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

OMMIJ: An In-Depth Review for Sessions in the Netherlands and Spain

Status note (October 2026). OMMIJ’s website says its retreats in Spain and the Netherlands are “temporarily paused” until a court issues its final ruling. The notice is undated, and we found no sign that retreats have resumed. In July 2025 Spain’s Guardia Civil raided its retreat in Pedreguer, Alicante, arrested three people and opened a criminal case for drug trafficking, money laundering and membership of a criminal organization (see the Incident Report below). No ruling had been reported as of October 2026. This profile is kept as part of our archive.

OMMIJ (also written Om-Mij) is a Dutch-run ayahuasca business that says it has operated since 2011 and served more than 50,000 people from 76 countries. It ran one-night group ceremonies in Doetinchem, in the eastern Netherlands, and 3- and 5-day retreats at a villa near Dénia, Spain, using a brew of mimosa root bark and Syrian rue rather than traditional ayahuasca vine. Its Retreat Guru reviews are perfect, 5.00 from 39, and it publishes a detailed medication policy. But the record beyond the reviews is serious: a 2025 Spanish criminal investigation with arrests and seizures, a 2019 bankruptcy of its Dutch operating company in which the curator reportedly suspected fraud, DMT ceremonies in a country where DMT is illegal, no medical capacity on site according to police, and customers given vouchers instead of refunds. Our earlier profile missed all of this and needs correcting on location, approach and legal status.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A “Healing Center” in Doetinchem, Gelderland, Netherlands, and a villa on a 10,000-square-meter plot near Pedreguer and Dénia, Alicante, Spain, about 100 km from Alicante and Valencia airports, according to De Belegger and the center’s Retreat Guru page. Our earlier profile placed the Dutch center “near Amsterdam”; it is in Doetinchem.
• Approach: Group ceremonies led by a “ceremonial leader” with assistants, using a mimosa and Syrian rue brew marketed as “Ayahuasca,” plus rapé, optional kambo, yoga, meditation, breathwork and creative workshops in Spain, according to its booking page. No facilitators or lineage are named.
• Suitable For: Not recommended while a criminal case is open and operations are paused. Anyone considering OMMIJ if it reopens should understand the legal risks in both countries.
• Costs: In the Netherlands, €275 for a group ceremony, €475 per person for a private group and €575 for an individual session; in Spain, €845 for a 3-day retreat with two ceremonies and €1,295 for a 5-day retreat with three, with kambo at €50 and acupuncture at €25 extra. Customers whose bookings were cancelled after the raid were offered vouchers valid until 2030 instead of refunds, according to El Español.
• Overall Assessment: A large, commercial operation with polished marketing and a real medication policy, now paused under a criminal investigation, with a fraud-tainted bankruptcy behind it, an illegal brew in the Netherlands, no medical capacity on site and unhappy customers holding vouchers. Directory evaluation: F.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

Here is how OMMIJ rates across review platforms in October 2026:

The positive picture. Retreat Guru reviewers praise caring, attentive guides, good organization, a format that suits beginners, the three-ceremony structure and live music. Our earlier profile cited a 2024 review describing the experience as intense but handled attentively. The center says 87.5% of participants rank the ceremony among the five most meaningful experiences of their lives, a self-reported survey figure that our earlier profile mislabeled as a rating “for personal development.”

The negative feedback. On Retreat Guru the complaints are minor: too little time to settle in before the first ceremony and cold rooms in winter. Our earlier profile cited more serious accounts on Reddit, all unverified. A 2023 thread described a participant who suffered a psychotic episode after sharing their mental health history, which they linked to inadequate screening, and who said they were left with lasting trauma and no proper follow-up. A 2022 discussion called the mimosa-based brew underwhelming and inauthentic. A 2024 comment said facilitators seemed stretched thin in groups of up to 17. A 2023 account described feeling generally safe in Spain but suggested smaller groups. After the raid, De Belegger reported that customers were complaining on Reddit and specialist forums about cancelled retreats and vouchers, and quoted one who said nobody could be reached.

Who is writing the reviews. The perfect Retreat Guru average and the Google figures come from a platform the center pays and a widget it controls. Its website shows logos for Grazia, Arte, AD, Wageningen University, Maastricht University, ICEERS, the Beckley Foundation and others without explaining any relationship, and claims a 2023 “Best Ayahuasca Retreat” award from the Resorts & Retreats Awards that we could not verify; Spain’s Interior Ministry noted that the group marketed itself with awards. Its participant counts vary between 48,000 and 50,000, and its country counts between 74 and 76. If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched review platforms, Dutch, Spanish and English-language news, and legal sources for reports involving OMMIJ, Om-Mij, its companies and its founder.

• Deaths and serious injuries: None found. No health incidents were reported in the Spanish case. Our earlier profile cited an unverified 2023 Reddit account of a psychotic episode (see above). The 2019 death at a ceremony in Eersel and the 2019 Arnhem closure effort involved other organizations, not OMMIJ.
• Sexual misconduct: No allegations found.
• Theft and crime: 2025 Spanish criminal case. Spain’s Interior Ministry reported that the Guardia Civil dismantled an organization running internet-advertised spiritual retreats with drug use at two rural properties in Pedreguer. The investigation began in March 2025 after a complaint from an affected person. Three people, described as leaders and company administrators, were arrested, and five “spiritual guides” were investigated, for drug trafficking, money laundering and membership of a criminal organization; 16 guests were present during the search. Police seized 11 liters of prepared ayahuasca, 117 San Pedro cacti, bottles of kambo, 7 kg of mimosa, 368 kg of Syrian rue seeds, 945 methylphenidate (Ritalin) tablets, cash and documents. Investigators estimated income of several hundred thousand euros in the previous year, mostly undeclared cash moved through accounts in several countries. They also reported that the house had no medical means to deal with intoxications, according to Vilaweb. The raid was covered internationally by AFP. The ministry did not name OMMIJ, but El Español and De Belegger identified it, and OMMIJ’s own notice confirms “a visit from the Guardia Civil at our retreat center in Spain.” The case sits with the investigating court in Dénia. These are charges, not convictions.
• Legal action: In October 2025 OMMIJ’s adviser asked the court to return the seized materials, and its lawyer, Francisco Azorín, told El Español the case could be dismissed and hoped to reopen before the end of 2025. We found no ruling, dismissal or trial date as of October 2026. OMMIJ says it is the target of “ongoing false accusations” by “a Dutch individual” and that “our work does not involve any illegal substances.” 2019 bankruptcy. De Belegger, citing the curator’s report, reported that the Dutch operating company, BMS Centers B.V., trading as Om-Mij and founded by Ramon Geurts, was declared bankrupt in August 2019 owing more than €62,000 to the tax authority, after late wage payments prompted the petition. No accounts were handed over; the former director reportedly said they had been thrown away by accident. About a month before the bankruptcy, the company was transferred to an 81-year-old man in Belgium, which the curator said had “every appearance” of a front-man arrangement. The curator suspected improper management and bankruptcy fraud and referred the case to the Dutch tax authority and its fiscal investigation service (FIOD). We found no outcome of that referral. These are a curator’s suspicions, not court findings.

If you have experienced or witnessed an incident at OMMIJ, please report it confidentially.

🔍 Critical Notes

The legal position in the Netherlands. DMT is on List I of the Dutch Opium Act, and Dutch courts treat ayahuasca-type brews as illegal; the Supreme Court ruled against religious use in 2019 and the European Court of Human Rights upheld the ban in 2014, according to ICEERS. OMMIJ’s mimosa and Syrian rue brew contains DMT, so its Dutch ceremonies operated against the law. Our earlier profile described the Netherlands as “ambiguous territory,” which understated this. See our country-by-country legal guide.

The legal position in Spain. Spain does not specifically schedule ayahuasca, but DMT is controlled under the UN’s 1971 convention, and courts have distinguished the brew from pure DMT, according to reporting by Euronews and El Salto. That grey zone has not protected commercial operators: OMMIJ’s case shows prosecutors pursuing drug trafficking charges. Our earlier profile said Spain “permits religious applications”; there is no such statute.

What is in the cup. OMMIJ’s homepage calls its brew “Ayahuasca.” The seizure in Spain, mimosa and Syrian rue seeds, matches what our earlier profile called “anahuasca”: a DMT-containing root bark combined with a harmala-containing seed, rather than the traditional vine and leaf. The center does not disclose this on its homepage. The seizure also included San Pedro, kambo and 945 Ritalin tablets, which have not been explained.

Vouchers, not refunds. After the raid, cancelled bookings were replaced with vouchers usable until 2030. El Español reported that dozens of clients said they had been deceived and wanted their money back. OMMIJ’s medical guidelines also allow it to refuse participation with no refund if a contraindication is disclosed late. De Belegger reported that the Pedreguer property has since been rented out as “Villa Miraval,” which we could not verify.

Companies and claims. De Belegger reported a web of related companies: Serenidad Infinita SL in Spain at the retreat address and three UK companies at an address in Hythe, though it said Geurts’s involvement in the UK entities “is not formally proven.” Our earlier profile named a co-founder, “René,” whom we found in no other source, and said the business expanded to Spain in 2018, built a team of more than 42 and influenced more than 20 other centers; none of that could be verified. It also reported that in July 2025 the founder posted an emotional retirement letter in the “Tribe of Om-Mij” Facebook group, in a tone some described as cult-like, that he gave his age as 41 although sources indicated he was over 50, and that the center had generated $44 million in revenue over three years. Those claims remain unverified; the only independent figure is the Spanish investigators’ estimate of several hundred thousand euros in one year.

Corrections to our earlier profile. The Dutch center is in Doetinchem, not near Amsterdam. OMMIJ does not avoid ceremonial elements as our earlier profile said: it uses a “ceremonial leader,” rapé and kambo, and its lawyers describe the brews as traditional ceremonial decoctions. Our earlier profile showed both a B- and an F grade; F stands. Its statement that there was no criminal activity connected to OMMIJ is no longer accurate.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

OMMIJ publishes one of the more detailed medication policies we have seen. Its medical guidelines require a questionnaire at booking covering medications, heart, liver, kidney and pancreas conditions, psychiatric history and drug use. SSRIs must be stopped six weeks before (eight for fluoxetine) and four weeks after, with a doctor, and it sets taper windows for MAOIs, SNRIs, tricyclics, benzodiazepines and blood pressure medication. Chronic heart conditions and chronic hypertension exclude participation, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder are flagged as risks, and pregnancy is excluded. What is missing: no medical staff are described, only “24-hour supervision where necessary,” and Spanish police reported no medical means on site to handle intoxications. No emergency protocol or nearest hospital is published. In Spain, one ceremonial leader and four assistants served groups of up to 20; in the Netherlands, groups reached 17. ICEERS notes that ayahuasca’s MAOI component makes combinations with SSRIs and other serotonergic medications contraindicated, and that ayahuasca is contraindicated for people prone to psychosis. Erowid warns of extreme, possibly fatal reactions with some prescription drugs. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a retreat without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

The evidence points to a brew of mimosa root bark, a source of DMT, and Syrian rue (Peganum harmala) seeds, whose harmala alkaloids act as MAO inhibitors and make the DMT orally active. Police seized 7 kg of mimosa and 368 kg of Syrian rue seeds in Spain, and our earlier profile described the brew as “anahuasca.” Syrian rue is a different plant from the ayahuasca vine, and its effects can differ. Rapé was included in every Spanish program, with kambo as a paid option, and San Pedro is listed on the homepage. Ask exactly what is in each cup and how doses are set.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Netherlands: A center in Doetinchem with one-night group ceremonies starting at 1 PM, including an integration session, vegetarian meals and an overnight stay. Groups of up to 12 midweek and 17 on Fridays and Saturdays.
• Spain: A villa described by El Español as a “luxury chalet,” with dozens of beds and, according to Retreat Guru, a pool, sauna and hot tub, near Pedreguer and Dénia on the Costa Blanca. Retreats ran Thursday to Saturday or Thursday to Monday, with yoga, meditation, breathwork, creative workshops and vegetarian food.
• Style: Commercial and modern, run in Dutch, English and German, with a playlist and live music in ceremonies and a strong online presence.

Practical guidance: Retreats are paused. If OMMIJ reopens, Spain’s nearest airports are Alicante and Valencia, each about 100 km away, and the Dutch center is reachable by train from Amsterdam. We found no airport transfer service.

Should You Book?

We do not recommend OMMIJ. Its retreats are paused under a Spanish criminal investigation for drug trafficking, money laundering and criminal organization, its Dutch ceremonies used a DMT brew that is illegal in the Netherlands, police found no medical capacity at its Spanish villa, and customers were given vouchers instead of refunds. Its earlier operating company went bankrupt amid a curator’s fraud suspicions. Its detailed medication policy and positive reviews do not outweigh that record. If you are holding a voucher or considering OMMIJ in the future, get legal advice on your consumer rights first, and read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

OMMIJ says it has operated since 2011. De Belegger, citing the curator’s report, names Ramon Geurts as the founder of its former operating company. No facilitators are named on the website, and no indigenous lineage is claimed. Spain’s Interior Ministry described those arrested in 2025 as the organization’s leaders and company administrators. The company’s public defense is led by the lawyer Francisco Azorín, described as an ayahuasca specialist. We did not independently verify anyone’s credentials.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you book anywhere: Check the center’s legal position in the country where ceremonies take place, ask what the brew contains, and confirm who is medically responsible on site. If you have a medical history, follow your own doctor’s advice on medications rather than a retreat’s timetable. After a retreat: 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

OMMIJ’s retreats are paused pending a court ruling, although its booking page still lists prices. We recommend against booking. If you hold a voucher or are owed money, keep records of your payments and correspondence and seek consumer or legal advice. Best Retreats does not take bookings; learn more about our mission.

Last reviewed October 2026.

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