Amazon Cruises In Peru

Peru Amazon cruises start and finish in Iquitos – the largest city in the world only accessible by plane or waterway – or in the city of Nauta, some two hour’s drive south. Found in the enormous province of Loreto, in northeastern Peru, both cities form the hub for the country’s Amazon river cruise activity. In fact, two-thirds of Peru’s land mass is covered by the Amazon jungle, much of it unspoiled and waiting to be explored by riverboat. Amazon river travel is still the primary method of transportation in the region as the Amazon Rainforest is mainly a roadless wonder, and a riverboat cruise is the best way to access the narrow, winding creeks and tributaries, and venture deep into the jungle for the best wildlife-spotting opportunities.

The best Amazon cruises in Peru visit the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, a protected area of flooded forests commonly referred to as the ‘Jungle of Mirrors’ owing to the impressive reflections one can observe during the high-water period. Covering an area larger than 20,000 square kilometers (5 million acres) the reserve provides a wealth of activities, from piranha fishing and jungle trekking, to indigenous community visits and the chance to meet a local shaman and learn about natural medicine and see first hand what life in the Amazon is like. Pacaya-Samiria is also home to some of the Amazon’s most abundant biodiversity. Scientists have registered the presence of 527 species of birds, 102 mammal species, 69 species of reptiles, 58 amphibian species, 269 different kinds of fish, and 1024 species of wild or domesticated plants, and is home to iconic Amazonian species such as pink river dolphins, giant otters, macaws, sloths, and caiman, all potentially viewed during a Peru Amazon river cruise.