Family Camp 2025

Family Camp is a magical week for parents and children to spend together with old and new friends in the beautiful, rolling green hills of Vermont's Northeast Kingdom at Karmê Chöling.

Family Camp is a week-long program that combines meditation practice, outdoor time, and the warmth of family and community. For parents, the morning is a time for meditation practice, dharma talks and group discussions. There will also be spaces dedicated for practitioners to do their personal practice in a group setting.

For children we offer daily programs:
9:15 am—12:15 pm, grouped by age

• Tigers (3-5)
• Lions (6-7)
• Garudas (8-10)
• Dragons (11-12)
• Explorers of the Phenomenal World (13-15)
• Rites of Earth Warriorship (16+)

Activities are varied and often include meditation, craft projects, time outdoors, stories, songs, hikes in the woods, and group games. Afternoons are dedicated to family time, with both structured and spontaneous activities. There are many mountain lakes nearby to enjoy. Evenings include a relaxed dinner together, laughter and play on the front lawn, and supervised campfires with songs and stories.

The Rites of Passage program, at the heart of Family Camp, will be offered again this year for children between the ages of 8 and 10. This week-long program includes bow and arrow making, bow and arrow practice, calligraphy, poetry writing, and connecting with nature.

The program culminates in a beautiful ceremony, attended by the entire camp, marking the passage from early childhood into the greater independence of late childhood. All morning programs are taught by our dedicated adult staff and supported by our teen counselors, many of whom have themselves grown up within Family Camp.

This year we are excited to offer a new program for 16 and 17 year-olds called Rites of Earth Warriorship. Here our young adults learn greater independence and responsibility as they receive wisdom from our lineage and find their respected place within our family camp society. This program serves as the bridge from Explorers towards advanced warriorship training and being of service as counselors and support staff.

• Adult: $700 per adult
• Children: $350 per child for the first two children of the family
• 3+ Children: $175 for each additional child (beyond the first two)
• Children 2 years old and younger are free
• Rites of Passage: $85 materials fee for each child participating in this Program
• $100 discount for bringing your own tent

• Friday, February 14th - Registration opens via this website!
• A $200 deposit is due at the time of registration
• For now, register only one family member per family
• In the "Requested Roommate" box, list the names and ages of all your other family members expected to attend Family Camp
• In a few weeks, we will send you a link to where you can complete your registration.
• Friday, April 26th - Registration closes!
• May 2nd - Confirmations and invoices sent to families.
• June 20th - Payment in full due

A family-sized Karmê Chöling tent is included in the cost of the program. If you prefer, you can bring your own tent for a $100 discount on family tuition! Our priority for assigning housing in the Karmê Chöling tents located nearest the main house is for families with young children and/or mobility challenges.

We have a limited number of rooms in the main house. Regular accommodation rates apply for housing in the main house and at our offsite location, Ashoka Bhavan. Our priority for assigning accommodations in the main house is for families with young children and/or mobility challenges.

Please note: accommodations are assigned in the order of when the program deposit is made.

An important note: We recognize that our Camp has historically not reflected the full diversity of society. We are working to be proactive in taking steps to change this reality. It is important that all people feel invited, especially those underrepresented within the larger Shambhala community.

Scholarships are available for those in need. To be eligible for a scholarship, you must first register your family and make a deposit ($200) online. Once you have done that, contact Ella Reznakova to request a scholarship: scholarships@karmecholing.org.

The deadline to request a scholarship is April 26th.
No other discounts apply.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at kclfamilycamp@gmail.com if you have any questions about the process.

Deposits are due at the time of registration. All additional payments are refundable up to two weeks prior to the program start date, minus a $30 cancellation fee. After the two week deadline, Karmê Chöling will deduct a $30 cancellation fee and retain the rest of your deposit as credit towards another program. This credit will expire after two years. Any payments over the deposit will be refunded.