Traditional Ayahuasca Retreats
The Hummingbird Healing Center provides a beautiful safe, and supportive environment for your personal journey with ayahuasca. Located near Iquitos, Peru, we offer ayahuasca retreats of different lengths to meet your personal needs. Our ayahuasca retreats are designed to free you from limiting beliefs, and catalyze healing and transformation. All of our retreats include at least one san pedro ceremony, the visionary cactus of the Andes that is very complementary with ayahuasca. Our longer stays include a master plant dieta with a plant selected by our shaman depending on what you are looking to heal, address or learn. Ayahuasca retreats at the Hummingbird is an opportunity for deep personal and spiritual growth following traditional healing methods with a curandero of exceptional skill and ability.
Our retreats are limited to no more than 13 people, and there are multiple caretakers in each ayahuasca ceremony who are not partaking of the medicine. Help is always available if you need it, and we encourage people to open up and talk about challenges they may have so we can coach them on how to transcend it with the help of ayahuasca and san pedro. We help people get clear on their intentions for each ceremony and can give practical advice on how to work with specific issues they may have.
Ayahuasca is attracting more and more people looking for a better, effective way to heal and transform their lives. They come looking to move beyond blocks in their lives. A feeling of being stuck. To be free of emotional trauma from childhood that is often the root cause of depression and anxiety. To heal from physical illnesses. Ayahuasca ceremonies and the Amazon plant medicine tradition provide an effective approach to achieving a deep connection with our true selves. It is a path to freedom from limiting beliefs and false ideas about ourselves resulting in balance, authenticity, and contentment.
12 Day RetreatsImmersion Retreats
Our holistic approach encompasses the physical, emotional, energetic and spiritual aspects of healing, as well as understanding and 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.
From one’s spiritual aspect into the subconscious level of the physical, this deep level of the mind can then erase the negative thought forms and emotions it holds, such as anger and fear, replacing them with light. This is how the cause of illness is dealt with and how all true healing is accomplished, and our ayahuasca retreats reflect these beliefs on healing.
Our mission during ayahuasca retreats is to empower each guest to reconnect with their mind, body, emotions and spirit, learning to live in self awareness so they may more freely and express their authentic selves. Under the guidance maestro Don Hector Fatima, a Banco Ayahuasquero with over 50 years of experience, we combine plant medicine ceremonies and dietas with regular integration sessions and lessons on mindfulness and examining our thought patterns and belief systems. This process provides tools for each guest to apply on a daily basis so they can take charge of their own growth and healing over the long term.
Traditional Remedies
In addition to ayahuasca ceremonies, retreat participants receive a variety of other treatments including plant baths, healing vapor baths, individual energetic healing, and mud baths. If the curandero sees a need, they may also receive other plant medicines and poultices to address specific issues.
An integral part of the work at our ayahuasca center are talks on our beliefs, thought patterns and the interplay between our conscious and subconscious minds. We will learn about the conditioning we received as children, and why we often have many unproductive and often harmful “programs” stored in our subconscious mind which limit our ability to live successful happy and joyful lives.
During an ayahuasca ceremony, la madre will often clearly show us these limiting beliefs and teach us how to live in a better way. You will learn how to tap into our natural creative abilities and reprogram our subconscious minds so we naturally attract events into our lives more closely aligned with our hearts desire. You will learn techniques to become the master of our mind, our emotions and destiny and gain the tools to create a rich and fulfilling life.
The Ayahuasca Experience
Ayahuasca, also known as Iowaska, is the name for the ancient shamanic brew, prepared from two sacred plants – the bark of the Banisteriopsis Caapi vine and the leaves of the Chacruna or Huambisa plants, shubs whose leaves contain DMT. It has been used for millennia in South American countries in traditional ayahuasca healing rituals and for deepening one’s spiritual connection with the Earth and the Universe. This sacred plant, ayahuasca, is being degraded and today people can drink anywhere even though it is illegal in most places. Also, many people are looking for an ayahuasca ‘trip’, though this diminishes the meaning by making it sound like a recreational drug or party experience.
An ayahuasca experience, in the right set and setting, is profound and sacred in ways difficult to imagine. The Hummingbird Center is dedicated to help those who are committed to improving their lives through sacred practice of this powerful ayahuasca healing tradition.
Empowering People
The Hummingbird Center is dedicated to helping people find their own power, and to accept and like themselves. Self acceptance is a key for all personal growth, and with that one quickly learns to be themselves without concern of what other people think. It is surprising how similar all people are, how deep inside we are not so very different in our emotional responses to life, while at the same time being being so incredibly unique. When we accept ourselves, we naturally discover acceptance and compassion for others.
Self acceptance goes beyond tolerating the way you view yourself. It is accepting your behavior, attitude and lifestyle, acknowledging them and working towards making a desired change. Practicing self acceptance means embracing all flaws and accepting who you are today, not the idea of who you will be after you reach your goal. The Hummingbird creates a sacred and encouraging space for this humbling yet courageous journey of self discovery.
An integral part of all our retreats are talks on our beliefs, thought patterns and the interplay between our conscious and subconscious minds. We will learn about the conditioning we received as children, and why we often have many unproductive and often harmful “programs” stored in our subconscious mind which limit our ability to live successful happy and joyful lives.
During an ayahuasca ceremony, la madre will often clearly show us these limiting beliefs and teach us how to live in a better way. You will learn how to tap into our natural creative abilities and reprogram our subconscious minds so we naturally attract events into our lives more closely aligned with our hearts desire. You will learn techniques to become the master of our mind, our emotions and destiny and gain the tools to create a rich and fulfilling life.
Experience the deep healing and teaching of Peru’s two visionary medicine plants on a 12-day retreat that includes 7 ceremonies. Allow these powerful medicine plants to get at to root of your problems, clearing energies, beliefs and thought patterns that keep you limited in your daily life. Let ayahuasca and san pedro clear the blocks that keep you repeating the same unproductive behavior, and find the freedom to express your authentic self!
Our 9 day retreat is an introduction to the magic of ayahuasca and the san pedro visionary cactus, with 5 total ceremonies. This retreat is a great choice for those looking for clarity of purpose, relief from minor emotional struggles, a deeper understanding of themselves and freedom to live more authentically, or to deepen your spiritual understanding and connection with the divine. It also includes two talks on reprogramming your subconscious mind.
Immersion retreats are for those looking for extended work with ayahuasca, who desire a master plant dieta, or whose condition needs a longer treatment plan. We offer extended stays of 3 or 4 weeks. Immersion retreats include at least one 8 day dieta with a master medicine plant chosen by the shaman to help with your healing and learning. These longer stays include more ceremonies and personalized coaching from the shaman and facilitators.
Master Plant Dietas
A master plant dieta is a wonderful way to enhance your ayahuasca retreat experience, to deepen your experience with the plant medicine spirits and the healing they bring. They are a traditional method of physical and mental detoxification, and of forming a connection with the spirit of a plant for the purpose of learning or healing. Master Plant Dietas at the Hummingbird Center are primarily done for the purpose of healing. As such they are not as rigorous as those required to learn to work with the plant spirits. Individual guidelines may vary, but usually it is a process done in addition to the regular retreat program, and the person dieting may participate in all scheduled retreat activities.
The Hummingbird Center offers dietas on our 12 day ayahuasca retreats, and our 3 and 4 week Immersion Retreats. Plant dietas are a fundamental part of Amazonian healing traditions and, when done with commitment, will increase the results one receives during their ayahuasca retreat . Ayahuasca by itself will bring a certain, and often profound, level of cleansing, insight and healing. Including a dieta with a master medicine plant can take this to a much deeper level resulting in growth and healing far beyond what working with ayahuasca alone can achieve. Depending on what is being addressed or sought, a dieta may be required to realize meaningful results.
You may learn more about Master Plant Dietas on our Immersion Retreats page.
Upcoming Ayahuasca Retreats
| Date | Description | Price | Status | Book Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 1 - 12, 2023 | 7 - 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat | $1800 - $2600 | Open | Book Now |
| December 15 - 26, 2023 | 7 - 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat | $1800 - $2600 | Open | Book Now |
| January 15 - 26, 2024 | 7 - 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat | $1800 - $2600 | Open | Book Now |
| February 1 - 12, 2024 | 7 - 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat | $1800 - $2600 | Open | Book Now |
| February 15 - 26, 2024 | 7 - 12 Day Ayahuasca Retreat | $1800 - $2600 | Open | Book Now |
Tips for a Great Ayahuasca Retreat
Going to an ayahuasca retreat is a big commitment of time and money. Most people come looking for real and lasting positive change in their lives. Here are some tips that will help you get the most from your time with this mystical teacher plant.
Good Preparation
A successful ayahuasca retreat begins with good preparation. Preparing the body, mind and spirit are important. Developing skill in mindfulness and managing difficult emotions will make coping with the challenging aspects of the ayahuasca experience much easier. We recommend you follow all of the recommendations on our Preparing for Ayahuasca page.
Keep Your Phone Turned Off
A retreat is an opportunity to leave behind the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life. To step out of the stream of constant information. We do not need to know about current events. We can quickly catch up later. We do not need to know about problems back home of which we can do nothing about. It can be a source of unnecessary worry and distraction, and an impediment to the process of growth and change.
Allow yourself to experience the peace that comes with stillness in nature, of a quiet mind, of the joy that can arise when connecting with your heart.
Clear Intentions
Have a clear intention for what you want to get from your time with ayahuasca. It should be simple and specific. Some good examples for retreat intentions are:
- To be free from depression and anxiety
- To fully accept and love myself as I am”
- To have a direct experience of my true spiritual nature
- To remove the false beliefs that have kept me limited
It is also important to have a clear intention for each ceremony. It may be the same as the retreat intention, but it could also be addressing something more specific. We are happy to coach people in forming intentions for their ceremonies. It begins with the simple question, “What do I want?”
Trust the Medicine
Key to getting the most from ayahuasca is to trust the medicine and surrender to the experience. Surrender is not an issue when the journey is joyful, fascinating, beautiful and fun. Surrender comes into play when we do not like what is happening. That is the time to trust that ayahuasca and the doctor spirits are on your side, want to heal you, and know what they are doing. We experience what is being healed in a magnified way, often much stronger than we feel it in day to day life. If it gets unpleasant, go to gratitude for the healing, not to fear.
Experience the Journey, Don’t Analyze It
Our minds have a natural tendency to put meaning on our experience, to analyze it, think about how we will tell our friends about it. We want to not forget, and try to imprint it in our memory. While we are thinking we cannot be fully present to what is happening NOW. We are missing out on much of the experience.
Give yourself permission to experience now, and analyze and document it later. This is a part of surrendering to the experience, trusting that what is important will “stick”. The subconscious retains much more than our conscious mind. We can also move into trust that the information will naturally arise when it is needed in the future, even if we have no conscious memory of it.
If you find yourself thinking about what has just happened, gently move your attention back to the experience itself.
Commit to Your Growth and Transformation
Commit to achieving the change you are looking for. A true commitment means we become willing to do what ever it takes. When we make a commitment, the Universe responds and things begin to happen. With ayahuasca, that often means being willing to step into an unpleasant experience if that is what is necessary.
Don’t come expecting it to be hard. We tend to encounter what we expect to happen, so do not come “looking” for a struggle. An attitude of willingness is all that is needed. If a difficult experience comes, simply say in your mind “I am willing”.
Huachuma - San Pedro
The Hummingbird Center also works with huachuma, the visionary and heart opening cactus of the Andes also known as san pedro. We have found ayahuasca and huachuma to be very complementary. Some individuals have a special affinity for one or the other of the medicines.
Occasionally huachuma will clear blocks in an individual that ayahuasca does not seem to touch. We have seen a number of people who were not having rich experiences with ayahuasca have significant breakthroughs with san pedro, then move on to have wonderful and productive ceremonies with ayahuasca.
The spirits of ayahuasca and San Pedro clearly know people are working with both. During the San Pedro ceremony many find their ayahuasca experiences come into focus understanding the lessons in much deeper and meaningful way. People have wanted to work on a specific area of their life during ayahuasca, and been told by the medicine that would be addressed with San Pedro, and it happened. The opposite has also occurred where people were clearly told something would be addressed in their next ayahuasca ceremony, and that also occurred. A beautiful and gentle healer and teacher, grandfather San Pedro tends to bring very clear lessons and most enjoy the experience.
After the first group San Pedro ceremony, if you prefer to work with it instead of ayahuasca you may do so. It is easy to arrange and we will work that out on a case by case basis. While the experience is very different than ayahuasca, it is a peer in its ability to heal and some people get much more from working with this medicine than with ayahuasca.
Included in our Ayahuasca Retreats
Ayahuasca Retreat Programs
Our retreats begin on the 1st and 15th of most months, and there is the option of either a 9 Day or 12 Day stay. All retreats include at least one San Pedro ceremony. We also have an Immersion Retreat program with 3 or 4 week stay for those looking to go deep with the medicine or who have more serious issues they want to address.
Ayahuasca Ceremonies
Our 9 day retreats include four ayahuasca and one San Pedro ceremony. The 12 day retreats have 6 ayahuasca and one San Pedro ceremony. The number of ceremonies on our Immersion retreats vary depending on whether they span the end of the month or not. Most people choose to sit out at least one ceremony to rest and integrate.
Master Shaman and Curandero
Banco ayahuasquero Don Hector Fatima has over 50 years of experience working with ayahuasca. Born with a natural gift of communicating with spirits, he began learning the plant spirit tradition from his grandfather at age seven. Don Hector is an exceptionally gifted healer, one of those rare individuals who’s work seems almost magical with the rapid results people receive.
Additional Plant Treatments
We have a plant based energetic cleanse before each ayahuasca ceremony. Most days it is a plant bath made from plants collected from our property by our Shaman Don Hector. The plants used will vary depending on what he feels is best for the group. We also do one cleansing vapor bath that has a guided process lasting around 20 minutes. Many have found this catalyzes a profound healing process, and many have said their ceremony began in the vapor bath.
Individual Shamanic Healing
With the exception of the first ceremony of the retreat, each person will receive individual healing from Don Hector. We bring people up to a mat in the center of the moloca. You will be asked what you would like work done on, and Don Hector will give you a personal treatment based on your request. Individual healing work is also done each afternoon there is not an ayahuasca ceremony, so you will receive specific healing every day of the retreat.
Ayahuasca Integration Circles
The morning after each ayahuasca ceremony we hold an integration circle where people get to share their experience and get feedback from the shaman and facilitators. This is a time to get help understanding what your experience means, how your process is unfolding and details about the specific work the shaman was doing on your behalf.
Changing Our Perception
Two talks will be given on the working of our subconscious mind, how our belief systems influence our lives, and what we can do to change them. When we change our beliefs, we change our perception, and therefore our experience of ourselves and all of life. We are inherently powerful and can change our life for the better!
Other Activities
Our retreats include a variety of other activities including a cleansing mud bath, a guided walk through the jungle with Don Hector talking about the different plants and a fire ceremony to release from our lives something that no longer serves. We also offer an introduction to shamanic journeying where people have a change to meet their power animals and spirit teachers.
Accommodations
All guests get a private room in our tambos (hut) with a toilet, very comfortable full size bed, hammock, writing desk and shelving for your personal items. Most tambos are set back in the jungle along a well groomed trail. We also have two tambos overlooking our pond, where you can sit and watch the turtles. The owner Gina loves landscaping our grounds, and are filled with a number of flowering gardens, and beautiful plants from the jungle.
Ayahuasca Meals
All meals are included and we have excellent cooks who surprise all guests with just how good food can be at an ayahuasca retreat. Meals are mostly vegetarian, but we do serve fish or chicken every other day for lunch. Fresh juices are served every morning with breakfast, and fruit based “refrescos”, a dilute fruit juice, are served with lunch. You will get to enjoy a variety of delicious fruit drinks only available in the Amazon!
A Thank You Email
I wanted to write and let you know how things have been for me in the past year since spending my month with you all last November at the Hummingbird.
Firstly I want to send you all my sincere thanks for such a life changing experience. Words cannot express how grateful I am to have had this experience.
The year has definitely been a challenge but in the most positive way. I have been put through many tests and challenges only to have come out stronger, wiser. Before I was a complete people pleaser with fear of confrontation. I feel so different now, the fear has gone and I can confidently speak my truth and put myself first from a place of love. It has been very interesting to see the people that no longer serve me drop away, there have been quite a few.
It left me in a strange place for a while feeling quite alone and a little lost, I understand this now as making room for the authentic relationships and lifes purpose.
I can see things in such a different way now. I am much more grounded and take more time to trust and build connections.
I still need to find my tribe ( but I know its coming! )
I am learning to drop the mask and be authentic and then I know I will align with the right people and my purpose.
I am so grateful for the teachings of Ayahuasca. Jayne - United Kingdom