Nine South American nations share the vast Amazon basin.  The areas in which we have the deepest experience are those within Ecuador and Peru.   The natural balance in both countries is under tremendous pressure, from logging and oil exploration to other extractive industries.   Our lodge partners, government bodies, indigenous communities and the national governments are working to establish and defend protected areas through sustainable tourism projects.

For a visitor on a first walk on a trail through the rainforest, beneath massive trees whose arching branches form a canopy sixty meters overhead, sustainability seems like a given.  The tremendous energy and adaptibility of life in the tropical rainforest is everywhere around you.  Fungi shine in the dark, Morpho butterflies tease you with their irridescent blue as they lurch by, and the  roar of a distant howler monkey seems too powerful to have been produced by any primate.

Natural history specialists will be attracted to the protected zones, of which Manu Biosphere Reserve in southern Peru stands out.  Those interested in the cultural patterns enjoy unique opportunities in lodges operated by indigenous groups, such as Kapawi Lodge and Napo Wildlife Center in Ecuador.  You can choose a cruise on an air-conditioned luxury boat, or paddle a wooden canoe at dawn on an ox-bow lake.  Tell us what style of adventure you're seeking, and we'll recommend an appropriate lodge destination.

Achuar guide, lower Pastaza River

Blue and yellow Macaws, Tambopata (by Bernard Peyton)