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

Pandorita: An In-Depth Review for Retreats in Piedras Blancas National Park, Costa Rica

Pandorita is an oceanfront ayahuasca retreat on the Golfo Dulce in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, reachable only by boat, where Shipibo healers from Peru lead ceremonies for small groups. It was founded by two Swiss brothers and their families, has run workshops since 2021, and is linked to a sister center, Ani Shinan, near Pucallpa, Peru. Its reviews are strong, 4.88 from 32 on Retreat Guru, but that average includes one detailed one-star account from a guest who says that in July 2023 a doubled dose left her collapsed, struggling to breathe and without medical help on a remote site. Pandorita disputes her account, and another guest from the same retreat has publicly backed the center. Both sides are set out below. The wider concerns are no medical staff listed, a boat-only location, no published emergency plan or refund policy, and Costa Rica’s 2025 health warning on ayahuasca. Our earlier profile needs correcting on the program, prices, location and the incident.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A 27-acre retreat area within 345 acres of protected land in Piedras Blancas National Park on the Golfo Dulce, Puntarenas, reached by boat from Puerto Jiménez, according to the center’s location page. The legal entity named on its website is Corporación Aventuras Saladero S.A.
• Approach: Ceremonies led by Shipibo healers, with Western facilitators for yoga, breathwork and integration, Shipibo massage and flower baths, and nature outings by boat, kayak and snorkel, according to its workshops page. The center says its ayahuasca is home-brewed.
• Suitable For: Healthy, experienced travelers who want a Shipibo ceremony setting in deep, wild nature and accept that medical help is a boat ride away. Not suited to anyone with asthma, heart or respiratory conditions, or anyone who needs medical staff on site.
• Costs: For the 2027 season, 8-day retreats from CHF 2,400 (glamping) to CHF 3,200 (beach-house rooms), with a CHF 1,200 deposit through WeTravel. The April 2026 11-day retreat was priced at US$2,900 to US$3,600. No refund policy is published.
• Overall Assessment: A beautiful, well-reviewed Shipibo retreat with a mandatory consultation call, offset by a serious and disputed 2023 medical incident, no listed medical staff, a remote boat-only site, no published emergency plan or refund terms, and a legal warning from Costa Rica’s health ministry. Directory evaluation: B-.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

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

The positive picture. Retreat Guru reviewers describe inner-child healing, a “very loving family environment,” caring staff, excellent food, oceanfront wildlife and round-the-clock support from a contact person. One 2026 guest called the 11-day retreat “truly life-changing.” Our earlier profile also cited guests on the center’s own site calling the workshop a “profound adventure,” a Quora post praising the staff’s nurturing approach, and a retreat-platform review that found the boat-only access isolating.

The one-star account. In April 2024 an anonymous, verified Retreat Guru reviewer described leaving on day 4 of an 11-day retreat in July 2023. Her account, which is unverified, says:

• At the second ceremony the healer doubled her dose. Guests had been told to stop drinking water at 3 PM, and by the evening, in heat and high humidity, she felt dehydrated and had trouble breathing.
• A facilitator first tried to talk her into staying. She was helped out, collapsed outside, and asked for a medical doctor; the only “doctor” available was an acupuncturist, and she says the site was too remote to get medical help.
• Staff did not call her emergency contact because they did not have the number on file. She says first aid amounted to a pulse check, with no rehydration, cooling or oxygen, and that she drifted in and out of consciousness on the grass.
• She woke alone in her bed the next morning and reached her emergency contact herself over Wi-Fi. She says facilitators had also taken the medicine, one by her own admission.
• She says she had never had asthma before and has had it since, and that a specialist later linked its onset to the ceremony, which included tobacco.
• Pandorita did not refund her. It paid for one hotel night in Puerto Jiménez and the cost of changing her flights, and she quotes Marco as telling her, “You were the one who wanted to do ayahuasca.”

Our earlier profile cited a Reddit post, which it dated to 2022, alleging that a guest suffered fever, dehydration and paralysis after a double dose, that facilitators refused to call emergency contacts and downplayed it as part of “the process,” and that the guest felt gaslit. Its details closely match the Retreat Guru account and it may describe the same incident (unverified).

Pandorita’s response. In a November 2025 statement to Best Retreats, Pandorita’s owners disputed the account. They said the guest concealed that three other centers had previously turned her down and misled them about her psychological condition, and that they had spoken with a family member to understand her situation. They said that after she reported feeling nothing at the first ceremony they offered “a little more,” half a glass, at the second, which “turned out to be too much for her”; that her symptoms were normal effects of the medicine; that they were in constant contact with their doctor and never refused medical support; and that their facilitators have many years of experience and have completed several jungle dietas. They said one of the owners spoke with her by phone the day after the ceremony and that she insulted them. The owners say they have worked with the medicine for 20 years, that the project is privately funded, and that a single statement has damaged their life’s work.

A second guest’s account. A guest from the same retreat posted a five-star review on Retreat Guru on May 1, 2024, and sent the same statement to Best Retreats through the center. She says the reviewer told other guests on the first day that she had lied about her mental health on the pre-retreat call after being rejected by several centers, made jokes and comments she found inappropriate and, about the healers, racist, and appeared to have a panic attack in the second ceremony. She says the facilitators took great care of the reviewer, tried to calm her that night and the next morning, and arranged her journey home after several discussions with the retreat’s “professionally trained medical doctor,” who “was not on site but on call in Switzerland.” She also describes being briefed on the expected effects of MAO inhibitors and having each later dose agreed with every guest. This account is also unverified.

What both sides agree on. The guest’s dose was increased at the second ceremony, she became severely distressed, no medical doctor was on site, and she left early. Where they differ is on her health history, whether her symptoms were a medical emergency, and how well she was cared for.

Who is writing the reviews. Retreat Guru’s reviews cluster at the end of seasons: six in March 2023, eight in September 2023 and six in May 2024, the last group arriving in the days after the one-star review, including the second guest’s rebuttal. Clusters at the end of a season are common and are not evidence of fake reviews. WeTravel shows 24 reviews with no visible text. We found no review incentives or affiliate program. If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched review platforms, Costa Rican and English-language news, and legal sources for reports involving Pandorita and its staff.

• Deaths and serious injuries: July 2023 medical incident (disputed). A guest reports a doubled dose followed by collapse, breathing difficulty and lasting asthma, with no medical doctor on site and her emergency contact not called; Pandorita says her symptoms were normal effects, she had concealed her health history and its doctor was consulted throughout (see above). No deaths found.
• Sexual misconduct: No allegations found.
• Theft and crime: No reports found.
• Legal action: None found. No enforcement against Pandorita found.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Medical support on a boat-only site. No doctor or nurse is listed on Pandorita’s website, Retreat Guru or WeTravel pages. The second guest describes a doctor on call in Switzerland, and the reviewer describes an acupuncturist on site. The retreat is reached only by boat from Puerto Jiménez, and no emergency protocol, evacuation plan or nearest hospital is published; the center offers a “Pandorita Safety Guide” on request through Instagram. In the 2023 incident, the guest’s emergency contact was not on file. Ask who on site is medically qualified, how a guest would be evacuated at night, how long it takes to reach a hospital, and whether your emergency contact will be recorded before you arrive.

The legal position. On January 23, 2025, Costa Rica’s Ministry of Health issued a health warning on the use, consumption and advertising of ayahuasca and ibogaine, reported by Delfino on January 27. It said ayahuasca contains DMT, a controlled substance, that healing rituals are an unauthorized practice, and that healing must take place in licensed facilities by registered professionals. Pandorita brews its own ayahuasca and markets healing. We found no closures or sanctions against any retreat. See our country-by-country legal guide.

A shrinking, shifting program. In 2023 the retreat ran 11 days with six ceremonies and up to 10 guests. In 2026 it ran 11 days with five ceremonies. From the 2027 season it offers only 8-day retreats with three ceremonies, and the center’s pages still mention 7- and 11-day formats in places. Group size is given as “small,” up to 8, up to 10 or up to 16 depending on the listing. Prices have moved from US dollars to Swiss francs. The website calls Pandorita a “not-for-profit, family-held partnership,” while its footer names a Costa Rican corporation.

Refunds. No cancellation or refund policy is published on the website, Retreat Guru or WeTravel, and the 2023 guest who left early received no refund. Get the terms in writing before paying a deposit.

Corrections to our earlier profile. Pandorita is a coastal rainforest retreat, not a “tranquil mountain retreat.” The 11-day, six-ceremony program and the US dollar room prices are out of date, and we found no source for the 2,990 figure on our earlier page. Its statement that there were no 2025 dates no longer applies; retreats are scheduled through May 2027. Meals now include fresh fish or meat when available, not only vegan food. The healers our earlier profile named for the 2024 to 2025 season have changed, and the 2023 incident it described is now documented above with the center’s response.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

Pandorita requires a consultation call before booking for anyone taking medication, with severe mental instability, heart problems or high blood pressure, and offers a free call to first-timers, according to its FAQ. It says “drugs and psychoactive medications should be discontinued a month earlier” and lists herbs to avoid, including St. John’s wort, valerian and kava. It does not name SSRIs or MAOIs, mention supervision by a prescribing doctor, or publish a contraindication list. Both accounts of the 2023 incident suggest screening depends heavily on what guests disclose. 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. On a remote site in tropical heat, also ask about hydration rules on ceremony days, since the 2023 guest says water was cut off at 3 PM. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a retreat without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Pandorita says its ayahuasca is home-brewed, served by Shipibo healers. It does not publish its recipe. Traditional Shipibo ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with chacruna leaf, which supplies the DMT, as Erowid explains. The 2027 program has three ceremonies, starting with a diagnostic ceremony and ending with an “arkana” (protection) ceremony. The 2023 guest says her ceremony included tobacco. The center grows ajo sacha on site, and our earlier profile mentioned an optional lemongrass vomitivo (purge). We found no kambo, rapé or San Pedro. Ask exactly what is in each cup, how doses are increased between ceremonies, and whether tobacco is used.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: An oceanfront property in lowland rainforest that receives more than 200 inches of rain a year, bordering protected forest in the Osa Conservation Area, with a maloca, yoga deck, temazcal (sweat lodge), food forest and trails.
• Rooms: From a glamping tent with a bamboo bed to a Mariposa room, bungalow and tree house with private bathrooms, and two beach-house rooms. No pool.
• Style: Shipibo ceremonies within a nature retreat. Expect a Golfo Dulce boat tour, a mangrove kayak on the Esquina River, snorkeling at Puma Beach, paddleboarding, yoga, breathwork, meditation, Shipibo massage and a flower bath, with a chef cooking from the garden and offering fish or meat when available. The Swiss-led team works mainly in English and Spanish.

Practical guidance: Fly from San José to Puerto Jiménez (about an hour), or drive five to six hours, and arrive the day before. Pandorita’s boat collects guests at Puerto Jiménez harbor at 10:30 AM and returns them by 9 AM on the last day. There is no airport pickup.

Should You Book?

Pandorita may suit a healthy, experienced guest who wants Shipibo healers in a spectacular, remote setting and is comfortable relying on the center’s judgment far from a hospital. Most reviews are glowing. The trade-offs are serious: a detailed account of a 2023 medical emergency with no doctor on site, which the center disputes, no listed medical staff, a boat-only site with no published emergency plan, no published refund policy and a Ministry of Health warning in Costa Rica. If you go, disclose your full health history, get the emergency plan, the name of the nearest hospital, the dosing approach and the refund terms in writing, make sure your emergency contact is recorded, and read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Pandorita’s about page says it was founded by two Swiss brothers, former professional ice hockey players, with their wives and a longtime friend, and that it has run workshops since 2021. It does not name them; a Marco is listed as the booking contact on Retreat Guru. One brother is described as completing nine months of plant dietas with the Shipibo healer Bari Kene (“Papa Horacio”). The healers named in 2026 include Sankena (“Mama Mica”) and Teolinda Rengifo Sánchez, and Julio, from a Shipibo family, is described as the retreat’s guide. Western facilitators have included Montserrat, a trauma-informed facilitator and herbalist, and Aum Keita, an artist and yoga and meditation teacher. The sister center, Ani Shinan, sits on 30 hectares outside Pucallpa, Peru, and has worked with Shipibo families since 2012, according to Pandorita. We did not independently verify anyone’s credentials.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go: Book the consultation call and disclose your full medical and mental health history, including any breathing or heart problems. Follow the pre-retreat diet and stop medications only under your own doctor’s guidance. Make sure the center has your emergency contact. After you return: Individual and group integration sessions are included. Arrange support from a qualified therapist at home as well. Our guide on how to research ayahuasca incidents can help you check any center.

Pros & Cons

Book Your Ceremony

Bookings are made through pandorita.org (pandorita.com now redirects there), its Retreat Guru pages and WeTravel. The 2027 season runs 12 eight-day retreats from December 27, 2026 to May 4, 2027, from CHF 2,400, with a 10% discount for returning guests. Before paying, confirm in writing the medical and emergency arrangements, the nearest hospital, how doses are set, the group size and the refund terms. 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.