The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word HIDEAWAY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
H
I
D
E
A
W
A
Y
More clues leading to the result HIDEAWAY
- Husband’s theory: road leads to escape
- Welsh town embracing plan to have women’s refuge
- Hurried pronouncedly on a path, making retreat
- Refuge means getting behind hospital plan
- Why 12 unfolded involving a secluded spot
- Conceal a route to retreat
- Animal skin in reserve in safe place
- Fugitive with brief notion to stay in hotel on holiday
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "retreat" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case retreat = hideaway.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does HIDEAWAY mean?
HIDEAWAY noun- A hiding place, somewhere one can go to get away from other people
- Capable of being stored out of sight when not in use.