Frequently asked questions (and our answers!)

Are you looking for some answers to your questions about Iquitos? Maybe looking for information regarding our Iquitos jungle tours, how to prepare for your Amazon trip or if the weather will affect your tour?

Here we will answer the most common questions we have been asked by our visitors. If you don’t find your question answered here please contact us and we will do our best to help you out.

And if you are looking for our Tours in Iquitos click here.

Arriving at iquitos

There are plenty of airline options to arrive at Iquitos.

The most common route is from Lima to Iquitos. There are also options for flying from Cusco to Iquitos (usually with a small layover in Lima).

You can check:

LATAM Airlines (be sure to check the Peruvian website, it usually has cheaper prices than the International website)

Peruvian Airlines

Star Peru

Sky Airline

Viva Air

If you know of any other airline that flies into Iquitos that is not listed here please contact us to add it.

Iquitos airport is oficially called Coronel FAP Francisco Secada Vignetta International Airport (quite a long name, eh?) and it’s IATA code is IQT.

Iquitos airport is very small by international standards. When you arrive there is only one common room with one baggage carousel (the device that keeps your checked luggage spinning until you pick it up).

After you pick up your luggage there is a door for going out, into the airport parking lot. In that place, you will find many taxi drivers and people with signs looking for the passengers that just arrive. If you coordinated with us beforehand (and gave us your flight details) we will be there waiting for you.

We are gonna be waiting for you at the airport based on the information you gave us about your scheduled flights. We will be holding a sign with your name on it so you can easily recognize us.

We are going to be waiting for you just outside the door you cross when leaving the room where you pick up your luggage.

Iquitos airport, officially known as Coronel FAP Francisco Secada Vignetta International Airport, is located approximately 9 kilometers from the main square (Plaza de Armas) in the city center, where most of the tourism spots (hotels, restaurants, etc) are located.

It takes around 20 to 30 minutes from our office (one block away from the main square) to Iquitos airport, depending on traffic.

Iquitos

In this guide, you can find 20 different things to do in Iquitos, Peru.

We have selected things to do for every budget, age range or specific interest.

Review the proposed activities and plan accordingly.

If you are looking for an Amazon tour we will be happy to organize it for you.

We organize tours in the Amazon river staying on an Amazon lodge and camping tours in Pacaya Samiria National Reserve.

Enjoy Iquitos ✌🌴

The estimates for how many people live in Iquitos vary.

The last official number, from 2015, says that there are 437.400 people living in Iquitos.

Our estimate is that including undocumented people, visitors, the “floating” population that lives in nearby towns and go to Iquitos to work, and other groups, Iquitos city has a population of at least 500.000 or half million people.

Payment

Yes, you can pay your tour with VISA, Mastercard and most of the other credit cards like AMEX, Discovery, etc.

If you prefer this option please contact us so we can send you a custom link for the payment.

No, there are no extra fees.

The listed price is the price you pay for your tour, expressed in United States dollars (USD).

The price includes taxes.

Please contact us with your idea for a private Amazon tour, including the group size and telling us which one of our tours would you like to use as a base for creating your desired experience.

The cost depends on this information.

We can make customized trips up to 10 days navigating through the Amazon river, the Yanayacu zone, Yarapa river, and the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve. You can plan a mixture of lodging and camping or camp only for the more adventurous format. We have specialized bi-lingual guides, with years of experience on birdwatching tours, group and private tours.

All food, water, and camping equipment will be provided.

 

Yes, we take Bitcoin as payment.

If you would like to pay for your Amazon tour using Bitcoin please contact us for further instructions.

Bitcoin for Amazon Jungle Tours
Bitcoin accepted here

We strongly believe in the value that cryptocurrencies are bringing to our society.

We, at Amazon Experience, are committed to support and accept payments from the following cryptocurrencies:

  • Ethereum (ETH) – https://www.ethereum.org/
  • Ethereum Classic (ETC) – https://ethereumclassic.org/
  • PIVX – https://pivx.org/
  • Ark – https://ark.io/
  • Litecoin (LTC) – https://litecoin.org/
  • NEO – https://neo.org/

If you want to pay for an Amazon tour with cryptocurrencies please contact us for further instructions on how to proceed for booking your tour.

Yes, we offer a 5% discount to every person that chooses to have vegetarian or vegan meals during the Amazon tour.

To apply this discount please contact us so we can send you a custom link with the vegetarian discount included.

In case that you already paid, we will reimburse you the 5%.

We also offer a 5% discount for groups of 4 or more people that book through the website.

When you select the dates and the number of people for the tour that you want to book if the amount of people is 4 or greater, it will automatically apply the discount to the total.

If you are having trouble with this please contact us.

Preparation

Wear whatever is comfortable. It is recommended to have a sturdy pair of broken-in trail shoes, boots, or sneakers. Also a long sleeve shirt and long pants. Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat it is also advised.

Here you have a suggested packing list for your Amazon tour.

Packing list:

What to wear:

  • A sturdy pair of comfortable broken-in trail shoes or sneakers.
  • T-shirt with short sleeves
  • Shorts
  • Sunscreen
  • Sunglasses
  • Hat

What to bring:

  • Long sleeve shirt or t-shirt (for walking in the jungle)
  • Long pants (for walking in the jungle)
  • Swimwear
  • Sandals
  • Personal hygiene items
  • Daypack or small backpack
  • Personal prescription medicine (if that’s the case)
  • Raincoat
  • Flashlight

Suggested:

  • Mosquito repellent
  • Your ​own personal water container​, to be refilled with filtered water. This way we can reduce the usage of plastic.

If you don’t bring a raincoat or a flashlight you can choose to buy those in the ports before departure. If you choose to do so please get advice from your guide on how to do it

Not much, remember our trips are all-inclusive.

We do suggest you bring appropriate clothing to fit the season, swimwear, sandals, personal hygiene items, and a day pack to carry extra snacks, personal prescription medicine (if that’s the case) and water.

Mosquito repelent is a popular choice also.

We would highly appreciate if you would carry your own personal water container, to be refilled at any time at the lodge. This way we reduce the amount of plastic used.

Here you have a suggested packing list for your Amazon tour.

Packing list:

What to wear:

  • A sturdy pair of comfortable broken-in trail shoes or sneakers.
  • T-shirt with short sleeves
  • Shorts
  • Sunscreen
  • Sunglasses
  • Hat

What to bring:

  • Long sleeve shirt or t-shirt (for walking in the jungle)
  • Long pants (for walking in the jungle)
  • Swimwear
  • Sandals
  • Personal hygiene items
  • Daypack or small backpack
  • Personal prescription medicine (if that’s the case)
  • Raincoat
  • Flashlight

Suggested:

  • Mosquito repellent
  • Your ​own personal water container​, to be refilled with filtered water. This way we can reduce the usage of plastic.

If you don’t bring a raincoat or a flashlight you can choose to buy those in the ports before departure. If you choose to do so please get advice from your guide on how to do it

We provide a dedicated ​luggage storage space in our office​.

You can leave your big backpacks, bags or suitcases in our office​ and only take a small backpack or bag with the essentials to the tour.

Please bring your own small backpack or bag to be carried to the tour, as we do not provide those.

There is no limit of weight or size for the items we can store while you are on your tour.

Tours

The main differences between those tours and itineraries are:

The Amazon Lodge Tours explore the Amazon river, downstream from Iquitos city, departing from Nanay port on a motorboat. It takes around 1 hour and 30 minutes to reach the lodge.

This tour is more comfortable and conventional, you will explore the jungle and do different activities, like visiting Monkey Island, returning every day to the Amazon lodge.

The lodge is a rustic lodge with private rooms. Every room has its own bathroom with running water, handwash, a toilet, and a shower. There is a common dining room in the lodge, where most of the meals are served, and also an outside place with hammocks to chill or relax.

Some of the longer Amazon lodge tours include also the camping option.

This tour is more suited for families, couples or groups looking for a good mixture of comfort while also exploring the Amazon jungle.

The Pacaya Samiria Reserve Tours are full of adventure. These tours require different logistics for reaching the National Reserve. First, we will go to Nauta city by private land transport for around 1 hour and 40 minutes. Once in Nauta city, we will go to the port and start our journey against the current of the Marañón river (one of the rivers that form the mighty Amazon river) on a motorboat. This will take around 3 hours to reach the Santo Domingo Point of Vigilance, where we will handle our entrance tickets to the officials in charge, as we are entering a National Park and a protected area. After that, we will continue by motorboat arriving at the Buenos Aires community, where we will sleep the first night. 

The accommodation here is in a typical village house, as part of our ecotourism project, sleeping on a common room in individual beds with mosquito nets. Beds are separated by wooden panels for privacy. The bathroom is rustic and shared. 

After the first night, you will continue getting deeper and deeper into the jungle, moving camping spots every day. The deeper you go, the more chances you have to see different wildlife species.

You will explore the jungle doing camping in tents (except for the first night) and you will have chances to see wildlife in its own habitat. We will provide all the camping gear (tents, mattresses, sleeping bags and rubber boots).

This tour is more suited for people looking to camp in the Amazon jungle, experience disconnection (there is no cellphone nor internet signal) and looking for animals, birds and many different species in their own habitat. Photographers, videographers and any nature lover will enjoy it.

You can find photographies of both tours, including pictures of the Amazon lodge and the camping spots, in the gallery: https://www.amazonexperience.net/gallery/

We organize tours every day of the year for groups of two or more people. 

If you need help booking your tour or have any question please contact us.

All our Amazon lodge tours start at 9:00 am, with the exception of Full Day tour which starts at 8:00 am.

All our Pacaya Samiria tours start at 8:00 am.

We can be flexible with our passengers regarding the starting times. For example, if you have a flight already booked that arrives in the morning, but after the starting time, we can go pick you up at the airport and start the tour once you arrive.

If you need us to accommodate to your flight times please contact us to coordinate the best possible alternative.

The Full Day tour ends at 6:00 pm (18:00).

All our Amazon lodge and Pacaya Samiria tours between 2 and 6 days finish at 5:00 pm (17:00).

Al our Pacaya Samiria tours between 7 and 10 days finish at 6:00 (18:00)

You can choose to be dropped off directly at the airport after your tour ends, come back to our office or to your accommodation.

We can be flexible with our passengers regarding the finishing times. For example, if you have a flight already booked that departs in the afternoon, we can finish the tour earlier and transport you directly to the airport.

There is enough time to catch late evening flights out of Iquitos the same day that your tour ends. Please let us know in advance the departing time of your flights if you are leaving the same day that the tour ends.

If you need us to accommodate to your flight times please contact us to coordinate the best possible alternative.

Starting from Iquitos we go on a private minivan for approx. 1 hours and 45 minutes heading south to Nauta (founded in 1830).
From Nauta, we take a private traditional motorboat cruising Marañon upriver. It takes around 3 hours to reach Santo Domingo community, where we hop down to stretch our legs and register with the SERNANP for our entry to a Natural Reserve of Peru.
From there it takes 30 minutes approx. entering Pacaya Samiria to reach Buenos Aires community, your first stop to get used to the jungle.

Inside Pacaya Samiria we look for spots where we set our camping base. After mounting our tents we set to explore the area with the guides. As all outdoor activities, there is the possibility to be in contact with insects, bugs, spiders, dirt, water, mud and all things abundant in nature. Don’t bring your new clothes.
Depending on the length of your tour, usually the next day after camping we prepare to pack things and travel on the motorboat to our next destination in the itinerary.

The lodge is located approx. 30 kilometers from Iquitos, between the Sinchicuy community and San Rafael. Following the Amazon river downstream, it takes approx. 1 hour and a half by motorboat.
The lodge has a capacity for 30 people, every room has a private bathroom with shower, including towels, and has walls covered by plastic nets that keep mosquitoes and bugs outside. There is a common area for dining where meals are served. Electricity is available from 18:00 to 21:00 every day so you can charge your phone and/or camera.
There is also a room full of hammocks where you can chill and enjoy the sounds of the rainforest.
Once you arrive at the lodge this would be used as a base for the different expeditions and activities that you are going to do.

Weather

The climate in Iquitos is hot, tropical and humid.

The temperature is more or less constant during the year.

Iquitos has seasonal variations regarding the amount of rainfall, being the wetter season between October and May, and the drier season between June and September.

The Amazon jungle can be explored in any season and we can organize tours every day of the year.

You can find all the information and details regarding the weather in Iquitos, Perú here.

Here it never rains for long periods of time due to the tropical climate.

You will get to do all the activities included on the tour but the order could change depending on weather conditions.

We do hike in the rain and any other weather conditions that nature decides to throw at us. After all, we’re going on adventures!