Day 1: Iquitos - Nauta - Embarkation
After your flight to the capital of the Peruvian Amazon, our guides will meet you at the Iquitos airport—waiting for you with a sign with the name of Jungle Experiences. We will then go to the Doubletree by Hilton Iquitos Hotel, the meeting point, to receive your first briefing about the trip and where you will enjoy a delicious welcome lunch. Then you will be transported by a private vehicle to the main dock of the city of Iquitos to board El Zafiro, your home for the following three nights. While El Zafiro begins its initial navigation, you can enjoy the most fantastic panoramic views from the observation area that is elegantly equipped for your enjoyment and located on our third deck. Enjoy the fantastic panoramic view from our elegant indoor and outdoor lounge that is also located on the third deck. Our bartender will be waiting for you to serve you an exotic cocktail prepared with fruits from the region and pisco, the national liquor of Peru. Before the welcome dinner, your naturalist guides will give you an overview of the travel program, activities, routes, important moments, wildlife and vegetation, the geographical and historical background, and other useful details. After dinner, we invite you to the third deck where you can a spectacular view of the stars as we enter the depths of the Amazon rainforest, or relax with live music by our band on board and enjoy a varied repertoire of Amazonian, national, and international music.
Day 2: Birth of the Amazon - Vista Alegre - Yarapa - Pirana Creek
Before breakfast we will head towards the expedition boats and then we will be in route to the confluence of the Marañón and Ucayali rivers; in this union there is the birth of the majestic Amazon River—the perfect place to see different types of birds and the famous pink dolphins. Later we will visit the community of Vista Alegre. We will have a culinary demonstration by a local inhabitant, who will expand his knowledge about the local cooking techniques of this community. Before returning to El Zafiro, we will visit the Vista Alegre butterfly farm project, where you will learn about butterflies in the Amazon and their importance to the environment. After lunch, we will continue exploring the waterways in the expedition boats— sailing towards the place where the pink and gray freshwater dolphins swim. We will take a walk in Yarapa, where you will have an unforgettable experience looking for wild life enjoying the incredible panorama that the jungle has to offer. We will continue exploring until we reach Piraña Creek,one of the first tributaries of the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve. This area is excellent for piranha fishing. Later, we will make a nocturnal excursion in search of black caimans, fireflies, tarantulas, snakes and countless specimens that you have never seen before.
Day 3: Yanacu De Yacapana - Amazon River - Zona Tamishacu
We will continue exploring the water paths in the expedition boats in search of monkeys such as the capuchin monkey, choros monkeys, marmosets and other primates. We will enjoy a unique landscape of the tropical humid forest, in which we will explain the arboreal species in the riverbanks and aquatic plants and their function within the environment. Also, during the expedition, the guides will sharpen their senses to locate the sloths in the trees, macaws that fly over the area, the curious dolphins that gather near the confluences, and whirlpools of fish formed by the river currents. During the tour you will find fishermen and residents in different activities with which they will interact and show us the fruits of their day’s activities. While El Zafiro continues to sail, we will have a cooking demonstration by our Chef where we will learn first-hand about the local cuisine and taste the Amazonian culinary art. After dinner, your naturalist guides will introduce you to the crew members you may not have met during the trip.
Day 4: Check out - Disembark in Iquitos - Manati Rescue Centre - Airport
Before breakfast you will have your last boat trip to the Bellavista Market, where during the tour we will admire the houseboats. We then return to El Zafiro to share the last breakfast with the passengers before their trip back home. On the way to the airport, you will visit the Amazon Rescue Center (CREA), where biologists and volunteers take care of the endangered species of manatees that the authorities have rescued. See how the manatees are cared for, and prepared for their reintroduction to their natural habitat. There are also other animals that have been rescued from captures with the intention of turning them into pets and other dangerous conditions.
