We are a hotel in Iquitos, not a retreat center, and we do not run ceremonies of any kind. But a large share of our guests pass through the city on their way to a jungle retreat, and the same questions come up at our front desk again and again. So we wrote this. It is an independent guide, written to help you ask better questions, not to send you anywhere in particular.
One thing first: this is not medical advice, and nothing here is a recommendation to participate. Whether ayahuasca is appropriate for you is a decision for you and your doctor, made before you ever book a flight. This guide is about how to evaluate a center if you have already decided, with your physician, to go.
Why this is hard to judge from abroad
Iquitos is one of the world's main hubs for ayahuasca retreats. Dozens of centers operate in the surrounding jungle, and they are not all the same. Some are serious, established projects with medical protocols, trained staff, and years of track record. Others are improvised operations that appeared recently and may disappear just as quickly. From a laptop on the other side of the world, a polished website tells you almost nothing about which is which. That gap is the entire reason this guide exists.
Medical screening is the dividing line
If you take one thing from this article, take this: a responsible center screens you before it accepts you. That means a detailed medical and psychological questionnaire sent to you in advance, and it means turning away candidates who are not suitable. Ayahuasca has dangerous interactions with several medications (notably SSRIs and other antidepressants), and it is contraindicated with certain heart conditions and with some psychiatric histories, including psychosis and bipolar disorder.
A center that asks you nothing about your health, or that waves away your medication and tells you not to worry, is showing you a serious red flag. The other side of this is your responsibility: be completely honest in the screening. Hiding medication or a medical history to get accepted is not clever, it is dangerous. The screening exists to protect you, not to gatekeep you for sport.
What to actually evaluate
Once medical screening is in place, look at the rest with a clear head:
- Verifiable track record. How many years has the center operated? Are there independent reviews from real travelers, not just testimonials on the center's own site?
- Who runs the ceremonies. Are the facilitators trained? Is there staff with first-aid training? How many people supervise each ceremony, and how many participants are in the room?
- Emergency protocols. How far is the center from Iquitos, and what is the evacuation plan if something goes wrong?
- Total transparency before you pay. Clear prices, a written cancellation policy, and direct answers to direct questions. Evasiveness before payment rarely improves after it.
If you are a solo female traveler, look specifically for centers with female facilitators and explicit, stated policies around safety and supervision.
Red flags worth walking away from
Some warning signs are clear enough to end the conversation:
- No real medical screening.
- Promises to cure specific illnesses. A responsible center does not make those claims.
- Prices drastically lower than everyone else. Safety (trained staff, supervision, protocols) costs money, and a price that undercuts the field is usually cutting something you want.
- Pressure to book fast, the classic "only a few spots left."
- An inability or unwillingness to tell you who runs the ceremonies.
- No verifiable, independent reviews you can find anywhere but their own marketing.
How a serious center prepares you
A center that takes the experience seriously will ask you to prepare too. Expect a preparation diet in the days or weeks before: simple food, no alcohol, and restrictions on things like salt, sugar, red meat, and fermented foods. Expect to pause certain substances and medications, but only ever in coordination with your own doctor, never on a stranger's instruction. And expect to be told to arrive genuinely rested, not jet-lagged and frayed.
There is also a universal logistics point that has nothing to do with the medicine and everything to do with not missing your retreat: arrive in Iquitos at least one day before it starts. Transport to most centers leaves early on the first morning, and it will not wait for a delayed flight. A single buffer day is the difference between a calm start and a panicked airport scramble.
Take your time choosing
The people who come back through our lobby genuinely happy with their experience almost all share one habit: they chose slowly. They compared centers over weeks rather than days. They asked for video calls with the teams and paid attention to how those calls felt. They read reviews from different years, not just the most recent glowing one. And, most importantly, they consulted their doctor before getting on the plane. There is no prize for booking quickly, and the pressure to do so is itself a signal worth noticing.
If you are still in the research stage, it can help to get the practical city logistics sorted early. We have written separately about where to stay in Iquitos before your retreat, and if this is your first time in the region, our complete guide to Iquitos covers the basics of the city itself.
How Bora Hotel fits in
Our role is simple and stays in its lane: the easy logistics around the retreat. We are a comfortable place to spend the night before and the night after, with free 24/7 airport transfer so the early-morning departure is one less thing to worry about, and free luggage storage so you can leave your bags with us while you are at the retreat. That is the extent of it. We do not arrange ceremonies and we do not steer you toward any center. If a question in this guide is on your mind and we can answer it as a neutral local, you can reach us on WhatsApp at +51 945 572 732.
