Manu National Park – 4D/3N

We leave Cusco at 6:00am in a private bus, crossing many valleys and communities. Mid-morning we visit the graves of pre-Inca Ninamarca known as Ch’ullpas, then head to the historic village in the Andes, Paucartambo where we have breakfast. We will take a walk through the village and continue our journey up the mountain to climb to 3,852m to Acjanacu. This is the starting point of Manu National Park as we continue through the lowland rain forest full of beautiful Orchids, Ferns and primitive Heliconias. We will have lunch on the way and walk 30 minutes to see the famous national bird of Peru, Rupicola Peruviana, or Cock of the Rock in its mating ritual. We may also have the opportunity to see the birds Trogons, Quetzals, Tanagers and many more. In the evening we arrive at Pilcopata where we have dinner and spend the night in a lodge.

After an early breakfast we continue by bus to tropical lowland rainforest. Here at the small village Atalaya at 600 m, we change into a motorized canoe to navigate down the turbulent Alto Madre de Dios River. For the next two nights we stay at the same lodge. In the afternoon, after lunch we are going to have our first hike until Mountain Range. From there we visit the higher trails where we have an amazing view point. On the way we can find some big monkeys and the lowland tropical rainforest provides the visitor with a chance to see a good selection of birds and plants from both zones as well as endemics to the area. Also at night, we explore the forest by torchlight looking for insects, snakes, spiders, frogs and the uniquely nocturnal night-monkey or ‘douricouli’. We spend the night in our lodge where we will have dinner.

Early in the morning the boat takes you to a nearby clay lick for parrots and the rare blue-headed macaw. Their spectacle is both impressive to see and to hear! In this place we are going to have our breakfast with a spectacular view of the lick. After we will continue to explore into the jungle to find some medicinal plants and to spot some more incredible animals. Then we return our lodge for our lunch. In the afternoon we are going to visit of one of the very few lakes on the Alto Madre de Dios River, where we can go around on small traditional rafts. At night we take a short walk before resting overnight in the lodge

After a last morning and breakfast in the jungle, the boat will take us further up to Atalaya. From here we return back up the cloud forest and the Andes by car. We travel by car to Cusco, where we arrive in the late afternoon.

Note: The order of the activities mentioned in this program may change according to weather conditions. In the Jungle the climate is highly unpredictable, especially during rainy season, and weather conditions may affect the program as the animals as well are affected in their daily activities by the rain. Don’t hesitate to talk with your guide about it to maybe change the order of the activities or find alternative things to do in case of extremely bad weather! And remember, we have no responsibilities on climate and on the amount of animals that you will see: enjoy the jungle and good luck.