Manu rainforest and wildlife

highlights

Manu, located in the southeast area of Peru, is one of the largest parks in South America. The area of the park encompasses parts of the Andean department of Cusco and the jungle department of Madre de Dios. Manu protects 2 million hectares (4.5 million acres) of a territory rich in flora and fauna species, and a variety of habitats including high Andes, cloud forests, and lowland tropical rain forests. UNESCO officially recognizes this natural paradise as a world heritage site. In 1977, they designated Manu as a World.

Manu is a Biosphere Reserve because it contains the best existing example of biodiversity in protected areas of rain forest, as well as endemic areas of cloud forest. Humans have altered the majority of forests in the world. Fortunately, Manu has remained intact and untouched by civilization.

In The Manu, we can observe a variety of animals in theirnatural habitats, including: Giant Otters (Pteronura brasilensis), Black Caiman (Melanosuchus niger), the majestic Jaguar (Panthera onca), the strange Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus), the Tapir (Tapirus terrestris), the Ocelot (Felis pardalis), 13 species of primates, and an estimated of one thousand species of birds including species of seven Macaws (Ara sp.).

Manu also contains 10% of the world plant species, including several species of figs and palms, as well as countless species of medicinal plants that scientists are currently cataloguing. A single hectare of forest in Manu can have up to 220 species of trees, while a hectare of temperate forest in Europe or North America may only have 20 species of trees. The Manu National Park is probably the most biological diverse and protected park on the planet.

itinerary

Activities	Meals
		B	L	D
DAY 1	• Beginning of the excursion to Manu: 7 Days.  • Lunch in the Ajanaco  • Supper in the lodge  • Sleepover at the Cock of the Rocks lodge	-	√	√
DAY 2	• Manu: Cloud Forest  • Lunch and supper at the Lodge  • Sleepover at the Lodge	√	√	√
DAY 3	• Manu National Park  • Sail to Wildlife Tented Camp  • After the supper we will take a walk around    the area	√	√	√
DAY 4	• We will visit the Cocha Salvador  • We will take walk in search of diferent types    of monkeys	√	√	√
DAY 5	• We will go to Manu Wildlife Center lodge  • We will explorer the Boca Manu  • We will visit the Collpa de Tapires	√	√	√
DAY 6	• Macaw Clay Lick and parrots  • We will visit the Collpa de Tapires	√	√	√
DAY 7	• we will aboard in a small Aircraft with destination    to Cusco  • Transfer to your hotel in Cusco	√	-	-

DAY 01: Cusco / Cloud Forest
Early morning departure in our vehicles towards the Cloud Forest of the Manu National Park. On the way we will pass through typical Andean villages where it will be possible to see some pre Inca ruins. We will make a stop over in the Village of Ajanaco for a delicious lunch and then we will continue on towards the Lodge. During the trip we can appreciate the different ecological floors from the high Andes downwards to the Cloud Forest, where it is possible to find a great variety of plants and wild life. Overnight in the Cock of the Rock Lodge.

Meals: Lunch and Dinner

DAY 02: Cloud Forest / Boca Manu River Mouth Port
We will wake up very early in the morning and go to a place, where, from a platform hide we will be able to appreciate a magnificent natural show, the lek of the most typical of Peruvian birds the so called “Gallito de las Rocas" or Cock of the Rock ( Rupícola Peruviana), a mating dance carried out by the males to impress the females, and where his fantastic and colourful feathers stands out, like some kind of a bird from paradise. Afterwards we will explore the surrounding forest trails, with the possibility to appreciate many varieties of birds and monkey species and, if we are lucky, a Spectacled Bear. We will continue in our vehicles for about two and a half hours until we reach the Town of Atalaya where we will board the boat that will take us down stream the Upper Alto Madre de Dios River until we reach the River Mouth Port of Boca Manu where we will stay overnight in a rustic Lodge.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 03: Boca Manu River Mouth Port / Manu National Park
We will get up very early in the morning to explore the surroundings. After that we will board our out board engine powered canoes and navigate the Manu River during approximately five hours until we reach the Wild Life Tented Camp located close to the El Salvador Lake. We will make a stop over at the Park Guard Station in order to register our entrance to this important Reserved Area. On the way we will be able to observe a great variety of birds, capybaras, caiman and if we are lucky a jaguar. After settling into our rooms, we will make a wild life walk along the trails and look for frogs and insects.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 04: Cocha Salvador Oxbow Lake
Today we will spend the day on the Oxbow Lake of Cocha Salvador where we will board a canoe or catamaran to observe a great number of bird species and also the playful and charismatic giant river otters, a species in danger of extinction. After that we will walk along the trails going through different types of forest to observe the many species of monkeys that live in the Manu.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 05: Manu Wildlife Center
Early in the morning we will board our boats to go towards the Manu Wildlife Center Lodge. Once there we will explore the Community of Boca Manu River Mouth Port where many people work in the timber trade by collecting the drift wood that comes floating down the river. In the afternoon, after lunch, we will explore some of the over thirty kilometres of trails that can be found around the lodge and where it will be possible to sight some of the 12 species of monkeys that exist in the area. After dinner, we will visit the famous Collpa de Tapires or Tapir Clay Lick a walk of approximately an hour along the trails. During the walk we will hear the night sounds of frogs and insects, particularly active by night. At the Tapir Clay Lick we will find a platform especially built to be able to observe these curious animals, after the jaguar, the largest land mammals of South America, which visit the Collpa Clay Lick to be able to find some of the minerals that are scarce elsewhere in their normal environment.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 06: Collpa de Guacamayos - Macaw Clay Lick
Today we will get up before dawn to visit the only and largest Macaw and Parrot Collpa Clay Lick in the area of Manu. We will conceal ourselves in an especially built so called blind from where we will be able to observe and take pictures of the literally hundreds of macaws, both small ones as well as the larger species including the Red and Greens that come down to feed off the Collpa Clay Lick.
During the months of May, June July the activity at the Collpa Clay Lick slows down to peak in the months of August and September. In the afternoon, after lunch, we will visit one of the two lakes that exist in the area, where we will find a great diversity of species of birds, including the locally so called Shansho or Hoatzin, a primitive and almost pre historic bird. We will also have a chance to observe the Giant River Otters (Pteronura brasilensis) the largest otter in the world with almost two metres of length, including the tail. After dinner there will be a second opportunity to pay a visit to the Tapir Collpa Clay Lick.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 07: Manu Wildlife Center / Boca Manu River Mouth / Cusco
After breakfast we will navigate on the Manu River until we arrive to the Boca Manu Aerodrome to board the small aircraft that will fly us back to Cusco. Upon arrival you will be transferred to your hotel.

Meals: Breakfast

what is included

• One night’s accommodations in the Cock of the Rock Lodge
• One night’s accommodations in the Boca Manu Lodge
• Two nights’ accommodations in the Manu Wildlife Tented Camp.
• Two nights’ accommodations in the Manu Wildlife Center
• Land Transport in Overland Vehicles or Four Wheel Drives, River Transport in our own Fleet of Out Board Engine Powered and Roofed Canoes
• Small Aircraft Flight from Boca Manu to Cusco
• All applicable taxes
• Entrance Permits to the Parque Nacional del Manu National Park
• Bilingual Guides Spanish / English
• All Meals with Vegetarian Options (Please Indicate when Booking)

Note: Due to the constant changes in the nature of the Peruvian Rain Forest, some of the daily programmed activities may change depending on local weather and other conditions.

what is not included

• International and Domestic Flights (Except Boca Manu to Cusco mentioned above)
• Airport Taxes (US $30.25 for International Flights and US$6.05 for Domestic Flights)
• Excess Luggage
• Alcoholic Drinks, Sodas or Bottled Mineral Waters.
• Personal Expenditures
• Tips
• Personal National or International Phone Calls
• Airport Tax Cusco - Boca Manu - Cusco US$ 18.00
• Local Tax in Cusco $ 5.00