Early Bird Pricing 〰️ Ends in 7 Days
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Early Bird Pricing 〰️ Ends in 7 Days 〰️
Swim with Humpback Whales
A New Song with Janne Robinson
August 19–27, 2027 · 9 Days, 8 Nights · Island of ʻEua, Kingdom of Tongaoverview
For nine days in August 2027 you will be in the Kingdom of Tonga. Each morning on ʻEua you'll board a licensed charter boat for up to seven hours on the open ocean, slipping into the water alongside humpback mothers and their calves. Each afternoon you'll return to land for breathwork, workshops, cold plunge, sauna, integration and the kind of unhurried stillness that only an island at the edge of the world can offer.
The fales are rustic. The island is remote. What there is, is the ocean, whales, each other and nine days to connect back to yourself.
Each year, the humpback whale's song has a new iteration. Not a completely new song, but small shifts. One whale changes a note. Another hears it and incorporates it. Slowly, progressively, the song evolves, one small change at a time, rippling through the population until something meaningfully different emerges.
The retreat is named after this. A reminder that you don't have to change everything all at once to sing a new song for your life. Sometimes it is the small, sustainable, progressive steps that lead us toward a deeper harmony. And sometimes, the note that changes you comes from someone else in the water beside you.
Swim with humpback whales on up to 5 guided days on the water (6-7 hours per day)
60-minute 1-1 purpose session with Janne Robinson over Zoom before the retreat (valued at $5,000 - included)
Two workshops with Janne Robinson on retreat: Open Concept Coaching · Animalism & The Medicine of the Whales
Introduction to Freediving workshop with Cat Sharks, British shark ecologist and competitive freediver, 263ft record holder.
Breathwork sessions
Yoga, cold plunge (ice bath), sauna, and spa bath on-site
Marine biology presentations on humpback whales and sharks of Tonga
Half-day island tour of ʻEua
Bonfire and Kava ceremony
Starlink internet available on-site, with an invitation from Janne to go phone and data free for the full retreat.
HIGHLIGHTS
THE EXPERIENCE
On the Water
This location is one of the most regulated whale swim destinations in the world, and that regulation is exactly why the whales are protected and why the experience is as extraordinary as it is. The permits alone are a significant part of the cost. It costs more because it is done right. We go in August, the heart of the migration, when the whales arrive in numbers and the ocean is alive with them.
On Land
Our oceanfront eco-retreat is based on the wild and beautiful island of ʻEua, known for its cliffs, rainforest, and whale-rich waters. We will be staying in traditional fales (bungalows), all with ensuites and balconies with an ocean view. Please note all accommodation for this retreat will be twin-share. Newly renovated bathrooms, air conditioning, an oceanfront yoga deck for breathwork and workshops, ice baths, and sauna. Remote, rustic, and the perfect place to be a million miles away from your everyday to get a reset and perspective on your life.
BEFORE YOU ARRIVE
Your Purpose Session: Zoom with Janne (included, $5,000 value)
In the year before the retreat, you'll have a private 60-minute purpose session with Janne over Zoom. This is one-on-one, unhurried, and entirely yours.
Together you'll map your purpose, your gifts, your direction, what you're moving toward and what you're ready to leave behind. Whether you're navigating a career pivot, building something new, or simply wanting more clarity on what's next, this session is designed to give you a North Star before you arrive.
That work doesn't stay on Zoom, it travels with you to Tonga and becomes the foundation for your open concept coaching workshop on retreat.
Sessions are scheduled individually in the months leading up to the retreat. All sessions must be completed before May 2027.
THE WORKSHOPS
Two open concept coaching and integration workshops with Janne across the retreat, plus an introduction to freediving workshop with Cat, each one shaped by whatever the ocean surfaces.Workshop One: Open Concept Coaching with Janne Robinson
This is not a scripted session. It is a live, open container, shaped by who is in the room and what is true for them in that moment.
Drawing on the purpose work you completed with Janne in your pre-retreat Zoom session, this workshop weaves individual insight into collective conversation. Bring what's alive for you, career, direction, identity, a decision you've been circling. Janne works live with what's in the room.
Over 1,100 people have gone through Janne's work built around one belief: belonging from anything other than who you are isn't worth it. This workshop has no agenda other than truth and what wants to move.
Workshop Two: Animalism & The Medicine of the Whales with Janne Robinson
An integration session built around what the whales stirred in you.
Over the week you will have floated next to some of the largest creatures on earth, heard their song through the water, and watched mothers with their calves in the wild. Something will have moved in you. This workshop is the space to bring that.
Rooted in animalism, the belief that animals carry medicine, wisdom, and reflection for those willing to receive it, Janne will guide the group through what the humpback whale offers as a teacher and a mirror. Part coaching, part integration. We'll look at what this week meant for you and what you're taking home.
Cat's Introduction to Freediving
Cat Sharks is a British shark ecologist and competitive freediver with a depth record of 270 feet. Sheoriginally trained as a shark ecologist, working primarily with tiger sharks, whale sharks, and blue sharks, before a turn into underwater camera lady life led her to an eventual pivot into the world of whales. She now swims with everything from blue whales and sperm whales to orcas, and brings that rare depth of experience into everything she does in the water.
Cat will lead an introduction to freediving, the science of breath-hold diving, how to move through water with presence rather than force, and what it means to enter the ocean as a guest. No experience required. Cat's expertise and her relationship with the ocean will change how you see every moment you spend in the water.
YOUR FACULTY
Janne Robinson - Host & Lead Facilitator
Poet, author, and coach. Janne's work centers on truth-telling, personal sovereignty, and the courage it takes to live an authentic life. She has built a global community through her writing, coaching programs, and live events. She has led over 200 one-on-one purpose sessions and her program Your Truth Is Your Medicine has reached over 1,100 people worldwide.
Cat Sharks - Freediving & Marine Science
Cat Sharks is a British shark ecologist and competitive freediver with a depth record of 263 feet. She originally trained as a shark ecologist, working primarily with tiger sharks, whale sharks, and blue sharks, before a turn into underwater camera lady life led her to an eventual pivot into the world of whales. She now swims with everything from blue whales and sperm whales to orcas, and brings that rare depth of experience and her deep relationship with the ocean into everything she does in the water.
60-minute private purpose session with Janne Robinson over Zoom before the retreat (valued at $5,000)
1 night accommodation in Nukuʻalofa (August 19, pre-retreat), dinner included
Charter flight from Tongatapu (TBU) to ʻEua and return
6 nights accommodation on ʻEua, twin-share (August 20-26)
5 days guided whale swimming on licensed charter boats (weather dependent)
All meals on ʻEua (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
Access to ice bath, spa bath, and sauna
Breathwork sessions
Yoga
Two workshops with Janne Robinson on retreat
Introduction to Freediving workshop with Cat Sharks
Marine biology presentations on humpback whales and sharks of Tonga
Half-day island tour of ʻEua
Bonfire and Kava ceremony
Starlink internet available on-site
Snorkeling equipment and wetsuits (if required)
Transfers between accommodation and charter flights.
1 night accommodation in Nukuʻalofa (August 27th, post-retreat), dinner included.
WHAT’S INCLUDED
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
International flights to/from Tonga (fly into Nukuʻalofa, TBU)
Tips for staff and crew
Travel insurance (compulsory, guests must arrange their own)
Please do not book international flights until I have confirmed we are 100% go, you will hear within 30 days of your deposit whether we have reached our minimum commitment.
TRAVEL NOTES
Fly into: Fuaʻamotu International Airport, Nukuʻalofa, Tonga, airport code TBU
Arrive: August 19, 2027. Accommodation included in Nukuʻalofa.
Depart: Morning of August 27, 2027. (You'll return to Nukuʻalofa on August 26th) Accommodation included August 26th.
Itinerary Overview
Day 1 - August 19 | Arrive Nukuʻalofa
Fly into TBU. Overnight accommodation and dinner included. Rest. Get ready for our early morning charter flight.
Day 2 - August 20 | Fly to ʻEua · Arrive
Early morning flight to ʻEua (7-10 minutes long!), short orientation and pop your backs into our oceanfront accommodation, then straight to the boat for some swimming!
Day 3 - August 21 | On the Water
Up to 7 hours searching for and swimming with humpback whales. Afternoons: sunshine, breathwork, cold plunge, sauna, and workshops await us at home.
Day 4 - August 22 | Sunday - Rest Day
No boating on Sundays by Tongan law. Half-day island tour. Workshops with Cat & Janne. Breathwork, sauna, cold plunge, stillness.
Day 5-7 - August 23 - 25th | On the water
Three more days of up to 7 hours on the water swimming with humpback whales. You would think you’d be tired of it by know but I promise you won’t.
Day 8 - August 26 | Return to Nukuʻalofa
Check out of our fales + charter flight back to Tongatapu. Overnight accommodation and dinner included in Nukuʻalofa. Closing with Cat + Janne over dinner.
Day 9 - August 27th l Check out ✈️
Breakfast + goodbyes. Guests will depart throughout the morning and day to fly home. No agenda on this day.
PRICING
Early Bird - 10% off. Expires May 27th.
Regular Pricing (after early bird closes) May 28th.
Your $2,000 deposit is refundable within 30 days if minimum participant numbers are not met. Once the retreat is confirmed, all payments are nonrefundable and non-transferable.
Travel insurance is compulsory. All guests must hold a valid policy covering medical evacuation, trip cancellation, and open water/adventure activities.
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We are offering twin-share only, however if you are a couple wanting to come we might be able to accommodate a private room. Send us an email at hello@jannerobinson.com.
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You don't have to — Starlink is available. But Janne's personal invitation is to go airplane mode for the duration of your time on ʻEua. One guide will be appointed as an emergency contact for your people back home, for true emergencies only. A huge part of what makes this experience transformational is the gift of being unreachable. The whales, the ocean, the workshops — they work differently when you're fully there.
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You need to be a confident swimmer and comfortable in open ocean water. No freediving or scuba certification required. If you can swim unaided for a few hundred metres, you're ready. Cat will also offer presence and guidance for anyone who wants more support in the water.
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Now, if you have to ask that question, then I’m not sure you’re in the right place. But incase you do need persuading, imagine the best visibility in the world with only five other hand selected humans around you (three at a time in the water!), surrounded by whales as far as you can see, with interactions so good you can convince yourself the whales love you as much as you love them... that’s why.
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No — these are wild animals in the open ocean and no encounter can be guaranteed. What we can tell you is that ʻEua sits directly on the humpback migration path, whale sightings from shore happen almost daily during August, and we have five full days on the water. Most guests encounter whales multiple times across the week.
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These expeditions are snorkelling only! While the behaviour of the whales sometimes permits us to ‘sink’ a little in the water for a better look, we generally prefer to stay on the surface. It helps them better identify us and predict our behaviour, meaning they stay calmer and we get longer interactions. I do recommend you are confident in your swimming abilities to make the most of this trip, though we will always be there to help you!
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Rustic and oceanfront. Traditional fales with ensuites, balconies, and ocean views. All accommodation is twin-share. Renovated bathrooms, air conditioning, and everything you need. It is not a five-star resort — it is a remote island retreat with all meals included and a simplicity that is part of the experience.
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7 guests per boat with a licensed whale guide and skipper. There will be a total of 4 boats scouting for whales at a time. Tonga law allows 4 people in the water at a time, so you'll rotate within your boat group.
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Open-concept and responsive to what's in the room. Not scripted lectures. Come ready to be present. Your pre-retreat Zoom session with Janne will prepare you for the work we do together on the island.
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No prior experience required for either.
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While we can help with some gear, we strongly encourage you to bring your own snorkel, mask, fins and wetsuit that you have tested and are comfortable with- please feel welcome to reach out on advice for this at any point. We do provide weights and weight belts if they help you feel relaxed in the water. While life jackets are available, swim jackets are NOT so if you want a swimming aid you should bring your own.
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Yes. Many people come alone. The shared container makes it a natural fit.
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The $2,000 deposit is nonrefundable once the retreat is confirmed. All subsequent payments are nonrefundable and non-transferable to another year or another participant. The sole exception: if minimum participant numbers are not met, your deposit will be refunded in full within 30 days. Travel insurance is compulsory and should include trip cancellation coverage.
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Insurance covering medical evacuation, trip cancellation, and ocean/water activities If possible, including something involving whales. Compulsory for all guests, not included in the retreat price. We strongly recommend a policy that includes Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) coverage.
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By the evening of August 19. Please do not book international flights until I have confirmed we are 100% go. Your first included night is August 19 in Nukuʻalofa.
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Your 60-minute purpose session will be scheduled individually in the months before the retreat. All sessions must be completed before May 2027. Scheduling details will be sent after your deposit is confirmed.