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Day 1 -
Tuesday
ARRIVAL/NAUTA/EMBARKATION/MARAÑON RIVER -
cruise map
4:05 p.m. Flight from Lima LP 394
5:50 p.m. Arrival
Your guides await you, as your flight from Lima glides in for
landing at Iquitos International Airport. After you’ve claimed your
luggage, you will board an air-conditioned bus for your journey to
the river.
6:00 p.m. Transfer to Nauta’ main wharf.
A scenic one-and-a-half hour drive through the Peruvian countryside
to the small village of Nauta.
7:30 p.m. Check-In
Take a few moments to settle into your over-sized suite before
dinner. Over the next four days, you will sail along several
tributaries of the Amazon, as well as on the mighty river itself.
You are embarking on a spectacular adventure, to a place visited by
only a few of even the most experienced world travelers.
8:00 p.m. Safety Drill and Briefing on the Top Deck
Before dinner we will perform a routine safety drill. Following
that, your Cruise Director and Guides will give a brief orientation
talk about life on board, where you will go and what you will see on
your Amazon journey.
8:30 p.m. Welcome Dinner
Meet your fellow travelers at your first onboard dinner. Peruvian
cuisine is considered one of the world’s best. Here it is presented
with a touch of European flair, and a vegetarian dish is always
available. Raise a glass of fine South American wine to toast the
beginning of a beautiful journey, then look out the window and watch
the river go by as you experience your first wonderful meal aboard
the M/V Aqua.
Perhaps enjoy a nightcap on the Upper Deck, under the stars, before
retiring.
UP
Day 2 - Wednesday
UCAYALI RIVER/MAGDALENA VILLAGE/PUINAHUA CANAL
6:30 a.m. Ucayali River Exploration
We will set out early this morning to explore the Ucayali River, the
Amazon’s largest tributary. Sightings will include the slow-moving
three-toed sloths, iguanas, orioles, and horned screamers, as well
as many other birds.
8:00 a.m. Breakfast
9:30 a.m. Jungle Walk to Magdalena
After breakfast we will walk through the village of Madgalena, a
small community of ten families. After meeting the people, including
lots of lively and curious children, your naturalist guides will
lead you through the jungle to a beautiful lake that is home to the
world famous Victoria Regia giant water lily.
12:00 p.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
12:30 p.m. Lunch
4:00 p.m. Ucayali Exploration and Puinahua and Discovery Tour
This afternoon we will cruise the majestic Ucayali River, giving you
a chance to see and meet native balseros, or fishermen, who will
demonstrate their skill and let you see their catch—including a type
of “armored” catfish with a shell-like skin. You will have at least
one chance to sample this delicious local fish at dinner aboard the
M/V Aqua. We are also likely to spot, and have an opportunity to
photograph, the “banana balsero” rafts, loaded with hundreds of
clusters of bananas, drifting down the river to market. Other
highlights include the viewing of woodpeckers, parrots, macaws, and
toucans.
6:30 p.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
8:00 p.m. Dinner
UP
Day 3 - Thursday
PUINAHUA RIVER/HATUM POSA LAKE AND PACAYA RIVER
7:30 a.m. Breakfast
8:30 a.m. Jungle Walk Near Hatum Posa Village
On this walk, 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—the source of many of the
world’s pharmaceutical products.
11:30 a.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
12:30 p.m. Lunch
3:30 p.m. Pacaya River Exploration, Plus Night Trip from Ranger
Station No. 1 to Yanayacu Lake
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 view the abundant life that is hidden in the deep
rainforest. You may see saki monkeys, capuchin monkeys, and the
easy-to-spot heavy howler monkeys, leaping long distances from tree
to tree. As the sun sets, you will hear the loud, ferocious sounding
warning signals made by the howler monkeys as they mark 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. We will use our special
spotlight torches to locate night creatures, including, perhaps,
huge caimans.
7:30 p.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
Tonight the vessel will be docked by the No. 1 Ranger Station in
Pacaya Samiria National Park.
8:30 p.m. Dinner
UP
Day 4 - Friday
PACAYA RIVER / PUINAHUA VILLAGE VISIT
6:30 a.m. Pacaya Exploration; Breakfast on the Skiffs
In the bright morning light, your Guides will show you parrots,
macaws, toucans, and many different types of monkeys. We will also
go to the dolphin feeding spots along Pacaya River, where you will
be delightfully surrounded by these creatures while enjoying a light
breakfast and fresh juice.
After breakfast, armed with poles and bait, we will take you to a
special place on this fish-rich river, where you will catch some of
the more than 3,000 species of tropical fish that live in the Amazon
Basin. The key target will be piranhas, the small carnivorous fish
with a fearsome reputation—considered a good food source by the
locals.
11:00 a.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
We will begin our homeward journey, sailing downstream toward
Iquitos.
12:30 p.m. Lunch
4:00 p.m. Native Village Visit
This optional afternoon excursion is a short informational walk into
a riverside village. Your guide will show you way of life in these
communities of fishermen and farmers.
5:30 p.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
We will sail downstream all night, as we make our way to Iquitos,
and your onward flight.
8:00 p.m. Farewell Dinner
Just minutes after being in the wilderness, surrounded by monkeys
and birds and the other wildlife of the rainforest, you will find
yourself sitting down to a final gourmet feast in the ship’s dining
room
9:00 p.m. Crew Presentation
Tonight, the Cruise Director will introduce some of the crew members
you haven’t yet met on the trip, but who have worked behind the
scenes to give you an unforgettable experience. There may even be a
bit of musical entertainment!
UP
Day 5 - Saturday
ARRIVE IN IQUITOS CITY/CHECK-OUT AND DISEMBARK AT THE MAIN
WHARF/CITY TOUR AND TRANSFER TO THE AIRPORT
7:30 a.m. Breakfast
9:30 a.m. Morning Excursion – The excursions today depend on the
level of the river.
Weather and time permitting, this will be the last opportunity to
see how people live along the Amazon—by visiting the lively
riverside community of Belen by skiff, in Iquitos. Here, where the
houses and shops actually float on the river during some months, you
will see the bustling food market of the entire Peruvian Amazon. All
local inhabitants throughout the region sell and purchase goods
here.
Some groups may instead take a short skiff ride to visit the Boras
indigenous community, on the Momon River. The Bora tribe has made
every effort to maintain its traditional culture since arriving from
deep inside the rainforest more than 30 years ago. Today they will
perform some of their most colorful dances for you.
11:00 a.m. Return to the M/V Aqua
You have time to pack and prepare for the next stage of your
journey.
12:00 p.m. Light Lunch
Please leave your packed luggage in your cabins, to be transferred
to the bus, before coming to the dining room for lunch.
1:15 p.m. Disembarkation/City Tour/Manatee Rescue Center/Transfer to
the Airport
Your 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. En route, we will visit the Manatee Rescue Center,
where biologists and volunteers care for endangered Amazon manatees
that conservation authorities have seized from local people and
fishermen. Biologists will give a presentation about the project and
its efforts to help these helpless mammals. You will also see how
the manatees are cared for and are prepared for re-introduction into
their natural habitat. Finally, we will stop at the San Juan
Amazonian Indian Market, for a last chance to shop for local crafts.
5:00 p.m. Check-in at Iquitos International Airport
Your guides will help you with check-in, and will stay with you
until you have boarded your flight back to Lima.
6:20 p.m. Your Flight Departs for Lima LP 371
Note: All itineraries are subject to change, due to weather and
other conditions. All times indicated are approximate, and are also
subject to change. |
