Ayahuasca Retreats Peru - Safe Shamanic Healing & Transformation

Q: Where is the Hummingbird Center located?

We are located 14 KM outside of Iquitos, Peru. Our ayahuasca retreat center is situated in a peaceful jungle setting, three kilometers away from the main Iquitos-Nauta road to ensure a quiet, undisturbed environment.

Q: Is Hummingbird safe for people with serious emotional conditions?

Yes. We specialize in working with depression, anxiety, and moderate PTSD. We have rigorous screening protocols to ensure every guest is mentally and emotionally stable enough for this work, and we provide specialized care for those often turned away by other centers.

Ayahuasca Retreats at the Hummingbird Center

With no more than ten guests, each retreat is an intimate circle guided by our Peruvian curandero, rooted in generations of Amazonian plant medicine. In this safe, nurturing space, you’ll receive personal care and attention to explore deep energetic and subconscious layers, release limiting beliefs, and remember your true self.

Since 2010, ayahuasca retreats at the Hummingbird offers more than ceremony — it’s an invitation to restore balance to body, mind, and spirit, cleanse and renew, and step into greater clarity, peace, and wholeness.

More about our Ayahuasca Retreats →

Key retreat facts

A quick reference for some of the most common questions.

Location	Near Iquitos, Peru (Amazon region). Travel guidance
Group size	Small groups (maximum 10 guests).
Programs	7, 9, and 12-day retreats, plus 3–4 week immersion options. See programs
Retreat dates	New retreats start twice monthly, around the 1st and 15th. View retreat dates
Prices	7-day: $2000, 9-day: $2400. 12-day: $2800. Includes lodging, meals, and ceremonies. See current pricing
What's included	Lodging, all meals, 3-6 ayahuasca ceremonies, one huachuma ceremony, and more. Program details
Facilitation experience	Jim (owner) has facilitated ayahuasca retreats full-time since 2010.
Curandero experience	Manain has 40+ years of experience with ayahuasca; Jim & Manain have worked together for 8 years.
Safety & screening	All guests undergo medical screening before booking. Common contraindications include [SSRIs/MAOIs, certain cardiac or psychiatric conditions — confirm exact list]. Full safety info
Reviews	4.8/5 average from 300+ reviews on Tripadvidor, Google and other platforms. Read reviews
Legal status	Ayahuasca is legal in Peru when used in a traditional/ceremonial context, such as at Hummingbird.
Languages	Retreats are facilitated in English..

Transform Your Life at an Ayahuasca Retreat

The Hummingbird Center is an ayahuasca retreat center dedicated to helping people improve their lives. Founded in 2010, Hummingbird offers ayahuasca and san pedro healing retreats that stay true to this ancient plant-medicine tradition. Our curandero Manain is a 4th generation ayahuasquero with over 45 years of experience, and has mastered the subtleties of this plant-spirit medicine world.

The doctor spirits penetrate to the very roots of what ails us, bringing harmony and balance back to our energetic and spiritual bodies. Ayahuasca has the ability to show us the contents of our subconscious minds, so we clearly see patterns and beliefs that have kept us limited. This beautiful medicine helps us make new choices, helps us shift our default mode of being, so we more naturally live in alignment with our desires.

Seven people, including an older man in a cap and a woman in a blue skirt, smiling in a tropical garden with palm trees by a pond.

Our holistic approach encompasses the physical, emotional, energetic and spiritual aspects of healing, as well as changing negative patterns in our thoughts and belief systems. In the shamanic view of illness, physical and psychological problems have their source in negative thought forms, a reflection of one's spiritual state of consciousness. Illness is an effect of these distorted thoughts. Unfavorable thoughts arise in the conscious mind and are then held in the subconscious, from which they can be transferred into the physical body. Because of this, true healing always has to begin at the spiritual level.

Working With Highly Skilled Healers

It takes many years of training to develop good relationships with the medicine spirits and skill working with subtle spiritual energies to effect lasting healing. True mastery requires decades of experience, and Manain has been working with ayahuasca since he was 16 years old. Our lead facilitator has been guiding people through this healing process since 2010, and has facilitated over 1400 ayahuasca ceremonies.

At the Hummingbird you are under the care of highly experienced, caring, and compassionate practitioners dedicated to helping people heal and transform their lives. The depth of growth and change achieved has many saying they feel as though they have been reborn.

More about our Healers →

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Ayahuasca Empowers People

The ultimate goal of the Hummingbird is to empower people. To not only receive deep healing, growth and transformation, but to acquire skill in managing our own emotional and energetic state. To take charge of our thoughts and emotions, and therefore our lives. To realize the power, love and joy that is an inherent part of our nature. Ayahuasca and san pedro accelerate this change.

We emphasize taking personal responsibility for our lives. To become mindful. To start paying attention to our inner world. Our thoughts, our emotions, our body, and the interplay between them. To accept ourselves exactly as we are in the moment, knowing we have the power to change, if we choose to exercise that power. Choice. We have Choice.

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Close-up of fluffy pink and white bobinsana flowers with long stamens, a bee collecting pollen, and small buds.

Ayahuasca Retreat Lengths to Fit Your Needs

7 DAY AYAHUASCA RETREAT– $2000
9 DAY AYAHUASCA RETREAT– $2400
12 DAY AYAHUASCA RETREAT– $2800

All our retreats have one San Pedro Cactus → ceremony

Compare Our Retreats

Prepare for your Ayahuasca Retreat

Good preparation is essential for maximizing the benefits of your time in ayahuasca ceremony. The cleaner our bodies and the clearer our minds when we arrive, the sooner ayahuasca can get to the root level of our troubles, the sooner she can begin imparting wisdom and insights that can transform our lives.

The body, mind and spirit all benefit from simple, time-proven practices that promote health, harmony and vitality. These practices are simply clean, healthy living, and one’s life would be better if they were always practiced. An ayahuasca retreat is a significant investment of your resources and energy. Get the most from this investment by arriving well prepared.

More about Preparation →

Man in yellow leads a group lying on mats in a rustic, open room with lush green views.

My stay at Hummingbird Healing Center was life-changing. From the moment I arrived, I could feel the love, care, and attention woven into every part of the retreat.

Cully

Read Tripadvisor review

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What to Expect

Ayahuasca has the ability to open us to spiritual realms and other dimensions. A fascinating aspect of this medicine is everyone has a unique experience and is taken through an individualized process of healing. There is incredible variety of experience, and it is best to set aside all expectations. Your process will almost certainly be different than what you have read.

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Ayahuasca Healing

Ayahuasca is a powerful medicine and teacher plant that brings deep multi-level level healing physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. While a very large number of issues may be addressed with ayahuasca and other medicine plants, it is not a cure all or magic bullet. Understanding the possibilities of what you may experience in an ayahuasca retreat allows one to relax into their journey.

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Responsible Ceremonies

Ayahuasca ceremonies at the Hummingbird are led by Don Manain who has over 45 years of experience, a true master plant spirit medicine. The owner is the lead facilitator and has been guiding people through the medicine plant process since 2010. Our priority is to provide a safe and sacred space for healing where you can relax into the experience knowing you will be well cared for.

Grandfather Huachuma
(San Pedro)

Our ayahuasca retreats include a ceremony with huachuma, the visonary cactus of the Andes. Huachuma is a peer of ayahuasca in its ability to teach and heal, using a gentle touch in its approach. Considered a heart opening medicine, huachuma drops the filters through which we view the world, so we have a direct experience of reality. A truly beautiful medicine, people often say it was the most wonderful experience of their lives.

Huachuma brings clarity, revealing the mental games we play with ourselves that keep us small, and opens access to universal consciousness, our true spiritual nature. "San Pedro" is simply Spanish for Saint Peter. It is a name given by a Spanish priest because he said "it opens the gates of heaven".

More About Huachuma

Green columnar cacti with prominent vertical ribs and small light spines; a sharp foreground cactus with blurred ones behind.

Integrating What is Learned

Integrating lessons from ceremony is essential for lasting transformation. After a period of attention, intention and focus, new behaviors becomes a natural part of how we show up in life .

For professional support, we wholeheartedly recommend Darlene Joy of Woman of the Medicines. With over a decade of experience and five visits to the Hummingbird, Darlene brings rare depth to her practice. She listens with her whole heart, offering guidance rooted in compassion. Guests consistently describe her sessions as some of the most valuable preparation they received.

More about Ayahuasca Integration →

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12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat

Experience the deep healing and teaching of Peru’s two visionary medicine plants... Step into a safe container for deep healing.

$2800

► 6 Ayahuasca Ceremonies
► 1 San Pedro Ceremony
► Vapor and Mud Baths
► Meditation and Breath Work
► Talks on Changing Belief Systems
► Plant Baths Every Afternoon

9 Day Ayahuasca Retreat

Our 9 day retreat is an introduction to the magic of ayahuasca and huachuma, the san pedro visionary cactus. Great for those looking for clarity of purpose.

$2400

► 4 Ayahuasca Ceremonies
► 1 San Pedro Ceremony
► Vapor and Mud Baths
► Meditation and Breath Work
► Healing on Days Without Ceremony
► Plant Baths Every Afternoon

Immersion Ayahuasca Retreat

Our 3–4 week immersion retreat is for those seeking deep, lasting transformation or whose condition requires a longer treatment.

$3800 - $4800

► 3 or 4 Week Stays
► 8 -12 Ayahuasca Ceremonies
► 2 -3 San Pedro Ceremonies
► Master Plant Dietas
► Private Consultations With Shaman
► All Features of the 12 Day Retreat

My heart is filled with immense gratitude for the sacred space the Hummingbird held for me in their beautiful center. Thank you for your wisdom, for being vessels of knowledge, and for sharing your light so generously

Joanne R

Read Tripadvisor review

Upcoming Ayahuasca Healing Retreats

		Price (USD)	Availability	Reserve
Wed, Jul 15, 2026	7, 9 or 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat	$2000, $2400, $2800	Open	Book Now
Sat, Aug 15, 2026	7, 9 or 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat	$2000, $2400, $2800	Open	Book Now
Tue, Sep 1, 2026	7, 9 or 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat	$2000, $2400, $2800	Open	Book Now
Tue, Sep 15, 2026	7, 9 or 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat	$2000, $2400, $2800	Open	Book Now
Thu, Oct 1, 2026	7, 9 or 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat	$2000, $2400, $2800	Open	Book Now

The Mystery of Ayahuasca

No two ayahuasca journeys are the same. While the internet is full of personal stories, they rarely prepare you for your own experience. The medicine meets each person where they are, unfolding a unique process of healing and insight. Reliable, experience-based guidance on what working with ayahuasca is actually like can be difficult to find.

Drawing on fourteen years of facilitating ayahuasca ceremonies and retreats, we wrote an in-depth article exploring common patterns of experience, the importance of commitment and surrender, and what participants can realistically expect.

Read What its Really Like Working With Ayahuasca →

Teal and green painting of ayahuasca visions featuring a woman's face and butterfly

Your Safety Comes First

Since opening in 2010, the Hummingbird has never had a medical incident related to drinking ayahuasca. Our safety standards begin with a rigorous, multi-stage screening process to assess contraindications, medication interactions, and psychological readiness. Once onsite, our small group format supports attentive care and consistent monitoring during and after ceremony, with sober support staff present so guests are not left alone while still under the effects of the medicine.

We follow a conservative dosing protocol, starting with a moderate dose intended to give a clear introduction to ayahuasca without leaving you feeling overwhelmed. In every ceremony, you have the option to drink a second time if you wish to go deeper. We will responsibly increase your dose each night until you reach the level of intensity you desire. We never push anyone to drink more than they feel comfortable with.

More about Ayahuasca Safety →

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Hummingbird Center Reviews

Elin

Aleksa

Mar

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As soon as I got to the retreat, I felt safe and comfortable with the retreat and all the people there, and I knew I made the right choice, which was such a relief! You're in good hands with Jim and Don Manain. I had quite a life changing experience on this retreat and words can not say how grateful I am chose this facility. Read full review

Lauren Quigley, Australia

🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

I had an incredible experience at the Hummingbird Center. The facilitators are so caring and knowledgeable. The location is stunning beyond words. Read full review

Natasha P, Germany

🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

This experience changed my life. The key with this medicine is to find the right setting, the right healers to guide you, and have the right intentions. Humming bird takes care of the first two and helps you take care of the third. Read full review

Tristan H, Australia

🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

Hummingbird is an extraordinary place... This place sings with love and is here to teach you a lot about yourself and your journey. There is a possibility for great positive change for life through this experience. Read full review

Helena A, United Kingdom

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes Hummingbird Healing Center Unique among Ayahuasca retreats?

At the Hummingbird, we have stayed with tradition. Our program was designed by master curanderos and has proven effective since the very beginning. We take a different approach than most other ayahuasca retreat centers:

Experienced Facilitators: Jim has over 14 years of experience guiding people through the healing process.
Long-Term Process: He has personally guided over 250 people through our 3–4 week Immersion Retreats, many of whom struggled with treatment-resistant depression for over 15 years.
Proven Leadership: Jim has coached and encouraged approximately 1,000 others through varying levels of healing and personal growth.
Integration Program: We provide structured sharing circles and post-retreat calls to ensure the healing lasts.
Intimate Group Size: A maximum of 10 participants allows for deep personal attention.
A Focus on Mindfulness and Stillness: With decades of meditation practice, Jim understands that cultivating stillness is more transformative than a busy schedule. We create space for the wisdom of the heart to surface naturally, complemented by meditation and simple breathwork.
Safety: In over 1,400 ceremonies, we have never had a medical incident related to ayahuasca.

View our Retreat Programs Overview

Where is the Hummingbird Center located?

We are located 14 KM outside of Iquitos, Peru. Our ayahuasca retreat center is situated in a peaceful jungle setting, three kilometers away from the main Iquitos-Nauta road to ensure a quiet, undisturbed environment.

How much does the retreat cost, and what’s included?

Retreat prices range from $2,000 for a 7-day retreat to $4,900 for a 4-week Immersion retreat. The only significant cost not included is your airfare to Iquitos.

What's Included:

Ayahuasca ceremonies led by Manain, a Mestizo Maestro with over 40 years of experience.
At least one Huachuma (San Pedro) ceremony, with the option to substitute for ayahuasca if you feel a special affinity for it.
Daily plant baths for energetic cleansing and integration circles every morning after ceremony.
Group healing sessions in the maloca and comfortable private accommodations.
Delicious, fresh food that adheres to the traditional ayahuasca diet.
A personalized intake process that starts with a real conversation, not just a form and a deposit.

Our Financial Philosophy: We do not want lack of money be the reason a person does not attend. If we agree the Hummingbird is the right place for you, we will do our best to work something out.

How many guests are in each retreat group?

We accept a maximum of 10 participants per retreat. This size is ideal for fostering strong group bonding while allowing you to retreat into solitude whenever the call for quiet arises.

What is Huachuma (San Pedro) and why do you use both medicines?

Huachuma is a sacred cactus medicine with different properties than ayahuasca. While ayahuasca tends to work on deeper, darker subconscious material, Huachuma brings a gentler, heart-opening energy. The synergy between them creates a more complete transformation. We pioneered this dual-medicine approach in 2010 to provide a more balanced healing journey.

What is Hummingbird's approach to healing?

We focus on stillness, not activity. Our approach is more like a meditation retreat or a "healing hospital" than a wellness resort. Rooted in ancient Taoist teachings on contemplative practice, we provide the quiet space necessary for deep self-reflection and lasting change.

Is Hummingbird safe for people with serious emotional conditions?

We specialize in working with depression, anxiety, and moderate PTSD. Because Jim spent 30 years overcoming his own struggle with depression, he is uniquely equipped to work with those who have been turned away by other centers. We have rigorous screening protocols to ensure every guest is mentally and emotionally stable enough for this work. We aren't reckless; we are specialized.

What is a trauma-informed ayahuasca retreat?

Being trauma-informed means we understand the complex ways trauma affects the nervous system. We provide a high level of "relational safety," ensuring you feel supported and never pressured. Our facilitators are trained to recognize signs of dysregulation and use grounding techniques to help you process difficult memories without becoming overwhelmed.

Do I need to have a "big problem" to attend an ayahuasca retreat?

No. People come to either Heal or Learn. Whether you are looking to resolve a specific trauma or simply wish to discover the tricks your ego plays based on subconscious beliefs, ayahuasca is a powerful teacher. It is not limited in what it can show you about yourself.

What makes the biggest difference in preparing for a retreat?

Developing a strong commitment to your own growth is key. Commitment eases surrender, and surrender is where the deepest healing happens. For a deeper look at this process, read our guide on The Importance of Surrender.

Traditional Ayahuasca Retreat Center in Peru

Deep healing through traditional plant medicine ceremonies in the heart of the Amazon

Ayahuasca Retreats at the Hummingbird Center

Key retreat facts