Ayahuasca Foundation Retreat & Dieta – 18 days

I have spent time at the Ayahuasca Foundation and feel, unfortunately, that the time has come that I need to warn anyone considering this center. During my time there, I witnessed serious ethical violations by their facilitators. Multiple facilitators broke my confidentiality, one flirted with me inappropriately, another repeatedly flirted with all of the attractive women in our group. This last facilitator even openly disclosed to participants that he had a serious psychological diagnosis, a disclosure that, combined with his behavior, made it clear he should never have been placed in a position of power over vulnerable individuals in the first place. Yet, despite multiple participants raising these concerns with leadership, Carlos Tanner, the head of the Ayahuasca Foundation, has not taken what I would consider any meaningful action. No matter how many times I spoke with him, I felt that my complaints, and the complaints of others, have been minimized, dismissed, and met with pleasant-sounding evasiveness. Again, extremely disappointing given the reason for the foundation’s existence should be to help heal people, not give them more trauma. Healing spaces can be undoubtedly complex, but what I witnessed was not ambiguity or some misunderstanding, it was repeated misconduct, that I feel is being enabled by leadership that has been fully informed, repeatedly, by me and other participants. Months after first speaking with Carlos, an “Ethical Statement” appeared on the Ayahuasca Foundation website. In my view, this is little more than performative damage control. Talk is cheap, as they say, and a statement on a webpage does not erase a track record of ignoring participant safety. Case in point - despite private assurances that staff changes had been made, the same facilitator who had been the subject of complaints by multiple women was soon observed leading another retreat. Even worse, I recently learned that a death occurred there. I’m not speculating on the cause, but I will say that for years there has been what I feel is an urgent need for far stricter safety protocols and serious improvements in both facilitator and participant screening. I have attended retreats where, in my opinion, certain participants should never have been allowed to attend. From my perspective, the medical screening process is not rigorous enough, and seems more like a checkbox than a real safeguard. I also didn’t feel safe knowing there was little to no medical safety had I been bitten by a snake, or had an emergency. Many facilitators, in my experience, at the very least lacked basic professionalism. Few, if any, seem to know CPR. I’ve been saying for a long time now that defibrillators and epipens need to be on hand given the remote location. To be clear, I am not saying that the availability of such items would have changed the outcome of the death, but it is another example of what I feel are some truly mind-boggling lapses of judgment. Speaking out about misconduct is never easy but I feel we are at the point where something needs to be said. I am raising these concerns not out of resentment or personal grievance, but because future participants deserve (much) better and because staying silent only enables more harm. It is, simply put, the right thing to do. I am, again, now publicly, urging leadership to address the specific failures raised here, rather than offering vague reassurances. True healing requires real accountability not empty platitudes. Until serious changes are made, I would strongly urge anyone considering an Ayahuasca Foundation retreat to think very carefully about who they are entrusting their safety with. (Lastly, I want to be clear that the indigenous healers affiliated with the Foundation are remarkable and deserve deep respect. My concern is with the Western leadership, which I believe is not only failing participants but also taking advantage of the credibility and sacredness those healers bring to the work).

Ayahuasca Foundation delivered exactly what they said they would. The information on their site about our ten day retreat was very accurate. The accommodations at Riosbo were more comfortable than I expected. The staff were all wonderful. We had 8 participants. Some of us needed more assistance at times than others and I felt like everyone had ample support throughout the entire experience. My ceremonies surprised me to say the least. I feel like the retreat was one of the most important things I have ever done for myself. I was shown a burden I’ve carried since I was 8 years old and how it has impeded me from living my life fully. I feel empowered to shed than burden and move through my life with a renewed lightness and openness. At one point in the final ceremony I honestly thought to myself “I would give this two thumbs up. But that is not nearly enough thumbs up. I would need way more thumbs!” Silly thought but it expresses my genuine feelings about Ayahuasca and Ayahuasca Foundation.

It's not an easy experience, but definitely worth all the effort! Something you will never forget for the rest of your life. Big thanks to Carlos, Don Ronor and the rest of the team for making all of this knowledge available.

Thank you, Carlos, for your response. I’m curious—are you still in your U.S. home while reading this? People attend your retreat to heal, to learn, to seek wisdom, and to raise their consciousness. What they actually receive is fermented medicine, a shaman who shows up for one hour to sign icaros, and participants being made to do the work that should be the shaman’s responsibility. Meanwhile, the instructors you have on-site seem to have little understanding of healing or spirituality and are simply doing basic tasks to keep the place running. Is this truly what you believe constitutes a meaningful and transformative experience? If a customer isn’t satisfied with their experience and requests a partial refund, we both know what the appropriate, respectful action would be. Instead, you chose to send a lengthy email before whe. I request half refund, denying everything and refusing to take any responsibility. Is that really the behavior of someone who claims to be a spiritual, loving person helping and healing others? You charge approximately $5,500 for 28 days, yet I later went to the jungle myself and saw firsthand the actual cost of food, facilitators, and accommodations—essentially nothing, given the granted space you use. Why is it so difficult for you to act from a place of love and humility? Why does accepting a differing opinion from someone else always equate to financial loss for you? Take a moment to really think about it: what is your true intention behind all of this? What is your true intention in doing the retreat? If you’re just pretending to provide healing but are actually focused on personal gain, the universe knows, your higher self knows, your spirit guides know, and so does your soul family. This path will not accelerate your spiritual evolution—quite the opposite. Are the consequences really worth it? I channeled this part and already have the answer and the file for you from higher beings. Do you need to listen to it? This is not a threat but a wake-up call.

I attended this retreat for 28 days and found the experience deeply disappointing, especially considering the significant amount of money spent. The owner, Carlos, reportedly obtained the facility through a grant and did not invest his own resources to build it. He treats the retreat solely as a business rather than a spiritual endeavor. Despite marketing it as a transformative experience, Carlos remains in the U.S., leaving the operation entirely to a few instructors and the shaman. His absence underscores a lack of genuine connection or commitment to the retreat. The shaman’s handling of the sacred Ayahuasca tea was appalling. The tea was left outside in a plastic bottle for days under extreme heat and humidity, which likely caused it to ferment improperly. While Ayahuasca is known to induce purging, in this case, the nausea seemed more attributable to spoiled tea than to its natural properties. Carlos’s lack of presence means he remains oblivious to such serious issues. During ceremonies, the shaman only sang for about an hour before allowing instructors and even participants—who were unprepared—to take over. This disrupted the flow of the ceremony and felt chaotic and unstructured. Participants weren’t there to sing, they were seeking guidance from skilled facilitators and healing from the medicine. The retreat lacked professionalism, organization, and respect for the sacred process. Another major issue was the lack of transparency regarding internet access. It was marketed as having limited connectivity, but in reality, there was no internet at all—something they failed to disclose upfront. Having participated in over 100 Ayahuasca ceremonies, I can confidently say this was the worst experience I’ve ever had. It lacked spiritual integrity, professionalism, and respect for the medicine.