Day 1

Arrive in Manaus. If you’re flying directly via Miami, you’ll arrive in the morning and check into a hotel. If you’re flying via São Paulo, you’ll arrive late in the afternoon. The two major sights you’ll definitely want to see are the sumptuous Teatro Amazonas and the spectacle of the Rio Negro merging with the Rio Solimões to form the mighty Amazon, known as the Meeting of the Waters.

Extra time can be spent exploring the market and a museum or two near Centro. Sample local river fish and caboclinho sandwiches. In the evening, catch a performance at the Teatro Amazonas (if you didn’t visit during the day) or taxi to a riverside bar in Ponta Negra, overlooking the Rio Negro.

Days 2–4

Leave Manaus and head up the Rio Negro or Rio Solimões to a jungle lodge, such as the Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge amid the 400 islands of the Anavilhanas Archipelago, where you can experience the unspoiled Amazon (transportation from Manaus is usually included in the rate).

A minimum of two nights at a jungle lodge in the heart of the forest is an ideal Amazonian baptism. Meals, guided excursions, and most activities, such as piranha fishing and swimming with river dolphins, are included.

Day 5

Return to Manaus and fly to Santarém on the shores of Rio Tapajós. Check into a pousada and wander around this riverside town, watching boats come and go. Sample local fish at Peixaria Piracatú, and later on, have drinks overlooking the river at O Mascote, a popular gathering place.

Day 6

Take a day excursion from Santarém to the Floresta Nacional do Tapajós, where you can hike through the rainforest and observe rubber tappers at work.

Day 7

Take an early bus to Alter do Chão, known as “the Caribbean of the Amazon” because of its pristine river beaches. Check into a pousada and then spend the day taking canoe trips along the river.

Day 8

Spend the morning on the beach before returning to Santarém and flying to Belém. Wander around the colonial district of Cidade Velha, where you can poke into churches and rubber barons’ palaces. Feast on Amazonian cuisine at one of Belém’s fine restaurants, such as the reputed Lá em Casa. Afterwards, head to Estação das Docas for a nightcap and some live music.

Day 9

Begin the morning by wandering through the exotic wares at the Mercado Ver-o-Peso. Following lunch, head to the Mangal das Garças to check out exotic birds and butterflies, and the Pólo Joalheiro to see (and purchase) precious gemstones.

Day 10

Take an early boat trip along the Ilha do Papagaio to observe the island’s parrots waking up. Return to Belém and make sure to visit the glorious Basílica de Nossa Senhora de Nazaré and the Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, a chunk of Amazonian forest that is reputed for its vast collection of Amazonian flora and fauna.

If you missed the early morning boat trip, take a sunset cruise along the Rio Guamá. Don’t leave town without having savored an exotic fruit ice cream at Cairu.

Days 11–13

Take a boat to Ilha de Marajó and check into a fazenda lodge on a working water buffalo farm. For the next two days, canoe through mangroves, sprawl on deserted beaches, and visit the pretty towns of Soure and Salvaterra. Try buffalo steaks as well as cheese and desserts made with buffalo milk.

Day 14

Return to Belém, where you can catch a flight to São Paulo or Manaus.

© Michael Sommers from Moon Brazil, 2nd Edition