Itinerary

1. Day 1: Cusco to Manu National Park

   • Set out on a journey through remote highland scenery and isolated Quechua communities to the pass of Acjanaco, the entry point of Manu National Park.
   • From here, begin your descent into the cloud forest, enjoying the marvellous scenery and exotic flora on the way. Look out for exotic birds, butterflies, and insects.
   • In the afternoon, reach Atalaya, from where a motorized dugout canoe will take you across the river to the lodge.

2. Day 2: Bird Watching

   • After an early breakfast, climb a trail leading into the montane forest to a watchtower, affording splendid views over the river. If lucky, you may also spot interesting birds from here like squirrel cuckoos, cotingas, tityras, flower piercers or more tanagers.
   • In the afternoon, explore more of the lowland trails around the lodge, hoping to spot some monkeys, toucans, guans, caracaras, tinamous or perhaps some agoutis or capybaras.
   • At a small oxbow lake, watch the weird and wonderful Hoatzin, egrets, herons, kingfishers, raptors, and if lucky, you may even sight the black caimans. Watch out for squirrel monkeys, Dusky Titi monkeys, and capuchins.
   • After it's dark, go on a short night walk to spot amphibians and insects or night monkeys.

3. Day 3: Boca Manu Visit

   • Travel down the Upper Madre de Dios River up to its confluence with the Manu River. Briefly visit the settlement of Boca Manu.

4. Day 4: Matsguenka Tribe

   • Begin your journey up the Manu River with the first light of day. This journey offers the maximum chance for sightings of rare animals, like black and white caimans, side-neck turtles, different species of monkeys, capybaras, jabirus and wood storks, black skimmers, sand-coloured nighthawks and many other animals.
   • Arrive at the lodge. Then, pass by the Matsguenka tribe in the afternoon.
   • Hopefully, visit Lake Salvador, one of the oxbow lakes deep inside Manu Park. If lucky, you might be able to sight a family of giant otters, as well as black caimans, Neotropic cormorants, Muscovy ducks, green ibis and many other animals.

5. Day 5: Lake Salvador Boat Ride

   • Wake up to the sound of red howler monkeys in the morning. Return to Lake Salvador, where we will use a catamaran to get a closer look at wildlife there. Sometimes, you can spot giant otters fishing, eating and playing, from a short distance. You may also get sightings of horned screamers, hoatzins, limpkins, capped herons, wattled jacanas, purple gallinules and the rare and shy Agami Herons.
   • Later, walk the trails to look for spider monkeys, squirrel monkeys or tamarins.

6. Day 6: Lake Otorongo

   • Visit Lake Otorongo, another oxbow lake, where you have another chance to watch giant otters from a watchtower. In this area, there are woolly monkeys as well. With a little luck, you might see several different species of monkey.
   • Spend the rest of the day exploring different trails, looking out for wild animals and learning about the different uses of various plants.
   • In the afternoon, participate in a shooting contest with the Matsiguenka. You will be shooting papayas with bows and arrows.

7. Day 7: Return journey down the Manu river

   • Begin your return journey down the Manu River. Use this opportunity to look out for typical riverine animals like caimans, capybaras or roseate spoonbills once again. If extremely lucky, you may even spot a jaguar, an anteater or tapir! 
   • Spend the night at a lodge on the Upper Madre de Dios River. If time allows, you may explore the trails there and look out for more red howler monkeys and other animals.

8. Day 8: Back to the cloud forest

   Travel back to the cloud forest to spend another night to get a chance of sighting animals endemic to this habitat, like the quetzal, highland motmot, green jay, Andean-cock-of-the-rock, cinnamon flycatcher and many other species.

9. Day 9: Return to Cusco

   • Wake up before dawn and walk to a lake nearby to watch the noisy display of the male cock-of-the-rocks.
   • After a hearty breakfast, explore the surroundings and watch out for woolly monkeys, torrent ducks, white-capped dippers, oropendolas and colourful tanagers before starting the return journey to Cusco.

10. Day 10: Departure

    • Set out on your way back home.