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

Shakti Healing: An In-Depth Review for Ayahuasca, Bufo and Kambo Sessions in Matapalo, Costa Rica

Shakti Healing, listed as Shakti Healing. Sacred Medicine, sells private ayahuasca, bufo (5-MeO-DMT), kambo and changa sessions near Matapalo and Playa Grande in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, and now also in Los Caños de Meca, Spain, run by Soledad Guerra Carrasco, a Spanish former yoga and fitness instructor who uses the Shipibo name Inirama, according to its Retreat Guru page. Private ayahuasca ceremonies cost $400, bufo sessions $250, a five-day bufo retreat $1,400 and a one-week bufo facilitator training $3,800. Against that, no screening criteria, contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan are published, kambo is offered the day before bufo and all four medicines are bundled in one retreat, its pages claim ayahuasca has “no side effects” and pitch kambo against cancer and Alzheimer’s, all reviews sit on one platform, and Costa Rica’s Ministry of Health calls such healing rituals unauthorized.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: Matapalo, Santa Cruz, Guanacaste, Costa Rica, about 3 km from Playa Grande, with 2024 to 2025 retreats at Sol Sanctuary in Playa Grande and sessions in Los Caños de Meca, Cádiz, Spain; no GPS is published.
• Approach: Mostly one-to-one ceremonies with ayahuasca, bufo, kambo, changa, rapé and sananga, plus breathwork, Tibetan bowls and Ayurvedic massage; group retreats of up to 8 to 10.
• Suitable For: No one until the operator publishes screening criteria, contraindications, spacing between medicines and an emergency plan. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: Ayahuasca $400 in Costa Rica or $420 in Spain; bufo $250; kambo $160 to $200; changa $200; five-day bufo retreat $1,400; facilitator training $3,800, per its event pages. Retreat Guru notes medicine may cost extra. Terms: deposit refundable until one day before.
• Overall Assessment: Personal attention and warm reviews, offset by no published screening for stacked high-risk medicines, false safety and health claims, a one-week bufo facilitator certificate and a single-platform review base. Directory evaluation: C.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Reviewers praise warmth, one-to-one attention, feeling safe and first bufo experiences.

The negative feedback. None on booking platforms. A 2024 first-person article in The Rocky Mountain Goat describes a hard ayahuasca session at the facilitator’s home, with no screening described.

Who is writing the reviews. Every rating is on Retreat Guru, all five stars, with counts of 27, 31, 4 or 5 on different pages, and bufo reviews are shown on the ayahuasca, kambo and changa listings. 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 Shakti Healing, Soledad Guerra Carrasco, Inirama and Sol Sanctuary.

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

A US woman died at an unnamed ibogaine facility in Guanacaste in August 2024, as the Tico Times reported; nothing links that case to Shakti Healing. Our earlier profile found no incidents and cited 2023 Reddit posts about emotional overwhelm in intense bufo sessions, which remain unverified.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Screening and medical support. Listings mention only a “pre-event consultation and personal intake assessment,” with no criteria or contraindications for ayahuasca, bufo or kambo. Kambo is offered “optional the day before” bufo, and the five-day retreat lists ayahuasca, kambo and changa alongside bufo with no spacing guidance; ICEERS warns that bufo combined with ayahuasca can be deadly. No medical staff or emergency protocol is named, and the nearest major hospital is in Liberia, about an hour away, per Expat Exchange.

Safety and health claims. Its ayahuasca listing says ayahuasca has “no side effects,” its bufo listing calls 5-MeO-DMT toxicity “practically nil,” and its kambo listing pitches kambo for migraine, Alzheimer’s and cancer. It also sells a one-week bufo facilitator training with a self-issued certificate.

Who runs it. Soledad Guerra Carrasco describes training with a Shipibo family on the Ucayali River, kambo from the Matsés and bufo from Mexican taitas; none of these teachers could be independently confirmed, and her bios give 10 or 15 years of experience. No website, company or Costa Rican registration was found.

Legal context. Costa Rica’s Ministry of Health warned in January 2025 that DMT is controlled and that ayahuasca healing rituals are “una práctica no autorizada,” as Tico Times reported; the status of bufo and kambo there was not established. Spanish police have prosecuted ayahuasca and bufo retreats.

Corrections to our earlier profile. Prices are published, $160 to $3,800, not undetailed; our $750 figure matches only a past New Year retreat. The facilitator is Soledad Guerra Carrasco, and sessions now also run in Spain. No source supports Facebook praise, “heart-centered” or “rebirth” wording as operator claims, medical disclosures covering cardiovascular, hepatic and psychological conditions, or a two-week MAOI diet; the 2023 Reddit posts remain unverified. Matapalo in Guanacaste, ayahuasca, bufo, kambo and changa, one-to-one and group sessions, icaros, Shipibo and Matsés training as her claim, the name Inirama, Liberia airport access, no on-site medical staff and no incidents found are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

No 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. Do not combine bufo with ayahuasca or kambo within days without clear medical guidance. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Shipibo-style ayahuasca of undisclosed origin, plus smoked bufo, kambo, changa, rapé and sananga; the facilitator says she produces some of her medicines. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Jungle near the beach in lowland Guanacaste, and the Cádiz coast in Spain.
• Rooms: Not described; ceremonies have been held in the facilitator’s home and at a rented sanctuary.
• Style: One-to-one multi-medicine work by a Western facilitator using Shipibo-style icaros.

Practical guidance: Fly to Liberia or San José, travel to Tamarindo and take a taxi; transfers are not included.

Should You Book?

No, not until the operator publishes screening criteria, contraindications, spacing between medicines and an emergency plan, and drops its safety and cure claims. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Soledad Guerra Carrasco says she ran an aerial fitness center in Tarifa, Spain, and studied yoga and Ayurveda in India before working with plant and animal medicines. 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 facilitator offers ongoing integration support; 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

Sessions are listed on its 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.