Otorongo Expeditions Amazon River Lodge — Hotel in Las Amazonas

As a solo female traveler, I was going into this with a certain level of trepidation. Even though this trip had an twist of exciting adventure, ultimately, I don't think I could have made a better choice. I am immensely grateful to Anthony and Ivonne for organizing this trip for me and helping me realize a life-long dream of exploring Amazon!

Location: The camp is located three hours on the boat north of Iquitos, which is deep enough in a jungle to be surrounded by pristine environment away from built-up lodges and large tourist boats. I was told that the nearest settlement is a local village called Oran, but I haven't seen it in all my 4 days in the area. The camp is surrounded by large grounds where I had fun observing local birds, small snakes, frogs and insects, and was always surrounded by the luscious exotic trees and plants.

Accommodation: Mine was a simple but very clean bungalow-room with clean bed, desk and a chair. Importantly, even though its windows were without glass covering, the room was double screened with a protective mosquito net. I was also extra careful not to turn on the light inside when entering from outside so not to let a single insect into the room. Bathroom was small but clean and comfortable enough for a quick refreshing shower (note, there is no hot water, but in that climate I didn't really miss it).

Food: I have (very) strict dietary restrictions about which I've communicated few weeks before my arrival and I was pleasantly surprised how the kitchen staff went above and beyond to accommodate me! My "boring" meals were always made fresh, tasty, and beautifully presented! For guests without any restrictions, there were quite a few choices of fresh salads, local hot meals, deserts, fruit and drinks.

Program: I feel that this is where the true value of the lodge experience culminates. Every day from morning till night, there were endless and varied activities to chose from. Hiking, boat tours, bird watching, fishing, looking for special trees, spotting pre-historic birds, exploring exotic plants, swimming with pink dolphins, hunting caimans - they have it all and they are masters in presenting it! I used my time to the fullest extent and enjoyed it all!

Safety: As a single female traveler, I was always made feel safe, welcome, and never threatened. From the moment I landed to the Iquitos airport to moment I was ready to depart Iquitos, I was ALWAYS accompanied by the Otorongo staff. Namely, Jhon Armas, a guide that spoke excellent English and was with me from the beginning to end. On local small boat and hiking tours there was also a local guide Saul who, even though didn't speak English, provided valuable navigation and knowledge input through the treacherous waters of Amazon to the deep Peruvian jungles. Both men were excellent bird/animal spotters, were extremely professional, and generous in sharing their knowledge. Notably, at the time of (what seemed to me) an extreme distress, when we got caught in a violent storm on the river in the dead of night on the broken open (!) boat, both Jhon and Saul used all their might and wits to eventually get me to warmth and safety. John even fixed my rain coat the next day and worked with the kitchen staff to try to dry out my shoes (which incidentally were later "snacked on" by local macaws and fully destroyed).

Thanks to all Otorongo staff for leaving amazing memories of my wonderful trip to the Amazon!

A tip: Heed to the warning on their website and leave your hiking shoes locked in your room. Put on their rubber boots and don't take them off! I learned it...

When I wasn’t almost dying of the tropical heat & humidity (slight exaggeration - only slight! lol), I was having a great time with guides Alisson, John and Mikey. I’d mentioned in passing that we were celebrating our wedding anniversary and we were upgraded to a beautiful family cabin that they decorated all the outside and stairway with flowers. The thought and effort that went into this meant a lot to my husband and I and will not be forgotten. They even presented us with the most amazing & delicious cake, which we enlisted other guests and guides to share with us. A huge thank you to all the amazingly hard workers there!||Everything about this experience was hassle free. Communication was fantastic when booking, follow up questions were answered quickly. They were waiting for us when our flight landed in Iquitos, and we set off to get on the boat. We had a prep meeting with our guide John over lunch to arrange our plans for the next few days. Then, we immediately set off exploring, first on foot. I’m not a stranger to being sweaty, although this was next level sweaty. It was also absolutely worth it. I have no idea how they can spot the animals like they do, truly amazing to see. Very thankful that they provide rubber boots as it saved our shoes from both the mud and our very sweaty feet! While exploring on foot gave up close encounters with animals both day and night, being out in the boat was amazing to get an idea of how expansive and also diverse the area is (and take advantage of a breeze!). ||We enjoyed hiking, swimming, fishing, an afternoon nap, night boating, a visit to a nearby village and meeting, eating and laughing with the other guests and guides. The only thing I would change is it would be amazing if there was a fan in the dining room & over the bed. I understand why there isn’t, since electricity is limited, but it would make it a lot easier for eating and sleeping. I won’t write a giant list of the animals we saw, so you can go see for yourself! I feel it was definitely worth the little bit of extra money to have a dedicated guide and ability to plan your own time, really setting this place apart...

The daily activities/tours were run and directed by our guide Eddy (Edinson) and a local guide Mike (who we christened Machete-Mike - since he was usually leading the pack with a machete in his hand. All of the activies were truly nature conscious and the animals were observed in their natural habitat without excess disturbance by us. Eddy was very knowledgeable and with a sharp eye, so we managed to see a wide number of different species, from pink river dolphins to smaller grey dolphins (observed from a bench close to the lodge, great for looking at Amazon sunsets) from sloths to 4-5 different kinds of monkeys and from a caiman to snakes and a large variety of frogs, spiders and even a black scorpion. Not even mentioning the different birds following us on the river and the forest. To our surprise, a hefty percentage of the animals we saw, were passing through or lived in around the garden of the lodge. Like the Pygmy Marmoset, who lived on a tree just behind our bungalow. For this I give credit to the owner and local keeper Mike, who knows exactly in what shape to keep the lodge – tidy it up too much and you loose the insects, with them the rest of the fauna, leave it too "rustic" and you risk loosing appeal to the tourists. For us it was a perfect balance, the rooms were tidy and clean; the mosquito-nets were new and hence fully functional. The mattress belonged to a five-star hotel and combined with tiredness from the daily activities and the harmony of the jungle at night provided excellent conditions for deep sleep.

The food was all prepared on site from local produce and fresh fish from the amazon. It was simple, but delicous and plentyful in calories. From French toast and eggs in the morning, grilled catfish with cucumber salad and rice to local favourite lomo saltado and lime sponge cake for dinner. The chef was also a specialist on local salsas: our hearts were instantly won by her "salsa de cocona", a slightly spicy but fresh tasting green sauce, made from the garden-picked coconas.

100% would recommend anyone go and visit this amazing place.

Overall truly authentic, good, genuine,...