Amazon Jungle Cruise- 7 Days

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Day to Day Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Lima

Meals included: 1 breakfast

Activities:

• On arrival at Lima's Jorge Chavez International Airport you are transferred to your hotel in the well-known coastal suburb of Miraflores. In the evening you meet your tour leader and the other members of your group for a pre-tour briefing. Please check the noticeboard near the hotel reception for confirmation of the exact time and place of the meeting (please note that if a significant number of group members are arriving late into Lima, this meeting may be held sometime on Day 2). This meeting is generally followed by an optional group dinner at a nearby restaurant. Lima has some of the most superb cuisine in South America and is especially renowned for its exceptional seafood. During your time here, you may wish to try ceviche, Peru’s national dish, which is raw fish marinated in lime juice and often served with hot peppers. This culinary delight is a must for all seafood lovers!

Day 2: Fly Lima to Iquito, Board the M/V Aqua

Meals included: 1 breakfast, 1 dinner

Activities:

• Today you are transferred to Lima airport for your flight to Iquitos, a 45 minute flight away.
• Embarkation and Check-in. From the moment you step on board, you will enjoy the M/V Aqua’s atmosphere of low-key luxury. As you settle into your handsomely appointed, over-sized suite, you will feel the vessel begin to move; the beginning of one of the great adventures of your life. Stand on the Upper Deck to take in the view, as the M/V Aqua leaves Iquitos behind.
• Over the next four days, you will also sail along the largest tributaries of the Amazon, as well as on the mighty Amazon itself. You are embarking on a spectacular adventure, to a place visited by only a few of even the most experienced world travelers.
• Approximately 8:00pm Safety Drill and Briefing on the Top Deck. Before dinner we will perform a routine safety drill. Then it’s into the air-conditioned lounge, where you will learn about life onboard, and will have the first of the nightly briefings about your adventure to follow. You will meet the naturalist guides and the cruise director, who will use video, photos, and maps to explain the details of your adventure to follow.
• Approximately 8:30 Welcome Dinner. Sit down, relax, sample some fine South American wine, and enjoy the truly world-class cuisine, created by Executive Chef Pedro Miguel Schiaffino, whose restaurant, Malabar, is one of the best in all of Lima. Schiaffino’s recipes, with their imaginative use of local products – fruits, fish, spices – makes every meal a delightful adventure. (The menu always offers choices, including a vegetarian option.) Toast the beginning of a beautiful journey.
• Perhaps enjoy a nightcap on the Upper Deck, under the stars, before retiring.

Day 3: Ucayali - Yanallpa - Dorado Rivers - Pacaya Samiria national Reserve

Meals included: 1 breakfast, 1 lunch, 1 dinner

Activities:

• 6:30 a.m. Ucayali River Exploration
• We will board our skiffs just as the giant sun rises above the jungle. As we move down the Ucalyali River, the Amazon’s largest tributary, your naturalist guides will point out an amazing variety of wildlife, particularly active in the early hours of the day. Keep your eyes out for three-toed sloth hanging from tree limbs, for prehistoric-looking iguanas, and for a multitude of birds . . . orioles, horned screams, the list is long and varied. Then it’s back to the vessel, for a sumptuous breakfast.
• After breakfast we stroll through the village of Madgalena, a small community of just ten families. After you meet the people, including lots of lively and curious children, your naturalist guides will lead you through the jungle to a beautiful lake that is home to the world famous Victoria Regia giant water lily. Have your cameras ready to capture this once-in-a-lifetime sight.
• Approximately 12:00 p.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
• Cool towels and chilled fruit juice await you, as you step out of the skiffs.
• After lunch, why not enjoy a siesta in the air-conditioned comfort of your suite?
• Afternoon Ucayali Exploration and Puinahua and Discovery Tour. You will continue along the majestic Ucayali River by skiff, enjoying the opportunity to see and meet native balseros, or fishermen. They will demonstrate their skill and let you see their catch—including a type of “armored” catfish with a shell-like skin. You will have at least one chance to sample this delicious local fish at dinner aboard the M/V Aqua. We are also likely to spot, and have an opportunity to photograph, the “banana balsero” rafts, loaded with hundreds of clusters of bananas en route to market. Keep your binoculars ready to get an up-close look at woodpeckers, parrots, macaws, and toucans.
• Return to the M/V Aqua in the evening.
• Approximately 8:00 p.m. Dinner
• Enjoy another gourmet meal. Afterwards, why not sit out on the Upper Deck to study the vast canopy of stars, shining so brightly, because there is virtually no electric light to compete with them.

Day 4: Puinahua River - Hatum Posa Lake - Pacaya River

Meals included: 1 breakfast, 1 lunch, 1 dinner

Activities:

• Breakfast
• 8:30 a.m. Jungle Walk Near Hatum Posa Village
• On this walk, your guides will introduce you to native people doing subsistence farming, and will tell you how they learned to cultivate wild plants and trees to earn farm income. As your adventure takes you deep into the primary forest, your guides will also show you the wealth of fruit trees and medicinal plants hidden in the jungle—and will reveal some of their secrets.
• Return to the M/V Aqua
• Approximately 12:30 p.m. Lunch
• After lunch, it’s nice to just watch the world go by through the over-sized windows in your suite.
• 3:30 p.m. Pacaya River Exploration, Plus Night Trip from Ranger Station No. 1 to Yanayacu Lake
• In the late afternoon, we will take our skiffs along the Pacaya River, journeying toward the scenic Yanayacu Lake. There you can view the abundant life that is hidden in the deep rainforest.
• We have chosen this time of day to give you the chance to see the late afternoon activity of the rainforest animals, including fluffy saki monkeys, capuchin monkeys, and the easy-to-spot howler monkeys. As the sun sets, listen for the loud, ferocious-sounding warning signals made by the howler monkeys, as they mark their territories.
• When night falls, you will hear the second movement of the Amazon rainforest symphony, as other nocturnal animals send their shrill calls across the tree tops. We will use our special spotlight torches to locate night creatures, including, perhaps, huge caimans.
• Return to the M/V Aqua in the evening.
• Tonight the vessel will be docked by the No. 1 Ranger Station in Pacaya Samiria National Park.
• Approximately 8:30 p.m. Dinner
• After dinner, perhaps enjoy Peru’s famous Pisco sours on the Upper Deck.

Day 5: Pacaya River/ Puinahua Village Visit

Meals included: 1 breakfast, 1 lunch, 1 dinner

Activities:

• Approximately 6:30 a.m. Pacaya Exploration; Breakfast on the Skiffs
• Back on the river as the sun rises, you will see a treasure trove of wildlife, including parrots, macaws, toucans, and many kinds of monkeys—as well as some “surprise” species that you have never seen before. Enjoy a “bag breakfast” of light sandwiches and fresh juice. Since we will stop near a popular dolphin feeding spot, you will see quite a show as you enjoy your meal.
• After breakfast, armed with poles and bait, we will take you to a special place on this fish-rich river, where you will catch some of the more than 3,000 species of tropical fish that live in the Amazon Basin. The key target will be piranhas, the small carnivorous fish with a fearsome reputation—considered a good food source by the locals.
• Return to the M/V Aqua
• As our journey nears its end, your luxurious home away from home starts to sail back down the river ward Iquitos. It isn’t over yet, however. A new adventure awaits you this afternoon.
• Approximately 12:30 p.m. Lunch
• Afternoon Visit to Native Village.
• This pleasant optional afternoon excursion, will take you to a riverside village – home to a friendly group of fishermen and farmers, and their families. Your guide will translate for you, as you interact with the local people.
• Return to the M/V Aqua
• We will sail downstream all night, as we make our way to Iquitos, and your onward flight.
• Approximately 8:00 p.m. Farewell Dinner
• Just minutes after being in the wilderness, surrounded by monkeys and birds and the other wildlife of the rainforest, you will find yourself sitting down to a final gourmet feast in the ship’s dining room
• 9:00 p.m. Crew Presentation
• Tonight, the Cruise Director will introduce some of the crew members you haven’t yet met on the trip, but who have worked behind the scenes to give you an unforgettable experience. There may even be a bit of musical entertainment!

Day 6: Return to Iquitos, fly Lima

Meals included: 1 breakfast, 1 lunch

Activities:

• Approximately 7:30 a.m. Breakfast
• Morning Excursion – The excursions today depend on the level of the river.
• Weather and time permitting, this will be the last opportunity to see how people live along the Amazon—by floating in skiffs through the lively riverside community of Belen, in Iquitos. Here, where the houses and shops actually float on the river during some months, you will see the bustling food market for the entire Peruvian Amazon. All local inhabitants throughout the region sell and purchase goods here.
• Return to the M/V Aqua
• Sadly, it’s time to finish packing. Please leave your packed suitcases in your suite for pickup before going to lunch.
• 12.00 p.m. Light Lunch
• 1:15 p.m. Disembarkation/City Tour/Manatee Rescue Center/Transfer to the Airport
• Your afternoon in the remote city of Iquitos, accessible only by river or air, will not disappoint. This bustling town, complete with a house built by Gustave Eiffel, was once a rich center of the rubber industry. Before we head for the airport, we will take you to visit the Manatee Rescue Center, where biologists and volunteers care for endangered Amazon manatees that conservation authorities have seized from local people, including fishermen. Biologists will give a presentation about the project and its efforts to help these helpless mammals. You will also see how the manatees are cared for and are prepared for re-introduction into their natural habitat. Finally, we will stop at the San Juan Amazonian Indian Market, for a last chance to shop for local crafts.
• Afternoon flight to Lima:
• Your guides will help you with check-in, and will stay with you until you have boarded your flight back to Lima.

Day 7: Lima

Meals included: 1 breakfast

Activities:

• On the morning of Day 7 we start our exploration of the Peruvian capital with a half-day city tour. Founded in 1535 by the Spanish conquistador, Francisco Pizarro, it was from Lima that all Spanish territories in South America were governed. Few cities at that time could rival Lima’s power, wealth and opulence. However its glory days ended in 1746 when the city was virtually destroyed by an earthquake. Many of the colonial buildings were rebuilt and we get a first-hand look at several of them on our tour. The striking Plaza Mayor (Plaza de Armas), flanked by some of the most important buildings in town such as the cathedral, the huge Government Palace and the Archbishop’s Palace, constitutes the heart of the city. We visit the cathedral and the nearby San Francisco Monastery, with its catacombs containing some 70,000 human remains. We also visit the impressive National Museum of Anthropology, Archaeology and History of Peru, which is home to a wonderful collection of cultural exhibits tracing the history, arts and accomplishments of the people of Peru, ranging from the original inhabitants of the land through to the Inca Empire and the Spanish conquerors. The afternoon is free to do your own exploration of Lima. You may wish to wander around Miraflores or perhaps catch a taxi to visit the Gold Museum or the Larco Museum, which is renowned for its ancient pottery collection. Please remember that you must agree on a fare with the driver before catching a taxi, as the taxis here do not have meters. (Miraflores-Downtown approximately 10-15 soles)
• NB: Flights out of Lima on this day must be booked after 5PM

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Your Trip

What's Included

Not Included

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Important Information

Built:     2007
Port of embarkation:   Iquitos, Peru
Vessel’s Registry:   Peru
Type of Vessel:   River Expedition Vessel
Length:    130 feet / 39.80 m
Beam:     24 feet / 7.30 m
Draft:     5 feet / 1.5 m
Gross Tonnage:   400 tons
Cruising Speed:   10 knots
Electricity:    220 volts
Engines:    2 new Cummins 380 HP Marine Engines
Generators:    1 x 95 KVA Cummins and 1 x 65 KVA Cummins
(encapsulated for noise reduction)
Water:     7000-liter water treatment plant

Safety:   Radio communication with separate battery pack, satellite phone, life jackets, flares and signals, fire extinguishers and smoke detectors in each cabin, automatic defibrillator on board.

Launch Boats:   Three auxiliary aluminum launch boats equipped with four-stroke low emission engines; constant radio communication with the main vessel. Each boat has a capacity of 8 passengers.

Crew:   21, including a cruise director, paramedic and 3 English-speaking naturalist guides.

Accommodation:   Up to 24 passengers with private facilities
 

Cabins:    12 suites:
• 4 Master Suites measuring 240 sq. ft.
• 8 Suites measuring 230 sq. ft.
- All outside-facing with large panoramic windows
- All air conditioned with en suite sitting areas
- 4 interconnecting suites for families

Cabin features: 

Twin beds that can be converted to a California king-sized bed
En suite sitting area
Internal communications system, bathroom with shower, toilet, sink, cabinet, hairdryer, and a basket of toiletries.
Hot water around the clock.

Social Areas:   

Indoor Bar-Lounge
Dining Room
Outside Lounge
Observation Deck
Boutique
 

Partner organisations on the ground: Peregrine works with partner organisations in each country we visit. This ensures we provide employment opportunities within local communities, including our experienced local leaders. We minimise the negative impacts of travel and maximise the benefits to the regions we travel, through working with our ethical services providers. For any assistance prior to travel, please contact your travel agent. For assistance whilst you are travelling, please contact the local numbers listed on your travel itinerary, as your call will be received in the same time zone. Alternatively, if you have already joined your tour, please direct your enquiries to your local tour leader

About this Information

The information provided here is given in good faith and has been compiled with all reasonable care. However, things change and some of the information may become out of date. Please keep this in mind when you read it and check with us if you want to be sure about something. The document was correct at time of printing, but you can check online for the most up to date version.  If you have any queries, please contact your travel agent or our staff in Australia. We are here to help you!

Last Updated

3 May 2013

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