Culture & Adventure
CREATING AUTHENTIC TOURS IN PERU
Our 3-day Ayahuasca retreat in Peru,has been developed by an Amazonian healer. The retreat is conducted in a traditional manner according to the Incan principle of Munay or love. This principle is applied to the way the plant medicine is prepared and the iqaros or shamanic chants are sung. The traditional basis of the retreat is tempered with modern medical practices to ensure the safety of our guests and allow them to assimilate the experience in the best possible way. This retreat includes two Ayahuasca ceremonies.
Ayahuasca is a powerful indigenous alternative medicine that is helping many people to find their inner being and their divinity. The mother plant Ayahuasca grows in the Amazon jungle of South America and therefore the best place to perform an Ayahuasca ceremony is in the jungle.
We have developed a unique Ayahuasca retreat in the sacred valley of Cusco very close to Machu Picchu. Ayahuasca is a psychedelic infusion composed of the extract of two Amazonian plants, Ayahuasca and Chacruno. It has psychedelic effects such as altered thinking, loss of sense of time and strong emotions for those who take it. In addition to hearing or seeing things that do not exist. For this reason, in recent years it has become incredibly popular to travel to spiritual retreats with Ayahuasca in the middle of the Peruvian Amazon; these ceremonies are useful for traveling to the unconscious, connecting with nature and relieving both physical and mental pain.
We require that you arrive at least 2 days before your retreat so that you have a chance to acclimatize to the altitude of Cusco. Many people feel the effects of altitude. If you arrive on the day of your retreat, we will not be able to give you Ayahuasca and you will have to reschedule your retreat to the next available date. Unfortunately a refund will not be possible. We want to prevent people from suffering from altitude sickness under the effect of Ayahuasca as it is a serious health risk. You must book your own hotel room for the night between the acclimatization day and the day of the retreat.
Family Home Stay: 02 nights
Our Ayahuasca retreat itinerary includes two nights in rooms shared by two people; if you want a private room (you must add $ 100 for a private room for 2 nights). We have bathrooms which are shared by all Ayahuasca lovers. The bathrooms are constantly cleaned and disinfected.
Our staff will come to pick you up from your hotel in Cusco at 4:00 pm, then we will transfer by private transportation to the sacred valley of the Incas, our ceremony will take place in the Town of Pisac, there we will meet Master Alberto, who will give us a warm welcome. The ayahuasca ceremony begins at 6:00 p.m. with the prior permission ceremonies performed by the ayahuasca shaman with different rituals that include tobacco rituals and Iqaros. The dose that is provided to people depends on the energy level and mental strength; the shaman does not provide the same dose for all people.
During the ceremony, you will take a place on one of the mattresses lined up around the room. A bucket and toilet paper next to each one. Then you will sit and watch the shaman prepare the Ayahuasca and perform the ritual of blessing the medicine. The shaman will also drink the medicine. During the purge you will cry, urinate, vomit, defecate, wince, or yawn. We will be aware of all these reactions that are coming and we will be able to act to guide you at all times.
After a comforting breakfast, we head to Socma, a corn and potato farming village, quite beautiful for its scenery. There we will take a horseback ride to the waterfall where our Andean priest will perform a purification ceremony, a flowering bath with essences of sacred plants. Then we will climb to the archaeological sector of Perolniyoc, from where there is a beautiful view of the mountains of the Sacred Valley. There we will perform the offering ceremony to Mother Earth, with the Andean priest, focusing mainly on the balance of your chakras. In the afternoon we return full of energy to our retreat house, and together with our shaman, we prepare for our second Ayahuasca ceremony.
Pick up from the retreat house and transfer to the town of Ollantaytambo. From there we will ascend to the Marqacocha temple and the archaeological center. We will visit the Queuña Qocha Mayu association (Huilloc Alto). We will have a reception with typical local costumes and we will have a tasting of mates with natural ingredients.
Walk to the Suchococha lagoon and we will be able to see the variety of agricultural tools that are used. We will enjoy our buffet lunch with totally natural local products with tasting of Andean drinks and observation of typical dances with live music.
We will observe the demonstration of local weavings and we will be able to participate in it and learn more about the iconography. Pleasant farewell to the community and return to the city of Cusco to your hotel.
Ayahuasca is becoming well known, and Ayahuasca tourism to South America for ayahuasca ceremonies has doubled in the past couple of years. Everyone wants to attain a higher consciousness and peek into the vast unknown universe within.
Ayahuasca is called by some the Spirit Molecule, and by others the God Molecule. It helps people discover the divine within us all. DMT has been the spiritual medicine of indigenous tribes in South America, particularly in Peru and Ecuador. It is a medicine of the jungle. It is a combination of several ingredients, all plants that grow in the jungle, and DMT ayahuasca is a brew of this combination of plants. Spirit vine contains DMT, the God Molecule, or the Spirit Molecule because it puts a person in an altered state of consciousness, a hallucinogenic entheogen.
Many people tout the healing effects of DMT ayahuasca, from the physical level, the emotional level, the mental level, and most importantly the spiritual level, where all illness starts from. If the illness is addressed from within, deep within, the physical manifestation of illness often disappears. If old resentment and anger is let go, health in mind, body and spirit takes its place.
Everyone is different, and the plant medicine reacts differently in each person’s chemistry, mental constructs, and emotional environment. What can you expect? It is a very individualized experience for each person.
There are as many paths to God as there are individuals on the planet; likewise, there are just as many possibilities for an Ayahuasca experience as there are individuals on the planet. Your experience with Ayahuasca will be unique and will be your own. Just as with meditation, some people are very visual types of people (clairvoyant) and will see colors, patterns, and visions.
Some people are sensing types and will feel emotional and mental changes, or will sense magnetic forces; they seem to “know” (clairsentient). Some people “hear” voices, explanations or sounds (clairaudient). For yet others, it is a combination of all of these. All report feeling physical changes, and this is to be expected when you ask, “what can I expect?” Ayahuasca spirit and all plant medicines are healing vessels and each individual perceives what they do with different senses.
Ayahuasca is used extensively for healing and religious ceremonies. In recent decades, there is a growing interest in the said substance due to its potential in treating mental disorders like depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.
Some felt that they were lost, but came to their senses again after using Ayahuasca. Others felt that they were too consumed with their personal issues, but Ayahuasca awakened them to feel alive again. In most ayahuasca ceremonies, nausea and vomiting are a common side effect. Some even experience diarrhea. Aside from these, there are obvious physical side effects. Some ayahuasca users experience profuse sweating and shivering. Their heart rate and blood pressure rise. These ayahuasca effects, which are likely due to DMT intoxication, subject one to risks of hypertension, agitations, dizziness and muscular incoordination.
Ayahuasca may also affect one’s emotional state. As some put it, ayahuasca makes one reflect on his experiences and loosen up from his normal way of thinking. It gives one the strength to think about his traumatic past and confront those things that he usually pushes out of his conscious mind. It can stir up your traumatic past and result in distress. It may also heighten one’s fears and result in anxiety and paranoia.
In preparation for your ayahuasca ceremony, it is suggested that you adhere to ayahuasca diet guidelines. It is not required to be on the ayahuasca diet to have a good experience but it helps to prepare your body to receive ayahuasca. It depends on how clean you already eat and how healthy you are. If you are already a healthy eater, you will probably be fine and have a good experience. The ayahuasca diet is simply a suggestion to prepare for ayahuasca ceremony.
There is a specific way an ayahuasca shaman suggests preparing for ayahuasca ceremony. Shamans suggests that, if possible, using the ayahuasca diet for 2-4 weeks prior to your ayahuasca ceremony. If you don’t have 2-4 weeks to prepare, try to be disciplined for 2-3 days before the ayahuasca ceremony.
These plant medicines seem to “know” when you’ve been bad or good in your diet, and your experience will reflect what is in your body. Make sure your body is a clean vessel in which this medicine can function the way it is intended to. For the most part, the ayahuasca diet is like an alkaline diet, which excludes acidic foods.
PRE-RETREAT REQUIRE RESTRICTIONS
TWO WEEK PRIOR, ABSTAIN FROM:
ONE WEEK PRIOR, ABSTAIN FROM:
ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS:
We require that you NEVER enter an ayahuasca ceremony combined with any recreational substance, pharmaceutical drugs, nor health herbal formulations that can affect the physical body in any way, including seemingly non-impacting vitamins or herbs.
All that is being required is three days before the start of shamanic ceremonies you go all natural and have your body in its unadulterated state so you can truly connect with these plant medicine spiritual experiences. Ayahuasca must be used alone, by itself, and never combined with other medicines, stimulants or depressants. There shouldn’t be any chemical altering of your body or brain even if seemingly for something minor.
No documentation or scientific study has been done to examine any substance in combination with Ayahuasca, so no one really knows what would be safe. Therefore, it is safe to say that abstaining from everything for the three days before the ceremony would be the best avenue. That includes your normal medications as well. (Always consult with your doctor about this.)
One reason why there have been complications for some people with ayahuasca ceremonies, is that some shamans mix other substances into their medicine, like datura (which can give nightmarish experiences and cause death) or high quantities of nicotine (to open the body more to medicine), or other substances that change the nature of the medicine somewhat.
By contract with our shamans, we do not allow our shamans to mix anything into the medicine that is not part of the traditional ingredients. Our shamans practice the utmost of safety when it comes to making sure our medicines are pure and unadulterated. When deaths are connected to Ayahuasca, it is normally the person who ingests the ayahuasca has mixed with other substances.
No deaths from Ayahuasca DMT, Ayahuasca, or the Spirit Molecule / God Molecule are known, unless pharmaceutical or recreational drugs are mixed, or serious health issues are aggravated, like respiratory illnesses or heart diseases. Blood pressure can rise too. However, death has not been associated with DMT ayahuasca no matter what the dose.
If you are considering partaking in such a journey, prepare to encounter the divine, the infinite, the mystery—whatever you choose to call it—that which is beyond the limited perspective of your mind. You must also be willing to accept that the divine/infinite/mystery cannot be experienced in a way that will make sense to your brain. The infinite is infinite, while your brain is still finite.
The icaros, sung by a Shaman, are an integral part of the ceremony. It is through these songs that your mareación (the visionary effects of Ayahuasca) is enhanced. It is also quite likely that you will gain a greater appreciation of the power of music through the icaros.
Be wary that you might not necessarily like the information that the divine/infinite/mystery chooses to share with you. In the documentary Vine of the Soul: Encounters With Ayahuasca, one user reported that the horror she experienced was truly indescribable and that she thought she was going to die. But another participant in the ceremony said that Ayahuasca opened her heart in a way it had never been opened before.
Ayahuasca is always referred to in the feminine because users have said that the voice of higher intelligence that they’ll hear during the ceremony is female. She (meaning the plant) speaks to you directly and tells you what you need to work on in your life.
The experience will be ineffable, beyond language, and you will likely find that trying to put it into words after the ceremony has ended will be daunting if not impossible. “Ten years of therapy downloaded in a night,” seems to be a fairly universal analogy to convey the possible take-away from a ceremony. Another possible outcome of an Ayahuasca ceremony is that you will realize that everything perceived through your five senses and assimilated by your mind is contrived or false.
Returning ceremonial participants should also be aware that each time you experience the divine/infinite/mystery, it will be different. Each experience is akin to just a small drop in the ocean.
If you do not adhere to the recommended dieta (diet) before the ceremony, then the plants will assist your body in ridding itself of the chemicals—salt, sugar, alcohol, caffeine, etc., by fleshing out the toxins and impurities that you have crammed into it over the years. This is commonly known as purging, which translates to literally just that. You’ll probably vomit profusely, but purge buckets will be provided. But fear not, if your body (including the subtle energy body) is clean, then there will be nothing to purge.
It is possible that plant medicine allows the subjective self to temporarily shed and merge with the infinite “other.” After a ceremonial night of purging, you might find that you gain a fresh new outlook on what was once a seemingly mundane reality.
Ayahuasca does not cause hallucinations, but rather takes you on a journey into the unconscious.
Due to its chemical composition, ayahuasca is considered an entheogenic and non-hallucinogenic substance, which means that the altered state of consciousness it produces connects us with our most spiritual part. Etymologically, “entheogen” means “being inspired by the gods”. That is why it is usually taken to connect with sleeping or blocked parts of our unconscious or to connect with the sacred in the world.
It is not the ayahuasca that produces the “journey”.
The psychoactive substance that modifies our state of consciousness is DMT and it is not found in the ayahuasca rope, but in the leaves of a low jungle bush called chakruna. Our body (which by itself secretes DMT in very small quantities, for example when we are newly born) has the ability to neutralize the effect of the psychoactive substance. That is to say: the chakruna by itself cannot cause us anything. Ayahuasca is the one that has the ability to block the enzymes of our liver so that DMT is successfully metabolized.
The curious thing is that ayahuasca is the only plant in the jungle (among millions of species) capable of blocking these enzymes in our body. How did the shamans know?
The shaman is the mediator between the visible world of things and the invisible world of energies and spirits. No matter what you ask a shaman, he will always end up answering whatever he wants. We, the outsiders, come with such a desire to know everything, to know what is in that other invisible world that is there but that we can barely touch, that we do not stop launching questions like arrows. However, shamans know that each one must find their own answers and they practice their role as guide very well.
The mission of the shaman is to direct the ceremony, that is, to call the spirits (especially the spirit of Mother Ayahuasca) so that they heal us with their wisdom and show us what we have to see.
Want an in-depth insight into this trip? Essential Trip Information provides everything you need to know about this adventure and more.
View Essential Trip InformationThe best time to visit Peru is during the dry season, between May and November, when the weather is dry and bright, with more frequent rainfall occurring between November and April.
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To book this tour, a minimum of $ 200 USD per person is required, the remaining balance will be paid upon arrival in Peru, at the Cusco office.
Any other additional information, please coordinate with your travel agent.
Feel the restorative power of nature, relax your mind in a place full of energy and life, disconnect from the fast-paced frenzy of everyday life.
Vaccines recommended for travelers to the Amazon often include hepatitis A and B, typhoid, and yellow fever. Visit your doctor four to six weeks before your trip for the latest recommendations and requirements for your destination. You may be advised to start taking malaria pills around this time.
The US Center for Disease Control is an excellent resource for detailed information on preventing travel related illnesses.
To stay safe in the Amazon, travelers should eat sensibly, dress appropriately and apply repellent to minimize the chance of getting bitten by mosquitos, and take the necessary vaccinations, medication and precautions as recommended by your doctor.
When hiking, canoeing, and enjoying other jungle activities you should always stay with your group and follow your guide’s advice. We also recommend that you leave valuable jewelry, watches and electronics at home, and where possible use a money belt and any room safes at your disposal to store passports and important documents.
Bring comfortable walking shoes, light-weight long pants, and long-sleeved tops, a wide-brimmed hat, sunscreen, extra socks, mosquito repellent with DEET, bathing suits and of course, waterproof ponchos with hoods to protect against rain your camera, with charger and extra batteries on excursions. Binoculars are very important to enjoy the wildlife. Do not forget to include some items that you can give away to the locals (t-shirts, pens, and paper are especially prized, and perhaps some chocolates or candies for little kids). During meals in the dining room, we ask our guests to wear casual clothing and shoes. We provide rubber boots for wetland excursions and wet landings, and recommend taking comfortable walking shoes.
Travelers are strongly advised to purchase trip cancellation insurance which will reimburse the cost of air tickets and other non-refundable trip payments. International medical, baggage loss, and delay insurance are also recommended. Unfortunately, if you miss the Amazon tour because of a weather-related flight cancellation, we will not reimburse the cost of the reservation since flight cancellations are beyond our control and we have to comply with our schedules.
To enter the countries in the Amazon Rainforest, you will need a valid passport. However, visitors from most countries do not need a visa, provided their visit will be shorter than 90 days. If you plan to stay longer, you will need to request a visa in your home country.
Yes. The food is simply world class. Our guests enjoy a menu of fresh, delicious Peruvian fare (with a bit of continental influence). Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner each day promises to be a culinary feast for the senses, paired with select South American wines or perhaps a freshly pressed juice. If you have special dietary requests, please inform Andean Great Treks at the time of booking, or at least by 30 days prior to start the Amazon Tours, because some items may have to be ordered from local markets in advance. Every effort will be made to cater to special dietary needs and to accommodate special requests, subject to a given products’ availability in Peru.
Amazon wildlife is abundant, but you have to know where to look. Many creatures are weary of humans and often camouflaged. Our expert naturalist guides will help you spot and identify animals with their local knowledge, tracking experience, and remarkable eagle-eyesight and trained ears.
Many can even mimic bird and monkey calls to attract them! In general, the longer you spend in the region and deeper you can travel into the rainforest, the more chance of spotting wildlife you see. A decent set of binoculars will also go a long way to help.
Taking vitamin B12 is a more natural way to gain some resistance to mosquitoes. It can be ingested as vitamin pills or found in some foods with high levels of B12 such as shellfish (clams, oysters, mussels), fish, crustaceans (crabs), soy products (milk, tofu), bran cereals, red meat (lamb, beef), low fat milk, select cheeses, and eggs. We suggest taking B12 supplements around 2-3 weeks before arriving in Amazon Rainforest.
Yes. We warmly welcome families with children aged 7 or older. Our lodges are comfortable to receive families with their children. Additional accommodation for one child is available in some Lodges. Our naturalist guides are very friendly with kids and all of our staff will provide the necessary care for your family. We also have survivor jungle trails, piranha catch-and-release fishing experiences in Iquitos, and meal menus for kids.
Every Andean Great Treks holiday has been thoughtfully planned and crafted by our specialists. They draw on their own extensive travel experience and the guidance and expertise of our local partners to create superb holidays. Our specialists are committed to making every aspect smooth and enjoyable; they genuinely want to ensure that the holidays they create leave you with wonderful lasting memories.
Every Andean Great Treks traveller is accompanied by an experienced tour guide, you will be immersed in Historic cities, ancient ruins and unfamiliar landscapes are all brought to life by our carefully selected local guides. They want to share their expertise and help you make your own discoveries too; their sole mission is to ensure you enjoy every moment.
Giving you the freedom to make your holiday even more memorable. We know how much our customers look forward to their holiday and we pride ourselves on the choice and flexibility that we offer to enhance every aspect of your experience. Whether it’s getting to the airport, upgrading your room or booking an additional excursion, we can help.
Our guides are the stars of the show; it is their unrivalled knowledge, passion and expertise that will transform your tour experience from good to truly extraordinary!
Because the have grown up in the area and know it like the back of their hand, so they can help you experience whichever aspects most interest you. They’re passionate about sharing their corner of the world with you, and as you explore together, they’ll open your eyes to the intricate details, provide background to enhance your understanding of what you’re seeing, and share stories that will bring everything to life.
“Your inspiration for a trip can be a single word or a highly evolved outline, but it’s the conversations we have that help us understand the experience you’re looking for. Meanwhile, I’m looking back on the time I spent at the destination.
‘The great thing about working with a specialist at Andean Great Treks is how they take your complete jumble of ideas and turn them into something absolutely spectacular.’
As you begin to share your ideas with your specialist, it will connect them immediately back to a time in their own travels. Conjuring a picture of the rest time they made that same discovery, reminding them how it felt.
Your specialist understands that, when the journey is right, it has the power to excite your emotions in the most profound ways after all, that was the effect on them.
They carry a treasure box of moments, captured over many journeys, into every suggestion they’ll share with you, as they ask you how you want to feel on your trip.
EXPERIENCES THAT CALL TO YOU
It’s what you do in a destination that helps bring it to life. It’s why we strive to choose experiences that help you connect to a place, absorbing a little of its complex character. Wherever your passions lie, we’ll recommend experiences that speak to you, and we’ll recommend the guide or local expert who’s most qualified to help you explore. Packing your holiday full of special experiences means some early starts and long days, but you can be sure that you’ll return home with many incredible memories! Read our Tours and check the Physical Ratings to see if the pace and activity levels are right for you.
STAYS WITH DIFFERENCE
We know that where you stay is a cherished part of your travels. So, we go to great lengths to find places to stay that exceed expectations, or go above and beyond the ordinary, whether in their character, hospitality, or location. Over the years, we’ve discovered the very best properties, trying and testing them, so we can choose the right one for you. We’ve nourished long-standing relationships with these establishments and the people who founded them, and we’ve stayed there many times often, we’ll even know which rooms have the best views (and reserve them for you).
Our style of travel — authentic, thoughtful, and focused on building meaningful connections to the people and places you visit — is inherently respectful and considerate of the destinations we love. We design each aspect of your trip exactly as you want it, which includes its sustainability. That might mean choosing a train journey instead of a flight, staying at eco-friendly wildlife lodges, or opting for experiences that give back to the communities you’re visiting. The choice is yours.
Responsible travel has always been at the heart of what we do. First and foremost, because it gives you the best experience, but, also because it helps to preserve the communities and landscapes you visit. This isn’t new for us we collaborated with local communities and outside experts so we can grow to be better ambassadors.
The most authentic and interesting experiences often directly benefit the local people. We prefer to buy local products that are produced in the organic farms, we also have alliances with local artisan organizations who provide us with souvenir items for our clients, your money directly benefits the local economy.
Our style of travel — authentic, thoughtful, and focused on building meaningful connections to the people and places you visit — is inherently respectful and considerate of the destinations we love. We design each aspect of your trip exactly as you want it, which includes its sustainability. That might mean choosing a train journey instead of a flight, staying at eco-friendly wildlife lodges, or opting for experiences that give back to the communities you’re visiting. The choice is yours.
Responsible travel has always been at the heart of what we do. First and foremost, because it gives you the best experience, but, also because it helps to preserve the communities and landscapes you visit. This isn’t new for us we collaborated with local communities and outside experts so we can grow to be better ambassadors.
The most authentic and interesting experiences often directly benefit the local people. We prefer to buy local products that are produced in the organic farms, we also have alliances with local artisan organizations who provide us with souvenir items for our clients, your money directly benefits the local economy.
‘There’s a saying: we don’t inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. When we show you our country, this philosophy guides everything we do. It’s our responsibility to preserve the environment and wildlife, and support communities. That means using slower modes of transport, like cycling, employing local people, and working with communities who’ll benefit directly from your visit. This also gives you the best, most authentic impression of the places we want to share with you.
We prefer to buy local products in ecological bags, to avoid the use of plastic bags, likewise we teach the use of soaps and ecological products in each tour that we organize. We also work on reforestation projects with local communities who take care of landscape resources such as communal reserves, national parks.
‘There’s a saying: we don’t inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. When we show you our country, this philosophy guides everything we do. It’s our responsibility to preserve the environment and wildlife, and support communities. That means using slower modes of transport, like cycling, employing local people, and working with communities who’ll benefit directly from your visit. This also gives you the best, most authentic impression of the places we want to share with you.
We prefer to buy local products in ecological bags, to avoid the use of plastic bags, likewise we teach the use of soaps and ecological products in each tour that we organize. We also work on reforestation projects with local communities who take care of landscape resources such as communal reserves, national parks.
Explore Manu National Park 5 days, the amazon’s mystery and Live a fascinating adventure to the vast amazon Manu national park , is one of the best places in South America to see a stunning variety of tropical wildlife.
Manu National Park is located in the Amazon rainforest of Peru. This attraction is one of the few places on the planet that still maintains its great biodiversity of birds, mammals, reptiles and many medicinal plants.
Manu National Park is an excellent way to experience an intense amazon wildlife.Is the biggest Amazon rainforest in the Americas, its incomparable natural wealth, host the greatest amount of flora and fauna of the world.
