Description
May 3 – 15, 2026
BOTANICAL ILLUSTRATION RETREAT
with Wendy Hollender, Sam McWilliams, & Pam Thompson
In Andalusia, Spain
WORKSHOP DETAILS
Classes held at:
Garden of Lemons in Lecrin Valley, Andalusia, Spain
Workshop registration fee (12 day retreat, 8 workshop days): $1,450 USD
Travel and hotel to be paid separately.*
*Any guests you’d like to bring who wish to relax and dine, come on walks and excursions, but NOT draw, are invited to join you for a $200 fee. They will also need to pay their accommodation/food/excursion fees.
**In order to attend this workshop, you must stay at one of the Garden of Lemons locations. You will purchase your Draw Botanical workshop first, and then contact Garden of Lemons host Ingo to book your accommodation, which includes room and meals.**
Picture this: Surrounded by fragrant roses and fruiting citrus trees, you’re warm and relaxed, enjoying the Andalusian sun or shade, drawing in a gorgeous garden or in the covered glass-paned drawing room, caressed by lemon blossom-infused breezes. Gourmet meals are served three times a day, with lunch and dinner outdoors under the olive trees. A lovely Spanish wine or refreshing mocktail sits next to your watercolors. You take a break for a dip in the saltwater pool, or a stroll past the avocado and pomegranate trees. You’re living and breathing gorgeous landscapes, fully immersed in abundance, trees dripping with lemons.
In the shade of an orange tree, you capture the essence of an orange. When one falls from a tree onto your table, you eat it for a delightful afternoon snack. When finished with painting for the day, your charming hosts welcome you to the dinner table with freshly prepared Mediterranean style meals, sourced from their own gardens and local producers. Your eyes close as your head hits the pillow, and you wake up to enjoy paradise again the next morning, perhaps a massage from a local masseur is on your agenda… Read more details from our trip to Garden of Lemons in 2022 to get a taste of the experience.
Botanical Drawing
Study the fundamentals of botanical drawing in a gorgeous setting using the mediums of graphite pencil, colored pencils, watercolor pencils and watercolor. This is a unique opportunity to study and draw plants in the shelter of the Sierra Nevada between Granada and the Mediterranean, away from the usual tourism routes.
Drawing plants and flowers starts with observation. Under the supervision of Wendy Hollender and Draw Botanical instructors, students will create their own detailed botanical drawings and sketchbook pages of flowering plants, fruits and seed pods, working directly from the wide variety of plants growing in and near the Garden of Lemons. Students will learn about plant structures and their importance in creating realistic drawings. There will be opportunities to work on detailed paintings for those with more experience.
Nature Journaling
In addition to our typical Botanical Drawing workshop, there is an opportunity to focus some (or all!) of your time on a journaling style of work. We’ll take hikes and draw as we go, using our usual art supplies plus Micron pens to create more casual sketchbook style pages that include botanicals, mini-landscapes, architectural details, people, birds, bugs, etc. Sometimes we may even bring our lunch or stop at a nearby town for refreshments & lunch.
Adventures
For eight days (of this twelve day retreat), we will work on drawing various plants growing in Andalusia. There will be many instructor demonstrations in techniques combining colored pencil and watercolor, and we will focus on different aspects of botanical illustration techniques. We will also host two excursion days: one to Las Alpujarras (mountain range) and one to La Alhambra (cultural site in Granada).
Proposed Itinerary:
Sunday May 3: Arrival, Welcome Dinner
Monday May 4: Tour through the Garden of Lemons, Workshop ½ Day
Tuesday May 5: Workshop Day
Wednesday May 6: Workshop Day, Guided Walk
Thursday May 7: Workshop Day
Friday May 8: Excursion to Las Alpujarras
Saturday May 9: Workshop Day
Sunday May 10: Workshop ½ Day, Guided Walk
Monday May 11: Workshop Day
Tuesday May 12: Excursion to Granada and La Alhambra
Wednesday May 13: Workshop Day
Thursday May 14: Workshop Day and Exhibition of Work
Friday May 15: Departure
Hotel Accommodation Information and Costs
http://garden-of-lemons.com/en/forside-english
Garden of lemons is a retreat center for people seeking experiences, peace and contemplation in beautiful surroundings. The place is situated in the shelter of the Sierra Nevada between Granada and the Mediterranean, withdrawn from the usual tourist routes, and it is green and lush year round.
From the owners, Henrik and Ingo: “When we first came here in 2011, we instantly fell for the beauty around us and thought that we had to find an opportunity to take root. Soon we found the country house Jardín de Los Limones that lay as a ruin, but today appears as an elegant and detached finca, surrounded by terraces and gardens with olive, orange and fruit trees. To establish the retreat Garden of Lemons, we have since purchased and renovated the village house El Limón – a house with magnificent views of the mountains “Las Alpujarras” and the villages in the valley. The two comfortable houses are located only a few kilometers from each other and have fine architectural details that blend both Nordic and South-European stylistic features. We also partner with the nearby Hostel Los Naranjos to house additional guests.”
Housing
There are a few different options available for housing. We will have housing for around 8-10 guests in the houses of Garden of Lemons, where there are all classroom facilities and where most of the workshop activities will take place. Rooms are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. We predict that the rooms at Garden of Lemons and at village house El Limón will fill up fast. The rest of the accommodations will be hosted at the affiliated Hostel Los Naranjos, 800 meters / 15-minute walk from the class.
1. Garden of Lemons is a retreat center for people seeking experiences, peace and contemplation in beautiful surroundings. The place is situated in the shelter of the Sierra Nevada between Granada and the Mediterranean, withdrawn from the usual tourist routes, and it is green and lush year round. View photos here.
The retreat centre Garden of Lemons consists of 4 different houses:
- the main villa with 3 rooms. 2 rooms share a bathroom. 1 primary suite with its own bathroom.
- the “Garden house” close to the pool. 1 double room with its own bathroom
- the house “El Pino” on the avocado-finca – 50 m from the main villa. 2 double rooms with each their own bathroom
- the house “Los Olivos” on the olive-finca – 100 m from the main villa. 3 double rooms with each their own bathroom
For more information about the accommodations at the Garden of Lemons: http://gardenoflemons.com/en/
2. El Limón is the private home of our hosts, Ingo & Henrik in the village of Chite, about 2 km from the retreat centre. In this marvellous house, there are two rooms for rent with each its own bathroom. It was completely renovated in autumn 2016 and is now presented as a luxury house on two levels with a large terrace with pool on the 1st floor. Breakfast will be served here – and a shuttle will bring the guests down to the Garden of Lemons. There is also a path through olive groves down to the Garden of Lemons. 2 km walk – around 25 minutes. View photos here.
For more information about the accommodations at El Limón: http://gardenoflemons.com/en/
3. Hostel Los Naranjos is a popular and very lovely, spanish-style, family run restaurant / hotel in a beautiful setting at the edge of the village Melegís with 14 rooms. Each room has a balcony, its own bathroom and aircon. It was fully renovated in 2019 and adapted for people with reduced mobility. The hostel is at a distance of 800 meters from the Garden of Lemons, around 15 minutes walk through the village. Bicycles are available for rent at Garden of Lemons for 10 € (approx. $11 USD) per day. View photos here.
For more information about the accommodations at Hostel Los Naranjos: http://www.
Prices for accommodations, *food & services
12 nights / 13 days – May 3 to May 15, 2026
- double room at retreat center Garden of Lemons: 1,820 € per person (approx. $2078 USD).
- single room at Garden of Lemons: 2,360 € (approx. $2695 USD).
- double room at Hostel Los Naranjos, 800 m – distance, 15 min. walk from Garden of Lemons: 1,490 € per person (approx. $1701 USD).
- single room Hostel Los Naranjos: 1,690 € (approx. $1930 USD)
transport from Malaga airport to the retreat centre / hotel and back in taxi: 120 € (at a minimum of 3 persons in one taxi) (approx. $137 USD)
*food = full board:
- 12 x breakfast the place, you choose to stay
- 10 x lunch at Garden of Lemons
- 10 x dinner at Garden of Lemons
- 1 dinner at the hotel Los Naranjos
- free tea and coffee during the day
Also included at no charge:
- One (3-hour) walk along the river – with information about the village, and about the history of the area
- One (3-hour) guided walk in the beautiful nature around the retreat centre.
NOT INCLUDED:
- flight / transport to Málaga or Granada airport
- alcoholic and soda drinks at the retreat center (offered for reasonable prices)
- excursion to Granada with guided tour 150 € (approx. $171 USD) – includes dinner at a historical restaurant overlooking the Alhambra (lunch after own choice not included)
- Tickets to the castle of the Alhambra to be bought individually – around 20 € (approx. $22 USD) – more information later
- excursion to Las Alpujarras and small villages, All-day excursion 120 € (approx. $137 USD) – includes lunch at a restaurant in the village
Guests may join the trip as non-participating guests for the same prices. Click here to purchase a seat for your guest.
Please contact Garden of Lemons directly to reserve a room at either the retreat centre or at the hotel.
Garden of Lemons Hotel Contact Info:
Henrik Vilain and Ingo Schauser
Email: gardenoflemons@gmail.
Phone: 0034 652 034 348 (Ingo)
address: Calle Carretera sin número
18658 Melegís / El Valle
Granada, Spain
Map: https://goo.gl/maps/
Homepage: http://garden-of-lemons.com/
Travel Info:
Arrival May 3, Sunday. Fly to Malaga Airport or Granada Airport. Malaga airport is easier to arrange travel to, as it is serviced by more airlines than the smaller Granada airport. (Malaga has many nice, affordable hotels, if you’d like to spend a night to get over jet lag or spend a day or two at the coast.)
Please try to arrive to airport by Mid-day or early afternoon on May 3. Once you have provided your flight information to our Garden of Lemons host Ingo, he will organize group shuttles to the retreat center and hotel. It is about a 1 hour 30 minute drive between Malaga Airport and our retreat center. There is a fee for the shuttle service. We will have a welcome dinner in the evening on May 3 at Garden of Lemons.
Departure May 15, Friday. Ingo will arrange group shuttles to the airports based on your departure info. It is about a 1 hour 30 minute drive to the Malaga airport. For example, if your flight is at 11am, and you like to arrive 2 hours early, you would need to depart Garden of Lemons at 7:30am. Fee for shuttle service.
About the Region
Just south of the historic Moorish city of Granada, The Lecrin Valley is a lovely green, orchard-covered area at the foot of the dramatic Sierra Nevada mountains and within half an hour of the beautiful Costa Tropical. Perfect as a holiday destination, it’s away from the hustle and bustle of the coast, yet within easy reach, and only a short distance to the city of Granada.
Driving times are about 1 hour 15 from Malaga (with the newly completed motorway), 35 mins from Granada airport, 20 minutes to Granada city and 25 minutes to the Costa Tropical.
An area of outstanding natural beauty, the Lecrin Valley is famous for its verdant landscape (due to the melt-water run off from the Sierra Nevada), its citrus groves, its walks, bird life and amazing spring colors. Oranges, lemons, figs, pomegranates (in Spanish – granadas) and cactus line the roadsides.
The valley has many small villages dotted around the picturesque countryside. Orange and lemon trees as far as you can see, mixed with pine, olive and almond trees. The Moors actually named this valley the Valley of Happiness, due to the fresh mountain water that comes down into the valley from the Sierra Nevada mountains and for its abundance of fruit trees and plants.
Workshop Refund Policy:
If you cancel more than 6 weeks before the event (by March 22, 2026), a partial refund of 70% will be given if we are able to fill your spot. If we are unable to fill your spot or if you cancel less than 6 weeks before, we cannot issue a refund.
