Avalon | Holistic Ayahuasca Retreats

Avalon runs residential ayahuasca retreats in Spain, in a restored 17th-century manor house on the Costa Brava, an hour and a half from Barcelona. The house, now a four-star boutique hotel, stands in more than 7 hectares of forest and alfalfa fields. It also holds Bufo alvarius ceremonies and retreats in Ibiza.

Approach

Indigenous shamans from South America lead the ceremonies, among them Huni Kuin, Kichwa, Yawanawá and Muisca practitioners, and they bring their own medicines; the centre says it uses only natural entheogens, nothing chemical. A ceremony at Avalon lasts seven to eight hours, longer than the four to six it calls usual. The six-day retreat holds four ayahuasca and four rapé ceremonies, four integration workshops with a psychologist and an individual integration session, plus holotropic breathwork, yoga, meditation, massage and ecstatic dance. The wider team includes psychologists, a psychotherapist, a hypnotherapist and a doctor, Mauricio Albanés.

Practical details

Retreats last four or six days and take up to 25 people. Prices have ranged from about $2,500 to $4,000. The six-day programme includes five nights’ lodging, twelve meals cooked by a chef, food awareness workshops and transport to and from Barcelona. A one-day Bufo alvarius ceremony costs €359 and is capped at 11 people.

Care and safety

A place is confirmed only after the intake form and a call, and the screening is done with a doctor. Every guest also has a one-to-one video call to prepare. The centre advises against ayahuasca for anyone taking antidepressants, anyone with a personal or family history of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or borderline personality disorder, and anyone who is or may be pregnant. Guests are asked to avoid alcohol and recreational drugs for at least two weeks beforehand. Afterwards come two online group follow-ups and monthly online integration circles.