10 Best Ayahuasca Retreats in Texas, Updated 2023

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For deeper insights into what makes up a safe and quality plant medicine retreat, check out the results from our recent plant medicine retreats survey.

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1. If you’d like a holistic understanding of your opportunities to improve your quality of life, take this self-diagnostic.

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2. If this is your first time with Ayahuasca, this short quiz will help you assess your level of mental, emotional, and spiritual readiness for this powerful and sensitive work.

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3. If you’d like to understand more about the nature of psychedelic healing work, human potential, and who and what you really are, watch the video below.

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Like most things in life, there are a broad variety of Ayahuasca retreat options, and a number of factors that effect the safety, quality, and cost of an ayahuasca retreat:

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1. Safety First: Unfortunately, many small retreat centers are not in a position to make meaningful investments into screening and safety. Even if you're fine, someone else on retreat might not be, which can affect the overall experience. Our recommendation is to choose a retreat provider that does in-depth conversational, medical, and psychological screening to protect your safety and well-being.
2. Legality: Experienced practitioners who have dedicated their lives to plant medicine typically live in locations where the work is legal, so they don't have to live in a state of uncertainty about their work Our recommendation is to travel to legal locations where you can benefit from legitimate healers who operate above the radar, so you can truly relax on retreat.
3. Size of the group: It's common for retreats to have 20, 50, even 100 people in ceremony, which can be chaotic to say the least. In such large groups you are less likely to receive a sufficient level of attention from the facilitators. Our recommendation is to choose a retreat with an intimate group, in the range of 8-15 people.
4. Length of the retreat: Shorter retreats feel rushed, do not support the cultivation of meaningful relationships, and can limit what can be achieved in time available. We recommend you spend at least a week for an ayahuasca retreat to give your mind, body, heart, and soul the attention it deserves.
5. ‍‍Comfort: We recommend you choose a retreat where you are confident that you will be physically comfortable and have your own private bedroom to decompress and integrate, especially if this is your first time. Go for the full jungle mosquito immersion another time, your future self will thank you later.
6. Alignment: Select a retreat that feels aligned with your values and allows your own subjective experience to unfold naturally. There are many different worldviews out there and having a different worldview pushed on you through the retreat may not be in your highest healing interests. This is also particularly relevant for first-timers.
7. Holistic approach: Work with an organization that takes a holistic approach to working with plant medicine, and has options to support and guide your mental and emotional evolution alongside a retreat. If a provider implies that "medicine will solve all your problems", proceed with caution.
8. ‍Service: Select a retreat that you believe can meet your individual needs. Are you being treated as a human, or as participant #22 in their fourth retreat this month? Consider whether or not they've taken the time to get to know you and understand you, or it's more of a take it or leave it retreat center.
9. Booking process: Take the time to speak with the provider before finalizing your booking. If the provider does not have a screening process in place during the booking process anyone could be sitting next to you in ceremony. Some people are not in the right place to work with this powerful plant medicine, and it is the responsibility of the organizers to ensure that only people who can handle ayahuasca are accepted onto the retreat.
10. Expertise: Find an organization that emphasizes healing, and you believe has the breadth and depth of expertise to guide your transformation. Look for facilitators and healers who have a lightness of being and a sparkle in their eyes. Healing work is all about the transmutation of energy, so you are looking for people who have the energy you aspire to. If they aren't able to keep their energy right, that tells you quite a bit about either where they are at and their capabilities.
11. Reputation: At a minimum, Google the provider, you may be surprised by what you find. If there's not much information, that is also information. A reputable retreat center will have a professional online presence with testimonials from previous retreat attendees. This is essential for you to see that they are a legitimate organization who you can trust to contain this powerful experience.
12. Volunteers: Please support ethical plant medicine work by selecting an organization that pay their team. Unfortunately, it is common practice for retreat centers to cycle through young, eager, and worn out volunteers and/or not pay healers fairly. If the people supporting your retreat aren't living their best lives , they're not going to be able to lead you to yours. Don't be shy to ask this question directly when you speak to prospective centers.

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Looking for a little more guidance for one of the most important decisions of your life? Watch this video.

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The world is changing. Are you?

After nearly 6 decades of prohibition, psychedelics are coming back in a big way, with institutions such as the Imperial College in London, Johns Hopkins University, and Harvard studying, for example, the anti-depressant effects of psychedelics and entheogenic plants such as psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and Ayahuasca. The results of these studies for treating mental health concerns such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, addiction, depression, trauma, and recurrent negative behaviors has been overwhelmingly positive - when administered in the right set and setting.

Ayahuasca is an ancestral medicine from the Amazon, and has been used for thousands of years for its incredible healing benefits. The healing that Ayahuasca offers can be positively life-changing, and as the psychedelic movement grows in popularity, the options for choosing a retreat can get a bit overwhelming. The abundance of options can lead us to what we call "analysis paralysis", causing us to either give up, or choose a retreat impulsively. Choosing a place to have your experience may be one the most important decisions you'll ever make, and it's important to use your ability to choose your retreat with diligence and care.  Published research based upon 2,267 ceremonies has shown that ayahuasca:

• Helps us understand and heal the roots of our depression, anxiety, trauma, and PTSD
• Eases the fear of death.
• Deepens our connection to spirituality
• Helps us discover our life's purpose
• Enjoy deeper, more intimate relationships.
• Discover your life's meaning.
• Accelerate your growth and reach a higher level of consciousness.
• Develop intuition for better decision making.
• Quiet your mind and discover inner peace.
• Live each day with more peace, love, joy, clarity.

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How to choose a retreat that's right for you

Choosing an Ayahuasca retreat (or any psychedelic experience for that matter) isn't like planning mindful meditation or yoga retreat. You are learning more about consciousness and putting it in someone else's hands. You are entering a space of equal potential for ecstatic empowerment and tender vulnerability. The competency and integrity of your ayahuasca retreat facilitators - all the way down to the person who cooks your meals - are not to be underestimated.

Furthermore, working with Ayahuasca (and it's naturally occurring DMT) means opening the door to a world of infinite possibilities.  One must be weary of seductive claims or facilitators who look the part, but lack the heart. The world of plant medicine is not without corruption. By taking the time to choose the right experience, we honour the sacredness and intensity of this work, and thus take accountability for our own well-being. Take your time. Find a place with a solid reputation and listen to guest testimonials. Some other considerations you should make are:

• Would you prefer to be with friends, or solo?
• As part of a large group of 15+, something more intimate, or a private experience?
• As part of a religious ceremony, something shamanic, clinical, or neo-shamanic?

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The Legalities of Ayahuasca Retreat in USA

Now, it's important to keep in mind that DMT (the active component in Ayahuasca) is a Schedule 1 drug, and illegal in the USA. That being said, you don't need to travel all the way to Latin America to experience a sacred ceremony. A handful of Ayahuasca retreat centers in the USA operate under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), a legal safeguard giving protection to ceremonies performed for religious purposes within the context and beliefs of that tradition. While the RFRA does give some protection to facilitators and guests, the majority of expert practitioners prefer to work outside of these limitations, choosing instead to travel to destinations like Costa Rica, Mexico, or Iquitos or the Sacred Valley in Peru.

There's no right or wrong here, but in our experience, people benefit greatly from working with sacred plant medicine in a context aligned to (or at very least not in contradiction with) the world in which they live.  Indigenous healers are naturally more equipped to work with the needs of indigenous people, which may not always be relevant or useful for people from the West who are more inclined towards issues of depression, anxiety, PTSD, relationship issues, stress, disconnection from nature, etc.  On the other hand, working with someone who comes from a long lineage of healers can be a once in a lifetime experience.  It's all about your intention - what is aligned with your heart's true calling?

Use your ability to choose wisely. We highly recommend speaking to the ayahuasca centers themselves to ensure that you feel confident and comfortable, beyond just reading many ayahuasca retreat reviews online. Follow your intuition. There are many great centers out there, but maybe only ONE that's great for YOU.

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What is Ayahuasca?

Dating back at least 2,500 years, Ayahuasca has a long and varied history. It has long been part of the spiritual and cultural traditions of South America and the Amazon jungle. Now, as its use has meandered North, plant medicine has become a prominent fixture in North American healing circles.

If the prospect of traveling to destinations like Iquitos in Peru or Costa Rica seems a little daunting, then perhaps it’s worth exploring more localized options. You may be surprised to discover how widespread ayahuasca has become within the USA. Who knows, there could be an ayahuasca experience right on your doorstep.

The following list outlines the best Ayahuasca retreat in Texas centers and ceremonies accessible from Texas. Either within the state itself or within a short flying distance. The aim is to provide a list of opportunities without having to travel all the way down to Peru.

Another option for budding psychonauts is to choose a magic mushroom ceremony in favor of ayahuasca for the psychedelic experience. Despite being listed as a controlled substance in the USA, it is permitted to grow psilocybin mushrooms for “research” purposes and is, therefore, more accessible. Magic mushrooms and related psychedelic medicines have been shown to produce positive effects on the psyche. This allows for the possibility of conducting a psychedelic retreat from the comfort of your own home.

For further information relating to all things ayahuasca please reference our comprehensive guide. We have an in-depth guide to choosing the best retreat center for your needs here.

If you'd like to learn more about how to get more breakthroughs and avoid the common mistakes, years of retreats, and slow progress, check out our webinar.

If you're willing to take a short flight for a high quality retreat in nearby Costa Rica, Mexico, or Portugal, request a complimentary Discovery Call.

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Now, on to the retreat options!

‍10 Best Ayahuasca Retreat Texas and closeby, 2022

If you are looking for an ayahuasca retreat in Texas, you have come to the right place. We have listed some of the best ayahuasca retreat Texas and closeby based on our experience, reviews, and customer feedback.

1. Behold Retreats in Costa Rica & Mexico:

Because of the legal grey areas, Behold Retreats doesn't facilitate Ayahuasca in the USA, but we do offer some very close-by options. As we mentioned, there are very few places in the USA serving Ayashuca legally, so if you're willing to take a short flight, Behold Retreats offers a holistic and modern approach to plant medicine refined over serving 1,500+ clients. Our organization curates and facilitates life-changing plant medicine journeys with an emphasis on client goals, preparation, and integration.

Guests of Behold Retreats can also choose between a variety of other entheogens, locations, and options, for example a small group retreat overlooking the jungle in Costa Rica, on the dutch country side with Psilocybin in the Netherlands or perhaps a culturally immersive encounter in the golden mountains of Mexico with 5-MeO-DMT (Bufo).

For those who do choose to attend a retreats in the USA, Behold Retreats offers high quality coaching before and after your retreat, and we can point your in the direction of a trusted retreat within the country.  Apply for a free consultation with a plant medicine expert to share your individual needs and preferences, and to understand whether (or not) there is a mutual fit.

Group retreat sizes are smaller than most retreat centers - typically no more than 10-12.

Client safety and confidentiality are given the highest importance, and healers, facilitators, therapists, and coaches have decades of experience under their belt.

Find out more information, or apply for a free consultation.

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2. Ayahuasca Retreat California

Origen Sagrada 

Origen Sagrada is a group of like-minded people providing health, healing and celebration through the power of sacred plant medicine, as well as the guidance from their indigenous Taitas and Elders. 

These spiritual leaders and healers, Abuelo Claudion and Abuelita Bernadita, indigenous people from the Muruy tribe of the Native American Amazonas of Colombia, are highly respected in the tribe and have extensive knowledge on many types of medical plants, rites, ayahuasca vine and rituals, and ceremonies. 

Their ayahuasca brew is prepared in the Amazon and is pure, consisting of only the Banisteriopsis caapi vine and Chacruna leaves.

3. Ayahuasca Retreat Colorado

Origen Sagrada

Origen Sagrada’s other location in the USA is also facilitated by their spiritual leaders and healers, Abuelo Claudion and Abuelita Bernadita from the Muruy tribe of the Amazonas of Colombia. 

Their retreat is 2 nights and includes 2 ayahuasca ceremonies and is a great way for newbies to get acquainted with the spirit of Mother Aya. The work with the Elders and the plant medicine is intensive and remote, located in a private, tranquil, rustic camp near Castle Rock. Ayahuasca ceremony participants can expect their sessions to be held in a private lodge, with shared accommodation.

The retreat will begin with a herbal plant blessing and practical orientation to answer any questions you might have.  In between ceremonies, there will be traditional therapies, personal spiritual cleansing and healing ceremonies, and time for reflection and meditation. They will play beautiful live music during the psychedelic ceremony to help you go deeper on your journey.  

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4. Ayahuasca Retreat Texas

Retreat removed due to client feedback

With this ayahuasca retreat Texas, you can be comfortable knowing that they have cultivated a safe space for growth and healing to occur during their psychedelic medicine circles.  

Your ceremonies will be facilitated by (retreat removed), who has been practicing with shamans and medicine men and women from different indigenous cultures in the Americas, and also teaches at The School of Shamanic Teachings. To train to become an ayahuasca shaman, he apprenticed alongside an Andean shaman and continued his initiation alongside the Q’eros priests of the High Andes in Peru in South America. 

Their retreats include 2 ayahuasca ceremonies as well as a cacao, rapé and sananga ceremony, with the opportunity to attend a San Pedro ceremony.  During the experience they provide a safe environment in nature, and offer eco-environment accommodation, where you will surely get in touch with Mother Nature. 

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5. Ayahuasca Retreat Florida

Soul Quest Ayahuasca Church

Soul Quest retreat center (or also known as Soul Quest Ayahuasca Church) was founded by medicine man Chris Young, who left the medical industry after seeing the negative consequences of the pharmaceutical industry, and Verena Young, an integration coach who is finishing her PhD, certified in Spiritual Counseling and Addiction Recovery and Psycho-Spiritual Integration Coaching. 

Their team consists of traditional medicine men and woman, integration coaches, and doctors. 

Accommodation ranges from sleeping in the ceremonial space or camping if you want to stay connected with Mother Earth, to higher-end options in private cabins or lodges. They even have a family cabin for larger groups. 

Church members can enjoy a sacred smoke cleanse ceremony around a fire pit,  join group integration circles, and participate in a sound meditation to get more out of their ayahuasca journey. 

Soul Quest church also has been a leader in providing preparation and integration coaching for the last 10 years, helping you feel fully prepared for your journey into a deep healing experience with mother ayahuasca. Their approach is holistic and includes ways to prepare your body,  mind, and soul for the experience, tools to navigate and ground yourself during the journey, and methods to overcome challenges. 

After the journey, you can feel supported by their coaches who will help make sense of your insights and lessons, and help you integrate this experience and spiritual awakening into your life in a lasting way. 

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So many options!

Don't feel like spending your time learning about what a Shipibo shaman, Santo Daime, or master plant dieta is? Don't want to put weeks of research effort to find the right ayahuasca center, whether the practitioners are trustworthy, and whether or not they provide yoga? 

There is a a better way.

If you're looking for an expertly guided ayahuasca retreat with a small group, share a few details, come have a chat with us and decide whether (or not) we're a good fit to facilitate your transformation. Retreats are facilitated in Costa Rica, Mexico, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

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6. Ayahuasca Retreat Washington

Sacred Therapy 

Sacred Therapy retreats host their ceremonies in a modern way, rather than recreating South American or Native American style ceremonies. To join their ceremonies you must be a member of Cosmic Valley Native Americas church, which you can apply to join on their website. 

Their North American medicine people are trained with US ayahuasca churches and offer a holistic and yogic approach to their ayahuasca ceremonies. They provide full integration before and after your ceremony and care deeply about each retreat participant’s experience and growth. 

Retreats are two nights, hosted in Washington and California,  and they provide accommodation with comfortable bedding and vegan meals. The founder has been leading ceremonies for 5 years and has trained with multiple shamans and yogic teachers in the USA, Mexico, Thailand, and Lebanon, as well as two years learning from the Lakota Tradition. 

7. Ayahuasca Retreat New York

The Sanctuary - Shamanic Healing Center

The Sanctuary is a shamanic healing center and branch of Oklevueha Native American Church, an ayahuasca church, located on the land of the Sacred White Dee, a Bee Sanctuary and certified wildlife habitat and holistic sanctuary with 6 acres of wild forest containing over 100+ fruit trees, edible bushes, and medicinal plants such as the coca leaf. You really will get a chance to connect with Mother Earth here.

Come here for a fully immersive shamanic experience, with shamanic healing practices, shamanic breathwork, and even a shamanic school with facilitator programs. They have a variety of retreats at their healing center as well as in Peru near Cusco.

If you’re looking for intensive ayahuasca healing retreats to dive deeper into medicinal plants, healing modalities, and shamanic wisdom this is the place for you. In addition to ayahuasca and ayahuasca vine, they offer a week long tobacco and master plant diet retreat, a shamanic camp, vision quests, shamanic wisdom circles, rebirthing breathwork ceremonies, and more!

To help you integrate your experiences, they also host a regular community connection and healer / integration calls for ayahuasca users to share from the heart and continue to learn and grow together.

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8. Ayahuasca Retreat Kentucky 

Aya Quest

Aya Quest, also commonly spoken about as Kentucky Ayahuasca, approaches their ceremonies with a holistic attitude, and does not recreate Native American traditional ceremonies or maintain any dogmatic style. They are modern shamans and medicine people who are well trained. 

Their founder Steve Hupp, has worked with ayahuasca for 15 years, and trained by a shaman from South America, leading over 1000 healing ceremonies. 

Aya Quest offers small group, private and at home ayahuasca ceremony, as well as the option to join their membership club. Their ayahuasca brew is made from scratch and the ingredients, such as the ayahuasca vine, are all individually ordered so you can be assured of what exactly is in the tea, and they are confident that their ayahuasca brew is safe and effective. 

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9. Ayahuasca Retreat New Mexico 

The União do Vegetal (UDV)

This ayahuasca retreat center is under The União do Vegetal (UDV) is a Christian Spiritist religion that originated in Brazil and is recognized for their community and environmental service, and have hosted countless ayahuasca religious ceremonies. União do Vegetal literally means “the union of the plants,” and their followers drink Hoasca, which is the sacred sacrament of plants indigenous to the Brazillian Amazon. 

Also considered an ayahuasca church, you can join their spiritual fellowship legally in the USA.

Like Ayahuasca tea, Hoasca contains the Banisteriopsis caapi vine and the Chacruna plant leaves (psychotria viridis), which is their sacrament and sacred practice serving to heighten spiritual understanding and perceptions. 

The spiritual ceremony emphasizes mental concentration and solemn reflections of their guide Mestre Gabriel and Jesus. They last around four hours and include periods of silent contemplation, rituals, hymns, and religious teachings. 

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Good to know! An Ayahuasca church, the Santo Daime Church, founded by Raimundo Irineu Serrawhich, involves ayahuasca consumption (Daime tea) as part of their religious rituals. Sometimes difficult to find, you can try to find locations around the country by searching for Santo Daime USA.

Another Ayahuasca church known as the Peaceful Mountain Way is a Native American Church that specializes in an ayahuasca ritual as a spiritual sacrament.

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When attending an ayahuasca retreat Texas, it can sometimes be tough to find a place to stay that's safe and comfortable, but there are many alternatives that you should consider. When it comes to ayahuasca retreats, many options offer you a choice of environments (forest, jungle, beach), though they vary a lot in quality and safety. In the end, all you need to focus on is picking the type of retreat best suited for your needs: cheaper (although this comes at a cost), more luxurious or somewhere in between.

We think that the 10 incredible ayahuasca retreat in Texas featured on our site are some of the best, and we're sure you'll agree with us.

Still need some help choosing a retreat

We would be honored to guide you in choosing the best retreat for your needs. Behold Retreats coordinates expertly guided retreats with Ayahuasca, Psilocybin, and 5-MeO-DMT (Bufo Alvarius) with highly experienced facilitators. Reach out to us to set up a complimentary discovery call and we can point you in the right direction.

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Read further:

5-MeO-DMT in Tepoztlan, Mexico

Ayahuasca in Costa Rica

Psilocybin in the Netherlands

5-MeO-DMT in Portugal‍