These were undoubtedly the four amazing days of my trip to Peru. Amazon Rainforest are no doubt extensive and four days are not enough to visit the whole of it.... read more machu Picchu Amazon´s itinerary was very nicely planned and we visited all the main spots of Manu and got a first hand experience of the life in there. We even tried different Amazonian food on the trip.

  Before I decided to book this tour I confirmed with Viator operator a few things that were very important to know before going. I was traveling with a 4... read more year old and a 14 year old. We booked this as a private tour since we were traveling with kids. There is no detail about what to expect during your tour so here is what we did. But let me start off by talking about our tour guide Julio who is awesome! Julio was our tour guide and he is great! He is really informative and he really knows his stuff. He goes into great detail and explanation and speaks very good english. He always had the answer to all of our questions. He really cares about the jungle and its people. Our driver was Gerber? He didn’t speak much English but he got us from point A to B.

Day1-
Pick up at our hotel in Cusco was on time at 6am. On day 1 we visited a few villages before entering the National Park, which was great. Then on to the 6-7 hour drive of unpaved, bumpy, windy, narrow roads to enter the park. We ended up in Paraiso Lodge which was nice around 5pm. There was no AC or fans, as I was told before I booked the tour that there was some, in the rooms. The lunch and dinner was great. Flora was our cook and she was so sweet.
Day2- after having a great breakfast we drove to a sanctuary not too far from the lodge and it was perfect for the kids. Freely roaming monkey’s, many diverse species of them. Other animals that we were not able to see on the trip were also there. There is a lady that runs the sanctuary and the animals just love her. We tipped her 50 soles. Then we drove to the pier where we were given rain boots to use during the rest of our stay. We took a boat ride to the “lodge” that we stayed at. It was in the middle of the jungle!! You would not be able to find it at all. When we got to the lodge it was a basic shack almost. Wooden, no toilet seat, no hot water (you don’t need it), no outlets, no A/C, no fan, basic beds with a mosquito netting. We also had 3 wasp nest on the outside of our lodge (they don’t sting unless aggravated). There is a huge gap between the roof of the lodge so plenty of critters can get in. It was bearable, but it was extremely hot and humid. You’ll find mice and toads as visitors throughout your stay. It didn’t bother the kids. After settling down we took a hike around 2pm for 3 hours to a secluded “hot springs.” We enjoyed the cold water that was running from a hose to the pool of hot water instead because after a long hike in rainboots and mud we looked forward to a cold pool. The kids had fun. We hiked back and called it a night.
Day3- Woke up early around 0500 to go bird watching. That was great. After having breakfast we went for another hike to see some more wildlife in a boat across a small river. It was extremely hot, but we made sure to wear long sleeves and pants. We skipped zip lining as I was really concerned about the safety issues with my 4 year old. After hearing stories from other people that opted to go zip lining I’m glad we said no. We stayed in and rested up. There is a beautiful waterfall and swimming area in the back of the lodges that I wish I knew sooner so we can go for a dip.
Day 4- headed back to Cusco, but we had a shared van with other people because it was better to be stuck on the road with 1 car than 2. The ride wasn’t too bad. It was another 6 hours or so before they dropped us off at the airport.

Overall, I wish I had known about the heat and humidity and having no fans in the rooms beforehand so I could have better prepared myself and the kids. It was a different kind of experience that you really have to be open minded about. You are in a jungle! We saw monkeys, cayman and plenty of birds. Julio made it so great and enjoyable for us. The food was also outstanding and so are the staff. My only complaint is the rooms that we stayed at during our 2nd and 3rd night. It was a little uncomfortable that we even asked Julio if we can stay at Paraiso Lodge during our last night, but it wasn’t possible. Other than that, it was one heck of an experience.
Thank you to the awesome staff and experience.

  This trip was well worth every penny paid. The trip was organised exceptionally well from the pickup till we were dropped back in Cusco.All arrangements were carefully made by them... read more so we had no short of a thing. Highly reccomend them for Amazon tours.

  There is no word to express my gratitude to Richard and his team who were amazing on my Amazon trip. It's a vast region and there are many... read more animals and birds and plants and trees in there. The guide as a local knew a lot about these things and was informal and good at explaining them. I can totally recommend them.