Amazon Basin

Introducing Amazon Basin

When you step out of an air-conditioned plane and a blast of hot, muggy tropical air hits your face, you will know immediately that you have arrived in the Peruvian Amazon Basin. This at least is what most travelers experience when they come to the Amazonas – as it is known in Spanish – for few roads and just a few rivers connect this vast tract of jungle territory with the rest of Peru.

The Amazonas comprises approximately 50% of the nation yet only 5% of Peruvians live here. It is nonetheless a fast-growing tourist destination. Judicious protection of the Peruvian jungle has meant that the biosphere of the eastern flank of the Andes preserves some of the most diverse fauna and flora reserves in the whole world. Unlike neighboring Brazil, where ecotourism is almost a dirty word, Peru has managed to look after its natural heritage for future generations.

Divided into three primary areas, the Peruvian Amazonas offers a mixture of river life, jungle trekking, birding and animal-spotting, coupled with a dash of raucous city living when the need arises. There are only three towns of any size: one, Pucallpa, is reachable by a paved road, another, Puerto Maldonado, by a rough dirt track and the third, Iquitos, is not even connected to the rest of Peru by road.

The Peruvian Amazonas is a vivid, bright, exotic and challenging frontier zone. It deserves your time and attention.

Last updated: Jan 7, 2010