Itamandi Lodge 4 days / 3 nights

We start our Amazon tour at the Arajuno bridge, where we will take a motorized canoe that goes upriver for 20 minutes through the tropical forest to Itamandi Eco lodge.

On this boat trip, you can appreciate the magic and beauty of the Amazon rainforest by traveling along a river that zigzags through the jungle like a giant snake, considered the main system of the Pacha Mama (Mother Earth).

Once we arrive at the Itamandi EcoLodge dock area, our staff will welcome you. From there we will continue to relax in the lounge with a fresh tropical snack and a short briefing that will contain general information about the accommodation and activities, provided by one of our naturalist guides, and thus proceed to lunch.

After breakfast, we walk through the primary and secondary forest. This activity lasts about 2 – 1/2 to 3 hours.

In the afternoon it is time to enjoy a cultural activity. An Amazonian Kichwa community passed us by and we will learn about their way of life and the interaction they have with the jungle.

In this meeting, that part of the Amazon that is not found on maps will be shown: the Amazonian people in their daily lives. Part of our visit to the community consists of sharing the famous «chicha», a fermented yucca drink that has become part of their festivities and daily consumption.

We will participate in the preparation of this drink and try some of the traditional dishes. We will end the visit with a traditional dance performed by the children of the community and we will also have time to buy some handicrafts made by the indigenous people of the area. This small company is of great help to support the daily life of the indigenous people.

We take the canoe for around 40 minutes to visit «Anaconda Island». We can observe the prehistoric bird «Hoatzin», woolly monkeys, squirrel monkeys, just to name a few. We also visit a family in one of the indigenous communities to learn about their cultivation habits, medicinal plants, as well as the ancestral way of hunting with blowguns and handmade traps in the forest.

After lunch we will head to the Amazoonico, which is protecting a number of different animals, some in danger of extinction. Amazónico is not a zoo, but a rescue center for Amazon animals in Ecuador. We can observe some animals in their natural environment at close range.