FAQ

How It Works

How do Unfold kits work?

  • Select a kit based on who is participating in the experience (such as solo, romantic, or with friends) and your intentions (such as exploration, connection, beauty, introspection, etc.).
  • We mail you the kit.
  • Check out the kit to see what you'll need and to plan a time for your experience.
  • When you’re ready, you can start exploring the kit. Each is different and contains activities and unusual objects, as well as guidance for preparing your environment and holding an opening ceremony.
  • Enjoy your journey!

What exactly is in an Unfold kit?

Kits vary, but contain some combination of the following:

  • Resources on best practices and safety
  • Suggestions for setting up your space
  • An opening ceremony to help travelers start their journey facing in the same direction
  • Creative activities and around the kit’s theme
  • Playful objects and art to enjoy
  • Suggestions for playlists and digital delights

See the kits for more details.

What kinds of objects are included?

Immersive art books, awe-inspiring works of glass art, unusual toys, lights, unique craft materials, mindfulness aids, experimental clothing, interactive games, and much more.

What kinds of activities are included?

Activities depend on the theme of the kit. They include creative social connection games, embodied explorations of unusual concepts, and mindfulness exercises for insight and delight, all with props and guidance that will be easy to follow on your journey.

Some specific examples are: making a children’s book with friends based on collective memories, temporarily exchanging personality traits, pairing sensory experiences with music, and creating a meditation labyrinth out of ribbons.

Are Unfold kits reusable?

Yes, and you may find yourself returning to a kit over multiple sessions.

Some kits contain a few single-use items such as incense, paper, and (non-perishable) food. Kits also include items that you may want to display, use elsewhere, share, or even regift.

Do trips require internet access?

Each kit is a physical object, and most do not require any electronics except for the optional component of playing music.

We think it’s important to regularly disconnect from our digital lives, and so we recommend that our fellow travelers silence their notifications and place devices in a safe place to be returned to afterwards.

Do you make custom kits or do other bespoke work?

Yes! We love this. Contact us at hello@unfoldtrips.com.

Philosophy

Psychedelics can have a huge impact on people. How do you know a trip kit will have a positive effect?

Psychedelic journeys are a serious responsibility, and we try to empower everyone to use care and respect when taking these journeys. As with many things in life there is no way to guarantee a particular outcome; ultimately we are sharing with the world what we have found helps create meaningful and positive experiences for ourselves, our friends, loved ones, and community. Through our trips, we aim to cultivate art, gratitude, presence, and connection.

We encourage everyone to view our resources for harm reduction and best practices in order to start your trip on a solid footing.

What about "bad trips"?

We wish to benefit the psychological and emotional well-being of everyone who partakes in an Unfold trip, and make our best effort to set up fellow travelers with the ideal context for a positive experience. Trips that result in lasting harm are extremely rare for those taking a common dose of well-known psychedelics with loved ones in a comfortable setting with no medical contraindications. We conceive of these risks as similar to or less than the risks of making a journey by car, going on a hike, or playing a sport.

Ultimately it is each participant’s personal decision to consider risks and responsibilities before partaking in any activity. We encourage everyone to view our resources for harm reduction and best practices, which include suggestions for handling challenging trips as well as hotlines for trip sitting, psychedelic peer support, and mental health.

Experiences that are difficult in the moment can also be a source of insight and personal growth, and this can be an integral part of a psychedelic trip. This may come in the form of Type II fun, or in the form of an emotional challenge that involves the untying of difficult knots.

Does a trip kit replace a psychedelic guide?

No. A guide requires personal rapport and presence that an inanimate kit cannot provide.

A guide can be an incredibly important part of the psychedelic experience, and we recommend a sober guide or sitter for anyone who is new to psychedelics, planning a particularly deep trip, or would feel more comfortable with a guide for any reason.

For those who choose to go on a trip without a dedicated guide, an Unfold kit is a way to add intentionality to the experience. We recommend reading our harm reduction and best practices guide to help you take such journeys safely and responsibly.

Are trip kits useful for psychedelic guides?

A trip kit is no replacement for a guide’s own experience, but a guide may wish to incorporate an Unfold kit to add structure, inspiration, and interactivity to a journey. Such a guide could join in the activities of the trip as both participant and facilitator, or could guide the trip without partaking.

What is Unfold’s relationship to traditional entheogen practices?

Unfold’s formative philosophical and intellectual anchors include art, experience design, psychotherapy, clinical research, Buddhism, nonviolent communication, and various embodiment practices.

We have enormous respect for the psychedelic traditions practiced by many cultures throughout history and across the world, and while we are grateful that our paths intersect, we do not wish to modify or replicate traditional practices.

We encourage any fellow travelers choosing a traditional plant medicine to consider its ecological sustainability.

What is Unfold's stance on the ethics of AI-generated art?

Unfold uses AI tools to create some of the visuals on our social media accounts and in our kits. There is an ongoing debate about the ethics of using large text-to-image models trained on all the art and imagery of the modern internet and human history. These models benefit from the collective work of all artists, and can also be used plagiarize the style of an individual artist's work.

We are strict about not copying the styles of artists. We mostly use stylistic descriptors in our prompts, and when we do take inspiration from artists, we only do so as part of a mix of other prompt elements and ensure that the end result does not resemble their work.

At the heart of this debate is the matter of supporting artists so that they can make a living doing their work. One of the things we're most excited about with Unfold is including the work of artists and artisans in our kits, placing bulk orders with them and exposing new fans to their work. All of our kits include a card crediting the creators of items in that kit.

When it comes to digital art, we have and will continue to commission work from designers and artists, but ultimately we are a small business bringing our vision to life on a budget while creating a product that's affordable for our customers. Generative AI helps us do that. As Unfold grows, we look forward to more and more opportunities to support the many artists whose work we love.

Legality

Are there drugs in Unfold trip kits?

No.

Do Unfold kits count as drug paraphanelia?

Drug paraphernalia (such as needles and pipes for administering drugs, or scales and bags for dealing them) are federally restricted in the United States.

Our kits do not constitute drug paraphernalia, which is defined by the United States as “any equipment, product, or material of any kind which is primarily intended or designed for use in manufacturing, compounding, converting, concealing, producing, processing, preparing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body a controlled substance.”

Is it legally safe for me to purchase and own Unfold trip kits?

Our kits neither contain drugs nor are they drug paraphernalia, and so everything included is legal to purchase, transport, and own in the United States.

If you are outside the United States, we encourage you to do your own research on laws in your area.

Please see our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy for legal details on your relationship with Unfold.

Where can I get psychedelic drugs?

We can’t help you with that ourselves, but we look forward to the day when safe and well-regulated psychedelic substances are legal for medical and recreational use.

You may have luck asking your friends, or visiting places where various psychedelics are legal or decriminalized, such as Denver, Portland, San Francisco, and Amsterdam.

Check out progress on psychedelic legalization in the US as well as clinical trials for therapeutic use of psychedelics. You may also be able to participate in clinical trials.

Shipping & Returns

How long will it take for me to receive my order?

We process and ship orders within 1 business day, and then shipping times will vary based on shipping method. Our free economy shipping takes 3-5 business days within the US, but express, overnight, and international options are also available.

Do you do local pickup?

Same-day pickup is available in San Francisco, CA, as well as next-day pickup in Oakland, CA. Simply select the Pick Up method during checkout.

Where do you ship?

We are based in the United States but do ship internationally!

Please note that customs duties and/or taxes may be due on receipt for orders outside the US.

Do you accept returns and refunds?

We want you to have a wonderful experience and if you’re dissatisfied for any reason we will gladly accept exchanges or returns within 60 days of receipt, even if your item has been used, and we’ll cover return shipping within the US. Just email us at hello@unfoldtrips.com, or check out our full Refund Policy for more details.

Do you do gift receipts and gift notes?

Yes! Just include your gift message in the order notes on the cart page and we will include a lovely note.

Please email us with any questions or special requests at hello@unfoldtrips.com.

Are shipments insured?

All of our shipments are insured up to $200. If a package goes missing or is damaged please let us know at hello@unfoldtrips.com and we will sort it out!

Is the packaging anonymous? How will purchases show up on my credit card statement?

Our outer shipping packages include our company name (“Unfold”) but do not mention psychedelics, trips, or link to our website. Likewise only our company name will appear on your credit card statement.

The contents of our kits, on the other hand, do explicitly discuss psychedelic trips.

Work With Us

Can I tell you about my ideas for a kit?

Yes! We’d love so much to hear from you: hello@unfoldtrips.com.

I’m an artist. Can we collaborate on a kit?

Definitely yes! We’re excited to work with artists, designers, and makers for the design of kits as well as the art and objects included in them. We’d love to hear from you: hello@unfoldtrips.com.

Are you hiring?

We are not actively hiring for any particular position, but if you’re interested in working with us we’d love to hear what you have in mind: hello@unfoldtrips.com.

About Us

Who are you?

Read about us here.