Brazil
Adventure in the Heart of the Amazon by Private Riverboat
Program No. 21982RJ
Discover the wonder of the Amazon on board a private riverboat and learn about rich biodiversity, intricate rivers, sustainable farming and a jungle metropolis alongside local experts.
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11 days
10 nights
26 meals
9B 8L 9D
3
Explore Manaus local Market, Embark Amazon Clipper Riverboat
Amazon Rainforest
4
Lake Janauacá, Caboclos, Piranha Fishing, Canoe Field Trip
Amazon Rainforest
5
Meeting of the Waters, Amazon Ecology
Amazon Rainforest
6
Amazon Flora & Fauna by Canoe, Jungle Walk
Amazon Rainforest
7
Jaú National Park by Canoe, Igarapé Preto
Amazon Rainforest
8
Carabinani River Birding & Exploration
Amazon Rainforest
9
Canoe Ride, Novo Airão & Pink Dolphins, Beach BBQ
Amazon Rainforest
10
Disembark, Opera House
Manaus
11
In Transit From Program
In Flight
At a Glance
Discover the very heart of the Amazon — the biggest, most biodiverse rainforest on Earth — on this private riverboat adventure. Led by naturalists, walk the jungle to find giant trees and exotic plants. Take morning canoe excursions to search for tropical birds as the forest wakes up. After dark, use the boat’s spotlights to see nocturnal jungle-dwellers like caimans. Encounter pink dolphins and even fish for piranhas.
Activity Level
Let's Go!
Walking up to one mile over uneven, potentially slippery terrain in tropical conditions; some unavoidable stairs. Climbing in and out of the riverboat's flat-bottomed, large, 16 passenger motor canoes.
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Navigate the Amazon, the dark-watered Rio Negro and narrow tributaries on an exclusively chartered riverboat.
- Join naturalists for jungle walks and canoe excursions in search of incredible wildlife like toucans, hoatzins, caimans and pink dolphins.
- Explore Manaus and its iconic Amazon Theatre opera house, an isolated metropolis in the heart of the jungle once made rich by the rubber boom.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Aldinei Cruz
Aldinei “Al” Cruz is a certified professional travel expert in Manaus, Brazil with more than 25 years of experience exploring and leading through the Amazon. Aldinei keeps discovering new things and his passion for sharing makes the learning adventure a very rich experience. In addition to his certification as a naturalist guide, he is certified in First Aid by Brazilian Red Cross. He has been leading our river cruise expedition for the last 5 years.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Wolfhard Wink
View biography
Wolfhard “Wolf” Wink was born in Germany. After he studied public relations, he worked for 19 years in social insurance. However, nature has been his passion since the age of 6. In pursuit of his dream, Wolf moved to Manaus in 2007 and has been working ever since as a naturalist expert in the Amazon. Wolf is married with two children, Sebastian and Julia. Wolf has been leading Road Scholar river expeditions in the Amazon area since 2016.
Aldinei Cruz
View biography
Aldinei “Al” Cruz is a certified professional travel expert in Manaus, Brazil with more than 25 years of experience exploring and leading through the Amazon. Aldinei keeps discovering new things and his passion for sharing makes the learning adventure a very rich experience. In addition to his certification as a naturalist guide, he is certified in First Aid by Brazilian Red Cross. He has been leading our river cruise expedition for the last 5 years.
Suggested Reading List
(16 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Adventure in the Heart of the Amazon by Private Riverboat
Program Number: 21982
Tropical Nature
Two uncommonly observant and thoughtful field biologists offer a lucid portrait of the tropics through 17 marvelous essays that introduce the habitats, ecology, plants and animals of the Central and South American rainforests.
Tree of Rivers, The Story of the Amazon
Hemming captures the ambition, greed and awe of naturalists, explorers and missionaries -- and their devastating impact on native peoples -- in this absorbing human history.
Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice
In this marvelous book, Plotkin recounts his work documenting the use of medicinal plants among remote tribes in the Northwest Amazon. A portrait of people and their environment, a tale of adventure and a moving example of science in the service of preservation.
In Trouble Again
As funny as he is insightful, O'Hanlon starts his comic masterpiece of a journey between the Orinoco and the Amazon with a litany of the insects, protozoa, snakes and predators that can do you harm.
Birds of Tropical America
An ornithologist and veteran leader of birding expeditions, Hilty serves up short essays on how to find and better appreciate the dizzying variety of neotropical birds, their habits and habitats, diversity and distribution in this well-loved book.
Edge of the Jungle
A collection of 12 essays on the Amazon and its ecology and wildlife. A scientist-explorer with the soul of a poet, Beebe wrote dozens of books about his adventures in tropical America and Guyana.
The Brazilians
A clear, comprehensive and compelling introduction to Brazil, covering politics, history, economics, ecology, conservation and culture.
Insight Guide Brazil
A profusely illustrated overview of the country, this guide features concise essays by well-regarded authors on natural history, politics and culture. With hundreds of photos and maps.
Amazon Map
This double-sided map (1:2.5 million) shows both detail and the expanse of the great river basin from the Andes to the Atlantic.
The Smithsonian Atlas of the Amazon
This beautiful, profusely illustrated atlas of the river includes its major tributaries and 150 full-color maps. Goulding (Floods of Fortune) and Brazilian biologists Barthem and Ferreira provide the accompanying text.
Brazil: Amazon & Pantanal, Travellers' Wildlife Guides
A comprehensive handbook to the flora, fauna and habitats of Brazil. The 100 color plates feature 90 species of amphibians and reptiles, 310 birds, 70 mammals, 30 insects and 50 common trees and plants.
Neotropical Rainforest Mammals, A Field Guide
Compact enough to slip into your daypack, this field guide to the mammals of Central and South American features 29 color plates of more than 200 species.
One River, Explorations and Discoveries in the Amazon
A spellbinding, sprawling tale of explorers, botanical secrets and larger-than-life personalities in northwest South America.
Journey of the Pink Dolphins, An Amazon Quest
In this magical, mystical journey in the Brazilian Amazon, Montgomery (Spell of the Tiger) sets off with river guides, shamans and conservationists in search of the strange bouto, a beaked dolphin that inhabits much of the Amazon and Orinoco river drainages.
Culture Smart! Brazil
A concise, well-illustrated and practical guide to local customs, etiquette and culture.
Naturalists in Paradise, Wallace, Bates and Spruce in the Amazon
The story of the Alfred Russel Wallace, Henry Bates and Richard Spruce, three pioneers of biology who made amazing discoveries in Amazonia. Includes 70 black-and-white and color illustrations.