Rurrenbaque - not-so-eco eco tours

Ive just come back from a 2 night, 3 day pampas tour that described itself as being eco-friendly and respecting nature. We went with Fluvial, number 1 on the Lonely Planets list of tour companies and the accomodation and food were fine but the way the animals we`re treated was not so great. Within minutes of meeting our guide we witnessed him kick a dog (who only walked in front of him) so hard it lifted all 4 legs off the ground. He then asked us if we wanted him to catch a baby caiman and despite most of the group saying no he still did. We went on a walk to find an anaconda and after an hour there was still no luck so the guides told us to wait and they would find one. Minutes later and they came back carrying one. They encouraged everyone to touch it and did not ask whether anyone had DEET or sunscreen on their hands, which apparently can irritate the snake´s skin. I did not feel at all comfortable with this and the snake did not look happy either. Afterwards one guide did not let go of the snake and told everyone to follow the other guide back to the boat. We kept watching the guide who stayed back and he hung onto the snake. We are almost certain it came from a cage or trap and he stayed behind to return it to the cage.

I would definitely recommend checking the tours very carefully as they do not seem to practice what they say in the office during booking.

Hi Purple Hamster,

Thank you for writing this warning for everybody. I think its really important people know exactly what tour companies are like in Rurre. I have heard some horrible stories of wildlife and animal abuse in the area and im really glad to see some1 naming these companies so others wont make the same mistakes. Most of the tours are advertised as eco tours even when they are not.So it is difficult to judge the better companies.

For anyone thats planning a trip to Rurre in the future I went with Bala tours back in November.I cannot recommend them highly enough. They have a very strict eco lodge policy ¨look but dont touch¨ the animals. Food was fantastic. I am veggie and they had great veggie food. People on other groups told me that their veggie option was chicken. Saw so many animals. The guide was fantastic and the lodge was beautiful.

Im sorry your experience in Rurre was disappointing and its horrible to have to watch people handling wild animals that definately shouldnt be touched but I really hope your warning here will help other people when choosing a tour company.

Orla

And yes, of course the anaconda came from a cage...

Cheers,
Terry

I agree it's good to name names, and I hope you wrote a note for the bulletin board at the tourism office as well. Fluvial had been one of our options until we scrapped the whole pampas thing and went to San Miguel del Bala instead.