We’re so excited you’re interested in joining us at our third Camp NSP!!! This community retreat is intended to bring together the NSP community for a weekend of fun, learning, relaxing, and celebrating Shabbat together. This is for all ages (yes, including children!).
Please note that this retreat is only open to NSP members. If you’re not an NSP member, you’re warmly welcomed to join, regardless of financial resources. Please reach out to our Membership Team (membership@newsynagogueproject.org) to learn more, and/or fill out this form to join NSP.
The retreat is from Friday, May 29 – Sunday, May 31, 2026! Please register as soon as possible, and no later than Friday, May 8. (This is a hard deadline! We’ll need to submit participant info to the retreat center after this point.)
Location: North Bay, 11 Horseshoe Point Lane North East, MD 21901
Getting there: After registration closes, we will set up a carpooling spreadsheet so people can offer and obtain rides that way, including sharing rental cars, etc.
Anticipated schedule (more details to follow):
Friday: Arrive starting at 4:00pm, Shabbat services and dinner
Saturday: Breakfast, Shabbat morning services, Tot Shabbat, lunch, afternoon workshops and outdoor adventure activities, dinner, singing, evening activities
Sunday: Breakfast, morning programming, lunch, depart by 1:00pm
Costs: The at-cost amount is $375 per person. If you can, please pay $425 per adult and $213 for children, which would enable us to make this retreat accessible for other participants. If you are unable to pay the at-cost amount, please pay $225 per adult. Children ages 3-10 are half of the at-cost price ($188). If this amount is inaccessible, please pay $138 per child. Children under age 3 are free! The rates above cover all fees for the retreat, including food, lodging, and all activities. We are unable to offer prorated amounts for attending part of the retreat.
Is this just for families with kids? Are there activities specifically for adults or specifically for kids and their families?
This retreat is for everyone in the community and we specifically want it to include a cross-section of members in our community. This includes, among many other things, having people join without kids, as well as with kids. There will be some activities that are meant to be enjoyed all together as a big group, like our opening and closing, but most of the retreat will have options that will likely be more split (i.e., Shabbat services for adults; Tot Shabbat for young kids; a Kollel-style program for school-age kids; as well as a mix of workshops that will be more catered to adults, and others that will be more catered to kids of various ages). Whether you’re coming solo, with friends, with a partner or with kids we want you here!
What does this cost include?
The cost is fully inclusive of everything needed for the weekend including lodging for both nights; Friday night dinner, all meals and snacks on Saturday, and breakfast and lunch on Sunday; bed linens; and access to all our programming.
What if I have to come late or leave early?
We understand that people are juggling various schedules; while we hope participants can attend the entire retreat, we know some people may need to miss bits of the retreat on either end. Note that we are not able to offer prorated amounts/discounts if people attend more or less of the retreat. Arrivals will begin at 4:00pm on Friday, May 29; for those coming after work or who need to come later, you’re welcome to join whenever you can that evening. Dinner will be served at 6:00pm. On Sunday, we will need to leave the venue by 1:00pm. If you need to head out a bit earlier, that’s fine, though we hope you will stay so you don’t miss our community closing as a whole group.
What if I don’t have a car or mode of transportation?
We will have a sign up sheet for those that are looking for a ride and those who might be able to offer a ride, and we’ll coordinate carpools from there. We don’t want travel to be an obstacle to participation and feel confident we can support everyone who needs a ride to get one.
What is the lodging like?
The standard housing option is dorm rooms with seven bunk beds (14 beds total), and each one has an adjoining shared bathroom with 2 toilet stalls, 2 showers, and 2 sinks. We also have a small number of single and double-occupancy private rooms available. These private rooms have two twin beds and a private bathroom, along with a kitchenette and mini-fridge. These rooms can additionally fit up to two cribs, or a third mattress on the floor. These private rooms are limited and will be provided only for access needs like families with small children; discomfort with shared spaces due to gender transition or other social concerns; medical or mobility needs requiring private spaces. We’ll do our best to accommodate these needs and you can request one of these rooms in the registration form. If there is a critical mass of those interested, we will have one (or more, depending on demand) dorm(s) set-aside for COVID-cautious participants, who will all agree to set practices collectively in advance of the retreat.
Can I room with friends or make other kinds of rooming requests?
We want everyone to be as comfortable as possible. We will try to accommodate specific rooming requests, like with specific people, or general preferences like gender of other bunkmates or presence of children.
What if I don’t know anyone else coming?
Part of why we designed this retreat was specifically to build deeper connections across our community. We want all of our members who are interested to be part of this experience, whether you already have lots of relationships at NSP or barely know anyone. Our programming is structured to support making new connections so this is a great way to get to know more people in the community!
How do I know if the retreat will meet my access needs?
We are a community of people with many different experiences, and who have many different needs and wants that help us feel supported, present and able to access this space. You can go to this site to take a virtual tour of the physical retreat space to help you discern what kinds of support you might need or give. Some more details on the physical space are here. We have a section about access needs in our registration form so that we can get all the information needed to make the retreat as accessible as possible to all who want to attend.
What if I have dietary restrictions?
All our meals will be vegetarian. NorthBay is able to accommodate vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, and dairy-free food restrictions, and potentially others if needed. This year, we will bring supplementary food for those with gluten-free or dairy-free food restrictions to ensure all dietary needs are met.
What is the COVID policy for the retreat?
The retreat is mask-optional, and all participants will be asked to take a rapid test before coming or when you arrive. Much of our programming and activities will be outdoors weather-permitting, and there is outdoor seating available for meals (food is served in a dining hall). As noted in the current NSP COVID policy, if you are experiencing flu-like symptoms, we ask that you stay home. Refunds will be available.
