CUYABENO 5 DAYS RAINFOREST ADVENTURE
4 nights accommodation in a jungle lodge
Bottled water
Meals as per itinerary (B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner)
Prices starting from $340 pp.
CUYABENO 5 DAYS RAINFOREST ADVENTURE
Embark on the ultimate adventure with our 5-day tour of the Amazon region. The journey to our lodge itself becomes an exploration, as you descend from the majestic Andean peaks to the lush Amazon basin. In the last leg of the trip, a motorized canoe will carry you along the Cuyabeno River, cutting through the heart of the rainforest. Have your camera ready—you’re likely to spot wildlife, including monkeys, sloths, caimans, and a variety of birds.
Immerse yourself in the Cuyabeno Reserve over two full days. Discover its unique flooded forest ecosystem, searching for wildlife, and soaking in the tranquility. On our last day depart from the lodge early to ensure you make it back to Quito by the end of the day.
The tour program
Day 1: Quito – Lago Agrio – Cuyabeno
Travel by bus from Quito to Lago Agrio, departing the day before your tour begins (note that the bus fare is not included in the tour price). Upon arrival in Lago Agrio, our private transportation will shuttle you to the park entrance (approximately 100 kilometers or 62 miles, with a travel time of around 2 hours) where you will meet your guide. Depending on logistics, we will either have lunch at a local restaurant or upon arrival at the lodge.
We will then embark on a canoe journey along the Cuyabeno River to the lodge, which will take about two hours. Throughout the journey, your bilingual guide will share insights about the local flora and fauna. It’s common to spot monkeys and various tropical birds such as toucans, macaws, and parrots during this time.
After arriving at the lodge, you’ll have some time to relax. Later, we’ll venture out to explore the stunning Laguna Grande. With any luck, we might spot some pink river dolphins. You can enjoy the sunset from the canoe and even take a refreshing swim in the lake.
Dinner will be served at the lodge. You’ll fall asleep surrounded by the soothing sounds of the jungle.
Day 2
Monkeys or birds will probably wake you up in the morning. After breakfast, take a short canoe ride to one of the trails in the National Park. Walk through the “terra firma forest” and listen to your guide explain the wildlife, medicinal forest plants, the forest ecosystem, and indigenous life. As you get a close look at the jungle, pay attention to the small details: different species of ants with perfected colony organization, tiny poisonous frogs hiding under leaves, insects hunting for their next meal, or fungi that take over and kill small organisms like insects or spiders. All of our guides are experts and will happily answer any questions you might have.
After lunch, we recommend a siesta during the hottest part of the day. You can relax in your room, in the hammocks, or on the dock. Later in the afternoon, you will explore more flooded parts of the forest by canoe. The fascinating macrolobium trees, covered with abundant epiphytes, are the most typical plants of this area. Try to spot monkeys and birds, and also keep an eye out for dolphins or anacondas.
After dinner, grab your flashlight and walk through the primary forest, looking for insects like giant grasshoppers, stick insects, praying mantises, and others that come out at night and are fascinating to see up close. If you’re lucky (and quiet), you might see some of the other nocturnal jungle animals like night monkeys, owls, and different kinds of rodents.
Day 3
After an early breakfast, today you will visit the indigenous Siona. We will Follow the Cuyabeno River downstream for about 1.5 hours, of course always looking for wildlife, until you reach one of the three indigenous villages we work with and support with our visit. One of the women will give you a hands-on lesson in how to prepare the typical casabe, a tortilla made from manioc. Start by harvesting the maniok in the family’s fields, before it gets cooked in a traditional kitchen over the open fire. Your guide will give you some explanations about the indigenous people of the area, their history and their way of life.
Return to the Lodge for lunch. After the siesta, take a refreshing bath in the lake and enjoy once more the beautiful sunset.
After dinner a special adventure awaits you: a nocturnal excursion by canoe, looking for caimans, snakes and nocturnal birds. Bring a good flashlight, then caimans are most easily spotted by the reflection of their eyes.
Day 4
Breakfast 8:00 am
Full day activities. The equipment (water ponchos, boots) will be provided to each one of you.
We will paddle a canoe to visit another fantastic lagoon “La Laguna Canangueno”, we will have the opportunity to see a variety of animals such as monkeys, birds, sloths and much more.
We will continue and go for a walk in the primary forest, where each time we will see different species of animals, the guide will explain about the ecology of the Amazon rainforest, plants, flora and fauna and interactions of the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth (approx. 3 hours).
Box lunch in the jungle.
We will take a break in the middle of the jungle.
Then we will return and take our last tour in the Laguna Grande, and we will see dolphins, and more animals that the jungle offers us.
Swim and watch the wonderful sunset and then drive to the lodge.
7:30 pm special dinner with our guide, where we will share our experiences in the jungle with a farewell cocktail.
Day 5
We will go for an early bird watching at 6am. The birds are most active during the morning and this is the best time to see them active and waking up with the jungle. After the sunrise we will return to the lodge for our last breakfast together. Departure from the Lodge is at 9:30am. We will travel by motor canoe to the park entrance. Our vehicle will take you back to Lago Agrio which is the end location of our tour. Return to Quito either by bus or private transportation.
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