4 Days Manu National Park Tour (Expedition) ✅

The Manu National Park Tour

Our four-days Manu Cultural Zone Expedition is specifically designed for everyone who wants to experience the Peruvian low jungle. This is where you will truly see what the rainforest looks but also feels like. The beauty of pure nature surrounding us, will amaze you. Our group will explore local flora and fauna, trees that go for miles and a huge amount of animals species calling this place their home. Not to mention how the fresh air and beautiful nature sounds will be unbelievably relaxing. Above all, you will live a once in a life time adventure which will give you fond memories to talk about for the rest of your life.

A Glimpse into the Peruvian Manu National Park

First, we will head into the cultural zone, one of the three zones of the Manu National Park. There, our trek will be instantly rewarded by breath-taking cloud forests, high mountains and the stunning rainforest. Exploring this part, will truly give us the chance to experience the local culture and meet communities living in the jungle, only relying on creative agriculture and sustainable forestry. However, farming and lumbering are closely controlled by the Ministry of Agriculture as well as the Authorities of the Manu National Park (SERNANP). The cultural zone contains a vast expansion of the cloud forest which is home to more than 8000 species of flowers and plants, 400 species of birds, and 10 different mammals.

Our group will then gain access to the lower part of the jungle via motored boat ride. The boats used for this are all handcrafted, made from local balsa wood. As the wind gently strokes our faces, this boat ride will offer us an incredible view over the Madre de Dios river as well as the chance to navigate on the Machuwasi lake. There, we will get to see and hear some of the gorgeous birds that live nearby and later enjoy a pleasant hike through a forest of giant Ceiba trees, one of them being over 400 years old. In other words, we guarantee you to experience the wonders of the Manu forest with this remarkable tour.

Minimum number of participants: 3

Manu National Park Tour Itinerary

Day 1: CUSCO - NINAMARCA - PAUCARTAMBO - TRES CRUCES - BAMBU LODGE

First day

The first day of this tour starts early in the morning at 4:00 am when leaving from the beautiful city of Cusco, the “belly button” of the Inca Empire. First, we will start by a 2-2.5 hours private car ride, then stop on the way to have breakfast. Then, we shall continue for a while to the Pre-Inca ruins of Ninamarca. Once there, we will explore the ancient cemetery which includes about 30 Chullpas. Chullpas are small towers, built to honour Nobles after their deaths. Our journey will then take us to the town of Paucartambo. You will most certainly notice Tambos which were built alongside Inca roads for administrative and military purposes. Furthermore, they were used as relay points for messengers who would then pass their materials or messages to another messenger before resting.

Tres Cruces

This journey will also take us from Paucartambo to Tres Cruces, the entry point to the cloud forest of Manu, where we will be taking a break at around 1:30 pm for lunch and to enjoy an incredible sight on the jungle that awaits us. After lunch, our trip into the Manu National Park will immediately begin and you can expect to make a few stops on the way in order to go birdwatching and hopefully get the chance to see monkeys climbing trees! Mainly, you will be amazed by the endless and abundant green forest rising before your eyes.

Bambu Lodge

We are aiming to arrive at the peaceful Bambu Lodge by 5:30 to have a quick break. We will get access to electricity there and, therefore, have a chance to charge any equipment brought with us. Shortly after, we will have dinner, around 7:00 pm. If you are feeling rather adventurous, when the night settles in, we will go for a walk near the lodge. At night, the jungle definitely brings out animals you are unlikely to see during the day. If we are “lucky”, we might even find a tarantula or two.

Our group will rest at the lodge for the night and enjoy the pleasant sounds of the night as we drift off into a replenishing sleep.

Max altitude: 11811 ft (3600 m) above sea level
Overnight stay at the Bambu Lodge
Day 2: BAMBU LODGE - ATALAYA - SOGA DE ORO & MACHUWASI LAKE

Atalaya

On this second day, we will be waking up at 5:00 am for a delicious breakfast! We will be leaving the Bambu Lodge 30 minutes later to start our trip to the small port town of Atalaya. On our way there we will stop at a local market where we will get the opportunity to buy food and drinks. You could even try to cut your own coconut… if you can do it! Once arrived In Atalaya, we will unpack our things and load them up on a long boat.

Madre de dios river and the Machuwasi lake

A local will take us on a 40 min boat ride across the sublime Madre De Dios river. Shortly after arriving at the Soga de Oro lodge, we will unload our stuff and take a brief rest before getting back on the boat. We will then travel to another part of the jungle where we are planning on hiking for about 2 hours. During the hike, we will eventually come face to face with the Machuwasi lake. After getting onto a flat raft made from balsa wood from local jungle trees, we will gently float around the lake and enjoy the calm that surrounds us. Several birds should be perched alongside the lake, singing. Don’t forget your binoculars!

After the calm from Machuwasi, we will eat lunch, at around 1:30 pm, followed by a short walk to the river where we will be going to enjoy a refreshing swim. Diving into the river will certainly be an amazing feeling after our trip in the natural heat and humidity of the jungle.

Once refreshed, be ready to head back into the jungle, looking for animals and particularly, tapirs. The tapir is a very unique looking animal similar to a pig and has a small, flexible trunk. Those herbivores enjoy the water and have the particularity of being excellent swimmers… make sure to approach them slowly as they can easily get scared and run away.

Finally, around 7:00 pm, we will eat dinner and get some free time to explore the area before calling it a night.

Max altitude: 2130 ft (650 m) above sea level
Overnight stay at Soga de Oro
Day 3: SOGA DE ORO - CEIBA FOREST - ATALAYA - BAMBU LODGE

Chuncho Macaw Clay Lick

On day 3, an early adventure awaits us. Starting at 5:00am, we will get a boat to the Chuncho Macaw Clay Lick! There, we should find a variety of Macaws (Parrots) perched and preening on the cliffs. The cliffs are made of a clay that contains several minerals, thought to be important to the bird’s digestion and health. It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen — or heard. Flocks of Macaws fly here in the early morning for reasons yet unknown which researchers are still studying and trying to understand.

Giant Ceiba Trees

Next, our group will head back to the lodge for 7:30 am, where we will have breakfast around 7:30 am. Afterwards, a journey to a giant Ceiba Trees forest will be awaiting us. Those trees are significantly ancient and some of them have even been around for more than 400 years. Halfway through our hike we will come across one of the oldest trees in the jungle. It has a several feet thick trunk with roots growing above the ground. If you stand in between them, they will get above your waist. The vastness and ancestral vegetation of the jungle, will make you experience a memorable feeling.

Animal Sanctuary

The Soga de Oro lodge will be expecting us around 1:00 pm to serve lunch. A 40 minutes boat ride will then take us back to Atalaya. From there, we will then get a car to an animal sanctuary. The sanctuary is approx. 40 minutes away. Monkeys, Macaws, and other animals happily live there, being looked after by some truly amazing and very kind animal carers. They will give us the chance to see these wonderful animals from up close as well as to get to interact with them! Next, we will head to a small village which to meet the locals. In addition to this, we will go shopping for clothes or items made from resources gathered in the jungle.

Finally, we will be heading back at the Bambu lodge at about 5:30 pm. And of course, after a short break, we can expect to eat dinner around 7:00 pm. The rest of the night is yours to either explore or rest before the last day of our adventure.

Max altitude: 2130 ft (650 m) above sea level
Overnight stay at the Bambu Lodge
Day 4: BAMBU LODGE - CUSCO

Final day

On the last day, we will have breakfast at 6:00 am before our trip back to Cusco. On the way to Tres Cruces, we will also make a few stops so we can go for short treks to get to see even more animals. We will be keeping a sharp eye out for anything that moves, so have your camera ready!

Finally, we will stop on the road for lunch together at around 12:00 pm. We are aiming to be back in Cusco between 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

Max altitude: 11811 ft (3600 m) above sea level

This will be the end of our tour into this World Cultural Heritage Site. However, if you would like to stay in the Cusco region or Peru for longer and explore more then feel free to contact us as we would be more than happy to modify our tours so that they meet your tastes and expectations.