Last Updated on June 24, 2019 by PowersToTravel
Through my research I learned about the huge variety of cruise ships running up and down the Amazon River and the rivers that feed the Amazon.
Wedding Cake Cruises
The huge wedding-cake cruise lines that operate Amazon cruises start at the coast and make their way as far as Manaus, Brazil. It didn’t take me any time at all to discard the huge cruise lines.
Small Ships
Some smaller ships leave from Manaus, Brazil, others from Iquitos, Peru, a few from Puerto Varador, Bolivia and Coca, Ecuador.
It was clear that investigation into the national parks and regions was the key to discovering the best cruise for us. There seemed to be a variety of budget, moderate and luxury cruises to the inner reaches of the Amazon. This meant that the distinguishing characteristic would not be the ship, but rather what you would experience from the ship. Would we see suburbs or would we see monkeys?
At the same time, it appeared that many cruises were four to five days long, with the options of concatenating the two to result in nine day cruises. What else would we do with our time? We do not enjoy air travel in the least, and once having arrived at our destination, we prefer a two-week adventure. Ah, wonder of wonders, that time constraint will no longer affect us, now in our Retirement for one day! However, at the time, time itself was an important planning consideration.
What would we do with our other week or week and a half? I began to study the flight schedules in and out of the cruise departure cities, with the goal of identifying an appealing timeline of additional actvities.
Manaus, Brazil
I studied Manaus for quite a while. Brazilian Rainforest is the catch-phrase. It just seemed that if you are going to the Amazon, you should be going to Brazil. But as I read more blogs about the travel experiences, I began to become concerned about the urban build-up around Manaus. Bloggers reported full days spent on the ship just getting out of the “suburbs” to the wilderness. Is this true? Some of the information came from other small-ship marketing websites, touting their own particular itinerary. I don’t know the truth about Manaus.
It was also possible to fly directly from the US to Manaus from Miami, however the return flights were red-eyes, and I avoid red-eyes if at all possible. My eating schedule changes, glucose levels go crazy and the exhaustion makes a sad ending to a beautiful vacation. And where else could one fly to, from Manaus, but home?
I also learned that one needed to get a visa to visit Brazil, while this was not required for Ecuador, Peru or Bolivia.
I put Manaus on the shelf for the time being. It never made if it off the shelf. It is still there, gathering dust.
Coca, Ecuador
There aren’t many cruises in Ecuador, but the information about their itineraries and the Yasuni National Park and Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve interested me.
To get to the Amazonian port in Ecuador it is necessary to fly through the capital city Quito. We had previously briefly visited Quito, Ecuador on our way to the Galapagos Islands, so taking a cruise which involved a stopover in Quitos seemed a bit redundant. We weren’t ready yet to return to a location we had seen, and seen well and happily.
The Ecuadorian Amazon is also sitting on that shelf. Occasionally it exchanges a few polite words with Manaus.
Peru
Once I wandered into Peru, a wonderful and diverse world seemed to open up. Now suddenly the choice became not only Amazon Cruise, but Amazon Lodge. Through the research, I had become comfortable with the concept of an Amazon adventure. The Bugs and Poisonous Snakes had retreated from sight and were replaced with intriguing Pink and Irrawaddy Dolphins and Indigenous People.
Puerto Maldonado, Peru
With that segue, the Amazon Lodges of Puerto Maldonado began to beckon. I learned that a popular travel itinerary started with Cusco and Machu Picchu, then descended the eastern Andes Mountains via vehicle, then boat to the small city of Puerto Maldonado and the headwaters of rivers that would become the mighty Amazon. The bloggers’ descriptions of “Cock of the Rock” and the macaws and salt-licks appealed to me greatly.
My matrices expanded to include the features of Lodges in addition to cruises. Then of course I had to backtrack and investigate the lodges near Manaus as well. This vacation dreaming is a very circuitous affair.
However, as I investigated the lodges I once again became overwhelmed with the Bugs, Snakes and Humidity. I had previously been flowing down or up the Amazon in my Comfort-level cruise ship, with my air-conditioning, and suddenly I found myself in a camp with no A/C and no night-time electricity, read that, “no fan” either. I hopped back onto my cruise ship and continued my search.
Iquitos, Peru
I began to focus more closely on the cost and features of the ships out of Iquitos, specifically paying attention to the ships out of Nauta, a town 100 km west of Iquitos. I had read that ships out of Iquitos must make their way through that same suburban sprawl in order to reach the wilderness. Nauta is near the joining of the Marañon and Ucayali Rivers, and is where the Amazon River itself forms. We would get the best of both worlds – we would experience the Amazon, if only briefly, and spend our time in the more remote Pacaya-Samiria Reserve.
Many of the ships were classified as Luxury. For me, Luxury in the Amazon jungle was an appealing option. However, the prices were less than appealing. It is really hard to spend that much money on something that is not a Dream. After all, the Amazon for me was the result of too much googling, not a destination of a lifetime.
The Cattleya
I bumped into the Cattleya, on http://rainforestcruises.com. It matched so perfectly with my key requirements:
- Double beds (not singles or bunks) – actually it has king sized beds!
- Few cabins – it has only 4 cabins
- Fully air-conditioned throughout the day and night – both the cabins and the lounge/dining room
Treehouse Lodge
In addition, Rainforest Cruises offered a special package – 5 days / 4 nights on the Cattleya, and 3 nights at a “Treehouse Lodge,” billed as “luxury.” Interesting, perhaps the best of both worlds? It is so strange that after having discarded lodges due to lack of electricity, I would be looking at them again? On the contrary, this option included electricity!
But what would we do with the other half of our vacation? I put the Cattleya and Treehouse Lodge on a shelf. I picked up airline schedules through Lima.
The final itinerary resolved itself very rapidly, as I found the timing allowed for an excellent trip to the Andes Mountains, and this is a Dream I had had for many years: Machu Picchu.
Final Decision
I shopped on many websites offering private tours, and obtained at least three quotes, including one from Rainforest Cruises, as they also offered Land Options. We ultimately chose
- The Cattleya Cruise for four nights (https://www.rainforestcruises.com/cattleya-amazon-cruise/ )
- Paired with three nights at the Treehouse Lodge (https://www.rainforestcruises.com/treehouse-lodge-peru/) both through Rainforest Cruises.
- A three-day-trips-in-one-day Lima visit put together by Haku Tours, a fantastic Lima-based local tour company (http://www.hakutours.com/)
- Followed by a seven day road and rail trip from Cusco through the Sacred Valley to Macchu Picchu and back, designed by me and purchased also through Rainforest Cruises. They are a reseller of “CAT” Class Adventure Tours.
More to follow…the real Amazon experience…
Check out this article of mine too:
Peru Travel Blog – Itinerary, Reviews and Diabetic Travel Tips
