Tambopata Reserve, The less expensive rainforest

When you plan your Peru family vacation getaway, many people or books will tell you to visit Manu Biosphere without mentioning Tambopata Reserve. That's because most don't know about this beautiful rainforest!. Everyone we met on our Peru vacation, told us they saw as many, or more animals in Tambopata Reserve than they did in Manu. To make things worse, they said they paid on average $300 a person to get into Manu. We feel this is because they have over-commercialized it and therefore they have to get their money's worth.

In Tambopata Reserve, you get more bang for your buck. For instance, you can buy a round-trip flight from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado for about $145 a person, then catch a bus ride to the river where you will go down the Tambopata river to the Explorer's Inn or another well established lodge.

Tambopata is the perfect place to spend a family vacation because of the diversity in birds, animals, butterflies, and plants. Kids will love the night "caiman hunting," the pirahnna fishing, or animal watching. When we visited the Reserve, we stayed with a South African Family who had 3 daughters between the ages of 14-20. We noticed that this age group got more out of the family vacation because they were of an age that they would remember the vacation for the rest of their life and thus it would be a lot more meaningful to them.

I mentioned the Explorer's Inn above and I would like to expound on it a little more now. This wonderful place to stay is tucked away in the rainforest about an hour and a half boat's ride away from the town. You are completely isolated and therefore you get the full effect of Tambopata reserve. We loved the evenings and early mornings when you could hear the howler monkeys and birds making their music. You can feel the humidity in the air and vibrant life of the forest surrounding you and pushing in on you. It is truly and awesome experience! The people at this Inn are very good at making you feel at home and taking you on educational tours around the inn. You can go on hikes into the forest to see where scientists are studying the plant life, visit a clay-lick where the parrots, macaws, and parakeets come. You may get lucky and see a giant otter, jaguar, or other large animal on a hike to one of the nearby lakes. This inn is definately a champion of minimal impact. They have rooms that have running water (not hot, however), no electricity (solar in the dining room), and eco-friendly toilets. You feel like you are getting a good taste of jungle life when you visit here. By the way, the cooks are awesome!

We highly recommend the Tambopata Reserve as a must see on your family vacation to Peru. You will see a host of wildlife and pay a fraction of the cost of other major rainforest reserves.

You can actually feed the monkeys in Tambopata Reserve. That is how close you can get to them!

As you go upriver to the Explorer's Inn, you will most likely pass a river boater like this fellow.

Make sure you get to say hello to Wowee the "pet" of Explorer Inn. Let a guide feed him, he is kind of ornery.

Tambopata Reserve boasts a huge array of wildlife and we were not disappointed when we visited. You will not regret a stay here!