Hummingbird Healing Center

The Hummingbird Healing Center has been hosting ayahuasca retreats since 2010. We work with both ayahuasca and huachuma(San Pedro Cactus), and our curandero Maestro Manain Amacifen  has over 40 years experience working with both ayahuasca and san pedro. Since its inception, our center has been dedicated to helping those who really need it, and regularly accepts people who were rejected by other “well known” centers because of their background with depression and trauma. Many centers are unwilling to take on the work and risk of helping people with long-term, treatment resistant issues. After careful screening, we do accept those rejected by other centers, and have helped over 180 people with 15+ years of struggle with depression, anxiety or PTSD.

If you are truly ready to change your life, if you are finally sick and tired of being sick and tired of the morass of your thoughts and emotions, this is the place for you.

Moloca ready for ceremony

Our Programs

We offer retreats of 9 and 12 days, and also have more intensive programs of 2, 3 and 4 weeks that include dietas with master medicine plants. The longer programs are for those looking to go deeper with the medicine, or wanting to address more challenging issues that need more time with ayahuasca and san pedro for significant, lasting change to occur. We strive to match what people are hoping to address with the appropriate length of stay and do not try to push people into a stay longer than our experience indicates is required.

Serving ayahuasca

While not overtly spiritual, our work is centered on Mindfulness and guided by the simple precept “Without self awareness, there is no healing.” We emphasize the importance of increasing awareness and understanding of our inner world, of the interplay between our thoughts, our emotions and our body. There is a 25 minute guided meditation before each ayahuasca ceremony, to help set the tone for ceremony and help develop or deepen this practice of Mindfulness.

Emphasis on Changing our Beliefs

Unique to the Hummingbird Center are a couple of talks about our conscious and sub-conscious minds, our belief systems, how they shape our experience of life, and how we can change those beliefs so we naturally attract events into our lives in closer alignment with our wishes, desires, and aspirations. We strive to teach our clients practical and simple skills they can use in their daily lives to shift their perception of the world and themselves so they can respond to life’s events and their own emotions in a more productive and peaceful way. The plant medicines will only take us so far. Ultimately, WE are responsible for our lives, and it is important to have skills to navigate our inner world and respond to life in productive and loving ways. Mindfulness. Transformation begins and ends with being mindful, with being self aware.

It is the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen. – Muhammad Ali

This interview with Dr Joe Dispenza has some excellent information about how our thoughts and beliefs shape our experience, and is a good pointer to the emphasis of our work at the Hummingbird Center.

Safe For Women

The Hummingbird Center is a family owned business run by Jim Davis and his Peruvian wife Gina. Our son and daughter in law also work at the center and contribute to its smooth operation in a variety of ways. Our family lives at the center, along with our 9 year old grand daughter, the light of our lives!!

We understand that women have different and valid concerns around safety than men, and ensuring women feel physically and emotionally safe at our center is our #1 priority. Gina´s presence and loving heart, and her easy care of women’s occasional special needs, contributes to this sense of safety and security. Many of our female clients have commented about how quickly they felt safe and at ease, knowing they would be well cared for.

Your Role in Working With Ayahuasca

It is important to understand that ayahuasca and san pedro are not cure alls. They are not going to solve all your problems for you. These powerful and loving spirits can only give us what we are open and willing to receive. An individual’s commitment to their own growth, healing and transformation makes a huge difference in the results they receive. You have to do your part, and that is fundamentally being truly committed to change, and being willing to step into unpleasant experiences if that is what is required for the desired change to occur. Trust and surrender are the keys to getting the most from your time with these medicine plants.

Hummingbird Center Guest House
Hummingbird Center Grounds width=

What is clear from over 10 years of guiding people through this work is that the medicine spirits know and understand what each individual needs to bring about the change they are looking for. They guide each person through an individualized process. Your journey of growth, transformation and change will not look like another person’s and there is no value in comparing your journey and experience to that of another. It is clear that under the facilitation of a true ayahuasquero, a true healer, the medicine spirits want to help us and know how to do so. Our job is to allow them to.

We wish we could make some guarantees about outcomes, but we cannot. What we can say, is that if one shows up committed to change, with an attitude of “what ever it takes, I am willing”, enormous change is possible within a very short period of time. Your attitude makes all the difference in what you receive!

Learn More About our Programs

Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have about our programs and work.  We encourage you to read through our web site as it contains good information and should be able to answer most of your questions.

See our Retreat Schedule and our Price Listing on our web site.

Reviews (34)

4.9 out of 5
Overall 4.9
  • NatNat
    NatNat
    March 18, 2024 at 7:50 am

    The experience I had in Hummingbird exceeded all my expectations. I am a female who was travelling solo and there was not a single moment when i felt unsafe. It is a very safe place where people truly care about you, are very experienced and professional. The territory is very beautiful, full of green and sets the right atmosphere. I love that they use both Ayahuasca and San Pedro. After experiencing their synergy I now understand how complementary they are to each other in the healing process. It is one of the very few centres if not the only one which combine these two. I did 9 days retreat and did la dieta planta which I believe also contributed to the process of my healing, I highly advise doing it, it allows you feel and experience the reality on a different level. Another great thing was our group talks with Jim about mindfulness, awareness and belief system- it is an important part of the process. Now when I am back home I feel how much healing was done- I react to everything in a more calm and mindful way, have more positive believes about myself and the world, I feel more confident, open and relaxed.

  • gratidao
    gratidao
    November 29, 2023 at 12:23 am

    I stayed at the Hummingbird Healing Center several years ago and it was an incredibly life changing experience. But I never got around to writing a review — partially because I didn’t know what to say, partially because I was traumatized. Both are remedied now and I’d like to share for those of you considering a retreat here.

    First the basics: food was simple but good, rooms were spacious, land was well maintained and relaxing, there was a nice library, running water, and laundry service. The medicine man was skilled but not very available to communicate with, and did not brew his own medicine for us. He and the rest of the staff complained about not getting paid enough; I imagine there is some truth to that, but there is no transparency whatsoever about compensation so I can’t say for sure.

    I say my experience was life changing because the medicine revealed incredible lessons that would eventually change the course of my life quite significantly. However, it took years for the lessons to make sense and in the meantime the confusion of it all led to a deep depression. The Hummingbird Center is not to blame for this, I simply didn’t have the tools at the time to understand the things I was shown. And I mention this because I imagine that many people seeking this sort of experience don’t have those tools either. Please, do yourself a favor and find a therapist who specializes in psychedelic integration before you attend ANY retreat center.

    That said, there was very minimal support in processing the ceremonies during our time there other than some cookie cutter self-help readings that we went through as a group and a couple small sharing circles. And the energetic/emotional container held was quite damaging. You’ll see in other posts that Jim is mean, some even call him a bully; I wouldn’t go that far but I can understand how some folks experienced him that way. Ultimately, I don’t feel that Jim is a bad person (despite two staff members using those exact words which was very concerning; it was unclear whether they were referring to more than the unsatisfactory wages, as they weren’t comfortable explaining what they meant). What I can say is that he is neither empathic nor caring of your individual experience, which makes him a very poor facilitator of healing.

    I will speak a bit to my own experience. Upon arriving, Jim asked us to give him our money and passport for safekeeping, so the staff couldn’t steal it. This felt fine at the time, but then I got shaken up in my second ceremony. It’s important to note that the ceremonies here were only 4 hours long; it is normal to still be feeling the effects quite strongly at that point, and although Jim does offer to sleep in the maloca if you want to finish the rest of your journey there, it can be pretty unsettling for the shaman to wrap up and leave along with many participants, and let you ride out the force of the medicine on your own with one person asleep on the other side of the room. In this particular ceremony, I hadn’t even begun to feel the effects of the medicine by the time the ceremony closed, so I went back to my room where it hit me in a delayed response. I spent the night in fear, with terrifying visions and thoughts, and was still feeling the force of the medicine the following morning.
    Meanwhile, a few other participants had also had some rough experiences in their ceremonies, and we were building off of each other’s fears. We got concerned about Jim having our valuable belongings and went to ask for them back. He just laughed at us and said he’d give them back later (to his credit, he did – but not til the following day). Add to that the armed guard (in reality, a necessary protection measure that probably every retreat center has), the comment from the staff about Jim being a bad person, and the aftermath of our scary ceremonies in a remote corner of a foreign country, and the fear escalated into paranoid delusion that we were being held captive. Jim just thought this was funny and did not do much of anything to comfort us.
    In retrospect, it all feels rather innocuous; we were scared of something we need not have been and we all made it home safely. But something that could have likely been fixed immediately with a warm smile and comforting conversation was instead converted to trauma due to his unempathetic nature. By the time we did get our belongings back, the damage had been done – we didn’t feel safe. And for the rest of the week Jim continued to neglect our emotional needs or treat us with care. Another short anecdote: on San Pedro day I was having a really uncomfortable experience – to the extent that I was entertaining unfamiliar thoughts of seriously harming myself – and was not hiding it. I didn’t hear a word of support or kindness from Jim, he simply suggested I take a dip in the pond. I’m very grateful to the other participants who came my support. Again, I don’t think any of his behavior was malicious. He was simply not supportive or empathic, and did not make me feel comfortable during my time there.

    I’m not going to tell you not to choose the Hummingbird Healing Center. There are many extremely positive reviews here and I trust them. That could be your experience too. At the end of the day, this is a safe center on a nice piece of land where your physical needs will be taken care of. If that’s all your looking for, this is a good option. But your emotional needs may not be, and that could make you feel unsafe or uncomfortable. If that’s not a risk you’re willing to take, I would recommend looking elsewhere.

  • groot
    groot
    August 21, 2023 at 6:59 am

    Hummingbird Healing Center provides everything you need for a safe, healthy and effective retreat. I have been to Hummingbird Healing Center in 2014 and 2023 July. In both of them I felt and experienced that anything needed for healing is provided in the center. I mean not only in relation to physical and mental health but also spiritual perspective and guidance. Being on a shamanic path and self-development journey for long time I can confidently say that you get best guidance from Jim, the owner, before and after the ceremonies and for the integration phase. His personal journey on the healing path makes a big difference on the experience because I feel this journey is much more than the sum of the ayahuasca ceremonies and Jim knows how to make it for you to get most out of your time in the center. This is not about the number of ceremonies he has been to but his depth and variety of healing experiences on his personal path and with others. There has been no moment I did not feel I am physically and spiritually supported.

    The shaman, Don Hector, is very impressive and powerful. You will feel his presence, energy and power not only in ayahuasca ceremonies but also in healing sessions in the day time. He is very caring soul and strong person. The shaman in my first retreat 9 years ago was good as well. From the selection of the shaman and every detail, I can say that the quality is reliable, consistent and excellent in this place.

    The atmosphere in the center, the cleanness of the rooms and facilities and food are great. I did not hesitate even a moment when I decided for the second ayahuasca retreat and I will definitely go again to hummingbird if I need again.

    When I was searching for the name I realized there are many appear with the similar names. Therefore I leave the link here

  • River35
    River35
    July 25, 2023 at 2:11 pm

    What a life changing experience!!! Over and over I heard Ayahuasca could change my life- it is true. Like many I had never had Ayahuasca before I was nervous, apprehensive and very excited. I am grateful to the Hummingbird staff for creating such a beautiful place of safety, healing and “realness.” The energy for healing was powerful. I felt my needs were taken seriously, it was the goal of Jim, Don Hector and all others that healing occurred as I allowed.

    From the time I sent in my application form to when I left Hummingbird – I felt Jim to be very open and communicated expectations and information I needed to know before, during and after my time at the retreat center.

    Before our first ceremony, Jim explained to the group what might happen during a trip, and
    to trust, surrender and allow the medicine to do what it knew to do for individual healing.
    During the ceremonies I knew I was safe and supported through the Icaros that Don Hector(the Shaman) sang and Jim “listening:” to the energy of the molka.

    The space in which I lived for 12 days was comfortable and well managed. Three meals a day, (except ceremony days) was yummy and plentiful. The pond was a wonderful way to cool off. The jungle is beautiful and naturally noisy, The porch was open and inviting, we naturally came together to discuss

    If you are looking for a life changing Ayahuasca experience- where you feel safe and very well taken care of- I highly recommend the Hummingbird Healing Center!

  • arsalan.fo
    arsalan.fo
    June 22, 2023 at 1:15 pm

    Exceptional healing centre with magical Shaman and Facilitator
    Review of Hummingbird Healing Center
    Pending review
    I recently attended the hummingbird healing center, and I want to share my incredible experience. This retreat center exceeded all my expectations and provided a safe and transformative environment for my personal growth and healing.
    The facilitator, Jim, was amazing and made my stay very comfortable. He is very knowledgeable about Ayahuasca, and the spiritual journey, and was exactly what I needed during my ceremonies. After the ceremonies, I decided to sleep in the Maloka, and Jim kindly stayed there with me until I felt comfortable. He was always available for private discussions and answered any questions or concerns I had. Jim went above and beyond to make sure I felt safe and calm throughout my stay.
    The shaman, Don Hector, was very special. His techniques during the ceremonies were exceptional, and you could feel his energy throughout. No matter what I was going through during the ceremonies, I always felt safe and secure because of Jim and Don Hector. Don Hector was always in control and dedicated all his energy to healing everyone in the ceremonies. His healing abilities were incredibly strong, and I could feel his work on me even outside of the ceremonies where he was providing healing sessions. I could feel his energy and my energy and mood would change completely in a matter of minutes, it was unbelievable. He was always willing to help us, no matter the time of day. Don Hector is an amazing healer and I am not sure if there are too many better than him out there.
    The accommodations were clean and comfortable, and the food was amazing. I have no complaints at all and feel incredibly grateful and blessed to have had my ceremonies with Jim and Don Hector at this retreat center. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience.
    In conclusion, my Ayahuasca retreat was a life-changing journey. Jim’s support and expertise, along with Don Hector’s powerful healing, created an environment of safety and growth. I highly recommend this retreat center to anyone looking for a safe and transformative Ayahuasca experience. I am forever grateful for this opportunity.

  • Bnctrsrck
    Bnctrsrck
    September 23, 2022 at 8:32 pm

    I had a great experience at the Hummingbird Healing Center. Shortly after learning about Ayahuasca, I met a couple that had gone to Hummingbird. They highly recommended the place. With the strong recommendation, I did not really look around and just booked this retreat center. I’m glad I did. The setting in the jungle (far away from the noise of the city) is very relaxing and peaceful. Good setting to meditate and work on yourself without outside distractions. The Ayahuasca ceremonies and San Pedro experience was well done with plenty of supervision throughout the time. The daily talks about the experience were a helpful part of the retreat and Jim gave some interesting talks on such topics as positive thinking and conscious vs subconscious mind. Overall, it was exactly what I was looking for and would not hesitate to recommend this retreat to family and friends.

    Note: This review was edited to remove a link, but the rest of the text has been left in its original form.

  • rjasperson
    rjasperson
    August 25, 2022 at 1:25 pm

    I spent 2 weeks at Hummingbird Healing Center in July 2022. Those 2 weeks have profoundly changed my life. I felt called to Ayahuasca for help with depression and anxiety with which I suffered chronically for most of my adult life (I am 33 years old). I looked at several healing centers in Peru, Brazil, and Costa Rica. I initially felt overwhelmed with all the choices- I knew that I wanted to work with Ayahuasca, but did not know what I should look for in a healing center. For some reason, I felt a sense of calm and reassurance when I came across Hummingbird. I sent a note to Jim Davis (the owner) asking for more info. That simple inquiry put me on a trajectory that would forever change my life.

    Jim and Gina have built something truly beautiful. They have managed to pull together all of the elements to facilitate peaceful healing- the medicine, the facilitator, the environment- I firmly believe that any who seek healing can find it here. My life is completely different now; that is, I’m living the same life but with a completely different perspective. I am filled with gratitude and peace. I have a zest and love for life. I am happy. I never would’ve thought that could be my reality. I am filled with gratitude for everyone that contributes to the magic at Hummingbird. I cannot recommend this place enough for any who seek healing and direction in life.

  • Ashley
    Ashley
    August 11, 2022 at 12:00 pm

    I recently attended a 12 day retreat at the Hummingbird Healing Centre this past July, and although it has only been 2 weeks since my return to the “real” world, and I know that the glow has not worn off, I can still honestly say that my life has been altered for the better. I can still feel the changes taking place within me as the new neural pathways that were forged in ceremony solidify and the old worn out and overused negative thought pathways continue to dissolve and are no longer worn with constant revisiting.
    Before my journey to Peru, I did a lot of research on a variety of centers, what they offered, and who the curandero/healer was. Having never gone through anything like this before, I wanted to find a place that was safe, comfortable, affordable and offered as many ceremonies as possible to facilitate the transformations I was seeking in my life. I had never heard of San Pedro (aka huachuma) before, and was eager to find out what this teacher plant could offer me in addition to ayahuasca. Hummingbird is the only center that I saw that works with both of these plant medicines.
    I chose Hummingbird because the impression I got from reading their website front to back was that they truly care about their clients and their personal healing journey. The ceremonies are planned out to ease you into the experience, so if you are new to this and anxious about what to expect, you are not overwhelmed by the first experience. After the first ceremony, you are the one that will have the final say in how much medicine you consume, so you are always in control. Jim also employs an extremely knowledgeable curandero (Don Fernando) who grew up with these medicines and traditions, and has decades of experience healing people, which was very important to me. Once I arrived at the center, I was not disappointed. The amenities are simple, but comfortable. Everyone has their own room in a tambo that boasts extremely comfortable beds. The rooms are all completely screened in so insects and other critters can not gain easy access to your space, but allows the natural sounds of the jungle to be the background music to your stay. At no time did I feel that I wanted for anything, which allowed me to focus my energy on my personal healing journey. Jim and Gina are excellent hosts and Jim is a wealth of knowledge and is eager to help with your emotional / spiritual journey.
    Both Ayahuasca and San Pedro were immensely helpful. Although it took a while for me to notice the benefits of San Pedro, as it is works in subtle ways, this teacher plant opened something up in me that I don’t think would have if it was only Ayahuasca that was used. Give both of these teacher plants a chance to work and know that no matter what you experience in ceremony, it is always worth it. I was able to come to many realizations about the extent and cause of my depression and anxiety and could see how much it had affected my life in ways I had not even realized.
    The main thing that I found incredibly helpful before I arrived, was to make sure that I followed a clean diet. I lost upwards of 30 pounds in the 5 months leading up to the trip and then I made sure that I was following the ayahuasca diet as close as I could in the weeks leading up to it. This alone made the experience much more enjoyable as I had very few issues with nausea etc. In fact, I am still following and plan to continue following this diet for the foreseeable future.
    I can wholeheartedly recommend The Hummingbird Healing Centre and I know that I will likely return for more healing and spiritual growth in the future. I am actually currently learning more Spanish in order to make my next trip even better.

  • psychedelic123
    psychedelic123
    May 26, 2022 at 5:07 am

    Like you probably are now, I did some pretty extensive research about plant medicine retreats in Peru and other locations in Latin America and Europe. The reviews and website of Hummingbird Healing Center resonated with me, the dates worked, so off I went. And I am so glad I did.

    Before I go any further, I should mention that I decided to wait a few months before writing this review to allow the glow of the experience to wear off and give you a more objective perspective. During the experience, my psyche I was bombarded (in a good way) by feelings of love and gratitude, so it’s not difficult to understand why so many retreat reviews written a week after coming home are glowing.

    The truth is that the medicine and my work with it was always what was important to me in selecting a retreat – I was not looking for a luxury getaway, but rather a place where I could focus on an emotional healing process enabled by a sufficient number of ceremonies. Both value for money and value for time (a good number of ceremonies for the number of days of the retreat) were key. I of course wanted to ensure I would work with potent, high quality plant medicines as well. Finally, I was interested in trying San Pedro, which wound up being crucial to the experience and a turning point for me. I would highly recommend you select a retreat that offers gentle Grandfather San Pedro in addition to Mother ayahuasca.

    The location of Hummingbird is lovely, in the jungle but not inaccessible. The grounds are beautiful, tambos simple but clean and everything you need, the food is plentiful and tasty, and the people are kind. Hummingbird offers a great context within which you can look inward and get whatever you may be seeking. There are undoubtedly places that offer more luxurious amenities, and will ask you to pay for them with much higher prices, but if you are looking for the type of experience I was and that I’ve tried to describe, you won’t be disappointed choosing Hummingbird.

    I am extremely grateful to Jim (who has an incredible level of wisdom gained through the ups and downs of life, and who perfectly balanced being accessible and supportive as well as giving you the space you need), Gina (who was just lovely throughout and kind enough to invite me to join Christmas dinner as my retreat was during the holidays), Don Fernando (who is obviously a good human and an unbelievable level of energy which allows him to guide you through the ceremonies with beautiful icaros that never stop) and all the Hummingbird staff who made me as comfortable as possible during an important couple weeks of my life. This is a special place, and I can only recommend it without hesitation.

  • T.Bednarski
    T.Bednarski
    September 29, 2021 at 9:44 am

    I stayed in Hummingbird Ayahuasca Retreat Centre in September 2021 for a three weeks. I healed irritable bowel syndrome, my blocks, lack of self confidence and relived burden past. As my adventure ended a new phase of my spiritual journey began. And it continues every day, adding energy, creativity, direction and passion to every facet of my life. I am extremally grateful to Jim, Gina, Don Fernando and all Hummingbird staff. This is truly magic place.

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