One of the most exciting things about a trip to the Peruvian Amazon is the wide range of adventures you can find there. Especially in Iquitos, the largest city in Peru inaccessible by car, and the only area where it is possible to visit the actual Amazon river and not a tributary.
Here are the top 10 adventures you must do on your next trip to Peru
1. Swim in the Amazon River
If you consider yourself adventurous, then put this at #1 in your bucket list for Peru. The Amazon river is the largest river in the world, spans over 4,000 miles and crosses the entire continent of South America. You’ll start the journey on a boat until your guide tells you when it is the perfect moment to take a refreshing dip.
2. Go piranha fishing
This is one of the most popular amazon river excursions. You’ll travel by boat to one of the many great piranha fishing spots in the area. All you need is a wooden pole, string, hook, and some meat to lower the bait into the water and wait for the piranhas to bite. Good luck!
3. Visit Monkey Island
Preserving the ecosystem of the Amazon’s flora and fauna has become one of the most important priorities to the people of the Amazon. Monkey Island is a family-run sanctuary for New World monkeys. They rescue monkeys, rehabilitate them and then release them back into the wild, there you will see monkeys running freely in their natural habitat. You’ll see a lot of species, such as Wooly Monkeys and Coati.
4. Float through the Giant Lily Pads
The Oxbow Lagoon hosts many species of aquatic plants such as the giant water lily pads. These plants can grow to 6 ft. in diameter with flowers the size of cabbage. You will also observe the strangely interesting hoatzin, a bird feeds exclusively on poisonous plants that it can keep in its crop for several hours.
5. Nighttime Jungle Cruise
In this excursion you will travel along the river, looking for wildlife with flashlights. You will see creatures like colored frogs resting on the floating plants on the edges of the creeks. Also, you will see fishing bats and by the light of your flashlight, you will see potoos, owls, and caimans (located through their red eyes) that venture through the dark to catch their prey.
6. Bird Watching
In the Peruvian Amazon more than 600 species of birds. You will see many species of tanagers, toucans, parrots, parakeets, antbirds, antwrens, woodpeckers, and monkeys that come to feed on the fruit and insects found on the trees. Actually, there are well over 1,700 registered bird species in Peru—hundreds of them in the Amazon rainforest—and new species are discovered each year.
7. Visit an Amazon Community
Peruvian culture is one of the most interesting things about this country. During your travel to Peru you must visit an Amazon community and interact with the river people who still preserve their traditions, ancient knowledge, and even language. You will get to explore their homes made out of wood and palm trees to see how they live, what they cook, and the way they survive using the natural resources of the rainforest.
8. Swim with Pink Dolphins
The Amazon river dolphin, also known as the pink river dolphin, lives only in freshwater. During your time in the Peruvian Amazon the world famous Pink and Gray river dolphins will start to appear near your boat while the sunset gives the perfect backdrop, or you can choose to start your morning in the river and see them during their morning feeding.
9. Medicinal Plants of the Amazon
The Peruvian rainforest is like a green pharmacy where you can find many plants used to treat different diseases. You can find forest medicines for headaches, stomachaches, broken bones and more. On this Amazon Jungle excursion, you will explore through this greenery in search for some medicines found in each plant or tree, learning the secrets of the jungle and the relationship between plant and man.
10. Treehouse Canopy Walk
This is a special excursion that Treehouse Lodge offers, the incomparable experience of observing the Amazon rainforest from the treetop canopies. On this excursion you will explore all of the canopy walkways and viewing platforms that dot the area of our ecolodge. Learn about the history and architecture of the lodge while you observe wildlife from 30 – 70 feet above the jungle floor.
