Leaving Cusco early in the morning, we begin an 8-hour journey over the Andes by bus, stopping for breakfast at the beautiful colonial village of Paucartambo. Continuing, we climb to the highpoint of the Manu Biosphere at about 4000m before descending to the cloud forest. In these green and moist surroundings we take our first long walk. There are many bird species to be seen among which the beautiful paradise tanager, umbrella bird and the golden headed quetzal. Among its butterflies are clouded yellows and various skippers. The cloud forest has three monkey species: the woolly monkey plus the two capuchin monkeys of Manu. There are plenty of other mammal species, but they are more difficult to see. We end our walk at the lek of the strange looking cock-of-the-rock, to watch the dancing and singing ‘performance’ of the males right under our eyes. We spend the night in the rustic lodge Posada San Pedro (appr. 1,600m).

At daybreak we continue by bus to tropical lowland rainforest, stopping along the way to visit a coca plantation. Arriving at the small village Atalaya at 650m, we change into a motorized canoe to navigate some 40 minutes down the fast Alto Madre de Dios River. Then we take a 30 minute walk to one of the very view lakes on the Alto Madre de Dios River. You can go around this small lake on traditional balsa rafts and from there admire the enormous rainforest variety in aquatic birds, such as the moscovy duck, neotropic cormorant, anhinga, the white- necked and capped herons and the prehistoric looking hoatzin. Usually the water is clean enough to be able to see many tropical fish we may know from aquaria at home. It is common to see squirrel monkeys or others, in the trees around. In the late afternoon we continue down the river to Amazon Eco lodge, right at the foot of the Pantiacolla Mountain Range. The forest of our Lodge is a very special rainforest: this is where the Andes and the lowland tropical rainforest of the Amazon meet and it provides you with a chance to see a good selection of birds and plants from bóth zones as well as endemics to the area. Your first walk will be at night, exploring the forest by torchlight looking for insects, lizards, snakes and the only nocturnal night-monkey, or ‘douricouli’, on Earth. We spend the night in the  Lodge.

On our boat we go to the parrot clay lick, a clay wall of the river where different species of parrots like the blue headed parrot white eye, among others, go every morning to extract and lick clay pieces. Upon completion of this activity, we will stop at the Limonal, which present the necessary documents for the control of entry to the reserve. Continue travel by Manu River upstream, leaving all traces of civilization toward the heart of the reserve for about 4 hours until our Matsiguenka Lodg which has Grooming shared services such as showers and toilets. This is where we spend the next 2 nights. During this journey you will see countless species of birds, alligators, turtles and mammals often sunning on the beaches or feeding in the surrounding trees. This tour shows the immensity of our jungle. After lunch we spent our time walking and visit the Cocha Otorongo. where there is an observation tower strategically located 15 meters from where we have the opportunity to appreciate the scenery of the surrounding primary forest. And from this place is where you can see some alligators and giant otters in families or lonely. Then at night we will have evening activities, go in search of insects or other animals wildlife in this pristine jungle .

At dawn we’ll probably wake howler monkey declaring its territory to others. Before breakfast we will walk morning because the temperature at this time makes it common to find animals for food. then return to the camp where our staff is waiting to offer a refreshing breakfast. After a short break we will explore some trails near our camp.

In the afternoon we will go to explore another lagoon and cross a primary forest with greater diversity of species explore the Cocha Salvador using the catamaran, and from this catamaran you can see some wildlife species such as the Giant Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) a species are endangered, important inhabitant that can be seen fishing, playing or swimming, and just as the Black Caiman (Melanosuchus niger), the Hoatzin (Ophisthocomus hoatzin), the Spider Monkey (Ateles paniscus), etc. and flora of their surroundings; then back to our hostel we can find some other species of monkeys. At night and with the help of our flashlights we will walk along the banks of the river and we can see some alligators out in search of their prey.

We will have a gentle stroll from camp for around 4 to 5 hours through the forest to Cocha Otorongo. We may be lucky enough encounter groups of monkeys. This is a particularly good trail for woolly and black spider monkeys. We’ll pay special attention to the plant life on this walk and take it slowly listening for the rustle of vegetation or the soft sound of fruits falling to the rainforest floor that may betray the presence of animals or large birds. A visit to the lake of Cocha Otorongo is planned, where observation piers and a 20 meter observation tower in the rainforest canopy overlooking the lake are available for observing wildlife. We will also be on the lookout for a large family of giant otters that inhabit this lake. We will spend the night at Casa Matsiguenka.

Bright and early in the morning, we will head off to visit the Pakitza ranger station, which is known as one of the first biological stations created for the scientific studies conducted in Manu, The Boat trip up river to Pakitza might bring some surprises, then we will take you in and around its amazingly complex trail system as more and more of the forest’s natural beauty is revealed for us behind every turn we make. Maybe we will even have a chance to see a group of Tamarin monkeys, which are the smallest monkeys in the whole world. We advise that you be aware of your surroundings, because they could sneak up right behind you later on. In the afternoon we will visit another system of trails with a completely different set of characteristics than the first, our guide will explain to you why and show us native plants from the area that can be used as traditional medicines. We’ll be met at the river by our cook with a picnic lunch and then embark on our motorized boat for a 6 hours trip down river to Tambo Blanquillo for the night. The river trip may hold surprises and we’ll be attentive for any wildlife on the beaches like the Jaguar, one of the highlights the Jungle has to offer. We will spend the night at Tambo Blanquillo lodge.

Very early in the morning, we will go by boat to the Macaw Clay Lick, a special place where flocks of parakeets, parrots and macaws come every day to eat the nutritious lick, located at the wall of the river. We will stay here at a camouflaged hideout house: it is a bird lover’s paradise, where you will see and hear many of them, however this activity is very much weather dependant. After this we take our motorized boat downriver to Boca Colorado. From there we go on by bus to Puerto Maldonado and spend the night in a local lodge.

After breakfast; we will transfer to bus station to return, the duration of the trip in local bus are 8 hours to  Cusco (local bus is included in the program). Arrival time in Cusco depends on the itinerary of the bus.

If you want, you could take flight to Cusco (45 minutes) or to Lima (2 hours); the flight is not included in the price of the program. Flight to Lima where you can connect at the same airport for International flight. Most groups will take the flight from Puerto Maldonado to Lima connecting from there to international flights.