Guide Certification
Start Online

This pathway offers the full Forest Therapy Guide certification, beginning online and culminating in an in-person immersion. It is designed for those who need flexibility at the start, while still valuing the depth of embodied, in-person practice.

Starting online allows you to build a strong foundation at your own pace — integrating learning into your life, working with your schedule, and moving through the material with intention. When the time is right for you, the training comes together in person, grounding knowledge in direct experience and shared practice.

Your Certification Pathway

STEP 1:
6-month remote training

STEP 2:
4-day in-person immersion

STEP 3:
Get your certification

Check below for the 4 day in Person Immersions

Forest Therapy Guide Online Trainings

Part 1 - 6 month remote training

The trainings listed below all cover the same content and follow the same curriculum. They have different names and different schedules to offer as many options as possible. For a comparison of 2026 schedules, please see the chart HERE.

IMPORTANT: Before you send out your application, please make sure that the schedule for the calls works for you and your time zone. Check the detailed Schedule for every cohort in the detailed description or Compare the different schedules here.

Check the FAQs here

What You Will Learn

Learn how to guide ANFT's Standard Sequence - A Powerful approach to nature connection
Sequencing forest therapy invitations for maximum impact and benefit
The heart-centered Way of the Guide approach
The Language of Invitation to help create powerful connections with self and nature
Somatic techniques for embodied awareness
The pedagogy and fundamentals of nature connection
Nature and forest therapy research and knowledge

Trail awareness and safety - how to choose a forest therapy trail
Getting to know your bioregion, its history, watershed, awarenesses and more
Facilitation skills that promote an open environment for group sharing
Expressive arts activities for forest therapy
Competency standards: what a Forest Therapy Guide should know and be able to do
Tips for successfully promoting your forest therapy offerings

How you will learn

4 Day Training Immersions

Part 2 - 4 Day Immersion

This four-day in-person immersion is the second part of the Start Online First Forest Therapy Guide Training. The immersion is an opportunity to be guided by ANFT trainers, and to practice guiding with the most experienced Forest Therapy Guides in the world.

In the immersion, you will:

Get hands-on experience of what you learned in the remote training.
Get to know trainers personally.
Get to know and connect with other guides.
Learn from shared experiences with other guides.
Further develop your own practice of Forest Therapy.
Get the opportunity to ask specific questions that might come up

Who is eligible to attend?

If you have completed at least module 4 and submitted the corresponding assignments of the six-month remove Forest Therapy Guide Training, you’re eligible to apply. Completion of this immersion and the six-month training fulfills the requirements of the fulll Certification.

Apply and Register

To being the process of attending an immersion, please choose an immersion and submit an application. Once the office approves it, you will get an email with more information about the venue and how to make a reservation for accommodation and food.

These immersions are only meant for guides in training (after completing certain modules and guiding walks), guides that have completed their 6 month remote forest therapy training and for certified guides. These immersions are not standalone training for people who don’t have any training yet.

Check the FAQs here

Want to know more about the training?

JOIN OUR FREE TRAINING WALKTHROUGH CALLS

Talk to those who have been there from the beginning. Trainers who have guided in forests throughout the world. Guides who have met and managed a myriad of situations encountered on the trail. People who know this practice in their heads, hearts, and bones. Learn the details of ANFT’s acclaimed training. Is it the right training for you?
Next calls are:

January 7th, 10:30 am PST

January 15th, 5:00 pm PST

January 26th, 4:00 am PST

What our students are saying:

"I feel so prepared."

“I completed the training in June and recently started taking my clients on nature therapy walks. The feedback has been fantastic! What struck me was how well the training prepared me. I felt I had a plenty of tools and that I could adapt the therapy to any client. I know how to choose a location, talk about the process with clients, and deal with surprises. I feel so prepared. As a psychologist I find nature therapy an invaluable way to assist clients in accessing something healing that can't be accessed through talk therapy. Thank you!”

Christa Smith

Psy.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist

Guide CertificationStart Online