Atmosphere

Features

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

Twelve Hummingbirds Andes Retreats (TOSA Blue Mountain): An In-Depth Review for Plant Medicine Retreats near Paute, Ecuador

Twelve Hummingbirds Andes Retreats, formerly TOSA Blue Mountain Sanctuary, is a 25-acre hillside retreat in Dug Dug, Paute canton, about 45 minutes from Cuenca, Ecuador, led by “Master Lady Kira Raa”, that mainly sells San Pedro, spa and mentoring programs; it also advertises a seven-day Andean plant medicine retreat with an ayahuasca ceremony, San Pedro, rapé and optional kambo, with no dates or price, per its Retreat Guru program page. It offers comfortable suites, a heated pool and spa, and generous refund terms. Against that, no screening, contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan are published, no one is named as serving the ayahuasca, its only reviews date from December 2019, and its marketing relies on unsupported supernatural claims.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: A former homestead in Dug Dug, Paute canton, Azuay, Ecuador, about 45 to 60 minutes from Cuenca, per its Retreat Guru page; no address is published.
• Approach: Its current programs are a five-day San Pedro journey with a temazcal and sweat lodge, a spa retreat with optional San Pedro and private mentoring; the ayahuasca program adds rapé, optional kambo, a temazcal and an Andean clearing ceremony.
• Suitable For: Adults wanting a comfortable Andean setting who can confirm in writing whether ayahuasca is offered and by whom. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: The ayahuasca retreat shows no price. The San Pedro journey is $888 to $1,100 for five days, per its San Pedro program page, which also quotes $933 and $944; a three-day renewal retreat is $444 and private mentoring $7,777.77. The deposit is refundable until a day before and full payment until 30 days before.
• Overall Assessment: A comfortable, generously refunded venue, offset by an ayahuasca offer with no dates, price or named facilitator, no published medical safeguards, a stale review base and an opaque operator. Directory evaluation: C.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

Retreat Guru shows 5.0 from five reviews, all posted between 18 and 23 December 2019 and reused on every program page; they praise the setting, casitas, food, water therapy center and excursions, and none describes an ayahuasca ceremony. No reviews were found on Google, Tripadvisor or BookRetreats, and none of 3 stars or lower. 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 Twelve Hummingbirds, TOSA Blue Mountain, Kira Raa, Sri Ram Kaa and Eileen Quinteros.

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

The owners use spiritual names only, which limits this search.

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

🔍 Critical Notes

Who runs it. The center is led by “Master Lady Kira Raa”, who describes connections with Ascended Masters and the “Archangelic Realm” and says she lived seven years with the Kaqchikel Maya, per her teacher profile (unverified). She founded it with her husband, Sri Ram Kaa, who died in January 2024, per the operator; the couple earlier published books under the TOSA Center for Enlightened Living name. The ayahuasca program lists Eileen Quinteros, who describes herself as an Andean shamaness trained in traditional Andean medicine, per her profile, but does not say who serves the ayahuasca. No legal name, company or tax number appears.

Screening and medical support. No medical questionnaire, contraindication list, medical staff or emergency protocol is published for ayahuasca, San Pedro taken in a temazcal, or kambo. Paute has a basic hospital and Cuenca’s main hospitals are 45 to 60 minutes away (our estimate).

Listings. The ayahuasca program is not among the three programs on the center page; San Pedro prices conflict within one page; a driver is offered while ground transport is listed as not included; and the page title promises a 2027 schedule with no dates. Its mentoring program offers a “Crystalline Atlantean Healing Chamber”.

Status. Bookable for open dates as of November 2026; the latest dated guest evidence is from December 2019, and the center has renamed itself from TOSA Blue Mountain Sanctuary.

Legal context. Ayahuasca and San Pedro sit in an unregulated space in Ecuador, where ceremonies are generally tolerated and rarely prosecuted, per TripBase.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

With no published screening for ayahuasca, San Pedro or kambo, guests must screen themselves. 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. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Ayahuasca from an unnamed source and facilitator; San Pedro is grown on site. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: A cool inter-Andean hillside with gardens, labyrinths, meditation caves and a water therapy center with heated pool, jacuzzi and sauna, per its booking site.
• Rooms: A shared eight-bed community house, a private cottage and suites with bathtubs.
• Style: New Age spirituality blended with Andean temazcal and San Pedro ceremony.

Practical guidance: Fly to Cuenca (CUE) or Guayaquil (GYE); a driver can be arranged at extra cost.

Should You Book?

Only with caution, and only after confirming in writing that the ayahuasca program runs, its dates and price, who prepares and serves the ayahuasca and their training, the screening questions and contraindication list, who on site is trained in first aid, the emergency plan and nearest hospital, and the legal entity you are paying. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

The founders say they moved to the property in 2017 after living in New Mexico, Guatemala and Uruguay, and the center later took its current name. 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: Arrange support from a qualified therapist at home, since no structured integration is described. Our guide on how to research ayahuasca incidents can help you check any center.

Pros & Cons

Book Your Ceremony

Programs are listed on Retreat Guru. 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.