The Amazon: How to visit the largest jungle on the planet.

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The Amazon: How to visit the largest jungle on the planet.

Without a doubt, a trip to the Amazon is an adventure worth living at least once in a lifetime. For me, who loves the jungle, the Amazon region became a destination of several trips and many experiences, a destination that I will continue to visit. To start a trip to the Amazon, we have two major gateways: Manaus, capital of the State of Amazonas, and Belem, capital of the State of Pará. Let’s remember that the Amazon region is formed by 6 Brazilian states, besides the two mentioned above, the states of Rondônia, Roraima, Acre and Amapá (less known as tourist destinations of the Amazon) are part of this immense region.

Let’s focus on Manaus, which is undoubtedly the best known of the Amazonian cities and where the international tourism that arrives annually to see this incredible landscape of northern Brazil is centralized. Manaus can be reached by plane! Flights from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia as well as from other cities in the north of the country allow you to reach this capital. There is also the alternative of arriving by boat, leaving from nearby capitals such as the famous Belem/Manaos stretch in a 4-night journey on the Amazon River that connects both cities. For the tourist, the airplane option is undoubtedly the best and almost the only alternative to reach this city in the middle of the jungle.

Manaus is a capital that is basically divided into a historic center and the more modern part formed by different neighborhoods and the industrial district. I always recommend staying in the historical center where the visitor will have the possibility to walk through the centenary streets of Manaus and take advantage of the richness of this experience by seeing the “authentic and historical city of Manaus”. I particularly recommend two hotels that I like very much: Juma Opera and Villa Amazonia, both very close to the Teatro Amazonas, a fundamental historical landmark of Manaus. Staying in the historic center, the visitor can walk to some of the most important tourist sites such as the Teatro Amazonas with its indispensable guided tour to know this marvel of architecture as well as at night walk through the square in front of the theater full of bars and restaurants with typical food of the region, especially regional food and even indigenous food.

I recommend for a matter of practicality and time to hire a city tour that shows the main tourist sites of the city with bilingual guides that accompany the entire tour. In Manaus there are some places that are a must for the tourist: the already mentioned Teatro Amazonas, home of erudite music as well as local shows, (it offers free shows where the visitor only has to go to pick up the ticket at the ticket office), the Manaus Floating Market, where the visitor will be surprised with the immense variety of fish that is traded in this place. Fish of all sizes, shapes and colors from the generous Amazon and its tributaries give us an idea of the diversity of the river fauna of this place. Nearby, practically two blocks away, another market is a must-see in the city: the Banana Market. This market sells all kinds of bananas and fruits from the Amazon rainforest, which guarantees a visual spectacle of colors and shapes of fruits that only grow in this part of the world. Rustic bars in front of the market allow you to savor juices of these incredible fruits where you can drink only one fruit as well as drinks that combine more than one with delicious flavors.
Another must-see in the city of Manaus is the MUSA, the Museum of the Amazon Rainforest. Located outside the city of Manaus on the way to the airport is a place that shows the biodiversity of the Amazon explained in a very didactic way and obviously in the middle of a lot of nature. In this museum with the appearance of a botanical garden there is a huge tower with different balconies and as you climb it you can see the different layers of the jungle. When one reaches the top of the tower the visitor practically reaches the “roof of the jungle” from where one can see the immensity of the largest jungle in the world and a line of buildings far on the horizon that shows us Manaus and confirms the human presence in this vast green place. In this museum there are also explanatory panels of flora, fauna and indigenous culture that gives us an idea of what we can find if we go into the Amazon.

The “Meeting of the Waters”.
After touring the city of Manaus, it was time to embark on a regional vessel to see this phenomenon of nature. Embarking at the port of Manaus, the tourist navigates the Rio Negro in regional boats until arriving at a point where the Rio Negro (dark waters) meets the Rio Solimoes (light brown waters) which are observed to travel together for miles without mixing their waters which do not meet because they have different temperature, water density and speed of currents. This physical phenomenon produced by the two rivers runs for 6 kilometers until finally the rivers merge to form the immense and plentiful Amazon River.
As a frame of the encounter of both rivers, the visitor can observe the density of the jungle as a scenery of this natural phenomenon. The excursions that offer this tour combine with a visit to the wonderful Januari Park where the tourist can walk through the jungle and meet the ambassadors of the Amazon River: the Vitoria Regia, a kind of aquatic plant in the form of huge plates that float down the calm waters of the Amazon tributaries serving as habitat for birds, batrachians, reptiles that use it as “transport” down the river, support for fishing as do herons and other wading birds, even small mammals walk on these resistant plates on the water. Of the tours available I recommend taking the full day tour which includes lunch at a floating restaurant. The return to Manaus is also delightful and allows you to see the fish market from the river along with hundreds of regional boats of different sizes arriving at the port loaded with fish, fruits and other jungle goods.

Jungle Hotels and Amazon cruises.
After visiting Manaus we can continue with the jungle experience in two possible ways: either we transfer to the jungle hotels or we leave to tour the Amazon on regional cruises.
The jungle hotels are located at various distances from Manaus and some are easily accessible only half an hour from Manaus by boat or by land, or two hours by boat to reach real refuges in the heart of the jungle. These hotels offer full board (breakfast, lunch and dinner) as well as a series of excursions to discover the jungle, morning, afternoon and evening walks after dinner especially for wildlife observation. I recommend the following jungle hotels that undoubtedly guarantee an unforgettable experience in the jungle: Amazona Eco Park, Evolução Eco Lodge, Juma Lodge and Mirante do Gavião.

For those who prefer to sail, 3, 4 and 7-night cruises depart from Manaus and travel through the Amazon with stops for visits and tours. The same as the jungle hotels, these cruises include full board (meals and tours). The ones I can recommend are Iberostar Gran Amazon, MV Desafio and the Clipper cruises. Although there are differences in the prices of these cruises, the jungle experience is guaranteed in all of them. For the very demanding visitor who is looking for sophistication when navigating the Amazon, I recommend the Untamed Amazon, the most modern tourist ship in the Brazilian Amazon with a high level of sophistication and luxury in all its facilities.

Both in the jungle hotels and on the cruises, excursions are included and are experiences in contact with nature and local culture. The wildlife observation tours are very attractive, especially the night tours to see the caimans of the Amazon, or the fun recreational piranha fishing. But the most important of these tours I consider and recommend is to swim with the pink parades of the Amazon. In the middle of some wooden platforms located in the river and attended by guides specialized in fauna, the visitor arrives by boat to observe the “botos cor de rosa” swimming freely around this platform. The guides call these magnificent specimens offering small fish as food which allows the tourist to see the dolphins and touch them. Those who want to literally swim just put on a life jacket and step off the wooden platform and remain still while the dolphins approach and surround the visitor. This experience allows you to see, swim and gently touch these wonderful Amazonian animals. For tourists traveling with children this experience becomes unforgettable. Both jungle hotels and cruises include this excursion.

The indigenous tribes
Fundamental to complete the visit are the visits to the local communities of those who live in the middle of the jungle, the cablocos (communities of Brazilians living in inhospitable regions of the jungle) and the indigenous people who live in reserves.
The visit to the indigenous tribe allows us to contemplate, experience, contemplate the reality of the Brazilian Indians today, how they live, how they organize themselves socially, their religious practices, their hunting and fishing habits, their handicrafts along with their music and dances. In some of them you can even taste typical food of the indigenous diet. I had the opportunity to eat “ants” in my last visit to one of these tribes, ants that combined with fish and “tapioca” form a delicious and very nutritious flavor.
Watching the aborigines dance is exciting because they are millenary dances inherited from generation to generation; and what impresses are the musical instruments and the sounds they produce with them! Nothing conventional for those of us who live in cities and large urban centers. For those who are really looking for an ethnic cultural experience, it is possible to sleep in these indigenous tribes and accompany them in the daily life of their inhabitants interacting with them in their activities, one of the most interesting is to see the fishing with bow and arrow, a survival habit since before the arrival of Europeans to Brazil.
Undoubtedly the Amazon is an incredible destination on the planet, its biodiversity and its inhabitants surprise and enchant, and for them it is necessary at least five nights in this incredible place to have a memorable experience for life.
Be sure to contract your visit with a travel agency who will be in charge of organizing all these trips with local guides guaranteeing a safe and comfortable trip.
Have a good trip to the Amazon!
José Perié
jose.perie@riodelcristo.com.br
26/05/2024