Atmosphere

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

Gaia Tree Center: An In-Depth Review of a Former Ayahuasca Retreat near Iquitos, Peru

Status note (November 2026). The center’s own website says “The Gaia Tree Center is not currently operating retreats”, and its retreat page says it is “not currently operating this retreat”. The last scheduled retreat found was in May 2020, and the site now refers readers to Kapitari. This profile is kept as an archive.

Gaia Tree Center was an ayahuasca retreat on the Yarapa River in Loreto, Peru, about three hours by road and boat from Iquitos, founded in 2016 by British tour operator Andy Metcalfe, that sold seven-day retreats with four ceremonies for $990 and ten-day retreats with six for $1,390, with Shipibo shamans Segundo and Belmira, per its retreat page. Its founder had organized the 2015 trip on which a young guest died at Kapitari. No screening, medical staff or emergency plan was published, the lodge had no phone signal, and it has not operated since 2020.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A jungle lodge on the Yarapa River, a tributary of the Amazon in Loreto, Peru, reached from Iquitos by road and boat; the exact village was not published.
• Approach: Shipibo ayahuasca ceremonies with optional kambo, and Andean tours with San Pedro.
• Suitable For: Readers researching the center’s history; it is closed. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: $990 for seven days with four ceremonies and $1,390 for ten days with six, with kambo for $50 extra, per its retreat page. No deposit or refund policy was published.
• Overall Assessment: Traditional Shipibo shamans at a low price, offset by a founder whose earlier trip ended in a death, no published medical safeguards, no phone signal and closure since 2020. Directory evaluation: D+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

No independent reviews were found on Tripadvisor, Google, NuMundo or HealingMaps; the center claimed more than 50 five-star reviews on Retreat Guru (unverified). A 2017 guest blog described a positive but exhausting stay in which kambo made the author faint and staff revived her with water (unverified). If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched international press, review platforms and English and Spanish-language news for reports involving Gaia Tree, Andy Metcalfe, Omkar Patel and the shamans Segundo and Belmira.

• Deaths and serious injuries: None found at Gaia Tree. In September 2015 a 24-year-old New Zealand guest died at Kapitari after a tobacco purging tea on a trip Metcalfe organized, and in 2017 ABC reported that Metcalfe, then running Gaia Tree, said “maybe we were complacent”, per triple j Hack. See our Outer Travels Inner Journeys listing.
• Sexual misconduct: No allegations found.
• Theft and fraud: None found.
• Legal action: None against Gaia Tree was found.

Most staff and shamans are known by first names only, so this absence offers limited assurance.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Who ran it. Andy Metcalfe founded Gaia Tree in 2016 after running Outer Travels Inner Journeys, and ABC said it hosted hundreds of foreign tourists a year, per ABC News. Its site names a co-owner called Omkar, and shamans Segundo and Belmira, with no surnames (unverified). The site’s legal notice names Outer Travels Inner Journeys Ltd; its registration was not confirmed.

Screening and medical support. No medical questionnaire, contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol was published. The retreat page said the lodge had no internet or phone signal, and Metcalfe told ABC in 2017 that first-aid-trained staff were hard to find in Iquitos.

After closing. The site now sells ayahuasca artwork and refers readers to Kapitari, the center where the 2015 death occurred.

Legal context. Ayahuasca is legal in Peru, its traditional use is national heritage, and there is no licensing regime for retreats, per ICEERS.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

Kambo and purging brews add physical risk to an ayahuasca retreat, especially far from a hospital. 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 Shipibo shamans, with mapacho tobacco used in ceremony; its source was not published. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Hot lowland rainforest on a black-water river near Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve.
• Rooms: Screened wooden rooms with beds.
• Style: Shipibo ceremonies run by a Western-owned company.

Practical guidance: The lodge was reached from Iquitos (IQT) by car and boat.

Should You Book?

It is closed. If you are offered a retreat by the same organizers or at a venue they recommend, ask who leads each ceremony, who on site is trained in first aid, what every brew contains, how help is called without phone signal, and the evacuation time to Iquitos. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Gaia Tree described itself as a healing center welcoming more than a thousand visitors. We did not independently verify anyone’s training.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go anywhere: Disclose every medication and condition in writing, plan any change with your own doctor, and buy insurance that covers evacuation. 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

Gaia Tree is closed and takes no bookings. 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.