Ayahuasca Retreat Reviews

I took part in an eleven days retreat at Spirit Vine center. It was my first experience participating in a retreat of any kind.

First, the installations are great, clean, and comfortable. The electrical and internet network is available in every building and bungalow. Plenty of light guides you safely when you walk outside when it’s dark.

Now I’m grateful for all the organization and the effort that made Silvia and TiO accommodate me and the other participants in the transportation from the airport to the city of Itacaré, then from Itacaré to the retreat. I appreciated that I waited maybe an hour at the airport to catch two other participants on another flight. We had the opportunity to save on the taxi and to know a bit each other before the retreat began.

Many people who’ve been at Spirit vine talk a lot about the food and I’m one of those for sure.

The food is prepared by a group of wonderful and loving women led by Chef Lou. Every meal was a feast. With the medicine I wasn’t that hungry, still, I enjoyed every bite. Who said that vegan is boring? Please tell that person to try the spirit vine feast.

I’ll spare you the details of my journey with the medicine, but I’ve been able to heal a trauma that I buried for over thirty-two years. Definitively the medicine is potent and can help to heal.

On that part of the journey, you’ll have to do some work and learn in a way that may be different from what you are accustomed to …

Silvia chose different workshops to suit the general vibe of the group. So the workshop schedule might change from one group to another.

The workshops are tools to help the participants to navigate and heal during the ceremonies. Even after the retreat, they are useful to manage our way in daily life.

One more good thing that I appreciated is that the dosage is set according to individual needs, background, tolerance, and so on.

After every ceremony, we do a group sharing in the afternoon. On that occasion, Silvia discuss with the participant about the dosage and set any adjustments if required.

From my experience, I felt safe in every way during the ceremony and beyond.

Next time you’re looking for a real vacation, consider a retreat instead of an all-included resort. Instead of being wasted by a week of drinking and partying, you’ll have the opportunity to relax, heal, and charge your batteries on a new and real level.

Over that, Spirit vine retreat center is well designed on so many levels. As I said it was my first experience so I can’t compare with others. Still, you can’t go wrong by choosing Spirit Vine: the place, the people, the food, and the weather…

The weather seems pretty fair between 20 and 30 Celcius year long and a decent level of humidity. So it is yearly comfortable.

I promise you that you’ll tan like on the beach. The pond is great. The frogs and the fishes who live in it are vegan 😉

Over all of that, on every ceremony day, there is a free yoga class in the morning and very affordable massages.

I feel the need to add an honorable mention for the staff in general: they are very kind and respectful. By that, I mean that during the retreat I’ve done several inner works, and I’ve been in touch with my inner self. The staff are respectful and seems to understand that I felt the need to be alone. On the other hand, they always send me back my smile or hello.

Let me add this to help you to dismiss any suspicions: Spirit vine is more a school or an academy for the self than a cult. Actually, the dynamic is about empowering yourself to make your way thru life and being autonomous and aware that you can create.

You will find and know more about yourself and your true inner power. Think like Hogwarts School in Harry Potter. 😉

I enjoyed my journey there and I recommend it to anyone who is feel the need to heal and is willing to learn how to heal themself. My experience is magic in the way that I’m the creator of my own experience.

I’m an Army Veteran who’s experienced various traumas throughout childhood and adulthood, and more than enough were to the extreme.

So even though I did over two years of professional therapy, and did over a decade of inner work while on a mystic path—to include: dream work, inner-child work, shadow work, The 7 Essene Mirrors, etc.—this retreat has taken my healing and transformation to a whole other level, and on all energetic levels: mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual.

Granted, I’m open to continue healing, learning, growing, evolving, and expanding my individual and Collective consciousness; hence, I consider returning for another retreat in Divine perfect timing and order, and here’s why it was worth it.

I’ve been drawn to a real-deal ayahuasca experience for years.

And though I came upon various opportunities, one place stood out from the rest; and it became my first experience.

It felt like the perfect combination package that I hadn’t seen before, that integrates:

connecting deeper with our whole self (physical self)/Self (Spiritual Self), as well as inner-child work, shadow work, other interesting workshops, a transparently informative website, and Silvia’s extensive, experiential background.

This 11 day ayahuasca retreat this month (July 3-13, 2022)—including 5, mind-blowing, challenging, thought-provoking, deeply healing, and/or heavenly ayahuasca ceremonies—was profoundly transformational and overall amazing.

It was the most invaluable investment and unconditionally loving gift that I ever gave to myself; and I highly recommend it to others.

Granted, no matter what I experience, I always like to follow my inner guidance/Heart/intuition/gut feeling/inner-wisdom FIRST AND FOREMOST, only taking onboard what FEELS light/true to my Heart, and discarding the rest.

The retreat center itself is like paradise, a Heaven on Earth—meticulously, beautifully, and perfectly designed by Silvia, and whom she co-created and built with her family-like team of employees.

The consolidation of an abundance of different trees, plants, bushes, flowers, pond, etc. are like puzzle pieces that reveal a giant, gorgeous picture.

Before coming to this retreat, there was no way that I was going to swim in a pond (was never interested and never planned on it).

However, I trust that ayahuasca has helped me to overcome my fear of the so-called “dark” murky water.

And it was such a liberating, empowering, refreshing and magical new experience; plus, the water felt so smooth and healing, as others have shared as well.

Silvia is a highly intelligent, very organized, meticulous, creative, innovative, wise and powerful Soul teacher, a major game changer.

Her refreshing, straightforward approach has gifted me with obvious blessings and blessings in disguise, especially profound insights, epiphanies, and life-changing realizations.

Ti0, Silvia’s Assistant, who is very authentic, honest, free-spirited, gentle kind, and helpful, was continually there for all the retreat participants 24/7. He was so trustworthy and reliable.

The retreat’s very talented and very friendly chef, Lou, generously created various healthy, vegan, colorful, beautiful, and delicious buffet style meals, drinks, and desserts for all of us on a daily basis, which was impressive.

This retreat’s yoga teacher, Andrea, is wonderful.

Her overall relaxing, yet pleasantly challenging style of Hatha yoga—that she taught with unconditional kindness, patience, encouragements, a great sense of humor, and full support—was deeply appreciated and memorable.

She also does heavenly massages that felt like I was melting into a higher realm, along with the other masseuse whose name escapes me, but is very talented and heartfelt kind as well.

The rest of the staff, to include the housekeeping ladies, were friendly and helpful as well.

Thank you so much to everyone who made this retreat possible, to include the retreat participants whom I was able to deeply connect with, interact with, share, learn from, and grow together in so many ways.

This experience was nothing short of phenomenal!

I was never much of a spiritual person, although I have been searching in that domain for years.

The setting is wonderful, beautiful bungalows immersed in the jungle, Michelin Star worth cooking with great vegan and gluten free dishes using locally sourced ingredients.

The ayahuasca ceremonies are well organised, under the watchful eye of Silvia and Tio, who are there to assist everybody.

Unlike other venues where ayahuasca is used, here the dosages are individually measured and adjusted for each and every participant, changing quantities from ceremony to ceremony in order to enhance the experience.

The skilfully organised workshops are also important to maximise the “self work” that needs to be done before, during and after the ceremonies, and the sharing done after the ceremonies allows everybody to share their experiences with other participants and the facilitators.

I cannot leave one important, for me personally even critical, aspect of the ceremonies – the music that is played during the ceremonies. I found myself being very responsive to the songs in the skilfully chosen playlists which would guide me through the experience.

This retreat was organised during a rainy period that, for me, was very beneficial to the experience, especially when it would rain during the ceremonies.

This overall experience, for me, was truly transformative in so many levels, and I got a lot of insight and I still have a lot of “homework” to do before I will be back, because, for sure, I will be back.

I have researched few Ayahuasca Resort Center and found this place while I was waiting for others to respond to my questions and concerns. Spirit Vine Retreat has a friendly registration process which helps you to understand on how they operate and that they just don’t take anybody. The people are carefully screened who are looking for something more to life or healing and even to find answers. I personally had healing on an emotional, psychological, and spiritual level. I lost over 10 lbs in weight. The food was fabulous in taste, color, presentation and the pure organic ingredients used for preparation. Loved every aspect of this retreat never a dull moment. Everyone is so friendly and helpfully that you feel like part of a family that is looking out for each other. I have never felt so much love and care like I did at Spirit Vine. I am so grateful for Silvia, Tio and the staff who took care of us through out our stay there. The team made sure that the participants felt safe and comfortable. I will come back in about 3 or 4 years with other family members and friends. They all are so interested and would like to experience healing. I will give 10/10 rating for Spirit Vine Resort.

Margaret Johnson (Maggie)

Alberta Canada

My reason for going to Spirit Vine was because my sister was going, and I didn’t want her to go by herself to a unknow place. I was not even going to participate in the Ayahuasca ceremony because I wanted to keep an eye on my sister but after seeing that we are in good hands, so I decided to go ahead and take Ayahuasca the plant medicine. The Spirit Vine resort screens people which show that care and safety of this place is first and foremost which gave me the confidence to participate in the ceremony. The food was excellent tasting, beautifully presented, and purely natural. The Chef Lucienne did an awesome job of making our meals. I really enjoyed connecting with people who were there for healing and that is exactly what I got too. The workshop before taking the Ayahuasca really helped me focus more on my own personal issues and got so much more. The place is so calming and peaceful that all you can hear is the leaves falling, birds chirping, and crickets at night. Overall, it was an excellent experience. I will come back with family and friends in the future. I love this place; words are not enough to describe or express my feelings. Thank you, Silvia, Tio and the staff of Spirit Vine.

I am a single mom with a high powered job. People would say that my life is perfect, successful, happy. In many ways it is, but I was stuck in places and I kept repeating patterns that really brought me to dark places.

This is the second time I go to Spirit Vine. And every time I am amazed at how Silvia has created the most magical place to heal. Her method is very different than any other I have seen or heard of and after extensive research, I knew it was the only place for me. It’s safe, it’s comprehensive (healthy foodie, classes around important psychology topics that relate to the experience, read outs to understand what we experienced, custom dosing per person, yoga and so on) and it’s supportive to each individual path. Plus, you are in the jungle, next to the most amazing beaches. It’s a place to connect with nature, connect and heal every part of yourself. And surprisingly, it is also a place where you heal and connect with other evolved people who understand the power of what Spirit Vine can do for them. I will be back again since as I evolve, I know this is a place to come back to in order to fine tune, reflect and continue evolving.

I also want to say that this is very safe if you follow Silvia’s instruction. She will start guiding you months ahead to prepare you body, mind and soul for this amazing process. She will advise you on medications you should not take, food you should avoid and so on.

Also, take her advice to come a few days early and take at least 2 days for yourself after. Integrating in and out of this process is as important as the work you do there.

Thank you Silvia and Ti0 for everything you do for everyone who shares time with you at Spirit Vine and for the way you protect the environment. And Silvia, it is so amazing to have the honor to be supported by someone as authentic and intelligent as you are. Your psychology background is a godsend as one navigates this unfamiliar territories and is so

Important to navigate it all and truly heal.

What an incredibly gorgeous and uplifting experience! As a person who has suffered a lot of trauma in childhood and adulthood (traumatic revictimization is so real), and has struggled with anxiety, depression, and PTSD, I knew I needed to focus on healing intensively. Therapy has helped me, but pharmaceuticals have had mixed results and plenty of side effects. However, working with ayahuasca at Spirit Vine, within one session I was finally able to give myself the love I’ve so richly deserved and unsuccessfully tried to find for years. I also forgave myself for past mistakes and recognized why I’d made them. Spirit Vine is the perfect place and ayahuasca is the ideal medicine for what ails you. As a healthcare worker, I have never before had the joy of seeing people healing so rapidly, having so many lifechanging insights, and developing such close bonds of friendship in such organic ways.

Silvia and Ti0 are the embodiments of healing energy. They are kind, intelligent, hardworking, honest, direct, the right mix of gentle and firm, and always guiding you to deeper realizations to help you change for the better. Their experience with ayahuasca is in-depth, and they make sure each individual has a great stay that provides them with mental, physical, and spiritual healing in the safest environment. The workshops provided help to shape and reinforce the healing ayahuasca provides. Workshops include recognizing and loving your inner child, releasing things (spirits, people, etc.) that don’t benefit you, soul retrieval (so you can reclaim what is yours that hardship has misplaced), and shadow work (seeing and understanding your unconscious and how it projects throughout your life). The mix of elements at Spirit Vine truly couldn’t be better: ayahuasca ceremonies in both nighttime and daytime (the latter especially helps you fall more deeply in love with Mother Earth), workshops, delicious and nutritious food, camaraderie and sharing amongst all participants, massages (deep tissue and Ayurvedic) and Reiki, yoga, beach adventures, swimming in the pond, exploring the breathtaking and tranquil grounds of Spirit Vine in the lush Atlantic Jungle, meeting the ayahuasca plants themselves where they grow on the property, time to relax and reflect on your own, art time, comfortable accommodations with hot water, Wi-Fi, etc.

While everyone came with their own unique story, we all were united in our desire to better ourselves. These effects will manifest as substantial improvements for the individuals who came to Spirit Vine, their loved ones, and truly everyone they interact with moving forward. The ripples of healing even one person are endless. I’ll be recommending ayahuasca (and hopefully administering it one day) to my patients as well. I was an ayahuasca first-timer, but my first time will not be my last. Spirit Vine, I’ll be back! Love and immense gratitude to all!

I’ve had an amazing experience at Spirit Vine. I admit I was scared and uncertain at first as I didn’t know what to expect but soon enough I was reassured. Silvia and Tio are wonderful in helping participants be at ease and providing help when needed. The workshops before every ceremony were a necessity and I feel it’s what sets this center apart from all other places that offer Ayahuasca. We are guided and never left alone and we also share our experiences the next day in order to process better and understand the messages received. I particularly had a difficult time after my 1st ceremony and was hesitant but Silvia and Tio took their time with me and helped me tap into my inner power and confront my fears and move forward to what I had set out to do and theur support was very valuable for me and helped me move forward and get the experience I needed. Without their help, I would have probably quit and regretted after. I’m really grateful for the experience and lessons learned at Spirit Vine and I will be integrting them into my every day life. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t have picked any other place to do an Ayahuasca retreat. I highly recommend this centre for anyone researching and looking for such experience.

My Ayahuasca retreat at Spirit Vine was an incredibly powerful experience. Knowing what I know about Ayahuasca now, if I had the choice available, I would only participate in future Ayahuasca ceremonies at Spirit Vine.

The Power of Ayahuasca

If you have not taken Ayahuasca before, you should understand that if it is prepared correctly, Ayahuasca is an extremely powerful plant medicine. Ayahuasca amplifies your thoughts, feelings and personal energies. This amplification process enables you to bring to the surface deeply hidden memories and traumas from the lower levels of the mind.

Likewise, Ayahuasca can show you completely different realities, different planes of existence, help initiate out of body experiences, connect you with spirit guides and so many other things.

Ayahuasca is not just a combination of plants to create a medicine, it is a highly intelligent entity. You can communicate with Ayahuasca.

What is Great about Spirit Vine Ayahuasca Retreat Centre

Yes the location is fantastic, yes the vegan food is very good, yes the facilities are excellent. Yes the yoga and massage sessions are fantastic. Whilst these things are great, they are not the most important things.

Most important – Spirit Vine is a safe space. Silvia and Tio have spent years refining the experience through the process of understanding what works and what does not work to create a safe space. Spirit Vine is a place where great healing can take place in a structured way.

As I have said Ayahuasca is extremely powerful, and when you go on a trip, perhaps working through some very deep traumas and emotions, I really appreciated the quiet, peaceful protected safe space.

Looking at how other Ayahuasca retreat centres work, many of them take an extremely high energy, high intensity, loud & noisy approach. Secondly, doses of the medicine are not tailored to the needs of the individual, thereby increasing the risk for some people of over-dosing. Thirdly, many retreat centres have dozens of people participating in the ceremony at once.

Now that I have participated in four Ayahu asca ceremonies, these other types of retreat environment are something that do not resonate with me. It would be too intense. Note: I’m a guy who is comfortable with intense, so I do not say this likely.

As well as creating a great safe environment, another fantastic aspect of Spirit Vine are the tools that we learned such as working with our inner child. This is important because the work is not done just because you have participated in a ceremony. You have to integrate and transform what you have experienced & learned.

Silva and Tio

Silva Polivoy is the co-founder and lead facilitator. What an amazing woman. Silvia is the type of woman who can spends just a few minutes with you and know exactly what makes you ‘tick’.

Silvia personally gave me a lot of incredible support when I was bringing to the surface an incredibly deep trauma. It was the hardest thing I have done in my life.

Silvia is extremely pragmatic. Her mindset is: ‘what is the most effective and efficient way to bring transformative healing to people’. She also has a huge heart and cares passionately about people.

Tio works with Silvia in a support capacity. Tio is incredibly wise for his age. Tio gave me very good advice on so many things. To see Tio at work helping and supporting people during the Ayahuasca ceremony is incredible.

I would strongly recommend Spirit Vine to anybody looking to partake in Ayahuasca ceremonies for the purposes of healing, transformation and personal development. If you are just looking to try out Ayahuasca for no particular reason, Spirit Vine is not for you.

If you look at previous reviews by other people, you will generally see 5 star reviews across the board. This says it all.

As hard as it was, I cherish the time I spent at Spirit Vine. Thank you Silvia and Tio from the bottom of my heart

Andrew

I realised on this retreat that you’re never able to describe an experience as strong as it was felt, so bearing that in mind I’ll try my best to describe my time at Spirit Vine. First of all the retreat is stunning, the way all the buildings are nestled in the jungle makes you feel immersed in nature. When I arrived I was shocked at how beautiful the retreat was, you feel at peace as soon as you get there. It’s an incredibly tranquil place and there feels like a purpose to how everything is.

The food is amazing, I still don’t understand how they made the food they did. Each meal had so much variety, at almost every meal there was something I had never tried before.

The yoga sessions and massages were instrumental in helping you connect with yourself which was one of the many themes throughout the retreat, connecting with yourself. The workshops were so valuable because they provided us with the techniques and cathartic experiences needed for the ceremonies and after the retreat, I’m still using them 3 weeks after the retreat has ended.

Saving the best for last, Silvia and Ti0. They are by far the wisest people I have ever met. They are so pure with their desire to help you and they provide a space for you to open up and be as honest as you can without ever judging you. Before I arrived at Spirit Vine I was struggling with a few things and after just one conversation I was enlightened on the real source of an issue and how to resolve it. Even during casual conversations you’re receiving such valuable insights and wisdom which shows how they are always ready to help you and provide guidance. Before and during the ceremonies you can be quite anxious, especially if it is your first time doing Ayahuasca but they are so supportive and provide such a safe space for everyone. Before, during and after the ceremonies I sought their insight and they helped me further understand my experiences and where I needed to go deeper.

If you’re considering doing Ayahuasca for the 1st or 100th time, or are interested in healing yourself, or would like to receive insights on your life, or would like to better yourself in anyway, or all of the above, I can’t recommend Spirit Vine enough.

I’m incredibly grateful for all the support and advice Silvia and Ti0 provided, I don’t believe it’s a matter of if I will return to Spirit Vine, but when. Thank you Silvia and Ti0 for everything, I look forward to seeing you again.