Could Luxe Psychedelic Retreats Expand Your Design Mind?
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What do you want to get out of your next vacation? A great tan and surplus of selfies? A taste of a different culture? The ultimate mind-soul makeover? Well, with the rise of psychedelic retreats, it's possible to pack your bags and embark on a mind-expanding journey. (A trip within a trip, if you will.)
"We create a space where people can have a deep experience and leave an ordinary state of consciousness," explains Ian-Michael Hébert, CEO of HOLOS Global. "When they do return, they can be well-fed, comfortable, and cared for."
For many—including this journalist—a psychedelic retreat might be met with a tinge of skepticism. Treatments aside, a psychedelic retreat might conjure visions of being marooned in the middle of nowhere with minimal amenities. However, thanks to a new set of luxurious experiences, it's possible to get out of your mental comfort zone without leaving your physical one.
"I was a little bit apprehensive to embark on a journey because I had this preconceived notion that I was going to be in a yurt in the dirt eating bark," says Rob Grover, who founded The Journeymen Collective with partner Gary Logan to bring the psychedelic experience to everyone from couples to CEOs. "We live a very comfortable, luxurious life, and I didn't really want to rough it."
But, for an experience that centers around leaving the world as you know it behind pinning down what luxury looks like can vary. Well, for Logan and Grover, it’s a careful blend of hospitality and home decor. At The Journeymen Collective, which uses psilocybin, clients work the team as far as four months in advance to create an itinerary catered to their specific goals. (For a personalized, intimate experience, opt for a four-person retreat for $15,000.)
Guests might come for the high attention to detail, but the retreat itself is equally impressive. Located in a 7,000-square-foot property outside of Vancouver, the home’s modern aesthetic is chic without feeling clinical. “With the clean lines, you can have clarity of vision,” Logan shares. “A big part of what we help people create is to expand their vision.”
The property, which has an excellent view of the Okanagan Valley, is skillfully outfitted with furniture from Rove Concepts, beds by Eternal Timber, as well as an onslaught of cozier touches like the vintage depression glass and the duo’s personal photography collection.
“The dining room table is from my childhood,” Logan adds. “That is where a lot of opening up happens, whether it's energetically passed through the wood or as the magic makers will call it."
(There’s a reason why The Journeymen Collective is so homey: The property doubles as Logan and Grover’s primary residence, so the duo is quite literally opening their home to guests.)
While The Journeymen Collective might feel like a sleepover at your psychedelic pal’s pad, those who are craving a deeper connection with Mother Nature might enjoy HOLOS Global, a Costa Rica retreat that ranges from $3,000 to $7,000 per week. With an alternative medicine license from Costa Rica’s Ministry of Health, HOLOS works with “plant medicines” through a mix of Western psychological training and Indigenous training.
“It's a place where people can feel held and safe," Hébert shares. "A big part of the HOLOS experience is to see what it's like to be in a village of people who are living close to the land.”
With an organic farm, large preservation project as well as a handful of waterfalls and swimming holes, the great outdoors is clearly the star of this retreat. "I look for a space where nature itself creates a sense of awe and inspires people to rise into the most beautiful aspects of themselves," Hébert says. "I look for a place that has all of the elements."
However, the surroundings are fortified with open-air, geometric structures to “evoke a sense of being comfortably held while being inspired by the natural beauty of the space.”
Or perhaps the perfect balance is The Buena Vida, which offers retreats at Casa Itzamara in Sayulita, Jalisco’s Mixto, and stateside at The Wolfpack Ranch, a five-acre estate in California. (Come May, the Buena Vida will welcome a fourth location in Joshua Tree.) Starting at $4,000 for a five-day experience, each retreat’s itineraries combine high-dose psilocybin ceremonies with upscale activities like massages, yoga classes, and excursions to local tourist destinations.
The Buena Vida might select its third-party locations to highlight the natural beauty of each destination, but that doesn’t mean the spaces aren’t designed to the nines.
“They need to be extremely well-taken care of, have a natural or peaceful color scheme, and be in communion with nature,” says Amanda Schendel, founder and leader of the Buena Vida. “Casa Itzamara, for example, has a large tree bed that sits over the jungle scape. You feel like a kid sitting in a giant tree house!”
While great design can offer a serene background for a mind-bending journey, Schendel argues that appearance should be the amenity of a retreat, not its main draw. She says: “It's far too easy for someone to post gorgeous photos of a retreat center without having many, many years holding space for all of the complex emotions and sensations that may arise in a ceremony.”
But if you can find a retreat that’s safe and suave? Consider a mind-expanding trip even more mind-blowing.
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