials, hosts daily meditations that align with the rhythms of sunrise and moonrise.
Lama Foundation
Founded in 1967, this spiritual community near Taos maintains silence as a core practice. Their circular prayer hall—with its dramatic glass dome—has hosted everyone from Ram Dass to Pema Chödrön. Silent retreatants stay in dome structures or hermitages scattered across a juniper-covered mountainside at 8,600 feet elevation.
The foundation practices “conscious kitchen” principles, where even meal preparation becomes a silent meditation, with participants cooking together without speaking.
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Mountain Cloud Zen Center
Just outside Santa Fe, this Japanese-inspired meditation center sits tucked among piñon and juniper trees. Their silent retreats follow the traditional Zen sesshin format, alternating periods of sitting and walking meditation throughout the day.
The meditation hall features sliding paper doors and tatami mats, creating an atmosphere of simplicity and focus. Participants often report that the center’s Japanese gardens—with carefully placed stones and trickling water features—deepen their experience of silence.
Ocamora Retreat Center
Hidden in a secluded valley near Ocaté, this former homestead now hosts silent retreats focused on sustainable living and deep ecology. Simple cabins and a historic adobe lodge house participants amid 265 acres of wilderness. Their practice combines traditional meditation with contemplative interaction with the land—whether gathering herbs, tending gardens, or walking ancient Indigenous pathways.
The night sky here—utterly free from light pollution—often becomes a focus of evening silent meditation.
Bodhi Manda Zen Center
Located in Jemez Springs, this center combines the benefits of silent meditation with natural hot springs. Founded in 1973 by Japanese Zen master Kyozan Joshu Sasaki Roshi, the center maintains the traditional Rinzai Zen practice. Between meditation sessions, participants can soak in mineral pools fed by geothermal springs—letting the healing waters complement their inner journey.
The grounds include numerous outdoor meditation nooks alongside the Jemez River, where the sound of rushing water becomes nature’s own mantra.
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San Francisco de Asís Retreat Center
This Franciscan sanctuary near Ranchos de Taos offers silence within walking distance of a historic 18th-century mission church. Adobe walls surrounding the courtyard physically separate retreatants from the outside world, while bells from the nearby church mark the hours.
Their guided silent retreats incorporate the Franciscan tradition of finding divinity in nature, with meditation focused on the changing mountain light and the creatures that share the desert landscape.
Garland’s Oak Creek Lodge
Tucked into a side canyon off Oak Creek, this former homestead now hosts silent retreats that combine meditation with creative expression. Participants stay in rustic cabins with front porches perfectly positioned for contemplating the towering red rock formations.
The retreat’s approach emphasizes “active silence”—engaging in pottery, weaving, or watercolor without speaking—allowing creativity to flow from stillness. Meals feature produce from their organic gardens, harvested and prepared by participants in contemplative silence.
Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs
While primarily known as a spa resort, this historic healing center offers designated “silent sections” and specialized quiet retreats throughout the year. The tradition of silence at these springs dates back centuries to when Indigenous peoples considered them sacred healing grounds.
Private soaking pools carved into the cliffside provide perfect spaces for water meditation, while trails winding through the surrounding desert landscape invite walking meditation practice.
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Chimayó Retreat Center
Near the famous Santuario de Chimayó healing church, this small center focuses on silent retreats combining multiple spiritual traditions. Housed in a 200-year-old adobe compound, the retreat offers a tangible connection to northern New Mexico’s complex spiritual history.
Their practice incorporates elements of Catholic contemplative prayer, Native American ceremony, and Buddhist meditation—all united through silence. Meals feature traditional northern New Mexican cuisine, with chile harvested from fields visible from the meditation room.
Ra Paulette Cave Sanctuary
Perhaps the most unusual silent retreat space in New Mexico, this hand-carved cave near Ojo Caliente represents one man’s 25-year meditation through sculpting. Artist Ra Paulette has transformed natural sandstone caves into cathedral-like spaces with undulating walls, skylights, and built-in seating alcoves.
Small groups can arrange private silent retreats within these remarkable spaces, where the absolute quiet of being underground combines with the awe-inspiring artistic environment.
Meditation Mountain
Outside the artists’ enclave of Madrid, this retreat center specializes in silent walking meditation across high desert terrain. Rather than maintaining a central compound, participants stay in scattered tiny homes with expansive views across the Ortiz Mountains.
The practice focuses on moving meditation—following specially designed labyrinth paths that wind for miles through pinyon-juniper woodland and across mesas. Their approach emphasizes how the changing terrain and weather become teachers during silent walking practice.
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The Final Silence
Northern New Mexico’s silence retreats offer far more than a temporary escape from noise—they provide pathways to lasting inner transformation. Whether meditating in centuries-old adobe structures, soaking in sacred hot springs, or walking ancient pilgrim trails, these sanctuaries connect visitors to something both primal and profound.
The high desert’s expansive quiet continues working its magic long after retreatants return to their everyday lives, having learned to carry a pocket of silence within themselves.
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