Day 1
Saturday
Flight from Lima to Iquitos. Arrive in Iquitos in the afternoon and transfer to the M/V Aqua, your luxury home for the next eight days, waiting for you in the small village of Nauta.
After checking-in we will have time to meet our fellow travelers while the staff performs a routine safety drill. Immediately after, dinner will be served. Peruvian cuisine is considered one of the world's best. Here it is presented with a touch of European flair. Enjoy a nightcap on the Upper Deck under the stars before retiring for the night.
Day 2
Sunday
Very early this morning we will board the skiffs to get our first glimpse of the majestic Amazon River, as we watch the sun rise over this green world filled with wonderful wildlife. This initial contact with Amazonia is only a brief sampling of what the rest of our journey will hold. After a delicious breakfast, we will again board our comfortable excursion skiffs for a first adventure, traveling from the Amazon through the Huaysi short-cut canal to explore the Tahuayo black water river. Life jackets, ponchos, rubber boots, and plenty of cold potable water will always be available for you on board the skiffs. As we float down the Tahuayo, occasional fishermen paddling in their dug-out canoes will give us a cheerful greeting. Keep your binoculars ready to spot a vast variety of wildlife: terns, orioles, blackbirds, black collared hawks, monkeys, and sloth share this wonderful environment with us. Upon arrival at Charo Lake, you can bait your hooks to try to catch one of Amazonia’s fearsome piranhas (and other fish as well). As you fish, trained guides will also tell you the story of the lake and its inhabitants. Return to the M/V Aqua for rest and lunch.
Day 3
Monday
Today you can choose between two options after breakfast:
Option 1: Full-day excursion with a Picnic Lunch at Ranger Station No. 2
Travel by skiff from Yanayacu Creek all the way to remote Yarina – Park Ranger Station No. 2. On this excursion, you may see howler and capuchin monkeys, the squirrel-sized monkeys called tamarins, pink and gray river dolphins, and a vast variety of birds. We will also take you deep into the jungle, where you will encounter wildlife and learn first-hand about the important medical value of jungle plants. And we will show you famous Kapok Trees (ceiba pentandra), the tallest trees in the Amazon Basin. Enjoy a generous picnic lunch at the Park Ranger Station No. 2, before we begin our journey back to our vessel. Later, arrive at the M/V Aqua.
Option 2: Guided Jungle Walk/Siesta/Monkey and Dolphin Expedition - This morning your Park Ranger will tell you all about sustainable resource management projects in Amazonia. You will visit one of the projects, where villagers are planting palms to obtain oil. Return to the M/V Aqua for lunch and a siesta. In the afternoon, we will have our Monkey and Dolphin Expedition. We will be able to see the two different kinds of freshwater dolphins—including the unusual pink ones—found in the Amazon. Later, keep your eyes directed toward the jungle canopy, where you can spot at least several kinds of primates—among the 13 species of monkeys resident in the National Park. Perhaps you will catch a glimpse of tamarins and howlers, dusky titi monkeys and pigmy marmoset monkeys. Watch for alligators, and keep your binoculars at the ready, as you are likely to see more than 200 species of birds.
Dinner and overnight stay aboard the M/V Aqua.
Day 4
Tuesday
This morning, the M/V Aqua skirts the edges of the vast Pacaya-Samiria Reserve, a flooded forest covering five million acres at the headwaters of the Amazon basin. Rise early and be on your skiffs at 8:00 a.m. to view one of the great spectacles of the Southern Hemisphere: the sun rising over the birthplace of the Amazon River. Here—where the union of two major tributaries, the Ucayali and the Marañon, form the world’s greatest waterway—nature is at its most dramatic. Your dawn excursion will be accompanied by abundant bird song, as you glide in small boats past river banks populated by large-billed terns, laughing falcons, gray tanagers, sandpipers, five kinds of parakeets, the exotic short-tailed parrot, and dozens of other birds. Afterwards, we will travel by skiff to Puerto Miguel native village, where you can meet and interact with local villagers from this most remote part of the world, and can learn a bit more about their culture, traditions, and folklore. You will also have the chance to purchase local handicrafts. On the way back to the Aqua we will navigate on a small connector canal between the Ucayali and Marañon Rivers, where you will have a chance to see the world’s largest aquatic plant, the giant water lilies or “Victoria Regias”.
After lunch, we are having an afternoon excursion to Nauta Caño who is also part of the Pacaya Samiria Reserve. It is known as the mirrored forest, due to its glistening black water lagoons. You will certainly enjoy observing different species, such as: toucans, parrots, macaws, iguanas, and more. On the way back to the M/V Aqua you will see a glorious sunset reflected in the waters of the mirrored forest.
Day 5
Wednesday
This morning we will board the skiffs to explore this amazing black water stream, part of the vast Amazon flooded forest. Your guides will tell you about the rainforest and its dynamic life, as we explore what scientists call a “gallery forest,” because of its narrow vegetation, creating a tunnel of leaves. As we float through this tunnel, it is easy to spot parrots, macaws, and fluffy monk saki monkeys, very close to the skiff. Then, we will return to Aqua for lunch and maybe to catch a nap. In the afternoon, we will take a magical journey through the “Mirrored Forest,” seeing towering trees reflected in the black water river, while spotting dozens of enchanting parrots, blue-yellow macaws, and a great variety of primates and sloths enjoying nature unperturbed by our presence. As we make our way back to our vessel, you will also have the chance to see caimans and frogs and fishing bats. Dinner and overnight stay on the M/V Aqua.
Day 6
Thursday
This morning we will rise early to cruise this beautiful and intricate ox-bow lake. As we follow its shore, we will almost certainly surprise several kinds of monkeys and many types of birds, including terns, neo-tropic cormorants, egrets, herons, hawks, and our favorite horned screamers. We will also take the skiff into other black water lakes linked to this huge lake in the flooded forest. After Breakfast, we will walk near Hatum Posa and 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. Deep in the primary forest, your guides will also show you the wealth of fruit trees and medicinal plants hidden in the jungle. Return to the M/V Aqua for lunch.
In the late afternoon, we will take our skiffs along the Pacaya River, journeying from Ranger Station No. 1 toward Yanayacu Lake, where you can see 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 monk 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 howler monkeys marking 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. As we take the skiffs back to the M/V Aqua, we will use our special spotlight torches to locate night creatures, including, perhaps, huge caimans. Dinner and overnight stay on the M/V Aqua.
Day 7
Friday
The day begins with the exploration of the Pacaya Reserve aboard 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. Then, we return to the M/V Aqua for lunch.
In the late afternoon, we will travel to this splendid “hot spot” lake, where you will be certain to catch some of the more than 3,000 species of tropical fish that live in the Amazon basin. Our key focus will be on piranhas, those small, carnivorous fish with a big reputation for being scary. At night, we will enjoy our final dinner together while leaving the peace and beauty of the jungle behind. After dinner, your guides will introduce you to some of the crew members that you have not met.
Day 8
Saturday
After breakfast and if weather and time allow it, this will be the last opportunity to see how people live along the Amazon—by visiting the lively riverside community of Belen, in Iquitos, by skiff. 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. After that, we will have some time for packing and have a light lunch before we disembark in Iquitos.
Our 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 to the airport, we will visit the Manatee Rescue Center, where biologists and volunteers care for endangered Amazon manatees that conservation authorities have seized from local people. Finally, you will stop at the San Juan Amazonian Indian Market for one last chance to shop for local crafts. Transfer to the airport to take your flight back to Lima.
Peru
Observation Deck
Master Suite
Wildlife
