Location has changed: we are staying in a nearby hotel in Dwingelo with more rooms.

Please use this form to book your retreat: Registration form 2025

Quilt retreat May 23^th –  June 1^th 2025

An English spoken retreat especially for quilters from the USA, Canada, Australia and the UK

We are delighted to invite you to a fantastic retreat in May 2025. We will stay in Hotel de Borken. The location is unique. Adjacent to nature reserves, away from the highway and also centrally located in the north of the Netherlands at the three provinces point of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. The heath, that surrounds our lodge, is maintained by the Exmoor ponies and a herd of special heath-sheep. The sheep spend the night safely in the sheepfold, but during the day the sheep roam through almost the entire nature reserve. Are you lucky? Then you might come across this herd. It is always an impressive sight when the shepherd and his dogs tend the flock. It is a beautiful spectacle to watch the dynamics between dog, herd and shepherd.
You can find pictures of the hotrl and more on this website

 

Our hotel

 

The hotel

has 42 rooms for 2 persons, with 2 beds, TV, shower, toilet and sink. If you come with a friend you can share one room. If you come alone we will give you a roommate to make new friends for life. The lodge also has a huge relax room and two outdoor terraces to relax and enjoy talking with quilt-friends. There is small capacity for 1 person rooms,  ut this is more expensive.

Our sewing room in the hotel connects to the forest so that you can walk in and out for a relaxing walk in untouched nature. Don’t get lost!

In the sewing room are tables with a sewing machine available for every student. You will have access to the sewing room any time, day or night. You don’t need to bring your cutting mat: on each sewing station is a small cutting mat and there are several cutting mats and ironing tables are available in the room. There will be a small shop with all kinds of quilters ‘needs’ to buy.

The restaurant where we will enjoy our meals uses many local organic ingredients. If meat is served, it is often from their own Galloway cattle, which have been raised with respect, love and freedom. Vegetarian and diet meals are available.

We think a retreat is not a retreat without any fun surprises. During this 10 days we offer you a one day excursion to Leeuwarden where we visit the Fries Museum and get a private tour and a private city tour, a local coffee break and a local lunch, after lunch there will be another surprise activity. And there will be a surprise evening we would like to give you. It will be a fabulous evening for you to enjoy.

Quilting

A quilt retreat needs a quilt of course ???? and there will be a special one. We will offer you a special Quiltworx® quilt designed just for this retreat. Of course there will be more color options. The quilt will be 60 or 68 inch square.

What is included:

• A private bus is getting you from Schiphol airport to Dwingelo on May 23th and brings you back to the Airport on June 1th.
  

  – You must arrive at the airport before 3:00 PM on May 23th
  – Fly back to your country after 12:00 AM on June 1st

• You will stay in a 2 persons rooms with shower, toilet, sink, TV.
• Free Wi-Fi in the whole building
• All meals are included from dinner on May 23th until breakfast on June 1st .
• Coffee/tea are included during our stay in the Lodge (consumptions in the restaurant and in the bar are not included).
• And of course chocolate, chips and more?????
• One, special edition Quiltworx® quilt kit for each sewing participant.
• Your own sewing station
• Lessons from the team of 5 persons, led by CI Marianne Martens-Niemeijer
• A Goodie bag with many fun Dutch things inside.
• One excursion to Leeuwarden.
• One surprise evening

What is on your own costs

• Your flight to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.
• Lunch on May 23th and June 1th
• Consumptions in the bar and in the restaurant during dinner

Extra

• You can bring your partner with you. We need to know that when you book. The sewing room in the lodge has place for 24 sewing participants, but we could hire an extra lodge for couples (maximum 8 couples could stay there).
• For non-sewing guests there will be 2 extra excursions. Sewing guests can join those extra excursions on their own costs.
• Staying longer in Europe is also possible, but please tell us that when you book.
• If you have ancestors in the northern part of the Netherlands, we can help you find more information about your family history. There will be a genealogist in the lodge with much information about families from Overijssel, Gelderland, Drenthe, Friesland and Groningen area. If you want to make use of this, please send us your family information per email, at least 6 months before the start of the retreat and we will contact you.

The costs

• Quiltsters: $ 3750,- per person
• Non-sewing guests $ 3100,- per person

Paying table 

per ‘sewing’ person:                     By booking          $ 700,- 31-12-2023         $ 700,- 31-03-2024         $ 700,- 31-07-2024         $ 700,- 31-12-2024         $ 700,- 31-03-2025         $ 250,-

Non Sewing person By booking:         $ 600,- 31-12-2023         $ 500,- 31-03-2024         $ 500,- 31-07-2024         $ 500,- 31-12-2024         $ 500,- 31-03-2025         $ 500,-