Atmosphere

Features

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

Ocean Forest Ecolodge: An In-Depth Review for Plant Medicine Retreats on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica

Ocean Forest Ecolodge, formerly Guaria de Osa, is a roadless beachfront eco-lodge at Playa Rincón de San Josecito, south of Drake Bay on Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, owned and managed by ethnobotanist Jonathon “Sparrow” Miller Weisberger, author of Rainforest Medicine, according to its Retreat Guru page. Besides hotel stays from about $115 a night, he runs “Rainforest Medicine Council” retreats with overnight ceremonies using “sacred ancestral rainforest plant medicines,” described elsewhere as yagé in the Secoya tradition, most recently priced at $2,900 for seven nights, with a council at the lodge announced for January 2027. The lodge rates 4.7 on Tripadvisor from 152 reviews. Against that, the booking pages never name the brew, no medical screening, contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol is published, ceremonies run overnight hours by boat from a hospital, Costa Rica’s Health Ministry calls such rituals unauthorized, and no legal entity was found.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: Finca Guaria de Osa, Playa Rincón de San Josecito, Bahía Drake district, Osa, Puntarenas, Costa Rica; reached by a 1.5-hour boat from Sierpe and a beach walk, per its WeTravel listing.
• Approach: Councils with two sunrise and two overnight plant medicine ceremonies, a dieta with fasting days, flower baths, limpias, yoga, integration circles and forest walks.
• Suitable For: Nature-focused travelers for lodge stays; for ceremonies, only after getting the medicine named, screening rules and an evacuation plan in writing. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: Seven-night councils $1,600 to $2,200 (2019 to 2021) and $2,900 (2022 to 2023); ten-day retreats $1,850 (2025) and $2,700 (2026), plus about $200 in transfers. A 2019 council page said “All payments are non-refundable,” with partial credit if cancelled more than 21 days out.
• Overall Assessment: A well-reviewed lodge with an experienced ethnobotanist, offset by undisclosed medicine on booking pages, no published screening or medical cover at a remote site, ceremonies continuing after the Ministry’s 2025 warning and no legal entity. Directory evaluation: C+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Guests praise the staff, the owner’s botanical knowledge, macaws, monkeys and toucans, fresh local food and the seclusion.

The negative feedback. A 2023 review says rooms did not lock and grounds were not kept as photographed; others mention bugs, heat, no air conditioning, basic rooms for the price, missed transfers and dangerous rip currents at the beach. Unverified.

Who is writing the reviews. All reviews are from lodge guests; none describes a ceremony, and no reviews from council participants exist anywhere. Some Tripadvisor reviews were collected in partnership with the property. 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 Ocean Forest Ecolodge, Guaria de Osa, the Rainforest Medicine Council and Jonathon Miller Weisberger.

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

Our earlier profile found no incidents.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Screening and medical support. Applicants fill in an application whose contents are not published, and a dieta protocol is emailed after registration. No contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol appears on any program page from 2019 to 2023. Overnight ceremonies run from 7 pm to sunrise, when boats and flights do not operate, and Hospital de Osa in Ciudad Cortés is a boat and road trip away.

What is served. Booking pages say only “rainforest medicines,” but the owner announced “three series of yagé ceremonies at Ocean Forest Ecolodge” in 2021 on the Rune Soup podcast, and his own podcast calls the 2026 and 2027 gatherings Rainforest Medicine Councils while the 2025 and 2026 WeTravel pages list no ceremonies.

Who runs it. Miller Weisberger says he lived among the Secoya in Ecuador from 1995 to 2000 and has convened councils since 1996; Secoya elders led ceremonies at the lodge in 2012 and 2013. No Costa Rican company or registration for his foundations was found.

Legal context. In January 2025 Costa Rica’s Ministry of Health warned that ayahuasca lacks sanitary registration and that healing rituals are unauthorized, as the Tico Times reported.

Corrections to our earlier profile. Plant medicine ceremonies are confirmed, not merely possible, and the tradition is yagé. Recent seven-night councils cost $2,900 and ten-day retreats $2,700, above our $1,500 to $2,500 estimate; $125 is a nightly lodging rate. The oceanfront eco-lodge with cabins, yoga hall, permaculture and wildlife, Tripadvisor praise, reports of unmaintained grounds, unlocked rooms and bugs, and the lack of transparency about ceremonies are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

No screening or contraindications are published. 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 brew is not named on booking pages; the owner describes Secoya-style yagé. Ayahuasca, called yagé in Colombia and Ecuador, combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains. Flower baths, copal and limpias are also used.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Sea-level rainforest on a remote beach facing Caño Island, near Corcovado National Park.
• Rooms: About ten screened cabins and garden rooms with fans and mosquito nets; no air conditioning.
• Style: Ethnobotanical councils with yagé ceremonies, alongside yoga, art and integration work.

Practical guidance: Fly to San José, travel to Sierpe and take the boat to San Josecito beach; transfers cost extra.

Should You Book?

As a nature lodge, yes. For a council, only after getting the medicine named, screening rules, medical cover, an overnight evacuation plan and the refund terms in writing, and accepting the legal risk. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Miller Weisberger began building the lodge in the early 2000s; it was renamed Ocean Forest by 2019. Recent councils listed facilitators including integration therapist Gerard Artesona and Kichwa guide Walter Grefa. We did not independently verify anyone’s training. Its plant medicine gatherings are covered in our profile of Rainforest Medicine Gatherings.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go: Disclose every medication and condition in writing and plan any change with your own doctor. After you return: Councils include integration circles; 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

Lodge stays and retreats are listed on the operator’s WeTravel 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.