Manu Expeditions Peru – Manu Biosphere Peru
Manu Expeditions Peru Tour is one of the most popular tours that takes you deep into the Manu National Park. This six days tour is the perfect combination of the cloud forest, Manu Rainforest, and Manu Cultural Zone.
Manu Biosphere Reserve is home to over 800 species of birds, countless plant species. It is a protected area with rich flora and fauna.
In 1987, UNESCO declared Manu National Park as a world heritage site.
Manu National Park is massive. It is spread over 1,532,806 hectares. The lowland forest rises from 150 meters above sea level to up to 4200 meters.
There are several areas that are not yet explored. In fact, far deep inside the rainforest, there are native communities living in voluntary isolation.
The cultural zone is home to over 32 native communities. They have maintained their authentic traditions and values. Infact, most still converse in Quechua.
On this six days tour to the lowland rainforest with our English-speaking expert local naturalist guide, you will get a deeper insight into the flora and fauna of the region. You will also be able to meet and get to know more about the life of the native communities here.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Cusco – Manu Wildlife Lodge
At 05000 AM, we will be picking you up from your hotel in Cusco. Then in our private transport, we will embark on a long drive from the Andes to the Amazon. We will be having some interesting stops along the way.
Our first stop will be in Paucartambo. We will be serving you breakfast in this colonial village that sits at 3900 meters above sea level.
After breakfast, we will continue driving to a viewpoint called Tres Cruces. You will get a panoramic view of the Amazon basin from here.
We will then be driving downhill from the Andes to Amazon, to Manu Biosphere Peru.
On reaching, we will begin with our Manu Expeditions Peru. You will have the opportunity to see the biodiversity of the region. Our tour guide will explain to you about different plant species and bird species that are distinct to Manu.
Here you can also spot the Peruvian National Bird, The Andean cock of the Rock. The region is home to Woolly Monkey and Capuchin Monkey.
After the tour, we will be driving you to the Atalaya boat pier. Here you will be boarding the motor board for your journey on Madre de Dios river. It will be a two and a half hours journey to Manu Wildlife Lodge.
On this 2:30 hour trip, with luck we can see different species of wildlife such as the capybara, howler monkey, tapir, cormorants, tiger heron, pygmy otter, many other species of birds, etc.
Tonight we stay at Manu Wildlife Lodge, basic accommodation, shared bathrooms, and showers.
Day 2: Manu Wildlife Lodge – Manu Reserved Zone “Casa Matsiguenka Lodge”
We will be leaving the Manu Wildlife Lodge quite early in the morning. Then we will embark on a boat ride on the Manu River.
We will be having a brief stop at a control point. Before reaching Casa Matsiguenka, we will be doing a short hike to get the essence of the Manu Reserved Zone.
The boat ride gives the opportunity to spot different species of birds and animals. Here you can easily spot capybaras, peccaries, giant armadillos, different species of monkeys and birds.
As we will reach Casa Matsiguenka, our crew will be serving lunch.
Matsiguenka is a native community. The lodge is a part of the community. Here the locals guide the tour. Primarily because they know this remote place better than anyone as they are born and raised here.
So after relishing a typical Amazonian lunch, we will embark on a short hike on one of the trails. You will have plenty of opportunities to spot different species of birds, animals and mammals.
After the tour, we will be returning to the lodge for a delicious dinner.
Day 3: Manu Reserved Zone – Jungle Exploration
The third day of this Manu Expeditions Peru begins with a long hike for some three to fours. From the shores of the Manu River we will be hiking to the banks of Otorongo Lake.
Here we will be walking up to the top of a 15 meters high watchtower. You will get a panoramic view of the Eastern Slope of the Amazon. From here you can see the enormity of the Andean grasslands and Puna grasslands.
You will get to see birds such as the exuberantly feathered and primitive Sansho (Hoatzin). The area is also home to different species of monkeys, varieties of flowers and butterflies.
Once you have had the fill of these beautiful sights, we will return to the camp on a canoe for lunch. We will have the afternoon dedicated to visit Salvador Oxbow Lake.
From onboard our catamaran you will get to immerse in the biodiversity attracted by this oxbow lake. This includes Black Caimans, White Caimans, families of Giant river otters and Water fowls.
After this experience, we will be returning to the lodge for dinner.
Later at night, we will hike into the jungle to spot frogs, spiders, and other nocturnal creatures.
Day 4: Casa Matsiguenka Lodge – Treehouse Inn
Today we will leave early by mortorboat to try to achieve the biggest dream of all travelers: spot the jaguar, one of the jewels of Amazonian wildlife. The Manu River offers excellent views of animals in the mornings, such as the anaconda, jaguar, tapir, anteater and three-toed sloth. After 4 hours of travel we will arrive at the Limonal checkpoint, here we check out. We then returned upstream along the Alto Madre de Dios River arriving at Treehouse INN in the afternoon.
The TreehouseINN will welcome you with a diferent beatyfull landscape. Here we have cool drinks made from the local fruits, mineral water, warm drinks. After check-in, you will be escorted to your treehouse, where you can relax and unpack. All meals and beverages at Treehouse INN are made using fresh fruits, vegetables, as well as other local ingredients.
Night Walk (herping activity): In the evening we will have an opportunity for a night walk with our expert guide looking for snakes such as the false coral, real coral, busch master (shushupe), mantona boa, reaper snake, mouse-eater snake, green parrot snake, rainbow boa, etc. With luck we can also see other nocturnal creatures such as frogs, tarantula, night monkey, scorpion spider, nocturnal birds, sloth, fruit-eater bat, red deer, etc.
We spent the night at Treehouse Inn.
DAY 5: Treehouse Inn (Parrot and Macaw Clay Lick)
At daybreak, we will walk 15 minutes to see the unmissable Parrot and Macaw Clay Lick, it is a unique sight. Here we can see different Parrots and Macaws fly to the cliff to eat the clay.
The clay here contains minerals that help these birds to flush toxins from their body.
After witnessing this activity, we will be back to Treehouse INN. Our team will be serving you a traditional breakfast.
Botanical Introduction: After breakfast we will do a jungle walking tour for approximately four hours, we will learn about different species of plants and trees. Most of these plants serve as natural medicines for local people. Our expert guide will explain about these plants.
As well, with luck we can see sloth, ant eater, capuchin monkey, squirrel monkey, eagle, howler monkey, puma, peccary, Amazonian birds, etc. We will return to the Treehouse INN for lunch.
River Tubing Adventure: After lunch you can just relax. Then we have the river tubing, one of our highly entertaining adventures, it is about floating in the currents of the Palotoa river, driving on our own down the river for approximately 1 hour, a unique sensation to feel the noise of the river through the jungle, as well as with luck we can see monkeys and birds along the river. We remind you not to forget to bring repellent, sunscreen, swimwear for this adventure, do not miss it.
After dinner, for the last night in the Amazon jungle we will go on a night safari to appreciate what nature offers us in surprise.
For the last night we will spend at Treehouse Inn.
DAY 6: Treehouse Inn – Cusco
After breakfast, form Manu Jungle to Cusco. We return to Cusco through the cloud forest and Paucartambo. We will be back to Cusco in the afternoon at approximately 6:00 p.m.
We drop off at your hotel, we can also drop you off directly at the airport in case you have a flight connection.
In this case we recommend taking your connecting flight after 8:00 p.m.
OUR ACCOMODATIONS
Treehouse Inn
The Treehouse Inn is located in the family ecological reserve where we offer you an insight to the jungle life. The family ecological reserve covers 800 hectares of land, which belongs exclusively to the family. Only our clients are allowed to visit this land, giving you an authentic jungle experience. It is a primary Amazonian jungle in Manu National Park where we offer our visitors an extreme biodiversity. During our jungle tours you can observe the animals in their natural environment as you have never seen them in any other place. Each room has its own private hot shower.