Lady’s Guide to Visiting the Amazon in Peru

Today I want to share my guide to visiting the Amazon in Peru with you. This part of South America is underrated, and it’s worth a visit for the amazing wildlife, beautiful scenery, and exciting adventures that await.

Visiting the Amazon in Peru

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the jungle lately. Last month I spent 2 days in Brunei, where I explored the Borneo rainforest.

This month it’s South America, where I’ve been visiting the Amazon in Peru. I kicked off my trip in Puerto Maldonado, the capital of the Madre de Dios region and the gateway to the southern Amazon jungle.

Amazon Jungle Lodge, Peru

The journey started off on a high note when my Amazon jungle lodge in Peru, Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica, picked me up from Puerto Maldonado International Airport after my flight from Lima.

The vehicle that carried me and my fellow passengers from the small arrivals area to the lodge’s butterfly house and check-in lounge looked more like a patio on wheels than a bus.

The covered platform with white wooden chairs carried us the short distance to Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica.

When we arrived, we lounged on sofas and enjoyed cold towels and bottled water as the check-in process took place among the butterflies.

When that was finished, we boarded our patio-on-wheels for the 15-minute drive to the Madre de Dios River.

Along the way we passed through the city of Puerto Maldonado, which was full of colorful buildings, town squares, and armies of Asian-style tuk tuks.

I later learned these vehicles were a byproduct of the ever-increasing Chinese influence in the region. Apparently my fellow guests and I weren’t the only ones visiting the Amazon in Peru.

Once at the river, we boarded a motorized canoe for the 45-minute journey to our lodge in nearby Tambopata.

The Madre de Dios was lined with dense jungle on both sides, and I kept my eyes out for monkeys and other wildlife as we went.

When we arrived at Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica, we ate a delicious three-course lunch consisting of a potato-and-heart-of-palm salad followed by a fish curry and fresh fruit.

I’d heard that the food in Lima was world-class, but Tambopata taught me that the phenomenon extended across the entire country.

After lunch I checked into my cabana, which the lodge had offered me on a complimentary basis for the two nights I would be visiting the Amazon in Peru.

It was rustic-chic and came complete with woven hammocks, wooden lounge chairs, bathrooms, showers, and large beds over which hung very necessary mosquito nets.

The only thing not to like about it was that the windows were screened in, and due to the close proximity of one bungalow to another, I could hear every word spoken in the neighboring cabanas. Other than that, it was great.

I had a few minutes to relax in my hammock before happy hour, during which all guests were offered a complimentary pisco sour every night.

The one I drank was the first of my trip to Peru, and it reminded me of the ones I’d had in Chile the previous year. It was good to be back in South America, and I toasted to visiting the Amazon in Peru.

Excursions for Visiting the Amazon in Peru

After happy hour, I met with Moises, my guide during my stay at Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica.

He gave me an overview of the options for the lodge’s excursions, most of which were included with the stay (the same went for all meals). Everything from river safaris to night hikes and bird watching was on offer.

I chose to go on the night river cruise that evening, and I’m glad I did. We saw numerous caimans, or Amazonian crocodiles, as well as capybaras, the world’s largest rodents. We also saw birds, including beautiful egrets.

But perhaps the best part of the night safari was the millions of stars in the sky. Not since my trips to Borneo and Namibia had I seen a sky so full of stars. It was a highlight of visiting the Amazon in Peru.

The next day my excursions continued with a trip to Lake Sandoval. To get there, my group took a 3-kilometer (1.9-mile) hike through shin-deep mud that made us thankful for the wellies Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica provided.

Along the way we saw all kinds of wildlife, including brown capuchin monkeys, tropical birds, butterflies, and all kinds of plant life.

Once we got to the water, we took a motorized canoe along a river that led to the lake.

The sun was shining, and we had great views of the bizarre “chicken birds”, caimans, and a very playful spider monkey that stuck its tongue out at us as it swung from branch to branch.

I was exhausted by the time we returned to the lodge, but not so much that I passed up the chance to go on another Amazon excursion.

Most of the guests went on the canopy walkway, but after my terrifying-yet-rewarding experience of watching the sunrise above the canopy in Borneo, my stores of courage and adrenaline had been used up.

My fear of heights won out over my sense of adventure while I was visiting the Amazon in Peru.

But it wasn’t all bad. Instead of doing the Amazon canopy walkway in Peru, I went with a guide to Monkey Island, which was located right across the Madre de Dios River from the lodge.

We went on a walk through the jungle, where we saw frogs, a wasp nest I almost walked right into, and more Amazonian flora.

That evening I was almost too tired to move, but I forced myself to go on the night hike. I was only visiting the Amazon in Peru for a short time, after all, and I wanted to make the most of it.

I was glad I did. I saw tarantulas, tree snakes, night monkeys, and even a lone crab in the middle of the trail.

I also saw millions of mosquitoes, 23 of which decided to bite me that evening. I’m hoping I don’t come down with malaria, but if I do, at least I’ll have seen some really amazing wildlife in the process.

Amazon Eco-Lodge, Peru

When I wasn’t out on excursions, I enjoyed Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica’s grounds and cuisine while I was visiting the Amazon in Peru.

The former were gorgeous, with cabanas that blended into their surroundings. The lodge was environmentally conscious, so every day from 3pm to 6pm the electricity was switched off.

That served as an added incentive to get out and explore. Not that I needed any, what with the abundance of adorable agoutis hopping around to keep my cuteness quota filled at all times.

There were also amazing views of the Madre de Dios River from my room, not least during the sunrise, when the sky turned fuchsia and lavender above the placid pink water.

They made waking up at 5am while visiting the Amazon in Peru worthwhile.

Then there was the pretty tree trunk path that led the way to the main lodge where all my meals took place. Like my lunch on the first day, all the food was good.

The fish was definitely the best option, as the chicken and meat could be a little tough, but the freshness of the ingredients and the use of local produce made for many outstanding meals.

So did the company. As a solo traveler, I was expecting to eat my meals alone while visiting the Amazon in Peru. But the other guests were friendly and I ended up sharing every meal with them.

It was a huge improvement on my usual read-a-book or stare-at-the-wall-because-I-forgot-my-book solo dining experiences, and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the Americans, Brits, Australians, and Canadians I met.

Visiting the Amazon in Peru

On my second morning in Tambopata, I woke up at 5am to get ready for my journey back to Puerto Maldonado International Airport. My time visiting the Amazon in Peru had come to an end.

I boarded the boat and then the patio-on-wheels, and soon enough I was back at the butterfly house communing with the winged beauties before heading to catch my flight.

When I arrived at the airport, I took my bag, paid the departure tax, and waved good-bye to the Peruvian Amazon.

It was my second jungle experience in a month, and as with my Borneo trip and its Siem Reap segment, my Peru trip’s next destination included an amazing cultural wonder: Cuzco and the legendary Machu Picchu. To be continued…

Want to see more? Take a look at my Peru travel video.

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