Puerto Maldonado Amazon Explorer

Cusco - Puerto Maldonado. Arrive in Cusco the day before the start of the tour, you’ll have some time at leisure to relax, visit a café or restaurant, or take a final walk through the city before being transferred from your hotel to the Cusco bus terminal.

Around 19:30 - 20:15, you’ll board an overnight bus that takes you from the busy streets of Cusco through winding Andean roads towards Puerto Maldonado. Settle into your seat as the city lights fade and the journey continues through the mountains, arriving the following day to begin the Amazon section of your trip.

Puerto Maldonado - Amazon Rainforest. In the morning, you’ll arrive in Puerto Maldonado and be met at the airport or bus terminal before being taken to the office. Here you can rest, have a drink or snack, use the WiFi and wait while the rest of the group arrives.

Around midday, you’ll travel to the port captain’s wharf and board a boat for the one-hour ride along the Madre de Dios River to your lodge. The route passes stretches of thick rainforest and tall trees along the riverbanks. On arrival, you’ll check in to your bungalow and then join your guide for a walk on nearby trails to see features such as kapok trees, walking palms and strangler figs, with the chance to spot some birdlife.

After some free time to relax at the lodge, dinner will be served. An optional guided twilight walk is available for those who want to see how the jungle changes after dark and look for nocturnal animals before returning to the bungalow for the night.

Amazon Rainforest - Taricaya Reserve - Amazon Rainforest. After breakfast at the lodge, you’ll head out on a walk through the Taricaya Reserve to reach a series of canopy platforms at different heights, linked by a suspension bridge. From these points, there is a clear view over the treetops and a good chance to see birds such as macaws and toucans, with the possibility of rarer sightings.

Later in the morning, you’ll visit the animal rescue centre, where staff care for local species including monkeys, big cats and birds, followed by time at the butterfly house. After lunch back at the lodge, the day continues at the agroforestry area to learn how mahogany, cedar, flowers, cocoa and coffee are grown, and then at the turtle project to see the artificial beaches used for conservation work.

Towards late afternoon, you’ll return to the river in an inflatable boat and make the short trip back towards the lodge. After dark, a motorboat outing takes you along the riverbanks to search for caimans. Dinner is served at the lodge on return, with time to relax and talk about the day’s activities.

Amazon Rainforest - Puerto Maldonado. Early this morning, you’ll leave the lodge and travel by boat back along the Madre de Dios River towards Puerto Maldonado, with the forest gradually giving way to the outskirts of the town as you approach the port.

On arrival at approximately 09:30 AM, you’ll be taken either to the office or the bus terminal, depending on your onward plans. If spending some time in town, you can use the office facilities to rest, freshen up, organise your bags, connect to the WiFi and wait for your transfer.

Optional activities are available for those looking to experience more of Puerto Maldonado, including taking a moto taxi into town to visit local markets, look at craft and herbal stalls, climb the Obelisk for views over the area, or have lunch at a nearby restaurant before departure.

Puerto Maldonado - Cusco. Today, you will arrive back in Cusco. The tour ends in Cusco, where you can make your way to the airport or bus terminal to begin the journey home. Safe travels