Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve or Reserva de Producción Faunística Cuyabeno (in Spanish) is located in the province of Sucumbíos, at the northeast of the Amazonian Region of Ecuador. This is considered as one of the most biodiverse places on the planet along with the Yasuní National Park. If you are looking to discover the wonders of nature and surround yourself with exuberant and exotic flora and fauna, Cubayeno is an ideal destination for you!
Best Trip Ecuador offers you the Cuyabeno – Jamu Lodge tour, an exploration adventure full of amazing landscapes, forests, lagoons, flora and fauna of the Ecuadorian jungle. This tour departs from the city of Nueva Loja, also known as Lago Agrio, capital of the province of Sucumbíos, a destination you can get by bus or a direct flight.
Cuyabeno – Jamu Lodge tour consists of two nights and three days in which you can enjoy a series of activities that will allow you to know the enormous biodiversity of Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, the most extensive wetland in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
The activities of the Cuyabeno – Jamu Lodge tour begin at the entrance to Reserva de Producción Faunística Cuyabeno, where you will get information from the naturalist guide about the reserve and important recommendations to begin the navigation for two hours over the Cuyabeno River until your arrival at Jamu Lodge.
The activities allowed within the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve are: photography, jungle excursion, swimming, canoeing and life fishing.
From the beginning and during your canoe ride, you will be able to see different types of birds such as caciques, oropéndolas and the prehistoric bird Hoatzin. In addition and depending on weather conditions, you may see a variety of monkeys and other animals in the jungle. We are sure that Cuyabeno will never cease to surprise you!
Another activity that you can do after your arrival at Jamu Lodge, will be to swim in the lagoon and see a beautiful sunset in the middle of the Great Lagoon, which is part of the Cuyabeno River’s lacustrine system. Great Lagoon is the largest lagoon of the 14 that exist in the sector. It is formed by a system of lagoons interconnected with each other and has a very high number of animal species (mainly birds), including the harpy eagle: a symbol of the birds of the area. There you can also observe pink river dolphins, caimans, birds, etc. In this way, it will end on the first day of your stay, we are sure that you will enjoy the stunning landscape and you will be delighted with the huge trees with hanging lianas!
Photo by: Javier Ábalos Álvarez
On the second day of this adventure, and after having breakfast, you can take a walk of approximately 3 to 4 hours through the primary forest, where the guide will give an explanation about the tropical forest and its medicinal plants. The native or primary forest that you will see has a very high biodiversity, whose evolution depends on natural disturbances. These forests are intact and have a high degree of naturalness that has never been exploited, nor directly or indirectly affected by human activity.
During the afternoon, beautiful butterflies can be observed and you can swim in the lagoon. Seeing pink dolphins and the stunning sundown is something that no visitor should miss.
Later at night and after dinner in the camp, you can take a guided walk through the rivers and lagoons with lanterns in search of alligators that live in the river. This will undoubtedly be an exciting and unforgettable exploration since alligators are usually more active at night.
We can not forget to mention that Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve is an area of wide cultural diversity, since the indigenous communities of Siona, Secoya, Cofán, Kichwa and Shuar inhabit these territories. Some families in these communities offer handmade crafts that are available for sale and they also offer the opportunity to live the experience of community tourism.
To finish the trip, very early in the morning before breakfast, you can make an optional excursion to go bird watching. Afterwards, you can enjoy breakfast at Jamu Lodge, the only lodge in the large lagoon and the number one in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve. Then you will make the transfer to Lago Agrio to take the bus or the return flight.
Do not miss out on this wildlife sanctuary, we are sure you will want to come back!
