Amazon Jungle Tour Puerto Maldonado: Zip-line & Lake

You walk a canopy platform 30 meters above the forest floor at dawn.

A 5-day jungle tour from Puerto Maldonado that combines wildlife watching, adventure sports and indigenous culture inside Tambopata National Reserve. The itinerary moves between Sandoval Lake (habitat of piranhas, giant otters and 4-meter caimans), and the Madre de Dios River, where you kayak at sunset and fish for catfish. Nights are spent at a lodge on the river. Days include a 3-kilometer forest walk, a canopy platform 30 meters high, zip-lining through the trees with safety harness, and a visit to a parrot clay lick at dawn.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Arrival and rainforest introduction

• Reception and transfer to office
• Boat transfer to hostel
• Welcome meeting with fruit juice
• Room installation and rest
• Two-hour guided forest walk
• Lunch at the lodge
• Visit monkey island by boat
• Night search for white alligators and capybaras
• Dinner and rest

Day 2: Sandoval Lake exploration

• Breakfast at the lodge
• 3 km walk to Sandoval Lake
• Rowing boat ride to observe wildlife
• Return to lodge for lunch
• Night walk to see nocturnal animals
• Dinner and rest

Day 3: Adventure sports and fishing

• Early morning canopy walkway walk
• Breakfast at the lodge
• Tree challenge and zip-line activity
• Lunch and rest
• Kayak crossing of Madre de Dios River
• Artisanal fishing in the river
• Dinner and rest

Day 4: Bird watching and cultural visit

• Early boat trip to parrot colpa
• Return and breakfast
• Lunch at the lodge
• Visit indigenous family and participate in activities
• Dinner and rest

Day 5: Departure and transfer

• Breakfast at the lodge
• Transfer to city
• Transfer to airport or bus station

The experience

The tour starts with airport pickup and a one-hour boat ride to the lodge on the Madre de Dios River. After settling in, a two-hour guided walk through dense rainforest introduces the reserve's scale: trees over five hundred years old, toucans, macaws, orioles, monkeys and snakes all within the 278,000-hectare protected area. That evening you search for white caimans by flashlight on the river sandbars, and spot capybaras: the world's largest rodents, weighing up to 60 kilos.

Day two centers on Sandoval Lake, one of the largest in the reserve. A 3-kilometer forest walk gets you there. Then a rowing boat lets you drift past shansho monkeys, cormorants, jacanas and herons. Giant otters (nearly two meters long and endangered) sometimes appear. The lake is also home to piranhas and the largest caimans in the region, over 4 meters. A night walk afterward reveals insects, amphibians and reptiles active in darkness.

Day three is pure adrenaline. At 5:30 a.m. you climb the canopy walkway, platforms suspended 30 meters high over the Madre de Dios River, where you spot toucans and macaws from above. After breakfast, an instructor teaches you to use a safety harness for zip-lining through the trees. You glide between them feeling the speed and the canopy around you. The afternoon shifts to water: kayaking across the river at sunset, then artisanal fishing for catfish and other species with a line and patience.

Day four begins before dawn at the parrot clay lick, a riverbank wall where different bird species come to eat clay essential for their digestion. After breakfast and a return to the lodge, you visit a local indigenous family and participate in their daily activities, learning customs maintained over generations. The final morning is breakfast and transfer back to Puerto Maldonado airport or bus station.

What’s included

• Airport or land terminal pickup and transfer to the lodge.
• four nights at Amazon Mountain Lodge.
• all meals during the tour.
• guided forest walks and canopy platform access.
• zip-line activity with safety harness and instructor.
• kayaking on the Madre de Dios River.
• artisanal fishing.
• visit to the parrot clay lick.
• visit to an indigenous family.
• all boat transport on the river and to Sandoval Lake.
• expert local guide in English or Spanish.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

AgesAdult (18 to 49 years) · Senior (50 to 60 years) · Youth (11 to 17 years) · Child (4 to 10 years) · Infant (under 4): free

GroupUp to 10

Live guideEnglish and Spanish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 5 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 3 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortNot recommended during pregnancyNot recommended with heart problemsNot recommended with back problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Monte Amazonico Lodge

Is this one for you?The guide speaks English and Spanish, so you can follow the full commentary in whichever language works for you. The itinerary mixes wildlife watching, adventure sports and cultural exchange, so it suits travelers who want more than a passive boat ride but don't need rock-climbing or mountaineering skill. The zip-line and kayak activities are taught from scratch, and the walks and canopy platform are accessible to anyone comfortable with a few hours on foot.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Spanish.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (11 to 17 years); Child (4 to 10 years); Infant (under 4): free.

What animals will I actually see on the 5-day tour?

Sandoval Lake holds piranhas, giant otters nearly two meters long, and caimans over 4 meters. The forest trails and canopy platforms show toucans, macaws, orioles, shansho monkeys, capybaras and snakes. Dawn at the parrot clay lick reveals multiple bird species coming to eat the riverbank clay. Night walks turn up insects, amphibians and reptiles active after dark.

Is the zip-line safe for someone who has never done it before?

An instructor guide gives a full safety talk and teaches you how to use the harness before you zip-line through the trees. The activity happens 30 meters high, and the harness is the standard equipment for this kind of canopy adventure.

How far is the walk to Sandoval Lake?

The walk is 3 kilometers through dense rainforest to reach Sandoval Lake. Once there, you travel by rowing boat to see wildlife and explore the water.

What's included in the lodge stay?

Four nights are spent at the Amazon Mountain Lodge on the Madre de Dios River. Meals, guide services, boat transport to Sandoval Lake and the parrot clay lick, the canopy walk, zip-line activity, kayaking and fishing are all part of the tour.