DAY 1 CUSCO TO PILCOPATA.-

We take an 11 hours bus run from the city of Cusco ascending  towards  the high mountain area at 4200m (14,000 feet). After a short stop in Ninamarca, to see the pre-Inca cemetery and the  Paucartambo village, we descend the eastern slopes of the Andes through the cloudy forest of lush vegetation (ferns, orchids, etc.) to the lowland rainforest in the Madre de Dios and Manu Rivers. You will enjoy spectacular views of the Andes and may see wildlife such as our national bird, the cock of the rocks (rupicola peruviana) inside a hiding place next to the lek, brilliantly coloured by tanagers and hummingbirds. Besides,with some luck, we'll see  peculiar monkeys from this dense jungle such is the wooly monkey.
We spend the night in a lodge in Pilcopata town.

DAY 2 PILCOPATA TO BLANQUILLO.-

After having breakfast we'll take another 1/2 hour run towards Atalaya at 500 m. Here we embark a 15-meter motorized canoe to travel down the Alto Madre de Dios River for 8 hours. Today you will have the chance to see the wildlife along the rocky banks of the rivers, such as the fasciating tiger heron, the purplish Jays, the king vultures and some of the 13 species of monkeys that live in Manu. In the afternoon we arrive to Blanquillo where we'll spend the night in a lodge.
Optional night stroll before dinner in order to see insects, frogs, snakes etc.

DAY 3: BLANQUILLO MACAW CLAY LICK TO MAQUISAPAYOJ.-

Early in the morning we go to the Macaw Clay Lick and - from a blink - watch flocks of parakeets, parrots and macaws arriving to eat the clay of the lick. After this spectacle we pack everything and travel for 45 minutes upstream to Maquisapayoj. Here we sleep on a platform with mosquito nets close to the mammal salt lick in order to observe tapirs and other mammals at night.
Macaw Claylick.

DAY 4: MAQUISAPAYOJ TO ALBERGUE MATSIGUENKA.-

On this day we travel 9 hours upriver into the Manu National Park.
During this trip we'll view along the banks of the Manu River  the fabulous wild-life.
White caimans (caiman crocodylus) sunning on the beaches, fishes in the shallows, turtels and plenty of colorfoul birds as e.g. the black skimmers and terns; and there is always the possibility of seeing larger animals such as the capybara,the tapir and the jaguar.
In the afternoon we'll arrive at the Albergue Matsiguenka, where we'll spend the night.
Optional nightwalk.

DAY 5: EXPLORING COCHA SALVADOR.-

Today we leave early for a day trip to explore the Lake Salvador by catamaran looking for the giant river otters (pteronura brasiliensis), the, caimans,the hoatzins and the monkeys.
In the afternoon we go for a walk through some of the trails crossing the forest. You can climb the observation tower at Cocha (oxbow-lake) Otorongo. The night is spent at the Albergue Matsiguenka.
Optional nightwalk.

DAY 6: COCHA SALVADOR TO CUSCO OR YANAYACO.-

Today we travel 8 hours down to the Manu River. After a stop in Boca Manu village we make our way back upriver to the Alto Madre de Dios River.
We camp on the beach at Yanayaco to spend the night.
It is possible to fly back from the Boca Manu Airstrip to Cusco in 45 min. ( 6 day tour).
Brown Capuchin Monkey.

DAY 7: YANAYACU TO PILCOPATA.-

Today we travel 7 hours upstream, stopping at the Aguas Calientes (hot springs) for a bath. On arriving in the afternoon at the Atalaya we'll travel a further hour by bus till Pilcopata, where we'll spend the night in a lodge.

DAY 8: PILCOPATA TO CUSCO.-

On this day we travel up to the Andes again  returning  to Cusco around 5 p.m.