Remembering Wholeness: A Queer Men's Wellness Experience

San José, Tinamaste, Costa Rica

QW
Queer Wellness Collective
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14 reviews
Mar 21 - 28, 2022
Group size: 1 - 22
Remembering Wholeness: A Queer Men's Wellness Experience
San José, Tinamaste, Costa Rica

Queer Wellness Collective
  • Email address verified
  • Facebook verified
14 reviews

Mar 21 - 28, 2022
Group size: 1 - 22

About this trip

We invite you to join a community of male-identifying (GBTQ+) adventurers for a 7-day experience of wellness in the glorious Diamante Valley of Costa Rica. This experience will bring in the best elements of embodiment practices (yoga, mediation, movement, breathwork, etc), modern psychology, and plant medicine ceremonies, and will be set in a beautiful location of abundant nature and surrounded by a supportive community. The retreat is open to all levels of practice and experience with yoga, meditation, and plant medicine. 


The practices, experiences, and ceremonies will weave three key themes throughout the retreat:

  1. You are already whole (no need to seek validation or approval through love, success, money, or adventure)
  2. We are inextricably tied to nature and ultimately connected to all things 
  3. We thrive in community 

We will explore these themes, and will invite exploration of how these concepts ring true in our lives, and where these ideas are blocked. As a part of this exploration, we will explore our relationship with sex and sensuality, and how these manifest in healthy and and unhealthy ways in our lives. (please note, while touch, sensuality, and topics of sexuality will be discussed, sexual activity will not be explored as a part of the retreat)


Each day we will explore meditation, movement, reflection, nature adventures, and group dialogue. In addition to the scheduled elements of the retreat, we will have plenty of time to relax and savor our exquisite natural settings, and process our learnings, and grow from the supportive community we will create. 


The retreat will offer two group sacred medicine ceremony experiences facilitated by a practitioner trained in the Shipibo sacred medicine lineage and supported by guardians. All medicine experiences are optional. This retreat is open to all level of practice and experience with sacred medicines. For the health and safety of all participants, we will have each participant complete a health screening questionnaire and conduct a conversation with the facilitator before being accepted to the retreat. 


The retreat will include all meals, using local, organically grown ingredients whenever possible. 

In addition to the retreat experience, we will meet via Zoom in advance of the retreat to prepare you for the retreat, help you begin to set intentions, and begin to build safety and community within the group. In addition, for several weeks following the retreat, we will offer integration calls to ensure the fruitful integration of lessons, growth, and healing into your daily life. 


Reduced price / scholarships: We intend to make this experience as accessible as possible for people so we have set aside some scholarships to reduce the price of the retreat. Some of these scholarships are specifically set aside to make the retreat more affordable for Costa Ricans (called Ticos). If you are unable to afford this price, please click the "Contact Organizer" button and explain your situation and what price you are able to afford, and we will do our best to accommodate your situation. If you are able to, please consider a contribution to the Scholarship fund during the check out. 


Partners / shared beds: Have a partner or good friend you'd like to share a bed with? Book your preferred accommodation (Private tent or shared queen tent) and you can add on the additional person for $1200 additional during the check out process. 


Venue + Accommodations: The majority of the retreat will be hosted at Holos Basecamp in the Diamante Valley of Costa Rica. All accommodations are in comfortable "glamping" tents. Pictures of the retreat center and glamping tents are shown in the gallery. The first night of the retreat will be hosted at Teva Eco  in Manuel Antonio so that we can have a day at the beach before heading inland to Holos. The same accommodations booked (private or shared) will be provided at both Holos and Teva. Please note: Holos is the venue for the retreat, but this is not an official Holos Retreat. 


Booking process: Please submit your booking to secure your spot. We will follow up with a screening questionnaire to evaluate physical and emotional safety for the medicine experiences. We will respond within a few days of receiving your questionnaire and schedule a conversation with the facilitators. Please do not book non-refundable travel until after your application has been approved. If for any reason, this retreat is not a good fit for you, a full refund will be issued. 


Travel: You will need to get yourself to San Jose International Airport, or arrive directly at Teva  if you will already be in Costa Rica. 


COVID-19 Protocol: We will require that all participants show a negative test result from a COVID-19 test within 24 hours of arrival. An at-home rapid test will be sufficient. 


Cancellation Policy: If your application is not approved for any reason, you will receive a full refund. If you decide to cancel, you will receive a 50% refund until March 1, and no refund will be provided after this date. If we are able to fill your spot, a full refund (minus 10% admin fee) will be provided, however, there is no guarantee this will happen. 


As last-minute cancellations are non-refundable, It is highly recommended to purchase travel insurance that can cover cancellation for many reasons including illness, work-related issues, etc. 

Facilitators

Shelby Clark: Profile here

Following a life-changing psilocybin ceremony at the tail end of yoga teacher training, I have focused my life on providing consciousness-expanding experiences to people that could benefit from them. As they have helped me heal the many traumas of growing up gay, I have been particularly passionate about the healing that could be brought to this population though the intersection of sacred medicines, embodiment modalities, and modern psychology. I am still a student on my own path, and I am happy to walk this path in community with others.


I am a meditation guide and yoga facilitator. I have been studying meditation with Lorin Roche, author of the Radiance Sutras, since 2017. This philosophy of mediation views ordinary moments (such as the breath, sensations and emotions) as opportunities to connect with the most intimate experiences of life. This tantalizing, delicious perspective of life has helped me find gratitude, beauty, and joy all around me, and is a perspective I am thrilled to share.


I have been living in the San Francisco Bay Area for the last 15 years, but I’ve recently relocated to Costa Rica to co-found the Holos Diamante retreat center and community.

JR Wright: 

JR is originally from Brazil and has been in America since his teenage years. He’s been a passionate forest medicine man for over a decade, a few years ago he had the call to become a shaman. Seeking original knowledge and lineage  he took off to the  Brazilian Amazon to have his first shaman initiation with the Yawanawa people in the Aldeia Boa Esperança in the state of Amazonas.


His quest continued with his second shaman initiation in the Peruvian Amazon, with the Shipibo people. He has learned the process from originals, learning to cook medicine, doing dietas with Maestro Plants (Noya Rao, Bobinsana, Marusa).


From the Peruvian Amazon he was invited by the Shipibo Maestro Henrique to conduct ceremonies in their healing center in Cusco, where he stayed and conducted over 30 ceremonies on large groups up to 50 people. 


JR is based in LA where he conducts ceremonies and travels to Brazil every other month to conduct ceremonies in his mother land. 


Rocky Heron: Profile here

Rocky Heron is an internationally acclaimed yoga educator and musician. Known for his uncanny wisdom and in-depth understanding of yoga anatomy and alignment, Rocky’s teaching is informed by years of study in nearly every yoga style and a diverse background of movement modalities. He discovered yoga in the summer of 2004, and began his path of teaching in 2007. Considered in the yoga industry a “teachers teacher,” Rocky works online and worldwide facilitating trainings and continuing education for dedicated teachers. Rocky works in collaboration with Noah Mazé as a faculty member and key contributor to the curriculum at the Mazé Method, and as a Featured Teacher, with a vast library of digital classes and courses available on Yoga International. You can find his work, information about his trainings and his schedule at rockyheron.com. Rocky enjoys a rich and dynamic creative life with his magnificent community of artists and teachers alike. As a musician, years of narrative songwriting and recording helped him develop his distinct style, blending r&b vocals with folk-style acoustic melodies and profound lyrics. Rocky’s workshops and events often feature an offering of live music, weaving together the yogic practices and his unique voice to soothe, mesmerize and inspire listeners. His latest album, “Nuffa Luv” as well as his previous recordings (including his album of Sanskrit mantra, “The Requiem”) can be found online wherever digital music is sold. Students steep themselves in Rocky’s teaching for his intelligence, humor, and innovative approach to movement, as well as his ability to make complex concepts and abilities accessible. Join him and see for yourself.


Donovan Vriens-McGrath

Donovan is the founder of Amplified Yoga, for which he travels the world sharing his positive vision. His motivation is to encourage you to Amplify the greatest parts of yourself, using ancient yogic technology, presented in a modern & accessible way.
In 1996, at the age of 20, he took his first yoga class in New York City. Struck by the clarity, vitality and peace he felt, this ignited a lifelong passion. He immediately completed his first teacher training at the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center, started meditating and began teaching.


Since then, he has trained and become certified in the traditions of Jivamukti, Ashtanga, Anusara, and Kundalini. He utilized all of these teachings and his years of experience to create the Amplified method which is fun, cathartic and quick in its ability to transform a person instantly. Since Amplified yoga’s recent inception Donovan has collaborated with some of the biggest names in the wellness industry including Wanderlust, Equinox, Daybreaker, Unplug meditation and Mindvalley to name a few.


Whether at a concert venue, festival, cooperate or private event Donovans wisdom, authenticity and positivity gives him the ability to take anybody on a soulful yogic journey that is extraordinary.



What’s included

  • All meals
    Meal will be prepared using local, organically grown ingredients whenever possible. We will do our best to accommodate dietary restrictions.
  • Local transport in CR
  • Daily yoga & meditation
  • 2 medicine ceremonies
    Plant medicine
  • Nature excursions
    Including a beach day, and two waterfall tours
  • Retreat preparation
  • Retreat Integration

What’s not included

  • Airfare to/from CR

Available Packages

Shared Glamping Tent - Single Bed

A shared tent with three comfortable single beds. You will be have one single bed to yourself and you will be matched with two other participants who will sleep in the other beds. 


All tents include power, lights, fan, super comfortable beds and nice linens, small closet. All tents share a beautiful bamboo bathhouse with hot water. 

$1,999
Shared Glamping Tent - Queen Bed

A shared tent with two comfortable queen-size beds. You will be have one queen bed to yourself and you will be matched with another participant (or participants) who will sleep in the other queen bed. 


All tents include power, lights, fan, super comfortable beds and nice linens, small closet. All tents share a beautiful bamboo bathhouse with hot water. 

$2,495
Private glamping tent

A private tent with a comfortable queen-size bed. 


All tents include power, lights, fan, super comfortable beds and nice linens, small closet. All tents share a beautiful bamboo bathhouse with hot water. 

$2,999
Tico reservation

Includes a private bed in a shared tent. 


$999
Camping / floor cushion in yoga space
$1,500

Available options



Your Organizer


QW
Queer Wellness Collective
14 reviews
The Queer Wellness Collective is here to create a place of belonging for the queer community. We stand strong on our own, we thrive in community, and we savor our connection to the natural world. Together we practice, heal, dance, grow, and learn. Join us online for a stream of empowering content, practices, and resources, and in-person for retreats combining the best of modern psychology, embodiment practices (yoga, meditation, dance, etc), and plant medicine ceremonies (for some retreats).

Reviews

This trip helped me to ground myself in the beauty of nature, to shed the veil of constant distraction of life, technology, social media and the city and really look at myself. The compassionate nature of the facilitators, the community coming together each on their own healing journey and the delicious local food came together perfectly.
By Kyle Philip Q for Remembering Wholeness: A Queer Men's Wellness Experience on Jan 06, 2023
I was stressed out this fall, facing burnout at both my job and in my work in the community. When I realized I had vacation time to use up, I explored my options. Maybe a winter vacation in the Canadian Rockies? Snowshoeing could build on my hiking practice. But it’s one thing to go on long hikes by myself in Marin County - going out in snow country is another! Then the Queer Wellness Collaborative came across my screen. The Remembering Wholeness retreat would fall after a big event I was planning, and before the holidays. A week with other queer men into yoga, with meals and activities included? Yes! Just a few years ago, I might have felt unprepared. But a bunch of pandemic-era hiking had built my confidence, and had led me to a practice of daily exercise and I had achieved more strength while addressing alignment and posture problems that had long vexed me. Now in my fifties, I have a better relationship with my body than ever before. The retreat would be both a reward and a gateway to continued growth. My husband told me he supported my choice, and I signed up. I’m so glad I attended Remembering Wholeness. The food, the shelters, the facilities, the movement, the ceremonies, and the natural environment were all worthy of accolades. Mostly, I basked in the company of other queer men, all of us sharing our joy and spirit with each other. I highly recommend the retreat and stays offered by the Queer Wellness Collective.
By Dale D for Remembering Wholeness: A Queer Men's Wellness Experience on Dec 19, 2022
I was stunned by how beautiful this retreat space was. So many thoughtful touches and the views were incredible. I felt so restored by the end I can't wait to go back.
By Cameron C for Pura Vida 40th Bday Bash + Retreat on Jun 01, 2022
Costa Rica, Gaybourhood, Holos ...ahnnnnn what a pleasure to be involved with such extraordinary experiences ! Always available if you want to find me on social media to tell you in more detail ! Highly recommend !
By Lorenzo M for Pura Vida 40th Bday Bash + Retreat on May 25, 2022
RM
All in all, a really worthwhile experience. The setting is gorgeous. The glamping tents were great. Very comfortable. (Although, if you happen to have torrential rains, make sure your belongings are off the floor!) The common areas are so beautifully designed. Very restful and relaxing. And it seems to be early days still for the resort. Having glimpses of the building projects, both planned and in development, the site will only get better as it goes along. Great food. The chef was phenomenal, even with the numerous dietary guidelines put upon her. The food was fresh, healthy, and delicious. The moderators were top notch. Truly. The shaman was present and available to answer questions and help calm nerves. He had such depth and compassion. I felt safe in ceremony knowing that he was there. The yoga teachers were fun and awesome. Their energy was infectious, while also feeling calm and centered. The three of them, in addition to the group sessions centered around the sutras, really are what elevated the entire week. They held space. It was a safe place to be vulnerable. And it was palpable. While I can only speak for myself, while I felt safe to let down my guard and voice my fears, my shames, my insecurities, I also was able to witness the other participants on a similar journey. We became a community. Would I do it again? Most definitely.
By Ryan M for Remembering Wholeness: A Queer Men's Wellness Experience on May 24, 2022
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