Peruvian Amazon Rainforest

Exploring the Amazon Rain Forest 5 days visiting La Ceiba, Explorama, Hanging bridges and more....
Manu Wildlife Adventure 5 days...Exploring the magnifecent Manu National Park
Sandoval Lake Lodge & Macaw Clay Lick: 5 day deep in the amazon
Deluxe Amazon River cruise -Dolphin 5 and 4 days superb river cruise with all excursions, meals and more...
Amazon River Cruise -Amatista, Zafiro & La Perla 3, 4, & 7 night river cruises with all meals, excursiones, lectures...
Day 1 IQUITOS-DELFIN III
Arrive in Iquitos where you will be met by the guides of the Amazon Discovery. Continue with a tour of the city and embarkation. Board the DELFIN III. Welcome lunch, orientation, and intro to the Amazon presentation.
ALL MEALS INCLUDED IN THIS CRUISE AS WELL AS ALL TOURS.
Day 2 DELFIN III
AM Yacapana: skiff exploration & dolphin spotting
PM Yarapa River: skiff exploration & night safari, Pisco sour class, dinner and movie
Day 3 DELFIN III
AM Piraña Caño: villiage visit and jungle walk (dry)
PM Santa Ana: visit to shamanic healing center, entertainment and music onboard
Day 4 AMAZON-IQUITOS
AM Manatee Rescue Center: disembarkation & visit to ACOBIA manatee center. Transfer to airport.
2025 RATES:
Cost per person for the 3 night Cruise: Suites DBL US$4,100 (for upper Suite add US$140 pp)
Cost per person for the 4 night Cruise: Suites DBL US$5,560 (for upper Suite add US$200 pp)
Does not include local airfare Lima-Iquitos-Lima (about US$350-420)
Departure dates: 2025
For the 3 or 4 night cruise - Please call us or email us at: tara@taratours.com
The brand new DELFIN III, offers guests an immersive rainforest experience while simultaneously treating them to the highest levels of luxury. This brand new vessel is also the largest in the Delfin fleet, with capacity for up to 43 passengers. The ship has been beautifully finished with the finest details, hardwood floors, designer furniture, and handmade Peruvian artifacts. The itineraries have been carefully planned and are set to offer an unforgettable experience. Guests will have no shortage of up close rainforest experience and gourmet food to compliment.
Guests have the option of four room classes. On the first deck there are 8 Suites complete with floor to ceiling panoramic windows as well as 2 spacious Corner Suites facing the front of the ship. The second deck is comprised of 10 Upper Suites and the largest of all, the Owners Suite. The top deck features beautiful indoor and outdoor lounge, a sundeck with plunge pool, a spa and gym, and of course the bar.
TRANSPORTATION: Your cruise package includes transfers from/to the Iquitos Airport to/from the port of Nauta, where the vessel will depart and arrive.
SINGLE SUPPLEMENT
Single Supplement is + 50% in addition to the adult rate on all vessels.
CHILDREN POLICY
7 years old minimum on all departures.
Children aged 11 or under are eligible for a 20% discount from the adult rate.
INCLUDING:
All meals while on board (arrival day: dinner, cruise days: all meals, departure day: breakfast & lunch)
All excursions & equipment (including rubber boots & rain ponchos)
Transfers to/from vessel when arriving on recommended flights to Iquitos.
Entrance fee to Pacaya Samiria National Reserve
Natural juices, soda, coffee, tea, water; beer and wine.
NOT INCLUDED: Air tickets to/from Iquitos; Travel & Health Insurance. Cost of medical emergencies (including evacuation); Gratuities (amount suggested per guest: US$ 120.00); Any additional transportation services; Any additional bar consumptions; Boutique purchases.
Exploring the Amazon Rain Forest
Special - Ceiba Tops, Canopy Walkway & Explorama Lodge Excursion
5 day / 4 night Program
DAY 1 ARRIVE IQUITOS - Ceiba Tops
Reception
at the airport or hotel, brief city orientation and transfer to
the Explorama dock. Twenty-five mile journey down the Amazon
River to Ceiba Tops where private rooms with air conditioning
provide Amazon adventure in comfort. Afternoon hike in the
beautiful primary rainforest reserve surrounding Ceiba Tops that
includes many huge trees festooned with epiphytes. After dinner
your guide will take you on a short walk to a small lake where
caiman can be spotted at night and where you can find some of
the insects and frogs that produce the cacophony of sounds that
begin after dark.
MEALS: Lunch, Dinner
OVERNIGHT: Ceiba Tops
DAY 2 Ceiba Tops - Explorama
Lodge - Ceiba Tops
Early morning birding excursion. After breakfast board boats to
continue down the Amazon River to the rustic Explorama Lodge and
hike the "Bushmaster Trail" where scientific studies by the
Missouri Botanical Gardens have found the world's highest
biodiversity of trees per square hectare. Continue on to visit a
small village of Yagua Indians where your guide will explain
their culture and how it has been affected by the passing of
time. There will be an opportunity to trade for or purchase some
of their local crafts and for a demonstration of the use of the
blowgun which some of the Yagua elders still use for hunting.
After lunch walk along a local Amazon River trail stopping at a
"ribereños" house, corner store and sugar cane rum factory.
Return by boat to Ceiba Tops.
MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner -----------------
OVERNIGHT: Ceiba Tops
DAY 3 Ceiba Tops
Early morning birding.
Morning boat excursion to "Monkey Island", a private reserve
where more than five species of tropical primates including
small tamarins, saki, titi and large woolly monkeys are
protected. Afternoon boating excursion in search of sloth, found
in Cecropia trees at the water's edge, and the two species of
freshwater river dolphin, pink and grey, found in Amazonian
waters. Weather permitting, enjoy a beautiful Amazonian sunset
on the river.
MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
OVERNIGHT: Ceiba Tops
DAY 4 Ceiba Tops / Canopy
Walkway / Ceiba Tops
Early morning departure from Ceiba Tops by boat to the narrow
motorcar crossing connecting the Amazon and Napo Rivers to
continue by boat to ExplorNapo Lodge for breakfast. Hike to the
spectacular Canopy Walkway spanning over 500 meters (one-third
of a mile), connected by tree platforms, and reaching a height
of over 35 meters (115 feet) but accessible without any type of
climbing skill or equipment. After lunch, visit the "ReNuPeRu"
Ethnobotanical Garden where over 240 medicinal plants are
cultivated by a local shaman who will explain the nature of
Amazonian natural healing and the uses of some of the plants.
Return to Ceiba Tops in time to enjoy the pool or hammocks
before dinner.
MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner -----------------
OVERNIGHT: Ceiba Tops
DAY 5 Ceiba Tops - Iquitos -
DEPART
Boating or walking excursion to further enjoy the rainforest
surrounding Ceiba Tops, or if you prefer, time to relax at the
hammock house or enjoy the pool and lodge gardens. Afternoon
journey back to Iquitos and on to the airport or to a local
hotel.
MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch (if departure flight permits)
*Due to the everchanging nature of the rainforest, day-by-day
activities may vary due to local conditions*
Please be sure to plan your arrival and departure during
mornings or early afternoons.
2025 LAND TOUR RATES Per
Person
DBL US$ 1,222 . SGL $1,420
Call us for Single Travelling alone
Plus local airfare Lima-Iquitos-Lima about US$300-350 pp
INCLUDING:
4 nights jungle lodge accommodations with all meals, excursions, visit to Indian tribes and English speaking naturalist guides (as per itinerary); All transfers by car & by boat from/to Iquitos; room taxes and service charges. Assistance of our local representatives 24/7 by phone.NOT INCLUDED:
INTERNATIONAL AIRFARE or Local airfare to Iquitos. Travel & Health Insurance.• Tips to tour guide or bus driver. •Any other service not mentioned in itinerary. • Airport departure taxes (Lima and Iquitos $5.00 each)
Manu National Park - Manu Wildlife Center
Cusco – Puerto Maldonado – Cusco by commercial airplane
5 day/4 night itinerary
Departs every Thursday
This itinerary offers the complete lowland rainforest experience, taking us by air and then motorized canoe to Manu Wildlife Center, This lodge is located east of the Manu River on the north bank of the Madre de Dios River and offers the Amazon’s finest, in-depth wildlife safari. The lodge is famous for its abundant and varied wildlife, with its own Tapir clay lick, a nearby macaw and parrot clay lick, two nearby oxbow lakes and two tall canopy viewing towers among its impressive highlights. The Lodge contains 22 double-occupancy fully screened private bungalows with hot showers, a large fully screened dining room, and a bar with hammocks for relaxing with the comfort of the our Amazon’s finest wildlife lodge, next day in our rustic, Manu Wildlife Tented Camp in the heart of the Manu Biosphere Reserve. In Manu we navigate the waters of an isolated oxbow lake, home to Giant Otters, caimans, monkeys and an endless variety of birds. Our trip ends downriver with the Amazon’s finest wildlife viewing opportunities, at Manu Wildlife Center. This lodge offers the finest Tapir viewing in the entire Amazon, as Tapirs are nightly visitors to the lodge’s mud wallow. After a canoe and van journey we return to Cusco aboard in a commercial flight.
Itinerary
Day 1: Puerto Maldonado-Colorado -Manu Wildlife Center.
We'll pick you up about 6:00 to 6:30 a.m. from your hotel
in Puerto Maldonado followed with a transfer service by van to
Santa Rosa Village, we will get there in about two-hours and a
half journey, you will cross the Inambari river for a 15 minutes
boat trip to Puerto Carlos, here you will start your overland
journey to Boca Colorado for 45 minutes by car, followed by four
hours and a half motorized boat journey ride upstream the Madre
de Dios river. We arrive to Manu Wildlife Center for lunch.
Later we make our first acquaintance with the rainforest,
exploring some of the 30 miles of forest trails that surround
the lodge. We have an excellent chance of encountering some of
the 12 species of monkeys, including the Spider Monkey and
Emperor Tamarin, which inhabit the surrounding forest.
After dinner there will be an enchanting night walk along the
trails, in search of the nocturnal birds and animals of the
rainforest (L, D)
Day 2: Manu Wildlife Center to Manu National Park (Manu
Wildlife Tented Camp)
An early start (inevitable on wildlife expeditions), a delicious
breakfast is followed by boat journey in the motorized canoe
trip up the Madre de Dios River. We make a short visit to the
village of Boca Manu, riverside capital of the remote and
sparsely populated Peruvian province of Fitzcarrald. The main
activity here is building dugout boats for travelers on the
river. Logging is prohibited here, so the resourceful villagers
work entirely with lumber brought downriver by floodwaters.
Now we turn northward up the chocolate-brown waters of the Manu
River into the lake-rich lower Manu National Park. The pristine
quality of the forest is instantly apparent, with abundant
birdlife and no signs of outside development. We check into the
park at Limonal ranger station and then proceed upstream, as our
boat driver steers skillfully through shallows and driftwood
snags. Orinoco Geese and Horned Screamers strut on the beaches,
Capped and White-necked Herons patrol the shoreline, and
countless sunbathing turtles dive off their log perches as we
approach.
After some six hours on the river we reach the Manu Tented Camp,
a simple but comfortable low-impact lodge nestled almost
invisibly in the forest.
If time permits us, we will take a short walk before dinner to
stretch our legs and enjoy our first encounter with virgin
rainforest. (B,Box Lunch,D).
Day 3: Manu National Park (Manu Wildlife Tented Camp):
Cocha Salvador & Cocha Otorongo.
Today we visit two lakes near our camp. Park authorities
determine the time of our visit to Cocha (Lake) Salvador;
depending on this schedule, we will visit Cocha Otorongo earlier
or later in the day.
Our trail to Cocha Otorongo begins some 30 minutes downstream
from the camp. This brief river journey to the trailhead can
always offer the chance of a thrilling wildlife sighting.
Perhaps we will spot a family of capybaras, the world’s largest
rodent, looking like giant Guinea Pigs as they browse on the
riverbank, or if we are very lucky, a solitary jaguar might
stalk slowly off an open beach into the forest, flicking its
tail in annoyance at our intrusion.
On the short trail to the lake we may spy one or more of the
park’s 13 monkeys species leaping through the canopy high above.
And some of the trees, which form that canopy -- such as kapok,
ironwood and figs, will astound us with the vast size of their
trunks and buttressed root systems.
These are oxbow lakes, formed when the river changed course,
leaving a landlocked channel behind. The lakes are abundant in
fish and wildlife, and provide optimum habitat for caimans and
the Giant Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis), one of the Amazon’s
most endangered mammal species. This lake enjoys maximum
protection, and boats are not allowed. However, it features a
dock platforms and a 50ft tower from which to scan the trees and
marshy shoreline for monkeys, kingfishers, Anhinga (a large,
long-necked water bird), and countless other species. We have a
good chance of sighting the resident Giant Otter family as they
dive for the 4Kg. of fish that each individual consumes daily.
Cocha Salvador is the largest of the area’s lakes, at 3.5 Km, or
some two miles long. It is also home to a family of Giant
Otters. We cruise the lake on a floating catamaran platform,
which offers superb new perspectives of lake and forest. The
lakeside trees are often alive with monkeys; Scarlet,
Chestnut-fronted and Blue-and-gold macaws beat a path overhead;
a variety of herons and egrets scout the water’s edge; and the
reptilian eyes and snouts of caimans, motionless as logs, may be
spied beneath the branches. Somewhere on the open water or in
among toppled bankside trees, we may spot the sleek heads of the
shy Giant Otters. These social animals play and fish together,
and we may see them sprawled on a fallen tree trunk, dozing or
gnawing on a fish. (B,L,D)
Day 4: Manu National Park (Manu Wildlife Tented Camp) to
Manu Wildlife Center – Macaw Clay Lick Project and
Tapir Clay lick.
We set off downriver at dawn. At this hour chances of wildlife
encounters are excellent. We return to the Limonal park station,
to file our wildlife report before leaving the park. After
reaching the turbulent union of the Alto Madre de Dios and Manu
rivers we will be near the village of Boca Manu. After ninety
more minutes downstream we arrive at Manu Wildlife Center -- the
exciting final stop of our journey -- in time for lunch.
After a delicious lunch we walk through the forest for some
minutes, where we find the Macaw Lick project. The hide provided
with individual chairs and a convenient place for cameras and
binoculars to a distance of 15 meters. In groups of two and
three the scarlet Macaws come flapping in, landing in the
treetops as they eye the main stage below.
Later, we continue to explore and discover the rainforest, its
lore and plant life, on the network of trails surrounding the
lodge, arriving in the late afternoon at our 34m/112ft Canopy
Tower. On its platform we witness the frantic rush-hour activity
of twilight in the rainforest canopy, before night closes in.
Then we set off along the “collpa trail”, which will take us to
the lodge’s famous Tapir Clay lick. Here at the most active
tapir lick known in the entire Amazon, our research has
identified from 8-12 individual 600-pound Tapirs who come to
this lick to eat clay from under the tree roots around the edge.
This unlikely snack absorbs and neutralizes toxins in the
vegetarian diet of the Tapir, the largest land animal of Latin
America. The lick features a roomy, elevated observation
platform 5m/17ft above the forest floor. The platform is
equipped with freshly-made-up mattresses with pillows. Each
mattress is covered by a roomy mosquito net. The 10-m-long,
elevated walkway to the platform is covered with sound-absorbing
padding to prevent our footsteps from making noise. This Tapir
Experience is unique and exciting because these normally very
shy creatures are visible up close, and flash photography is not
just permitted, but encouraged. The hard part for modern city
dwellers is to remain still and silent anywhere from 30 minutes
to two or more hours. Many prefer to nap until the first Tapir
arrives, at which point your guide gently awakens you to watch
the Tapir 10-20m/33-66ft) away below the platform. Most people
feel that the wait is well worth it in order to have such a high
probability of observing the rare and elusive Tapir in its
rainforest home. (B/L/D)
Day 5: Manu Wildlife Center to Puerto Maldonado
– Departure day.
We leave our lodge very early on the two hour and a half return
boat trip downstream to the Colorado Village. Depending upon the
time we must be in Puerto Maldonado, the breakfast will be
served at the lodge or on the boat while you enjoying early
morning wildlife activity as we go, of course this is a perfect
time to take advantage of valuable early morning wildlife
activity along the river, in additions this journey allows us to
see several lowland native settlements and gold miners digging
and panning gold along the banks of the Madre de Dios River. We
will stop in the far-west type gold-mining town of Colorado to
start our overland journey to Puerto Carlos for 45 minutes, then
you will cross the Inambari River for 15 minutes boat trip to
Santa Rosa, finally a van or bus will drive us in approximately
two-hours and a half to the airport in Puerto Maldonado City,
with this assistance your jungle adventure ends... (B)
2025 LAND TOUR COST PER PERSON (in double occ)
US$2,999
Important notes:
• Please note that you should stay overnight the night before in
Puerto Maldonado in order to start your trip from 6:00 to 6:30
a.m. (cost about $60-70 per person with local transfers)
• The program may vary slightly so as to maximize your wildlife
sightings, depending on the reports of our researchers and
experienced naturalist guides based at the lodge.
• We strongly recommend to buy Travel Insurance
DOES NOT INCLUDE: Local airfares, Insurance, Tips to tour guides or drivers and any other service not especifically mentioned in this itinerary.
YELLOW fever shot recomended.
RIVER CRUISES AMATISTA, ZAFIRO, LA PERLA
RIVER CRUISE HIGHLIGHTS
• Two or three daily
excursions into the Amazon jungle including speed-boat
excursions and guided jungle walks.
• Discover the region’s exotic wildlife through activities like
bird-watching and
observing pink river dolphins.
• Experience local culture via cooking demonstrations, piranha
fishing, village
visits, and shaman blessing ceremonies.
• Learn about the Amazon rainforest and discover the secrets of
the jungle with
our nature guides.
• Taste the flavors of the rainforest by sampling our regional
and contemporary
specialties while admiring stunning views of the Amazon
2025 Cruise Rates per person
Zafiro Cruise |
4d/3n |
5d/4n |
Ist deck |
4,100 |
5,100 |
Cruise 2 deck |
4,100 |
5,099 |
Master Suite |
4,480 |
5,450 |
|
|
|
La Perla or Amatista |
4d/3n |
7d/6n |
Standard |
2,257 |
4,114 |
Amazon View |
2,395 |
4,392 |
Superior |
3,500 |
4,530 |
RATES SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME
Child under 11 year olds 50% discount (staying same room with
parents) Single add 40%
Sandoval Lake Lodge & Macaw Clay Lick: 5 day extension
On this journey to the Heath River and then Lake Sandoval we encounter the best pristine rainforest and the most comfortable wilderness lodges that the Upper Amazon Basin has to offer – an unbeatable combination of remoteness, and yet reachable distance by river from an airport with scheduled passenger-jet flights. Our two lodges lie within the Tambopata-Madidi reserve areas of Peru and Bolivia. Bolivia’s Madidi National Park totals 18,900 sq. km./7,297 sq. miles, while the adjacent reserves of Tambopata-Candamo and Bahuaja-Sonene across the border in Peru add up to more than 13,700 sq. km./5,290 sq. miles. Taken together, they form the second largest, and by far the most biologically diverse nature conservation area in all of South America
Day 1: Puerto Maldonado to Heath River
WildlifeCenter
Arrive and transfer by boat toSandoval Lodge
Now, after brief frontier-crossing formalities, we motor
forabout two more hours up narrower and wilder waters,
suddenlyenjoying the intimacy of mysterious forest looming
close oneither side. Occasional views of native villages
andchildren splashing by the banks, are interspersed with
long,quiet stretches where we may spot herons, hawks,
cormorants,Orinoco Geese, and perhaps a family of Capybaras
-- theworld’s largest rodent, weighing up to 55kg./120lb,
andlooking like an enormous Guinea Pig. We reach our
simple,charming and comfortable quarters at the Heath
RiverWildlife Center in time for dinner. (Thelodge is
located on the Bolivian shore of the Heath River,so
passports are required.)
Day 2: Heath River Wildlife Center
Today we make an early start tovisit the the lodge’s most
spectacular feature: the HeathRiver parrot and macaw lick.
Here these colorful birdsgather to eat a type of clay from
the cliff-like river banksthat neutralizes certain toxins in
their diet. Theycongregate early each morning, sometimes by
the hundreds,jostling and squabbling over the best eating
spots on theclay lick. This noisy and unforgettable show can
go on fortwo or three hours, and may begin with up to five
species ofparrot and two varieties of parakeet, followed
byChestnut-fronted Macaws and their larger, more
boisterouscousins, the Red-and-green Macaws. This
extraordinarywildlife display occurs at only a handful of
sites in theUpper Amazon Basin, and nowhere else on the
planet.
After lunch we typically hike or bicycle along a major
trailto a point where the forest abruptly gives way to
thespacious plains of the Pampas del Heath, part of
Bolivia’sMadidi National Park and it is home to rare endemic
birdsand mammals, such as the Swallow-tailed Hummingbird and
thehighly endangered Maned Wolf..
After dinner some guests may choose to visit one of
ourmammal lick hides, in hopes of seeing a Lowland Tapir,
therainforest’s largest mammal
Day 3- Heath River Wildlife Center to Sandoval
LakeLodge
We leave at dawn for the returntrip downstream. This is peak
hour for wildlife so we keep asharp eye on the riverbanks,
often spotting families ofCapybara, and perhaps being
rewarded with a rare jaguarsighting, or a tapir swimming
across the current. We reachthe Madre de Dios River,
re-enter Peru, and set off upstreamfor the boat landing near
Lake Sandoval Lake Lodge.
After lunch at the lodge and a brief rest to avoid the
earlyafternoon heat, we once again set off by boat or
catamaranto explore the entire west end of the lake. Here,
in theflooded palm forest we drift to the sounds of hundreds
ofRed-Bellied and Blue-and-yellow Macaws as they return to
thepalm forest for the night. Our viewpoint from the
canoeoften allows closer and more extended encounters with
birdsand mammals than on a typical forest trail hike, and we
maywitness intimate feeding and mating behavior. On
LakeSandoval monkeys, in particular, have almost lost their
fearof humans.
On clear nights we will have superb vistas of the Milky Way.
Day 4: Lake Sandoval
After a dawn breakfast we short paddle along the palm
swampsof the west end of the lake in search of the resident
GiantOtter family. Returning once more down the trail to
theMadre de Dios River,
Day 5 Sandoval- Puerto Maldonado
We return to Puerto Maldonado to catch the flight to Cuscoor
Lima.
2025
Land Tour Cost
Per person based on double: PLEASE CALL OR e-mail us
For questions or further information on Peru or about these
programs
Have your Travel Agent call
Tara Tours at 1-800-327-0080 or
e-mail us:
tara@taratours.com