The Buena Vida Psilocybin Retreats

Expertly Guided Psilocybin Retreat for Lasting Transformation

A Feeling you can’t explain…but will never Forget.

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Our Program

The Journey Within: Designed for Real, Lasting Change

Step out of overwhelm and into stillness, care, and deep inner repair.
Immersive psilocybin retreats with preparation, integration, and compassionate guidance.

Guided by an experienced facilitation team with over 1,800+ guests served.

Pre-Retreat Prep

Open your mind. Clarify Intentions. Find support & ground.
  • Discovery Call
  • Group Prep with your leaders
  • Medical & Background Screening
  • 7-day Online Prep Course to unveil your intentions, goals, and desires

In-Person Retreat

A retreat designed for growth, clarity, and profound shifts.
  • 2-3 High Dose Psilocybin Ceremonies
  • Trusted guides providing expert support
  • Live musical experience
  • Somatic workshops
  • Private Villas & Ranch Setting
  • Chef-prepared cuisine
  • Group Day Trip to local sites

Integration

Feel supported as you integrate the lessons and healing into your life back home.
  • Personal and Group Calls
  • Personalized 2-week "Daily Dose" Integration in our app
  • 1-on-1 coaching and support offered
  • Microdosing Support, guidance and coaching
Apply for Our 6-Week Program

The Experience

What to Expect From Your Psilocybin Retreat Experience

Experienced. Ethical. Rooted in safety and integrity.

We operate within secure legal frameworks and follow careful screening, preparation, and support protocols. Since 2018, our team has guided more than 1,800 guests through deeply personal psychedelic work with compassion, steadiness, and professional care.

Emotional Healing

Experiences of intense love and bliss
Releasing suppressed emotions
Profound forgiveness of self and others

Mental Clarity

Releasing destructive thoughts
Confronting areas of rumination and fear with confidence
Revisiting deep memories

Physical Release

Healing stuck traumas in the body
Somatic release through guided movement
Reconnecting with bodily sensatinos

Community & Integration

Feeling the support of a vulnerable community
Learning somatic tools and daily rituals
Modalities that assist with purposeful integration

How to Feel: Live Microdosing Activation
Private Joshua Tree retreat villa with desert views, providing a peaceful sanctuary for personal growth.
A peaceful moment in a psilocybin mushroom ceremony at a luxury retreat focused on mental health healing
Yoga

Upcoming Retreat Dates

From the high desert of Joshua Tree to the serene coast north of Puerto Vallarta, discover the psilocybin retreat that meets you where transformation begins.

Group of guests practicing breathwork during a psilocybin ceremony at a wellness retreat.
Cedric letsch

SAYULITA, MEXICO

JOSHUA TREE, CALIFORNIA

Deep Dive 7-Day Retreats hosted by Founder Amanda Schendel

JANUARY 5th-11th, 2026: SOLD OUT

FEBRUARY 26th-MARCH 4th: OPEN

APRIL 17-23rd, 2026: OPEN

MAY-JULY COMING SOON

5-Day Legal retreats in California

JANUARY 15-19th, 2026: SOLD OUT

JANUARY 22-26th, 2026: OPEN

FEBRUARY 12-16th, 2026: OPEN

MARCH-MAY: COMING SOON!

LEARN ABOUT MEXICO
LEARN ABOUT CALIFORNIA

Success Rate

Transformative Results

Our retreats consistently deliver profound and lasting positive changes for our guests.

of guests reported a "strong" positive change in their mental health.

of guests reported the retreat "exceeded their initial expectations"

of guests reported saw "strong or very strong" changes to their lives

Our Clients Reviews

Reviews are submitted independently on The Third Wave, Retreat Guru, and Facebook.

 

Read Over 300 Five-star Reviews

Cbenson Martinez
Christine Johnson Teacher

Words cannot convey the depth and beauty of my transformational journey led by Amanda! Amanda is deeply wise and powerful yet vulnerable. I felt safe to also be vulnerable and still stand in my own power. The ceremonies were sacred and ancient and carefully designed. I highly recommend this to anyone
Lauren Eastwood
Lauren Eastwood IT Expert

The Buena Vida retreat I attended was hands down the best experience I have invested and participated in throughout my entire life. I made lifelong friends there, worked through so many emotional hurdles and learned so much about myself and others all while feeling incredibly safe and well cared for. I would
Christine Johnson
Carlos Martinez Piolet

I attended the 7 day retreat in Nov 2024. I chose to attend because I have struggled with Depression and Anxiety from a young age, and have tried many different treatments with little success. I’m so thankful for the opportunity to walk a new path with Buena Vida. This was a new experience for me, and I felt completely safe and supported.
Carmen Alexander Business Manager

If you're reading reviews you're already considering a psilocybin retreat. If you are truly ready to heal, if you are looking for meaning and understanding about your life and existence, if you are truly ready to take a leap, choose this one. The mushrooms are indeed the magic, but the leader and facilitators at Buena Vida create an environment ...
About us - The Buena Vida
Katherine Wright Designation

Amanda and the team create a wonderful environment for those who are brave, curious and willing to look at things in a new and exciting way with the help of the amazing exercises, breath work and yes, psychedelic mushroom tea. It could NOT have been better.
Namaste
Katja von Tiesenhausen Designation

The ceremonies were the safest ceremonies I’ve ever attended, which definitely helped the anxiety I had before each one. I felt truly cared for and supported by the staff, who were always readily available and extremely helpful. Through her words, song, drumming, and amazing presence, Amanda leads each ceremony with humor, power, wisdom, compassion, and connection to a Higher Consciousness within all of us, and is an amazing Shamanic healer.

Phoebe E. Designation

I would highly recommend this retreat to anyone seeking a deeper understanding of themselves, while working through past traumas, depression, anxiety, or simply longing for more clarity and love in their lives. One moment that will always stay with me was the realization that the true medicine is in our connections with each other and the healing that arises from that.

Amy Designation

The whole experience – the yoga, breath work, group integration, location, food, and the medicine was nothing short of extraordinary. Of note, the medicine guided us into deep, intentional spiritual work. This was not “recreational” use.
Chris C. Designation

Review My time at Buena Vida Retreat in Joshua Tree was by far the most amazing and impactful experience I’ve ever had in my life. The love, care, and support from the facilitators made me feel completely safe and seen throughout the journey. Nikki, Jayne and Minna are beyond amazing!! THANK YOU!!!

When life becomes too noisy to hear yourself, something inside knows it’s time to pause.


Many of our guests arrive feeling overloaded, shut down, anxious, burned out — or simply aware that the life they’re living no longer feels aligned. Our retreats create space for deep repair, emotional clarity, and nervous-system restoration so real change becomes possible again.

What makes our retreats different

• 2-3 guided psilocybin ceremonies in a safe, trauma-aware setting
• Somatic + nervous-system support to help the body process gently
• Daily integration so insights become grounded, practical changes
• Small group container — private, quiet, emotionally held
• Female-led facilitation with experience, compassion, and ethical care

Retreat Season
Facilitator Training Fall
The Buena Vida

Your Journey Starts with a Discovery Call

Connect with our experienced guides for all your questions about psilocybin retreats, preparation, and integration.

  • We're here Monday-Friday to Connect
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“The Discovery session answered all my concerns and made me feel completly at ease about joining the retreat. Misha was knowledgeable, compassionate and genuine.”

- Sarah M. Recent Guest