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

Sinchi Runa: An In-Depth Review for Ayahuasca and Master Plant Retreats near Tarapoto, Peru

Sinchi Runa is an ayahuasca and master-plant dieta operation led by a Peruvian vegetalista known only as Maestro Sanango, which ran silent retreats in tents near Huelva, Spain, often listed as near Faro, Portugal, until September 2025 and now operates from a temporary site beside the Shilcayo River near Tarapoto, according to its website and Retreat Guru page. Nine-day retreats with three ayahuasca ceremonies, a tobacco purge and kambo cost $2,050 and 11-day dietas $2,350, and it rates 4.91 from 149 Retreat Guru reviews. Against that, its personal treatments page lists schizophrenia and psychosis among conditions it treats and says psychiatric medications “numb the symptom,” it offers to help guests come off contraindicated medication with no medical supervision described, no medical staff or emergency protocol is published, and the maestro and team are named by first or spiritual names only.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A temporary jungle site beside the Shilcayo River, about 30 minutes by car from Tarapoto airport, San Martín, Peru; no address or GPS is published. Until September 2025, retreats ran near Huelva, Spain.
• Approach: Silent retreats with three to five ayahuasca ceremonies, a tobacco and rosa sisa purge, kambo, flower baths, master-plant dietas of up to 12 days, Vedic fire ceremonies and talks by Maestro Sanango; one to three-month personal treatments.
• Suitable For: Experienced, medication-free travelers prepared for silence and rustic tents, after confirming medical cover and an emergency plan in writing. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: Nine days $2,050; 11-day dieta $2,350; optional three-day kambo preparation $550, per its retreats page; personal treatments on request. Deposit and refund terms are not shown on its listings.
• Overall Assessment: An established, well-reviewed program with application screening and a published contraindication list, offset by claims to treat schizophrenia and psychosis, help stopping medication without described medical supervision, no medical staff, long stays in silence and isolation, and leaders known only by first names. Directory evaluation: C-.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Reviewers describe feeling held and safe, a close community, good food, nightly talks with Sanango, and drinking and using drugs less afterward.

The negative feedback. Testimonials on its own site describe Sanango falling seriously ill and going to hospital during a February 2024 retreat, so only one of two ceremonies was held, a hard period after stopping an SSRI, one toilet and shower for the group, cold winter nights and a guest anxious about being unreachable during silence. Each is a single account. Unverified.

Who is writing the reviews. Retreat Guru displays only a handful of the 149 reviews, and a second Retreat Guru page for the Huelva site carries its own ratings, so totals may overlap. 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 Sinchi Runa, Maestro Sanango and its named facilitators.

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

Spanish police have arrested ayahuasca retreat organizers in Murcia, Ibiza and elsewhere since 2023, but no operation in Huelva province was found. Facilitators are named by first names only, which limits name checks. 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. Applications are reviewed for health, medications and motivation, with an online consultation with Sanango, and its contraindications page requires guests to be free of psychiatric and prescription medication and MAOIs for four weeks and to declare heart and blood-pressure conditions; it does not address schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, psychosis or pregnancy. Its preparation page says the center can assist guests in leaving their medication, with no medical supervision described. No doctor, nurse or emergency protocol is named; team member Helge is described as a German psychologist with no license given. Tarapoto is about 30 minutes away.

Health claims. Its personal treatments page lists diagnoses of “Schizophrenia” and “Psychosis” and immune diseases among the areas it treats, says psychiatric medications “numb the symptom,” and offers one to three-month stays with no outside contact.

Who runs it. Maestro Sanango describes himself as a Peruvian vegetalista blending Amazonian practice with Vedic philosophy, giving between 20 and more than 30 years of experience and naming no teachers or surname. Facilitators are listed by first names only. A Peruvian company named Sinchi Runa is registered in Morales, San Martín, per a SUNAT record copy, but no document links it to this operator, and no Spanish or Portuguese entity was found.

Legal context. Ayahuasca is legal in Peru, where traditional use is national cultural heritage, but retreats are not formally regulated, according to ICEERS. In Spain, where it operated until 2025, ayahuasca is neither prohibited nor authorized and DMT is controlled, per ICEERS.

Corrections to our earlier profile. Retreats moved from near Huelva, Spain to near Tarapoto, Peru in autumn 2025. Programs run from 9 days to three months, with standard retreats at $2,050 to $2,350, not $2,400 to $3,600; our $1,960 sidebar price matched the 2025 Spain retreats. No source confirms a 2011 founding, though its website dates from at least 2015. Facebook group praise for the team and negative Reddit feedback about conditions and leadership, both cited in our earlier profile, remain unverified. Maestro Sanango, Ananda, bobinsana dietas, the silent format, a 4.9 Retreat Guru average, nine-day retreats, bell tents, vegetarian low-sodium meals, kambo preparation, Vedic practices, transfers on arrival day and praise in testimonials on its own site are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

Its contraindications page requires four weeks off psychiatric and prescription medication. 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, which conflicts with the center’s claims to treat schizophrenia and psychosis. Ask about kambô screening in advance. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Ayahuasca prepared under Maestro Sanango, plus a tobacco and rosa sisa purge, kambo and master plants such as bobinsana, ajo sacha, chiric sanango and uchu sanango; San Pedro appears in some longer programs. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Lowland jungle beside the Shilcayo River near Tarapoto; previously a forest garden near Huelva, Spain.
• Rooms: Private bell tents with shared outdoor facilities, deliberately rustic.
• Style: Silent, disciplined retreats blending vegetalista plant work with Vedic ritual and philosophy.

Practical guidance: Fly to Tarapoto; a shared pickup runs from the airport on arrival day.

Should You Book?

Only after getting medical cover and an emergency plan in writing, and never come off medication through the center; anyone with a history of psychosis should not attend. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Its website has carried Sanango’s writing since at least 2015, and the team says it spent about eight years serving in Europe before returning to the Peruvian Amazon in autumn 2025, where it is raising donations to buy land for a permanent center. Dates are listed through August 2027. 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, not the retreat; the center asks for a 10-day preparation diet. After you return: Integration with Sanango is included and paid online sessions are offered; 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

Dates 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.