Description: On these naturalist-led Amazon expeditions you can choose a 3-, 4- or 9-day program. Each day as you’re ensconced in the beauty of this magnificent forest, you view spectacular wildlife via motorized dugout canoes and by hiking on forest trails. At night you stay in comfortable lodges and safari-style camps.

Manu Biosphere Reserve in the Peruvian Amazon is one of the largest conservation areas on the planet with over 1,800,000 hectares of cloud forest and rain forest. It contains the highest diversity of life forms than any other reserve – over 850 species of birds, giant otters, jaguars, ocelots and 13 species of primates. There are also several indigenous groups living in the more remote areas. The reserve ranges in altitude from 650 to 13,450 feet elevation.

The heart of the lowland portion lies along the Manu River. The quality of the forest itself changes fundamentally as you leave behind the sparsely settled banks of the Madre de Dios River and proceed upriver past forest which has never been logged. It is possible to see species that have been all but eliminated elsewhere. Common sightings include giant otter, black caiman, and many species of Macaw; from time to time our passengers see jaguars. A trip to Manu is much more than an opportunity to see “marquee” wildlife; it is a personal communion with a rare haven of natural grace and beauty.

While visiting Manu costs more than a lodge out of Iquitos, Puerto Maldonado or other conventional rain forest gateways, the abundance of wildlife and the quality of the surroundings justify the additional expense.

On fly in/fly out programs, you fly via chartered aircraft from Cuzco to the airstrip at the mouth of the Manu River. On bus-boat in/fly out programs you travel overland from Cuzco through the upper parts of the Reserve to experience the full scope of the vast territory.

This program is designed for visitors to the Manu area with limited time available and who want to maximize their rain forest experience in Peru. This area of forest and lakes has a higher diversity of life than the Manu River itself. This trip has two major wildlife attractions -- the Macaw Lick and the world's only known Tapir Lick. Here, from the comfort of mattressees and mosquite nets, you watch the largest of all South American land mammals as they visit the mineral lick.

Days 2 to 4 of this program are the same as days seven to nine in program A.

Day 1 Fly Cuzco/Boca Manu airstrip / River trip on Madre de Dios River / Manu Wildlife Center
We pick you up at your hotel in Cuzco and travel to the airport for the 35-minute flight to a small airstrip in the rain forest at Boca Manu. On arrival, your rain forest guide and motorized dug-out canoe will be waiting for your 2-hour river trip down the Madre de Dios River to the Manu Wildlife Center, a strategically located lodge owned by Manu Expeditions and a local conservation group. On the river journey you will see our first Amazonian wildlife and riverside birds such as Skimmers, Terns, Herons, Egrets and Orinoco Geese. Arrive at the lodge for lunch and meet some of the resident biologists working here. In the afternoon we explore a trail that leads out to a lookout point high above the river to watch roosting flights of parrots as the sun sets, and we may encounter a troop of monkeys in the forest. Those who wish can take a night walk with the guide in search of nocturnal inhabitants of the forest. Overnight Manu Wildlife Center. L,D

Day 2 Macaw Clay Lick / Cocha Blanco lake / Manu Wildlife Center
Early start for the Macaw Clay Lick. This is truly one of the world's great wildlife spectacles as hundreds of parrots and their larger relatives, the macaws, congregate at this traditional spot to eat the mineral-rich clay that is essential to their digestion . We'll use a blind (hide) to get close to the birds. The noise alone is incredible and the sight of these brightly colored birds at the lick is a sight not to be forgotten. As the lick slows down in midmorning, we'll head for Cocha Blanco, an old oxbow lake in search of a Giant Otter family that lives here, and canoe around the lake on our floating platform looking for other wildlife. After a leisurely lunch at the lodge, we'll explore other trails in search of Emperor and Saddleback Tamarins. The rare Goeldi's Monkey has been seen repeatedly in this area. Overnight at Manu Wildlife Center. B,L,D.

Day 3 Full day hiking lodge trails / Optional night observation / Manu Wildlife Center
Full day to explore the forest and trails around the lodge. We'll be on the lookout for Monk Saki - an uncommon monkey that has been seen on occasion here. We'll explore trails where groups of Manakins, perhaps the most enigmatic of neo-tropical birds, perform their strange mating dances. We walk to one of our blinds at a large mammal lick where Guans and forest Parakeets and Parrotlets come for clay. Here too, groups of Black Spider Monkeys visit on occasion for clay to help their digestion. Those who wish will return with the guide to the lodge in the late afternoon. Others may opt to stay at the lick until midnight with one of our Machiguenga Indian trackers to see what nocturnal creatures visit the lick. The tapir, the largest South American land mammal, is a frequent visitor with up to 12 animals visiting in one night. We watch from the comfort of mosquito nets and mattresses from our specially constructed blind. Other nocturnal creatures are always possible. Overnight Manu Wildlife Center. B,L,D.

Day 4 Upriver to airstrip / Cuzco
After breakfast we head upriver (about 2 hours) to the small airstrip at Boca Manu. Early morning flocks of birds pass over us, and we may see a Capybara, the world’s largest rodent. Arriving at the airstrip we board our aircraft for the 35-minute flight over seemingly endless rain forest, and then the over the Andes Mountains, passing glaciers and snow peaks. We arrive at the ancient Inca capital of Cuzco, where our staff will be waiting to take you to your hotel. B

Departs every Friday year-round

Land Cost:

2006: US $995 in twinshare, minimum 4 passengers
         US $1,175 in single
 

Pre-departure information: once your deposit is received, we send you up-to-date and very complete pre-departure information which tells you what you need to know to prepare for your adventure, including packing list & tips, health issues, reading list, tipping guide, information on weather, climate, cities, museums, etc.

Included in the Land Cost: transfers & transport via land, plane, canoe; all meals at camps and lodges; internal flights from/to Cuzco; services of English-speaking naturalist guides on all excursions; accommodation in double rooms/tents.

Not Included: meals in Cuzco and en route to Manu; tips to guides and staff; alcoholic and bottled beverages, laundry, phone calls, etc.

Add-ons
Any Peru program may be added to any Manu program.

Misc.