Tour Programs in the Amazon Tropical Rainforest of Madidi National Park
Tours
All tours include: Fluvial and/or terrestrial transportation. guide, cook, complete, quality and abundant meals, except breakfast of the first day and dinner of the last. Lodging in cabins or camps according to program. Camping equipment if necessary, gum boots, rain coats, hammocks, poison extractor, first aid kit. Price does not include entrance to protected areas.
We only hire middle aged Professional and certified Indigenous guides that do not speak English. - We have available a fluent translator and companion if required.
Madidi national park.
The following tour descriptions, take place in some of the many regions of the great national park which are: Bala mountain range, Tuichi River valley and the Beni River. From the 13 different types of ecosystems found in the park, in these regions you will only be able to appreciate two of them: Foot of the mountains rainforest and interandean rain forest.
Activities The following are activities done in all of our trips and the group can decide when they want to do it.
Boat Travel. The only way to enter Madidi National Park is through the Beni River on our comfortable, roofed, over board motor boat. The journey itself is very interesting and a great part of the trip. First the boat will stop at the park central office where you will register and pay the Bs.120 (17 dollars) entrance fee. Later, the boat enters the Bala Mountains, where great Jungle mountain scenery can be observed. Ahead, we cross the Bala canyon, where the river finally cuts through the mountains and shortly after the boats stop at the park keeper camp, where you will stop to seal your tickets. Travel continues for half an hour, to the encounter of the Tuichi River. Depending on the time, we will stop for lunch. Here the adventure begins, since in the dry season some parts of the Tuichi River have shallow rapids and it’s not easy to get the boat through. In the driest time, you might have to get off the boat briefly while we push it up to continue. In this part of the trip we can see many animals that come to the water and the macaws that nest on a cliff. We arrive to camp after 2:30
Visit to indigenous communities. To experience the way indigenous people live today in harmony with nature. The ethnic groups that it’s possible to know are: Tacanas, Chimanes, Mosetenes, Lecos, Movimas and Esse ejjas. You can visit their crops; participate in their every day chores like rice peeling, basket weaving, etc. People here live in harmony with nature following their ways, but know the modern world well. They dress in modern clothing and mostly speak Spanish (depending on specific ethnic group). If you want to have this option you should program it with anticipation before the tour, and pay a bs.50 (us$7) directly to them. You should also behave in a respectful manner asking permission before taking any pictures.
Long hikes and wildlife observation. This is the most common activity whose main objective is to spot animals. To do this successfully you shall walk quietly without speaking and avoid stepping on branches that make noise. Once the guide hears the sound of a specific animal –which he will know exactly what animal it is- you must follow the guide’s directions, kneeling down when he asks and being patient-. We have in Madidi Camp circuit trails that take a half day of walking. Others require a full day. According to the group’s decision, you can choose how much time and distance you wish to walk for. There more of 100 different types of mammals, 900 species of birds, reptiles and amphibians. The most common spotted animals are: Troop Pigs, squirrel monkeys, spider monkeys, howling monkeys, cappuccino monkeys, macaws, toucans, giant woodpeckers, deer, giant guinea pigs, crocodiles, etc.
Interpretative hikes. This is a different type of hike, where you can comfortably chat and make noise. The guide will stop quite often to show a plant, tree or mushroom that found along the trail. He then will explain what use it has, be it either medicinal, toxic or other, and will tell you a personal story about that plant that may be sad -like the story of someone in his family that committed suicide for love with a toxic plant- or funny –like the case of a friend that overdosed with a Viagra plant-. There are plants that contain pigments and you can paint yourselves with them, others that can be eaten, etc.
Night hikes. During the night, different animals become active and we can hike with flashlights to go observe them. Some of these animals are the tapir, Armadillo, night monkeys, owls, bats, toads and snakes.
Ch’alla ceremony. We do it every trip, the first night after dinner. Ch’alla is a simple ceremony to thank and ask for good luck to mother earth. It consists of offering coca, cigarettes and alcohol while chewing smoking and drinking with her. Afterwards, the guide can tell you stories about special experiences he and other tourists have had in the jungle and with animals.
Morning hikes. If you wish, you can rise early to do a hike before breakfast. It’s a time where bird activity is at its best.
Crafts confection. During the hikes, you’ll be able to pick up different seeds and plants that you can later use to create crafts such as: palm nut rings, seed necklaces, palm leaf fans, hats, etc.
Short trekking. Two whole days are required. So it can only be done in 3 or more day tours. It consists of packing food, pans and camping gear in your backpacks (which you should take with you if you want to do this activity), walk for a whole day and arrive to a place with water to make a camp. The cook will go with you and will be cooking while you do other activities. In this option, you can learn about survival in the jungle.
Swimming, rest and contemplation. This you shouldn’t miss. A good swim in the river and a rest on the hammocks to contemplate the beauty and the sounds of the entourage. You can assign a morning or an evening to do this.
Visit to Caquiahuara Macaw cliff. Normally we do it the last day. One hour downriver from camp, this is a very special rock cliff where lots of Macaws and other five types of parrots make their nests. There’s a big trail to an observation platform below the cliff that takes 20 minutes to walk to, and if you wish and have time, you can walk for an hour around and above the cliff, where you will get great pictures from above the macaws flying to their nests with a great view of the Jungle as a background. One of the guides did studies with biologists for a year long, rappelling down the cliff to measure the nests and eggs, and can give you very detailed information about this amazing bird.
Costs: Prices are per person, in US dollars. Pax=passengers.
Regular service: Must have at least two passengers and the agency may complete the group up to six.
Private service: Private transportation, guide and cook. 2 people Minimumm
Code C1. Madidi camp. 2 days 1 night
Day 1: Departure from Rurrenabaque at 9:00am. 4 hour boat trip to our camp. Choose activities.
Day 2: Choose activities. You can choose to visit the Macaw cliff this day. Return to Rurrenabaque takes 2 hours and must be completed before 6:00pm
Note: This is a brief tour for people without much time. Normally we recommend more days to get more out of Madidi Park.
Regular service: $150
Private service: 2 pax: $300 3 pax: $245 4 pax: $215 5 pax: $200 6 pax: $190
Code C2. Madidi Camp. 3 days 2 nights
Day 1: Departure from Rurrenabaque at 9:00am 4 hour boat trip to our camp. Choose activities.
Day 2: Choose activities
Day 3: Choose activities. You can choose to visit the Macaw cliff this day. Return to Rurrenabaque takes two hours and must be completed before 6:00pm
Notes: You can choose to do short trekking for the second and third day.
Regular service: $130
Private service: 2 pax: $240 3 pax: $160 4 pax: $120 5 pax: $107 6 pax: $97
Code C3. Madidi camp 4 days 3 nights
Day 1: Departure from Rurrenabaque at 9:00am. 4 hour boat trip to our camp. Choose activities.
Day 2 and 3: Choose activities. Short trekking possible
Day 4: Choose activities. You can choose to visit the Macaw cliff this day. Return to Rurrenabaque takes 2 hours and must be completed before 6:00pm
Notes: This is the amount of time recommended to get the most out of the Park. If you wish you can stay more days.
Normal service: $160
Privat service: 2 pax: $278 3 pax: $220 4 pax: $195 5 pax: $180 6 pax: $165
Code G: Cross Madidi Park on boat from Rurrenabaque to Guanay: 5 – 8 days. This trip is done on the Beni River, which makes the border between Madidi Park and Pilon Lajas biosphere reserve. It’s a great tour where you will stop in many different places to know the jungle, visit indigenous communities, see great amounts of wildlife, swim in clear water river ponds with giant waterfalls; and you can profit form the fact that this trip takes you back to La Paz. Since the amount of days to do this trip can vary, we don’t outline the exact schedule here, rather we tailor it to the group once in the office. The boat departs in the morning. You travel every day and stop at different places. Finally you arrive to Guanay, where a 4x4 Jeep will be waiting to take you to La Paz, dropping you off at a selected Hotel. Price includes the Jeep back to La Paz and restaurant meal in Guanay with a beer.
Costs per day: 2 pax: $220 3 pax: $140 4 pax: $110 5 pax: $95 6 pax: $85