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How do you choose a safe ayahuasca retreat in 2024 when the internet is saturated with 5-star reviews and yet some people have pretty sketchy, if not outright dangerous, ayahuasca retreat experiences?

As stories of Ayahuasca’s healing and transformative power spreads, so does the demand for ayahuasca retreats and, along with that, greed. The sad fact is that not all ayahuasca retreats are safe, even the ones with the higher price tags. 

For full disclosure, I’d like to start by saying that Alma Healing Center organizes ayahuasca and plant medicine retreats in Ecuador so this is not a completely objective video. However, one of our priorities is safety and, for that reason, we only work with healers we have personally met and sat with in ceremony. 

The following information on how to find and choose a safe ayahuasca retreat can be applied to pretty much any context in Latin America, whether you’re planning to travel to Ecuador, Peru, Costa Rica, Colombia, Mexico…

Do your research months in advance and ask a lot of questions. 

There are many more legitimate ayahuasca retreat centers than what you’ll find on Google Maps, but they may not have a marketing budget like the other “top ranking ayahuasca retreat centers”.

To appear on the landing page of websites like ayaadvisors, retreat centers are expected to pay more than $2,000 a year and the average retreat center doesn’t have that kind of money.

In fact, I know of numerous authentic and safe ayahuasca retreat centers, often run by a couple or small family, that aren’t listed on retreat.guru, Third Wave and don’t even have a website – they’re too busy preparing ayahuasca and healing people – and that’s exactly what we want them to be doing, right?

Use Facebook, not just Google and Google Maps. 

In Latin America, most ayahuasca retreat centers will have Facebook page instead of a website.

There are also a ton of Facebook groups where people share about upcoming ayahuasca retreats, plant medicine retreats, or one-off ceremonies. Just search “ayahuasca Peru” among Facebook groups and you’ll find a dozen you can join, ask questions etc. It might help to speak Spanish, but you’re more than likely to come across English speakers.

If possible, get on the phone with someone.

Though many retreat centers may not have the capacity to offer extended Q&A phone sessions with every interested person, speaking to someone will also help you gauge whether the center can be trusted – it makes a huge difference.

Determine your priorities and expectations in advance.

Ask yourself:

• Where would I want to drink ayahuasca? In the Amazon rainforest, the beach? Does it matter? Yes – always choose somewhere in nature and let me tell you…it sucks to feel cold during an ayahuasca retreat. The beach, cloudforest or rainforest are more comfortable in terms of temperature than the Andes when it comes to ayahuasca.

Other questions to ask yourself: 

• What level of comfort do you prefer? 
• Do you want to drink with an indigenous community where accommodation may be basic, but the experience is more authentic?
• Do you need translation?
• Do you want to interact with the shamans, curanders, healers? Some retreat centers don’t permit guests to interact with healers, though they might not say it outright.

What about group size?

We recommend no more than 15 guests per retreat group. The energy during ceremonies can get extremely intense and even if there are 2-3 people assisting the main healer, if the medicine is very strong, it’s hard for them to help everyone as much as they should. Keep in mind that people need help going to the bathroom, may faint during ayahuasca or may need to be restrained to some extent in really strong cases.

Most people prefer a smaller group so some centers won’t say outright how large their groups can get. Take one center for example – I couldn’t find any info about group size on their page until I found their FAQ page where this number was hidden: 40-50 per retreat! That’s way too many people, look for another retreat. 

Your ayahuasca healers

Find out more about the healers that will lead the retreat you attend. Ayahuasca retreat centers often work with different healers and rotate between them depending on their availability. 

Where does the medicine come from and does the healer serving the medicine also cook it? Can you interact with them?

These are all legitimate questions to ask a retreat center before investing $700-$3000 for a 10 day ayahuasca retreat!

Ayahuasca Retreat Reviews

The reality is many reviews can be faked. In fact, I know of ayahuasca retreat centers in Ecuador, where we are based, that pay people NOT to leave negative reviews. Trust video reviews over all other types.

Preparation and integration.

As more and more people are treating ayahuasca and other plant medicines like a bucket-list experience, we’re receiving many more unprepared retreat guests.

Ayahuasca is healing, transformative, heart opening, but it goes deep, it is challenging, it can be scary and dark.

I’ve been drinking ayahuasca for a decade and I had one of the hardest experiences ever just 2 days ago. I’m not sure how I would’ve integrated such a strong experience if I were a newbie.

So, when looking for a safe ayahuasca retreat center, look into whether it mentions preparation, post-retreat integration and even accompaniment after the retreat. 

Not all retreat centers will have the capacity to offer 1-on-1 accompaniment after the retreat, but many offer Facebook communities, resources, rituals you can do on your own and other ways to stay connected and build on your ayahuasca experiences.

Intake questionnaire

If a retreat center fails to ask for an intake questionnaire of some sort, or an intake interview, that’s a big red flag.

Intake questionnaires help center leaders and healers determine whether you should be drinking ayahuasca at all. It’s vital that you are completely transparent when it comes to your mental, emotional and physical health.

Are you on prescription medication? Anti-depressants? Do you have a history of mental health issues like schizophrenia or bipolarism? Do you have a heart condition or hypoglycemia?

With this information, the retreat center might ask you to start weaning off the meds or inform you that it may not be wise to drink ayahuasca until your specific condition improves.

This is for your own safety!

If a retreat center doesn’t prioritize gathering this information before taking your money, look elsewhere.

Trust your gut, better known as your intuition.

Ultimately, drinking ayahuasca is a calling. Where are you feeling called to go?

Definitely don’t base your decision solely on how beautiful the setting is, what add-on touristic activities are offered, whether they follow the “ayahuasca diet” or how many 5-star reviews they have.

Get in touch about a safe ayahuasca retreat in Ecuador

If you’re looking for a safe ayahuasca retreat in Ecuador, we encourage you to get in touch.

With about 10 years participating in and organizing plant medicine retreats, I have a handful of healers I can confidently recommend that I would trust with my own life.