Atmosphere

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Atmosphere and feature ratings above are based on Best Retreats research (November 2026). They will be updated if Aluna Retreats submits its own information.

Aluna Retreats: An In-Depth Review for Ayahuasca Retreats near Olot, Catalonia, Spain

Aluna Retreats is a Russian-language retreat organizer founded by Alvaro Aivars Provejs (“Maestro Alvaro”) that runs four-day “Ayahuasca in Colombian Traditions” retreats with three ceremonies led by visiting Colombian taitas at a house about 20 minutes from Olot, Girona, for up to 12 guests at €1,250 to €1,350, plus an iboga retreat, per its Retreat Guru page. It names its ceremony leaders and keeps groups moderate. Against that, it has no reviews, website or legal entity, no screening, contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan are published while bufo (5-MeO-DMT), changa and kambo are sold as same-day add-ons, and its listings contradict each other on the venue and dates.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A secluded house described as 20 minutes from Olot, Girona, Spain; listings from late 2025 to early 2026 placed it ten minutes from Palafrugell instead, and no address is published.
• Approach: Three night ceremonies with icaros and drum led by Colombian taitas, rapé, integration sessions and consultations, with kambo, bufo and changa as optional extras; a separate Bwiti retreat serves iboga.
• Suitable For: Russian speakers wanting a Colombian-style ceremony in Europe who can screen themselves. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: €1,250 to €1,350 for four days in a shared room, per its December 2026 program page, and €1,400 for the iboga retreat; add-on medicines and transfers cost extra at unpublished prices. The deposit is refundable until a day before and full payment until 14 days before.
• Overall Assessment: Named Colombian taitas, offset by no track record, no published medical safeguards for a high-risk menu of medicines, an opaque operator and unreliable listings. Directory evaluation: D+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

Aluna Retreats has no reviews on Retreat Guru, and none were found on BookRetreats, Google, Tripadvisor or AyaAdvisors. If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched review platforms and English, Spanish, Russian and Latvian-language news for reports involving Aluna Retreats, Alvaro Aivars Provejs, Thomas Orlando Aucu Sanchez and Taita Mauricio.

• Deaths and serious injuries: None found.
• Sexual misconduct: No allegations found.
• Theft and fraud: None found.
• Legal action: None found.

The iboga facilitator is not named, and the operation has almost no online presence, so this absence offers limited assurance.

If you have experienced or witnessed an incident with this center, please report it confidentially.

🔍 Critical Notes

Who runs it. Alvaro Aivars Provejs describes himself as a “healer of souls” who studied Latin American and equatorial African traditions and works with ayahuasca, iboga and changa, but says he is not a shaman, per his teacher profile. Ceremonies are led by Thomas Orlando Aucu Sanchez (“Taita Thomas”), described as a Pastos taita, and Taita Mauricio, described as a hereditary tradition keeper from Putumayo, per his profile (all unverified). A Putumayo healer named Mauricio who works with Casa Oraya says he claims no specific lineage; whether he is the same person is unconfirmed. No website, company or tax number appears.

Screening and medical support. No medical questionnaire, contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol is published, including for iboga, which carries cardiac risk. The sample schedule puts optional kambo in the morning and optional bufo or changa in the afternoon of ceremony days; ayahuasca contains MAOIs, and combining MAOIs with 5-MeO-DMT is widely cautioned against.

Listings. The venue is placed near Palafrugell on older pages and near Olot on newer ones, an iboga event is titled “Bwiti retreat Copy” with conflicting dates, and amenity tags show a fitness center, restaurant and bicycle rental. The claim of “more than 5 years” of retreats is not supported by any record before 2025.

Status. Operating, with a retreat listed for 10 to 13 December 2026; the earliest dated retreat found was in late 2025.

Legal context. Ayahuasca is neither prohibited nor authorized in Spain while DMT is controlled, per ICEERS, and changa is a smokable DMT preparation. In 2026 the Guardia Civil raided an unrelated retreat in Sagunto selling ayahuasca, kambo and bufo, per Euro Weekly News.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

Several potent medicines on offer without published screening raise the risk considerably. ICEERS notes that ayahuasca’s MAOI component makes it dangerous with SSRIs and other serotonergic drugs and that it is contraindicated for people prone to psychosis. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Ayahuasca served by the visiting taitas; its source is not published. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: An old Catalan manor in the countryside of inland Girona.
• Rooms: Shared rooms for two to four, with women and men separated.
• Style: Colombian-style yagé ceremony within an eclectic, Russian-language program.

Practical guidance: Fly to Barcelona (BCN) or Girona (GRO); transfers are available on request at extra cost, and you should confirm the address in writing.

Should You Book?

Not without serious caution. Ask in writing for the venue’s address, the screening questions and contraindication list, who on site is trained in first aid, the emergency plan and nearest hospital, the timing and price of any add-on medicines, the iboga facilitator’s name, and the legal entity you are paying. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Aluna presents itself as a home for Colombian and African plant traditions for Russian-speaking guests in Europe. We did not independently verify anyone’s training.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go: Disclose every medication and condition in writing, plan any change with your own doctor, and consider declining add-on medicines. After you return: Arrange support from a qualified therapist at home. Our guide on how to research ayahuasca incidents can help you check any center.

Pros & Cons

Book Your Ceremony

Programs are listed on Retreat Guru. Best Retreats does not take bookings; learn more about our mission.

Last reviewed November 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified medical professional.