Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Trip Report G-ADVENTURES

We took their 8 day "Amazon Riverboat Adventure in Peru" in October 2013. This was an excellent trip. We started in Lima, flew to Iquitos, spent 6 days on the Queen Violetta, and then returned for a 2'nd overnight in Lima. The flights to and from Iquitos were a mess; this may have been beyond the control of G Adventures; hard to tell. But the cruise itself was fantastic. We had two excellent guides whose knowledge of the river was amazing.

The boat was small, with a listed capacity of 32, I believe, which is about 4 more than it should have carried, as we were packed in like sardines. To make matters worse, G Adventures does not allow passengers to pre select their cabin, unlike any other boat we have ever been on. (Note to G Adventures: please, please change that!) We have sailed on numerous other ships and have a detailed check list for acceptable and unacceptable cabins. Prior to booking, I was promised a cabin in the front of the ship. Well, sure enough, they assigned us to the back-most cabin, right in front of the dining area, and right over the ship's engines. The Queen Violetta is basically an old "rust-bucket"; extremely noisy compared to larger ships. And, of course, they could not move us as there were no empties available. Naturally I complained vigorously after returning home, and G adventures did apologize and offer us a future cruise credit which was extremely generous, and, unlike credits offered by other lines, has no expiration date. So we were pleased with the resolution.

The time on the river was quite amazing. We had 2 small "skiffs" which we would all load into each morning and take off up and down the various tributaries searching for wildlife and other interesting stuff. Our guides were able to spot rare birds and animals high up in trees from a considerable distance while traveling 30 mph. So we would do a quick stop, and swing around so everyone could get a picture. Stuff they could see from way across the river was nearly invisible to us tourists, even when they pointed out where, after getting close up. We also made numerous land expeditions is search of tarantulas, rare birds, fire ants, and more species than I had ever heard of or could possibly remember. They had also arranged several meetings with local villagers along the river where we could sample their culture and food.

Be aware this is an adventure cruise, and not a luxury cruise, such as one would find on the larger cruise lines. Food was quite adequate, but not comparable to luxury cruise line food. Cabin size and amenities were comparable to the bottom rate category on larger ships. But, in return, you will receive a level of personalized service unheard of on larger ships. Never will you be "herded like cattle". We are planning a Galapagos trip in a few years, and, especially given our credit, will most likely choose G Adventures again.