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

Mamay Ayahuasca: An In-Depth Review for Ayahuasca Retreats in Cancún, Mexico

Mamay Ayahuasca, now trading as Mamay Retreats and formerly Mamay Ayahuasca Experience, runs ayahuasca and kambo retreats at Xochipilli Retreats Center on the western edge of Cancún, led by Arturo Lopez, whom its own website calls “Founder and medicine man,” with organizer and integration coach Alicia Castillo. Six-night retreats include three ayahuasca and three kambo sessions for eight to 12 guests, from $1,790 to $2,150, with three-day mini retreats and a ten-day Peru trip, and some dates add peyote. It rates 5.00 on Retreat Guru from 76 reviews and 5.0 on Google and Tripadvisor. Against that, no medical screening, contraindication policy, medical staff, emergency plan, refund policy or legal entity is published, despite stacking kambo, ayahuasca and sometimes peyote in one week, and peyote use outside Indigenous ceremony is not exempt under Mexican law.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: Xochipilli Retreats Center, km 303 of the Mérida to Cancún highway, Fraccionamiento El Ramonal, Cancún, Quintana Roo, according to its website, with a maloca on a quartz foundation, temazcal and pool. A Peru trip visits Pucallpa and the Sacred Valley.
• Approach: Ayahuasca said to come from the Peruvian Amazon, kambo before each ceremony, cacao, temazcal, integration circles and massage; some retreats add peyote with a marakame (shaman) named Griseldo, and the Peru trip adds San Pedro.
• Suitable For: Adults wanting a short retreat with good facilities near an international airport, after getting screening rules and an emergency plan in writing. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart, blood pressure or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: $1,790 for November 16 to 22, 2026 and $2,150 for 2027 six-night retreats, $1,700 for three-day mini retreats and $3,333 for the December 2026 Peru trip, per Retreat Guru. Shared rooms are standard and singles cost extra. No deposit or refund policy is published. Our earlier price of $2,550 is unverified.
• Overall Assessment: Uniformly warm reviews, small groups and comfortable facilities, offset by multiple medicines stacked in one week with no published safety framework, no disclosed entity, unverified founder details, repeated rebrands and legal exposure for peyote. Directory evaluation: C+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Reviewers describe a safe, judgment-free space, a family atmosphere, Arturo’s seriousness and integrity, caring staff, clean rooms, the temazcal and diet-conscious meals, with healing from trauma and grief.

The negative feedback. No review below five stars was found. An April 2026 Tripadvisor tip warns, without detail, about people “looking to charge for what’s not theirs.” Testimonials on the operator’s site mention nausea during kambo and a disagreement over a second kambo session. Unverified.

Who is writing the reviews. Every visible review on every platform is five stars, the operator’s testimonial page contains a duplicate entry, and the Tripadvisor listing dates from 2025 and is filed as lodging. The venue’s Google, Tripadvisor and Facebook pages carry the Xochipilli name. If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched review platforms and English and Spanish-language news for reports involving Mamay, Xochipilli, Arturo Lopez, Alicia Castillo, their stated mentors and the Aya de la Vid organizer who previously ran Cancún retreats with Arturo.

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

Our earlier profile cited a 2023 Tripadvisor allegation involving a related retreat, Aya de la Vid, at Xochipilli; Aya de la Vid did hold Cancún retreats with Arturo Lopez in 2021. Unverified. Our earlier profile found no incidents tied to Mamay.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Screening and medical support. No medical questionnaire, contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol appears on the operator’s or Retreat Guru pages, and no hospital is named. Retreats combine three kambo sessions with three ayahuasca ceremonies in six nights, and some add peyote. Kambo raises heart rate sharply and can cause dangerous sodium loss if guests overdrink water, according to ICEERS. The operator says kambo detoxifies the “blood, organs, and liver,” which is unsupported.

Legal context. DMT is controlled in Mexico and the ayahuasca brew is a tolerated gray area, according to Mind Medicine Law. Peyote use is exempt only in traditional Indigenous ceremonies, a legal guide says the exemptions “do not extend to commercial retreats,” and Indigenous healers carrying ayahuasca into Mexico were detained in 2022 and 2023, as AFP reported. The operator says its brew comes from the Peruvian Amazon.

Who runs it. No Mexican or US company is disclosed. The Mamay and Xochipilli sites share a US phone number. The brew is said to be made by Arturo’s brother Adler of the “Ushnawa tribe,” a group no independent source describes. Another Cancún listing in our directory, Hacienda Cancun, uses the same km 303 address on Retreat Guru; whether they share a property is unknown.

Corrections to our earlier profile. The center now trades as Mamay Retreats, and its site names Arturo Lopez as founder; an American founder with 40 years in Latin America, a team with 19 combined years, a 2024 move to the jungle, Shipibo-made brews for the Cancún retreats, airport transport, pre-retreat medical forms and exclusions for antidepressant users have no source. Current prices are $1,790 to $2,150, not $1,999 or $2,550, and the mini retreat is $1,700, not $1,555. Retreat Guru now shows 76 reviews, not six. Reddit praise from 2023 to 2025, a Retreat Guru review describing inconsistent follow-up and the Tripadvisor allegation above remain unverified. The Cancún location at Xochipilli, facilitators Arturo and Alicia, Peruvian ayahuasca, peyote, kambo, groups of up to 12, the quartz-based maloca, temazcal and pool, the $3,333 December Peru trip and the absence of incidents are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

No screening, contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan are published for a program that combines several medicines. 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

The operator says its ayahuasca comes from the Peruvian Amazon and is prepared by Adler, described as Arturo’s brother. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains. Kambo, cacao and, on some dates, peyote are also used.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Jungle grounds on Cancún’s urban edge, with a maloca, temazcal, pool and gardens.
• Rooms: About ten rooms with air conditioning; shared by default, with a few singles for an extra fee.
• Style: Ceremony-centered retreats with kambo, cacao, temazcal, massage and integration coaching.

Practical guidance: Fly to Cancún; transfers are not described, so confirm them in advance.

Should You Book?

Only after getting a contraindication list, the emergency plan, refund terms and the policy for combining kambo, ayahuasca and peyote in writing. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Arturo Lopez is described as working with plant medicine for about 15 years, seven at Xochipilli, after starting in Pisac, Peru, under Diego Palma and apprenticing with Jean Piel. Alicia Castillo is described as an organizer and integration coach on a plant medicine path since 2009. Xochipilli says it began in 2015. We did not independently verify anyone’s training.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go: Disclose every medication and condition in writing and plan any change with your own doctor. After you return: The center offers integration coaching; 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

Dates through March 2027 are on the center’s Retreat Guru page. 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.