The Gothic Retreat
with I Do Declare
September 24-27, 2026
Ayze France (near Geneva, Switzerland)
One Space Available
Please scroll for more details and the cancellation list sign up.
There are images that feel less like photographs and more like artifacts, as though they always existed, waiting to be found.
October 20-25, 2026 (retreat activities start Thursday, October 22 and the retreat ends with checkout on Sunday, October 25.
Join Liza, Kelsey of I Do Declare, and Ash of Goat Spell and escape to the border of Switzerland and France where you will stay in a castle perched a top a hill overlooking the idyllic French Alps. Inspired by the retreat when Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, this retreat will be centered around the somber and macabre.
Your stay starts Tuesday, October 20th (if you wish). Tuesday and Wednesday you are invited to settle into the castle, relax, and enjoy exploring the area with Liza, Kelsey, and Ash. The retreat activities officially start on Thursday, October 22.
Liza will do three themed photo shoots Thursday, Friday, and Saturday: candlelight horror, a collaboration with Kelsey and Ash (including wardrobe loans), and a gothic medieval theme.
Friday evening we will have a salon style reading of our favorite horror stories by candlelight and enjoy regional snacks and drinks.
See the offerings below...
Your Co-Host, I Do Declare
I Do Declare is dark romantic clothing for old souls. A the helm is Kelsey (pictured to the left) and their wife Ash who will be joining us for the adventure. I consider them dear friends, collaborators, and wonderfully talented fellow artists.
Visit their website here.
The Shoots
Three shoots over the weekend — each one themed for a different historical artist or art form.
Candlelit Horror
Wandering through a darkened hallway the light plays tricks on your eyes. Is there a figure at the end of the hall? Or is it just a figment of your imagination?
1816
Based on the year Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, these images will be taken while you wear a custom made piece by I Do Declare. The pieces will be custom made to your size for you to model.
Pieces are not for you to keep.
Medieval Gothic
We will explore ruins or perhaps a castle in the area and take portraits onsite. Don your rich red velvets, sleek black silk, and cold steel armor.
About the Location
Perched along the brooding, fog-shrouded slopes of Le Môle mountain, Ayze offers a secluded sanctuary steeped in dark romanticism and alpine solitude. This historic French village—surrounded by ancient, windswept vineyards and looming peaks—looks out over the shadowy Arve Valley, just moments from the haunting expanse of Lake Geneva. It was along these very shores, amidst the gloom and electric storms of 1816's infamous "Year Without a Summer," that Mary Shelley conceived her gothic masterpiece, Frankenstein. Wrapped in lingering mountain mist and silent atmospheric beauty, Ayze serves as an evocative retreat where shadowed valleys and literary ghosts feel remarkably close.
ONE SPOT is left...
A participant who can no longer attend wishes to sell their private double bedroom for $1800. Includes lodging for a week and three photoshoots with me. Please inquire via the contact page if you are interested.
Liza
Roberts