Pacaya Samiria is one of Peru’s most remote rainforest areas. It spans more than five million acres of flooded forest, making it the largest protected flooded forest in the world. During the rainy season in the Andes, water levels rise in the Amazon, flooding 85% of the reserve and making it only accessible by boat. Therefore, the flora and fauna are quite unique. Fish often feed on seeds as trees grow underwater. Visually speaking, it is very attractive and is often called the “forest of mirrors”.

Due to the nature of this fragile ecosystem, the best way to visit the Pacaya Samiria reserve is by boat. There are two river cruises we promote: Delfin I and II and the Aqua Expedition. Either cruise experience can be booked on a charter or individual basis, and the minimum time required is 4 days. To venture into the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, you need to take a 5 –day cruise; shorter cruises will take you around the area near the Park but not within the Park proper.

The journey into Pacaya Samiria begins in Iquitos (an easy commercial flight from Lima), from here you travel upriver on the Amazon River where the Ucayali and Maranon rivers converge. These are two of Peru’s three mighty rivers and the source of the Amazon proper. Your cruise will continue on the Ucayali and into the Pacaya and Samiria Rivers. It is easy to view the Amazonian river dolphins during a visit to Pacaya Samiria and of course a wide variety of birds, and visits to some Amazonian communities.