Atmosphere

Features

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

San Pedro Workshops: An In-Depth Review for San Pedro Retreats in the Yunguilla Valley, Ecuador

San Pedro Workshops runs San Pedro (huachuma) retreats at Dancing Dragons, formerly Eagle Nest, a hillside house in Lentag in Ecuador’s Yunguilla Valley about 90 minutes south of Cuenca, led by Steve “Eagle” Sewell, an American addictions counselor who says he “is not a shaman,” with acupuncturist Orion Chase, according to its website. Programs of 14, 21 and 30 days with three ceremonies a week cost $2,300 to $3,400, single ceremonies $220, and it rates 4.9 from 97 reviews on AyaAdvisors. Against that, its pages claim people with cancer, Parkinson’s, MS and HIV have healed and call ayahuasca “completely safe,” the intake form skips heart disease, blood pressure and pregnancy, kambo is offered with no stated screening, no medical staff or emergency plan is published, and nearly all its reviews sit on one platform that also made its promotional video.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: Lentag, Yunguilla Valley, Azuay, Ecuador, about 1.5 hours south of Cuenca up a narrow dirt road, per a participant’s account in Cuenca High Life; no address is published.
• Approach: San Pedro ceremonies three times a week with daily counseling, dream interpretation, shamanic journeying, massage and amino-acid consultations; a 2025 men’s retreat added kambo, acupuncture, qigong and breathwork.
• Suitable For: Adults wanting a long, very small-group San Pedro stay, after confirming heart and medication screening and an emergency plan in writing. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: 14 days $2,300, 21 days $3,000 and 30 days $3,400, per its workshops page; a single ceremony with a night’s stay $220; the October 2025 men’s retreat $2,000 to $3,200. Terms conflict: the site calls the deposit non-refundable, while its Retreat Guru listing shows refundable terms.
• Overall Assessment: A long track record, tiny groups and a candid non-shaman host, offset by unsupported cure claims, thin screening, kambo without stated screening, no medical cover and a single-platform review base. Directory evaluation: C+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Reviewers praise Steve’s guidance and humility, feeling safe, clean and peaceful grounds, the food and deep trauma work.

The negative feedback. A September 2026 reviewer found the medicine too strong and the sessions exhausting. A 2025 participant’s blog describes a nearly full glass, mild panic and his wife’s “rough” first ceremony, published by Cuenca High Life. Two 1-star AyaAdvisors reviews exist but their text is not shown on the first page. Unverified.

Who is writing the reviews. AyaAdvisors produced the center’s 2016 promotional video, the site’s own testimonials date from about 2012 to 2013 and partly describe Peru and ayahuasca, and a 2018 fundraiser offered workshop discounts for donations. 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 San Pedro Workshops, Dancing Dragons, Eagle Nest, Steve Eagle Sewell and Orion Chase.

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

In a 2018 interview, Steve said six or seven of roughly 6,000 people had needed help with a difficult experience. Our earlier profile found no incidents and cited a 2024 Reddit post describing psychotic-like episodes blamed on brew quality and noise, which remains unverified.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Screening and medical support. The enrollment form asks about schizophrenia, psychiatric medication in the last 30 days and other significant conditions, but not heart disease, blood pressure or pregnancy, and no contraindication policy is published. Kambo is offered with no stated screening. No doctor, nurse or emergency protocol is named, and Cuenca is about 90 minutes away by road.

Health claims. Its San Pedro page calls it “gentle medicine” and says people with cancer, Parkinson’s, depression, MS or fibromyalgia “have experienced complete healing.” Its ayahuasca page says ayahuasca can heal Parkinson’s, cancer and HIV and is “completely safe” with a competent shaman. Ayahuasca is not served on site.

Who runs it. Steve Eagle Sewell describes a two-year San Pedro apprenticeship in Cusco, completed in 2013 with an unnamed teacher, a Colorado addictions-counselor certification and a former Colorado clinic; none was independently checked. Orion Chase lists a Colorado acupuncture license. Steve’s partner, who holds space in ceremonies, is named only by first name. The center moved from Cusco to Vilcabamba and then to Lentag around 2018. No Ecuadorian or US entity was found.

Legal context. The San Pedro cactus is not internationally scheduled, though mescaline is, and national rules vary, according to ICEERS. No Ecuadorian rule specific to San Pedro ceremonies was found.

Corrections to our earlier profile. The operator is Steve Eagle Sewell, not Steve Beyer, an unrelated author, and the start date is about 2011 to 2013, not 2008. The 14-day program costs $2,300 with six ceremonies, not $2,100 with two to three, and Samay is described as Steve’s partner, not a local healer. No source shows art workshops as a program, post-retreat integration, a $500 deposit, groups of up to 10, July and September 2025 dates, a “Ph.D. anthropologist” lead or noise problems; our earlier mentions of a 2024 reviewer healing 50 years of grief over 17 days and 2025 testimonials about PTSD also remain unverified. Azuay, the $220 single ceremony, San Pedro retreats, Dancing Dragons in the Yunguilla Valley near Cuenca, 14-day retreats, counseling, 21-day options, the maloka with copper and orgonite, the pool, mountain views, Cuenca airport transport and October 2025 dates are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

No contraindications are published. San Pedro contains mescaline, a controlled psychedelic in most countries, per ICEERS, and kambo is also offered, so ask for screening on both in advance. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

San Pedro cactus (huachuma), served as a drink in day-long ceremonies that start at 10 am and close by about 8:30 pm, per its ceremony page. Ayahuasca is not served on site, and kambo was offered in 2025.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: A bluff in a mild lower-Andean valley with 360-degree mountain views.
• Rooms: An old three-bedroom house with outbuildings: one room with a private bathroom, one with a shared bathroom, a dorm and a small poolside single; a participant called it “unfussy.”
• Style: Eclectic San Pedro work by an American counselor, mixing Cherokee-inspired framing, orgonite, Osho meditation and Wim Hof breathing.

Practical guidance: Longer programs include Cuenca airport or bus-station pickup; single-ceremony guests take the Cuenca to Santa Isabel bus to Lentag.

Should You Book?

Only after confirming heart and medication screening, kambo screening, an emergency plan and refund terms in writing, and setting aside the cure claims. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Steve first drank San Pedro in 2010 and ran Eagle Nest in Cusco before moving to Ecuador; the maloka at Lentag was built in 2018. 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; ceremony days start with a fast until fruit in the early afternoon. After you return: Daily counseling ends with the program; 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

Programs are listed on its website. 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.