Amazon Wildlife Expeditions
Wildlife tours, piranha fishing, pink dolphin watching, monkey watching and more.
Fly to Iquitos, Peru — we meet you at the airport and take you into the Pacaya-Samiria reserve.
From $120 a day, everything included.
Prices
That's the whole cost — the more of you there are, the less each pays. No deposit, and you pay Ruber in cash when you arrive.
| Trip | Solo | 2–4 | 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 day | $150 | $130 | $120 |
| 2 days | $300 | $260 | $240 |
| 3 days | $450 | $390 | $360 |
| 4 daysmost popular | $600 | $520 | $480 |
| 5 days | $750 | $650 | $600 |
Longer trips, deeper routes, and rituals with medicinal herbs and others — information on WhatsApp or by email.
What you'll see
Every excursion is optional, the night walk included. Stay at the camp if you'd rather not come.
A day here
The same rhythm, but each day takes you further from the camp and into the quieter channels.
From three days up you can also spend one night camping out in the forest, under the trees instead of at the camp. Say so when you write. There isn't time for it on the two-day trip.
Where you sleep
It is a family business. Ruber's father Juan has organised these trips for decades and still does. George and the men Ruber has worked with for twenty years run the rest.
Ruber works from several camps on the Yarapa, and his own base camp further out. Which one you stay in depends on the time of year and how high the water is. What is the same every time:
Reviews
Left on TripAdvisor by people who travelled with Ruber. These are the most recent.
“The walks, boat trips and fishing for piranhas made it so much fun.”
Kurt G · October 2026 · TripAdvisor“He went above and beyond to fit in as many activities and experiences as possible.”
Martin_1996_008 · October 2026 · TripAdvisor“We lived a true adventure and at the same time felt safe.”
Jakub K · August 2026 · TripAdvisor“We saw so much wildlife, learnt so much about the jungle.”
Lilly W · August 2026 · TripAdvisor“He demonstrated extensive knowledge of the area, nature, and local wildlife, which greatly enriched our experience.”
Iliana R · June 2026 · TripAdvisor“Their team was very kind and they knew good English.”
Martin M · June 2026 · TripAdvisorEvery one of these is from 2026. Ruber has been guiding a lot longer than that.
Your guide
Trained by the Matsés tribe and a guide on this river for forty years. He knows the animals and their habits, and the medicinal plants that grow here. He speaks English and Spanish, and he answers his own messages.
Getting there
Fly to Iquitos — two hours from Lima, several flights a day. We meet you at the airport. Trips leave town around 8:30 in the morning, so come in the day before.
Two hours by road to Nauta, where the road ends. Then three hours up the Yarapa by boat, into the reserve. You'll see more wildlife on that ride than on most full-day tours.
Bring cash in dollars or soles. There's no card machine past Nauta.
Going further
Seventeen days, and nothing like the camp trip. An overnight riverboat from Iquitos, then days by dugout canoe up the Aucayacu, days on foot to the Lobo river, days rafting down it, and finally the Matsés villages on the Gálvez, close to the Brazilian border.
Ruber runs this one with his father Juan and Matsés guides — Pepe, Jaime and Mauro — who grew up on that ground. Very few outsiders ever see it.
Dates are arranged around your plans, not a schedule. Write and ask what it costs and when it can run.
How this works
You are booking a guide directly, by WhatsApp, with no deposit and no booking site in the middle. That is unusual enough that it is worth saying exactly how it goes.
If anything changes before you fly — your dates, your plans, who is coming — tell him as early as you can. Nothing has been paid, so there is nothing to unwind. The full breakdown of what the price covers is here.
Before you ask
Tell us as early as you can. You've paid nothing, so there's nothing to refund and no fee.
There is no bad month. Roughly November to May the forest floods and you travel through the trees by boat; June to October the water drops and you walk and fish instead. High water and low water, explained.
Real, but worse at dawn and dusk than midday. Long sleeves, trousers, repellent. Every bed has a net.
Yellow fever is commonly recommended for the Peruvian Amazon, and some travellers take malaria prophylaxis. Ask a travel clinic a month before you fly — tell them Loreto region.
Ruber takes care of you, and as long as you respect the jungle you will be in safe hands. You are still a long way from a hospital, so travel insurance that covers remote areas is a good idea.
Plenty do. Solo is $150 a day rather than $130 — the boat and the guide cost the same whether there's one of you or four.
There is a high chance. Ruber goes out of his way to find them, and the longer you stay the better the odds.
Light long sleeves and trousers, closed shoes you don't mind ruining, rain jacket, repellent, sun cream, head torch, power bank, your medication, and cash. Boots are provided. The full packing list is here, with flights, vaccinations and what to leave in Iquitos.
Ruber's own company in Iquitos, registered and paying taxes in Peru. We introduce you; everything on the ground is his.
Dates, how many of you, how many days. You'll get a straight price and an honest answer — including if a closer, cheaper trip suits you better.
