Day 1
Friday
Flight from Lima to Iquitos. Arrive in Iquitos in the afternoon and transfer to the M/V Aria, your luxury home for the next four days, waiting 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
Saturday
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 board our comfortable excursion skiffs for a first adventure to the Yacapana Islands to see the flora and fauna of the islands and to fish for the infamous piranhas with our naturalists. Locals call the Yacapana Islands the “Iguana Islands,” because of the huge population of these reptiles—like tiny dinosaurs—crawling over the ground and resting in the tree tops. As we pass by in the skiff, you will have a chance to snap good photos.
Return to the M/V Aria for a siesta and lunch before we head out to see and photograph both gray and pink freshwater dolphins as the sun sets. The people of the Amazon believe that these dolphins turn into humans to steal handsome men or pretty women from their villages during celebrations. Once the sun sets and the jungle is dark, we begin our search for caiman, frogs, and different kinds of nightlife. We will return to the M/V Aria for dinner as we continue our journey upstream, toward the headwaters of the Amazon River, where the Ucayali, Marañon, and the Amazon Rivers merge.
Day 3
Sunday
This morning, we will visit the Yanallpa Stream looking for wildlife such as the bald uakari monkey, squirrel monkeys, saddleback tamarin monkeys, sloths and many other species. We will observe the trees which grow in these seasonally-flooded areas and our guides will explain the natural mechanisms through which the vegetation withstands the water during these months.
After lunch and a siesta, we will have our monkey and dolphin excursion. You will see different types of freshwater dolphin, including the rare pink dolphins found along the Ucayali River. We recommend that you bring your binoculars as there will also be opportunities to observe some species of birds, among which the macaws stand out, as well as a spectacular sundown. Depending on how the evening progresses, you will be able to watch nocturnal wildlife on the Dorado River, especially the caimans. Return to the M/V Aria for dinner.
Day 4
Monday
This morning, the M/V Aria 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 Aria 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”.
In the late afternoon, we will visit part of the Pacaya-Samiria Reserve known as the mirrored forest, due to its glistening black water lagoons. Here you will observe different species, such as toucans, parrots, macaws, iguanas and more. On the way back to the M/V Aria for dinner you will see a glorious sunset reflected in the waters of the mirrored forest.
Day 5
Tuesday
This morning we will board the skiffs to explore 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.
After lunch, we will go on a jungle walk and visit some native people doing subsistence farming. They 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 the secrets of the medicinal plants hidden in the jungle. We will return to the M/V Aria for dinner as we continue our journey.
Day 6
Wednesday
Today you can choose between two options after breakfast:
Option 1: Full-day excursion to the Primary Forest with Picnic Lunch:
We will board the skiffs to go deep into the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, along the Samiria River. Along the route, we will have the opportunity to see various species of monkeys, such as howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, saddleback tamarin monkeys and many bird species such as blue, yellow and scarlet macaws as well as toucans and some species of river hawks. We will arrive at the PV2 Tacsha watchpost, where we will follow a path deep into the rainforest. Enjoy a generous picnic lunch, before we begin our journey back to our vessel for dinner.
Option 2: Guided Jungle Walk/Siesta/Monkey and Dolphin Expedition:
This morning your guide will tell you all about the sustainable resource management projects in the Amazonia as you head to one of these projects, where villagers are planting palms to obtain oil. Your guide will then take you deep into the jungle, where you will encounter wildlife and learn first-hand about the important medicinal value of many jungle plants. You will also see the famous Kapok Trees (ceiba pentandra), the tallest trees in the Amazon Basin. Return to the M/V Aria for lunch and a siesta. . In the afternoon, we will have our monkey and caiman expedition. 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 aboard the M/V Aria.
Day 7
Thursday
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. Return to the M/V Aria 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, sharp-teethed carnivorous fish with a big reputation for being scary. At night, we will enjoy our final dinner together while leaving the peace and the beauty of the jungle behind. After dinner, you will have the opportunity to meet some crew members that you have not yet met.
Day 8
Friday
After breakfast and if weather and time permits, 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
M/V Aria
Lounge
Design Suite
