Tour Description

Special Offer

Savings & Solo Travel Offers!

Solo Traveller Offer!

Enjoy a waiver of the single supplement fee on selected departures in January, February and September 2024 and 2025. Valid in specific cabins only. Offer applies to new bookings only, may not be combined with any other offer, and is subject to availability. Aqua Expeditions reserves the right to withdraw special offers at any time and without notice.

Details

**4 Night Itinerary**
**Day 1: Iquitos**
You will be met and transferred to your luxury river boat in time for dinner.

**Day 2: Maranon River > Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve**
Dawn and dusk are ideal times for nature observation. Enjoy black water stream exploration with particularly good sightings of macaws, monkeys and river dolphins. Fish for piranha, enjoy a lecture and visit one of the Indian villages in the area and learn about their way of life.

**Day 3: Samiria River > Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve**
Take a walking tour through the jungle learning about the vegetation found in the Amazon and observe some of the jungle wildlife at first hand. Ride traditional Amazonian canoes and swim in the waters of the Samiria River. Then visit Nauta Cano, known as the ‘Forest of Mirrors’ due to wonderful reflections found here and an area that is very rich in toucans, macaws and iguanas. As you make your way back to the ship, you may also see alligators, frogs and fishing bats.

**Day 4: Amazon River > Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve**
A jungle walk this morning offers a plethora of wildlife, so keep your binoculars ready to observe tanagers and orioles as well as various reptiles and amphibians. After lunch visit the Yanayacu Islands, known locally as ‘Islands of the Iguana’. Here you have a chance to see the Victoria Regia, the world’s largest aquatic plant. As the sun sets, photograph the freshwater Amazon dolphins.

**Day 5: Iquitos**
In the dry season visit an animal rescue centre and in the wet season tour the flood zone that borders the city of Iquitos to observe the houses and shops that actually float on the Itaya River for several months of the year and visit a traditional market full of Amazonian produce. Return to the Aria for a light lunch before disembarkation and in throughout the year, visit the Manatee Rescue Centre and an Amazonian Indian Market on the way to the airport.

**3 Night Itinerary**
**Day 1: Iquitos > Amazon River**
Make your own way to the MV Aria where you settle into your suite. Over the next three days, you will also sail along the two largest tributaries of the Peruvian Amazon, the Ucayali and the Maranon, as well as on the mighty Amazon itself. Welcome dinner on board.

**Day 2: Amazon > Yacapana > Yarapa > Clavero Lake **
Visit Yacapana Islands, known locally “The Islands of the Iguana” because of the large number of these reptiles. You will also see the famous Amazon River dolphins, pink or gray, along our route. We will pass close to lush islands, giving you the opportunity to take good pictures of the tropical flora and fauna. Return to your ship for breakfast. Your sumptuous daily breakfast buffet features a wide variety of dishes, including Peruvian specialties and fresh fruit juices. This morning you will board our comfortable skiff to sail from the Amazon River to the Yarapa River. Life jackets, ponchos, rubber boots, and fresh water are always available in our private boats. As you float down the Yarapa, past the occasional fishermen paddling in their canoes, keep your binoculars ready to spot wildlife: terns, tropical songbirds, black collared hawks and sloth share this wonderful world with us. Upon our arrival at Lake Moringo, use your hooks to try to catch some of the ferocious piranhas and other fish species. As you fish, trained naturalist guides will tell the story of the lake and its inhabitants. Enjoy lunch in the comfort of our air-conditioned dining room before a talk by a naturalist guide. Sail on to Lake Clavero where villagers paddle in their traditional dugout canoes. You may wish to swim in the lake’s calm waters and visit the community to interact with our Amazonia neighbors who will be pleased to welcome you.

**Day 3: Ucayali > Yanallpa >Dorado River > Pacaya Samiria National Reserve**
After breakfast board the skiffs to explore a fascinating black water stream, part of the vast Amazon flooded forest within the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve. Your guides will tell you about the jungle as we explore what scientists call a “gallery forest,” because of its dense vegetation that creates a tunnel of leaves. As we explore this type of riparian vegetation, watch above for parrots, macaws, and fluffy monk saki monkeys. Return to your ship for optional Peruvian cooking lessons before lunch. Enjoy talks by naturalist guides before a Dorado River Exploration. This afternoon take a magical journey through the “Jungle of the Mirrors,” where towering trees are reflected in the dark river. You move on to Dorado River where you may observe enchanting parrots, macaws and a variety of primates, unperturbed by your presence. As you make your way back to the ship, you may see alligators, frogs and fishing bats. While you dine, continue the journey upstream, toward the headwaters of the Amazon River, where the Ucayali and Maranon Rivers merge.

**Day 4: Birthplace of the Amazon **
This morning, your ship skirts the edge of the vast Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, a flooded forest covering five million acres at the headwaters of the Amazon basin. Get up early to see one of the great spectacles of the Southern Hemisphere: the sun rising over the origin of the Amazon River. Here, the junction of two major tributaries, the Ucayali and the Maranon, form one of the greatest waterfalls in the world. Your morning excursion will be accompanied by abundant bird song, as you glide in small boats past large-billed terns, laughing falcons, exotic short-tailed parrot, and dozens of other vibrantly hued birds. Then travel by boat to a community located along the Maranon River, where you will meet and interact with local villagers in this remote part of the world and learn about their traditions and folklore. You will also have the opportunity to shop for local handicrafts directly from the artisans. Return for a light lunch. This afternoon, visit the Manatee Rescue Center, a kind of animal orphanage for Amazonian manatees to rescue, rehabilitate and release back into the wild. Later, we stop at the Amazonian Indian Market San Juan, where, you may wish to shop for local crafts before leaving. Board your flight back to Lima.

**7 Night Itinerary **
Combination of the two above.
**NB:** Please note that itineraries vary dependent on whether they are operating in the Low Water vs High Water season.