Tassajara Zen Mountain Center - Carmel Valley, California

Address:39171 Tassajara Road
Carmel Valley, California
Tel: (415) 865-1899

Whether a spiritual seeker or an urbanite looking for rest and renewal, the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center will feel like the welcome retreat you've been longing for. Located deep in the Santa Lucia Mountains, the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center has been a hot-springs resort since the 1880s and was established by Suzuki Roshi and the San Francisco Zen Center in 1966. Just 27 miles inland from Big Sur, the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center is accessible by one road only that wraps sharply around the mountains and ends at the secluded Zen Center, the perfect and down to earth entry to a whole new world of Zen.

The theme at the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center is simplicity and becoming one with your surroundings, so the lack of electricity should come as no surprise. There is also only one phone on the premises, so plan ahead. Three vegetarian meals are served each day, and there are a variety of lodging options scattered throughout the grounds. Guests can take Zen workshops and retreats throughout the summer and participate in meditation practices explained by Buddhist monks.

If you're looking to reconnect with nature, you can go hiking in the hot, dry sun through the numerous trails which lead to gorges, and take in the raw and rugged beauty of the Santa Lucia Mountains.

Do note: this Buddhist community wishes to conserve the isolation of the center, so it closes from September through April for monastic Zen training and opens again from May through August, for retreats, workshops and study programs.