jeanned

We are considering a 4 night cruise with our children on either Delfin, Aqua, or Aria. I would love to hear from anyone who has been on any of these vessels as to their experience. Thanks so much!

PuraAventura

There are a number of cruises operating in the Peruvian Amazon, which range considerably in style and comfort levels. It's possible to cruise down the Amazon towards 'Las Tres Fronteras,' ('the Three Borders'), where Peru, Colombia and Brazil join, or all the way to Manaus in Brazil, but for the best wildlife experiences, you want to look at a cruise exploring the Pacaya Samiria Reserve. Of the cruises operating in this fairly pristine reserve, probably the best are the Aqua & Aria vessels, which are designed in the classic  Amazon riverboat  style on the exterior, but very comfortable and contemporary inside. 

The owner comes from a background of expedition cruising of very high standard in the Galapagos, and this shows: the daily schedule is much like a Galapagos cruise - morning and afternoon excursions led by expert naturalist guides with fluent English, combined with time relaxing on the sundeck. The food is surprisingly high quality, there's a lovely salon with a great library of books relating to the Amazon, so you can really immerse yourself in the region. In terms of wildlife, you can expect to see abundant birdlife, monkeys, sloths, caiman, and the beautiful river dolphins - both grey and, if you're likely, the very endangered pink variety. Cruises operate for either 3, 4 or 7 nights; I'd say 4 is the ideal for most visitors, really keen naturalists and birders should definitely consider 7 nights though.

Hope that helps!

Dave

jeanned

Dave, this helps quite a bit. We are thinking of going on Aria. Do you recommend this for children? I have heard complaints about engine noise at night on the Aria for some of the rooms. Which rooms do you recommend?

PuraAventura

The Aqua / Aria cruises would be an amazing experience for children, although not for very young ones: there is a minimum age of 7. But older kids will get a huge amount from the cruise, learning about the wildlife in the Amazon and seeing how people live in this remote part of the world. I haven't sailed on the Aria, but when I was on the Aqua I was struck by how relatively quiet the engines were. Obviously there is some noise, but unless you are an incredibly light sleeper I wouldn't have thought you'd be bothered at all. Request a cabin on the upper deck towards the front of the boat, and you should be fine.

Dave