I was thinking of going and spending a couple of weeks at Wat Metta, Ajahn Thanissaro's monastery. Unfortunately, I left the preparations too late and it'll be full at the time I could go. Does he have any students with a similar style, or is there anyone else with a similar style in the US? Not quite sure what I mean by similar, there. More precise than "Thai Forest" (I don't really care about the tradition he comes from anyway, but for instance, Ajahn Brahm would not be in this similarity set.) Less precise than "just Thanissaro.")

I was going to suggest Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery in California.

It is in the Thai Forest tradition of Ajahn Chah. Ajahn Amaro and Ajahn Sumedo are both associated with this monastery and both are on the opposite side of Ajahn Brahm's teaching methodology. and therefore closer to Tan Geoff's brand of teaching.

Unfortunately, they are not set up to take retreatants. Although this looks promising (click on "Overnight stays") and you may want to check into it:

[indent]First-time visits are limited to a one week stay (or ten days if visiting from out-of-state or two weeks if visiting from outside the U.S.). We ask that all new guests stay for at least three nights. After the first visit, a guest may request to stay for a longer period of time when returning for a second visit. Accommodations are limited, so please contact the guest monk (preferably by email) well ahead of time, to check the availability of space. We do not make reservations for guests more than two months in advance of the requested date of stay.[/indent]

Interesting.

I would call and ask a lot of questions about the accommodations. At Wat Metta, everyone camps outside in an orchard. Depending on your temperament and need for creature comforts, this could become a distraction.

I would also ask what activities of the monastery guests are requested to participate in and how much time guests are afforded each day to just be on their own and meditate. If you've only done Goenka-style or IMS-style retreats, being at a monastery is somewhat different in that you may have less free time.

I would also ask what the noise/conversation level is like. I personally think "noble silence" is a bad idea, but again, if you're only used retreats where it's silent as the tomb, the monastery may require an adjustment of expectation.

If you've already considered all this, just ignore it, but I'll leave it here in case anyone else is considering doing a retreat at a monastery.

Thanks, IanAnd. I read some of the dharma talks there, and they didn't really inspire me in the same way, so I don't think it's a good fit. But gives me a (rather obvious) idea about how to find good places to go. I will start looking for other good dharma talks.

How about Santikaro's place, Liberation Park, up in Wisconsin?
I really want to do Thanissaro's place too. I think Santikaro's is comparable. And if I remember correctly, him and Thanissaro are on the same page. They're personal retreats, in like a cabin or something, with daily teacher meetings. You handle your own food preps.

http://www.liberationpark.org/retreat/persrets.htm

Thanks, Michael. I listened to one of his talks on dependent origination, and it was interesting.

I've done a retreat with Santikaro and I found it a very productive time. He teaches anapanasati in the tradition of Ajahn Buddhadasa and does it very well. He's obviously familiar with the territory and has a passion for teaching this. I also found Santikaro open to the pragmatic approach that many of favor; I got invaluable help related both to practice and theory. I don't know how the self-retreat thing at his ranch works, though, so YMMV.