SOUL & SOVEREIGNTY
A Sweet Life Homecoming in New Orleans
June 25-28, 2026
Join us in New Orleans for a four-day, three-night Sweet Life retreat designed for the woman ready to return to herself gently, joyfully, and without apology.
This is not a vacation.
This is a homecoming.
A space where Black women are invited to soften, savor, and remember who they are beneath the responsibilities, the expectations, and the constant doing.
Held in the heart of one of the most culturally rich Black cities in the world, Soul & Sovereignty is an immersive Sweet Life experience rooted in pleasure, presence, and choice.
The Experience
For four days and three nights, we’ll gather inside The Blackbird Hotel, an intimate boutique retreat space created with Black women in mind modern, serene, and intentionally designed for rest, creativity, and connection.
New Orleans is a city where soul lives out loud.
Where food is ritual.
Where music carries memory.
Where joy is communal, ancestral, and alive.
This retreat honors that spirit offering a slow, luxurious rhythm that allows you to receive fully.
Expect mornings that begin without urgency.
Afternoons spacious enough for wandering or resting.
Evenings filled with intentional gatherings, laughter, storytelling, and care.
Everything is curated so you can arrive, exhale, and be held.
WHO THIS IS FOR
For the woman whose spirit has been asking for softness.
You are craving spaciousness not another packed itinerary
You desire joy that feels grounded, not performative
You want luxury without excess and depth without heaviness
You are ready to experience rest, culture, and sisterhood as medicine
You know you deserve to be poured into fully and intentionally
You've been saying "I need this" and you're finally ready to say yes
"If your body has been asking for softness… if your spirit has been longing for joy without explanation… this space was curated for you."
YOUR EXPERIENCE INCLUDES
Everything you need.
Nothing you don't.
Your investment covers the essentials of a fully held experience. Meals outside of our group gatherings are intentionally left open - so you can savor New Orleans food culture at your own pace, guided by our curated Black-owned local gems guide.
4 days / 3 nights at The Blackbird Hotel, New Orleans
Welcome Dinner - communal, candlelit, intentional
Daily grounding practices - meditation, breathwork, slow mornings
Sweet Life gift set + city guide featuring Black-owned local gems
Excursion Day Lunch during our cultural immersion experience
Savor the Sweetness Dinner - storytelling + communal dining
"The sisterhood and experience super exceeded anything I could have imagined. I left feeling full, invigorated, and empowered. Both my appetite and spirit were richly fed. I am already looking forward to our next adventure."
- KEESA L., SWEET LIFE NEW ORLEANS RETREAT
SAMPLE ITINERARY
How your days unfold.
DAY 1 · THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Arrival + Soft Landing
Arrival at The Blackbird New Orleans
Sweet Life Welcome Ritual + curated gifting
Welcome Dinner
Opening Circle: Where Soul Meets Sovereignty
Evening wind-down + porch conversations
DAY 2 · FRIDAY, JUNE 26
Rest as Ritual
Sunrise meditation + intention setting
Breakfast
Sweet Life Session: Finding Your Rhythm Again
Free time for rest, journaling, or neighborhood wandering
Dinner at a curated Black-owned New Orleans restaurant
Evening affirmations + sweetness cards
DAY 3 · SATURDAY, JUNE 27
Joy as Medicine
Morning grounding + gentle movement
New Orleans cultural immersion experience + lunch
Afternoon rest block
Sweet Life Signature Session: Softness, Sensuality & Soul
Savor the Sweetness Dinner - candlelit communal dining + storytelling
DAY 4 · SUNDAY, JUNE 28
Return Renewed
Closing circle + blessings for the journey ahead
Farewell brunch + departures
Optional late checkout for extended rest
*Itinerary subject to minor changes to preserve flow and spontaneity.
YOUR INVESTMENT
Rest is not a reward.
This is yours to claim.
Soul & Sovereignty is intentionally limited to 6–8 women to preserve intimacy, care, and high-touch facilitation. A small number of spots remain.
Most Popular
SINGLE ROOM $3,850
Your own private space for rest and restoration.
Save 5% when paid in full.
SHARED ROOM $2,925
Per person, for two guests traveling together.
Please note: The Blackbird's shared rooms feature a shared bed. This option is designed for friends, sisters, or partners joining together.
Flexible installment plans are available to make your investment feel spacious.
A non-refundable deposit of $750 secures your spot and begins your journey.
Only 6 - 8 women will gather here - by design and by intention.
SWEET LIFE SOCIETY MEMBERS
You have first access
and locked pricing - always.
Sweet Life Society members receive priority access and their locked member rate on all retreats. If you're not yet a member, joining the Society is your gateway to the full Sweet Life ecosystem year-round community, monthly rituals, and retreat priority that ensures you never miss a seat at the table.
Meet the Curator
Rakita Lillard Brown
I curate Sweet Life retreats because I believe Black women deserve spaces where rest, beauty, culture, and care are not treated as luxuries but as necessities.
Each experience is intentionally designed to honor your humanity, your pace, and your desires. Not to fix you. Not to rush you. But to create the conditions for you to soften, listen, and return to yourself.
Soul & Sovereignty is an invitation to choose yourself without apology and to experience what becomes possible when joy is practiced in community.
I cannot wait to welcome you into this sacred space.
Founder + CEO, Holistree LLC
Founder + CEO of Holistree LLC
If you feel genuinely called to join us and simply need the investment to meet you differently in this season, reach out to us directly at retreats@holistree.com. We hold space for aligned women in every season and we are always willing to have that conversation with care and discretion.
QUESTIONS
Everything you need to know.
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Your investment covers 3 nights at The Blackbird Hotel, your Welcome Dinner, Excursion Day Lunch, all workshops, sessions, and curated experiences, welcome gifts and keepsakes, and a community of women ready to pour into you. Travel to and from New Orleans is not included.
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Outside of our Welcome Dinner and Excursion Day Lunch, meals are on your own intentionally. New Orleans is one of the great food cities in the world and we want you to savor it freely. Your curated Black-owned local gems guide will be your companion for every bite.
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Yes. A non-refundable deposit of $750 secures your spot. The remaining balance can be paid in flexible monthly installments leading up to the retreat. A 5% discount applies to single room registrations paid in full.
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The Blackbird's shared rooms feature a shared bed - this option is designed for friends, sisters, or partners who are joining the retreat together. We do not pair strangers in shared rooms.
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Deposits are non-refundable. Payments made beyond the deposit are non-refundable if cancellation occurs after April 15th. Your spot may be transferable to another participant with prior approval. We strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance to protect your investment.
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Upon registration you'll receive a welcome message with general trip information within 48 hours. As June 25th approaches you'll receive detailed emails about what to expect, and a final itinerary 30 days before we gather.
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Email us directly at retreats@holistree.com and we'll respond within 72 hours.
NEW ORLEANS IS WAITING
Joy is not something
you postpone.
It is something you claim.
6-8 women. Four days. One city that knows how to hold you. Register before April 1st and receive your complimentary private photo shoot - a Sweet Life keepsake, on us.
Past Retreat Reviews
Dionna M.
“What I love most about these retreats is the intentionality. I always feel like they’ve created the moment exactly for me!”
Chanika M.