SKILL STAYS
A few days on a working restoration site
Not everyone needs a course.
Some people learn best by showing up and working.A skill stay at Tsunul Reserve is an immersive, hands-on experience on a working ecological restoration site — less structured than the field intensive, more personal, and shaped significantly by what you bring and what you need.
You arrive, and you become part of the work. The restoration of the reserve is ongoing — there are always plants to propagate, trees to plant, invasive grasses to manage, monitoring to complete, and data to record. You work alongside Paul and Sophia in the rhythms of the site, learning the way a craftsperson learns: through doing, through watching, through asking questions that arise from the work itself rather than from a curriculum.
What a typical stay includes:
Dawn:
The bird walk. The cenote at first light. Coffee!
Morning:
The work — planting, propagation, invasive management, soil amendment, nursery work, monitoring. What specifically depends on the season, the current phase of the restoration, and what you've said you want to learn.
Afternoon:
The quieter work — identification, record-keeping, reading, conversation. A cenote swim if the heat demands it. The main meal together.
Evening:
A teaching session many evenings, informal and responsive to what came up in the morning. Uploading images from the day. The sounds the land makes after dark.
What you can focus on:
Tell us what you want to learn when you apply, and we'll shape the days around it. People come with specific interests: soil biology and biochar (Sophia's particular depth), native plant propagation, species ID, restoration planning for their own land, bird monitoring methodology, and wildlife monitoring. We work with what matters to you.
Who this is for:
People who want to do the work, not just learn about it. Farmers and landowners are preparing to restore their own properties. Practitioners wanting to see a long-term project from the inside. People considering the apprenticeship program who want to experience the site first. Anyone whose relationship to the land needs feeding.
The place:
Tsunul Reserve — 39 hectares of recovering tropical dry forest, 20 minutes south of Mérida. Off-grid. Private cenote. Three cabins. A food garden. Ten years of restoration, you can walk through and read. Wildlife that chose to be here: the ocelot, the turkeys, the coati, the boas, and the remarkable bird community at dawn.
Logistics:
4–6 people maximum per stay. Typically 4–7 nights — a minimum of 3 nights for the stay to be worthwhile; longer stays are welcome. All meals and accommodation included. Transport from Mérida arranged.
Price: From $180 USD/night, all inclusive · Minimum 3 nights
Discount for Canopy and Old Growth tier Patreon supporters
Extended stays (10+ nights) by negotiation
Tsunul Biological Reserve Experiences
Welcome to Tsunul Reserve, a remote off-grid sanctuary 20 minutes south of Mérida, Yucatán, restoring tropical dry forest with a stunning private cenote (limited guided access).
We offer 3 basic shared rooms with bunk beds (max 6 overnight guests).
All overnight stays include breakfast and one complimentary skill workshop per day.
Add up to 2 extra workshops per day.
Day visitors are welcome for individual workshops or packages.
Prices per person in MXN (current rates apply – pay in pesos).
Overnight Accommodation
Basic Bunkbed Stay (per night, shared room)
Simple, eco-friendly off-grid lodging. Includes breakfast (fresh fruits, coffee/tea, local breads or tortillas) + 1 skill workshop per day. 1,080 MXN / $85 USD
Add Extra Workshop (up to 2 per day) 450 MXN / $25 USD each
Additional Meals (prepared with local/reserve ingredients)
Lunch (vegetarian/plant-based): 215 MXN / $12 USD
Dinner (hearty, often fire-cooked): 325 MXN / $18 USD
ENTRY EXPERIENCES
No prior knowledge. No commitment. Just come.
These two workshops are open to everyone — day visitors, overnight guests, and people who simply want to taste something real before deciding to go deeper.
From Pod to Potion — Traditional Cacao
Follow cacao from its raw pod through the ancient Mesoamerican process: cracking, grinding on a stone metate, preparing the sacred drink and hand-formed candies. This plant has been cultivated in forests like this one for thousands of years. Tasting included.
From Cherry to Cup — Traditional Mexican Coffee
Explore shade-grown coffee from cherry to cup. Roast, grind, and brew authentic café de olla — the Mexican method, with piloncillo and cinnamon — as it has been made in this region for generations. A full sensory education in one sitting.
PATH WORKSHOPS
Each workshop corresponds to a stage of the Planet Healer Path.
You can follow the sequence throughout a stay, or choose the stage that feels most alive to you right now.
Stage 1 — Awakening: Coming back into a relationship with the living world
The Sit Spot
Choose a single place in the reserve. Sit with it for an hour. No phones, no identification, no agenda. Notice what you have been too busy to notice. This is the foundational practice of the path — the one that every other skill grows from. We debrief together afterward.
Walking Slowly — Sensory Forest Immersion
A deliberate, attentive walk through the reserve. The instruction is simple: slow down until the forest can reach you. Ends with a seated meditation at a place chosen for the session. The opposite of a hike.
Stillness in the Forest — Guided Nature Mindfulness
Breathing, body scan, and guided attention practice using the sounds, light, and living presence of the tropical dry forest as the environment rather than a backdrop. Suitable for complete beginners.
Stage 2 — Seeing Learning to read the landscape
Dawn Birds — Early Morning Species Walk
The forest before the heat. Learn to identify the species you are hearing and seeing—the Toh, the parrots, the hummingbirds, and the Collared Forest Falcon calling from the cave above the cenote. We use binoculars, the Merlin app, and your own growing attention. But we also begin asking the ecological question: what does the presence of this species tell us about the health of this habitat? Light breakfast included.
Reading the Living World — Biodiversity and iNaturalist
Learn to photograph species with a phone camera and use iNaturalist to document and identify what you find. Plants, birds, insects, fungi—the reserve as a field classroom. Every observation you contribute becomes part of the global biodiversity record. An introduction to the Species Identification Starter Guide practice.
Reading This Land — Ecological Site Assessment
Walk a section of the reserve with Paul. Learn to read what the plant community is telling you about the history and condition of the land—which species indicate disturbance, which indicate recovery, what the soil surface reveals, and how to understand succession in action. Ten years of documented recovery makes this reserve one of the most instructive classrooms available for this kind of work.
Stage 3 — Doing Hands-on restoration skills on real land
Planting for Recovery — Regenerative Tree Planting
Begin with a brief soil assessment—understanding why each species is being planted where and what the site conditions are telling us. Then plant native trees directly into the restoration zones of the reserve. Your trees remain. An adoption certificate documents your contribution to the recovery of this land.
Soil Alive: Biochar, Compost and Soil Biology
The soil food web in practice. Learn to read soil health, prepare and apply biochar correctly, and build a hot compost from reserve materials. Drawn directly from the Fundamentals of Ecosystem Restoration curriculum. This is where the science of restoration meets your hands.
How This Reserve Works — Off-Grid Systems and Resilience
Walk the working infrastructure of Tsunul Reserve: rainwater harvesting, food forest design, composting systems, and simple energy. Not a tour — a working session. Understand how an off-grid restoration site sustains itself and the thinking behind every system.
A note on the path workshops
These sessions are designed to be taken in sequence over the course of a stay—one or two per day, building on each other. They can also be taken individually. If you are already partway along the Planet Healer Path, choose the stage that corresponds to where you are. If you are not sure, begin with a sit spot and let the land tell you.
Private sessions are available for any workshop. We are always willing to go deeper into a subject or to design something specific to your group's focus or your land's particular needs.
Notes
Workshops run most days, weather permitting.
Dawn activities begin early to make the most of the cool morning hours.
Group discounts for 4 or more people.
Private sessions are available for any workshop—we are always willing to go deeper into a subject or to design something specific to your interests or your group.
Every visit directly supports the ongoing restoration of Tsunul Reserve.
Off-grid means limited electricity. Bring sunscreen, a hat, a water bottle, and insect repellent. Bring curiosity — that is the main thing.
To book or enquire: Contact US or WhatsApp +52 999 794 6045
¡Bienvenidos! Come restore with us!
Day Visitor Options (no overnight)
Access to reserve grounds + cenote (guided/limited) included with any booking.
Single workshop: 750 MXN / $45 USD
Day package: 2 workshops: 1,300 MXN / $75 USD
Day package: 3 workshops: 1,800 MXN / $105 USD
Dawn birds (includes breakfast): 800 MXN / $50 USD
Private session: 1,800 MXN / $120 USD
Cacao or Coffee workshop: 630 MXN / $40 USD
Add Meals (optional): Same prices as above.
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