Manu Reserved Zone Tour: Natural Paradise 6D/5N

On the first day of our adventure in the Manu rainforest, we will pick you up around 5:00AM from your hotel in Cusco using our private transportation.

The first part of our excursion will take us through the majestic Andes Mountains, where we will have the opportunity to visit a beautiful lake called Hucarpay, a high-altitude lagoon boasting a variety of flora and fauna typical of the Andean highlands.

Next, we will visit the town of Huancarani, which contains the Ninamarca funerary towers, a pre-Inca cemetery of the Lupaca culture. We will briefly visit this site on our way to Paucartambo, known as the folkloric capital of Cusco.

Despite the challenges of modern times, this small colonial town has maintained its rich traditions for centuries.

At midday, we’ll arrive at the entrance to Manu National Park and enter one of the most protected natural areas in South America.

We’ll continue in our private transport, descending through a dense mist, which gives this section of the forest its name: Cloud Forest. Eventually, we’ll reach the home of Peru’s exotic national bird, the Andean Cock-of-the-rock, where they gather with others of their kind for a social gathering that resembles a grand courtship.

You’ll find this amazing spectacle quite complete with a stunning array of sounds and colors that can only be found in the rainforest.

For our first night, we’ll stay at the beautiful Pona Lodge, arriving at approximately 5:00 PM. (A+C)

This morning we will arrive at the crystal-clear waters of the Alto Madre de Dios River.

After leaving our lodge at 6:30 a.m., we will head towards the Atalaya Port. Before arriving at the port, we will visit a Hummingbird Garden where we will see various hummingbird species, including tanagers, barbettes, king vultures, titi monkeys, etc.

From Atalaya, we will continue our boat trip to a hot spring. We will spend about an hour at the hot spring and then continue to our next lodge where we will spend the night

Before starting our journey to the Manu National Park Reserved Zone, we will visit a parrot clay lick. At this clay lick, we will see various species of parrots, parakeets, and macaws.

After this impressive display of nature, we will head towards the Manu National Park Reserved Zone. We will travel from the clear waters of the Alto Madre de Dios River to the clay-laden waters of the Manu River. With a brief stop at the Limonal ranger station to present our permits, we will travel approximately five hours upstream on the Manu.

The beaches, especially during the dry season, are teeming with nesting and feeding birds, including herons, egrets, Orinoco geese, terns, and skimmers, to name a
few. Some beaches are home to white-and-black caimans (South American relatives of alligators) and side-necked turtles. Hundreds of nightjars roost on logs and beaches during the day, and there is a chance of encountering a jaguar basking in the sun—the third-largest cat in the world. In 1999, one in three of our trips saw a jaguar in Manu.

We will see some primate species on this river trip, possibly red howler monkeys or the smaller squirrel monkeys. After lunch by the river, we’ll arrive at our Safari Lodge near Cocha Salvador Lagoon.

We’ll have the afternoon to explore some of the trails through the area’s pristine rainforest. A visit to Cocha Otorongo Lake is planned, where observation docks and a 20-meter observation tower in the rainforest canopy overlooking the lake are available for wildlife viewing.

We’ll also be on the lookout for a large family of giant otters that inhabit this lake. Before or after dinner, you canBefore or after dinner, you can take an optional nighttime excursion into the forest with your guide in search of nocturnal creatures.

The lakes are teeming with the gleaming eyes of the great Black Caiman, and if we’re lucky, we might encounter an Olingo, Kinkajou, or even an Ocelot on the trails. Certainly, the nighttime sounds of tree frogs and forest insects are an unforgettable experience.

At night, toilets and showers are available at the Casa Matsiguenka lodge. (B+L+D)

We will begin our activity very early in the morning at Cocha Salvador using a floating platform called a catamaran. This morning we will be able to observe countless species of birds and mammals, including herons, cormorants, eagles, hawks, squirrel monkeys, capuchin monkeys, giant otters, and river otters.

The giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) can reach up to 1.82 m in length and weigh up to 31 kg. They consume between 4 and 5 kg of fish per day. This is one of the rare animals on Earth that are common in Manu.

We will also look for some of the 15 species of monkeys that inhabit this area. After visiting Lake Salvador, we’ll head back to Casa Matsiguenka Lodge and from there hike to the Macaw Clay Lick. Here, you’ll see red, green, and scarlet macaws.

Activity at the clay lick begins around 5:30 am as medium-sized parrots arrive with the sunrise, noisy pairs, and dust the ground in the treetops above the lick. Several squawking birds climb the branches, preparing for their descent to the riverbank.

Finally, cascades of green, blue, and red parrots circle down to the clay wall. Around 7:00 or 7:30 am, large macaws begin to arrive. By 10:00 am, the macaws begin their descent.

This colorful and noisy scene continues for 20 to 40 minutes as the birds eat their clay rations, or until danger arrives in the form of a hawk, eagle, or ocelot. It is one of the greatest wildlife spectacles in the world.

After lunch at our lodge, we will explore one of the trails that wind through the rainforest and contemplate the complex ecosystem that surrounds us. Our ecologist guide will explain how the plants and insects interact with the rainforest.

We will keep an eye out for some of the smaller inhabitants of the rainforest, such as the emperor tamarin or the spotted tamarin. Along the way, it is also possible to encounter a group of peccaries, a species of wild boar found here.

Overnight at Casa Matsiguenka Lodge (B+L+D).

Early in the morning, we’ll have another opportunity for a nature walk or another visit to the lake and listen to choruses of birds defining their territory with their songs.

As the sun rises, the eastern sky turns a pale yellow, and we may see hawks or other birds of prey patiently searching for prey from the treetops.

After lunch, we’ll board our boat again and head downstream to Boca Manu, and from there, we’ll begin our journey upstream to the Tapir Clay Lick.

From the river, we’ll head to a hide deep in the jungle where we’ll spend the night. The reason we’re going to this hide is because we’ll have the opportunity to see tapirs at night.

Today we will travel to the city of Cusco, arriving around 7:00 PM.

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