The Amazon

Traveling to the Amazon on a Budget:

Today I am going to tell you all about how to travel the amazon on a budget! To begin, there is many different countries which you can go to the Amazon in, all of which will give you different experiences. You could go to Bolivia's Amazon, as it is apparently the cheapest, but tourists are not able to go very deep, and it is more rehabilitation centers that show you animals, rather than looking for them in the wild. You could also go to Ecuador's Amazon. Unfortunately I have not been here or had friend's go here so I cannot say much about it. I do know however, that when I looked at tours here while in Ecuador, it seemed MUCH more expensive than other countries. The next option is Peru's amazon. I did end up here after Colombia's Amazon, and personally I would not recommend it as a backpacker. It is extremely touristic, expensive, and did not feel like a true experience. Next, you have both Colombia's and Brazil's Amazon. I put these together as you can walk across the border in Leticia, Colombia and Tabatinga, Brazil, and therefore see both countries. It is actually really interesting as Peru is also just across the river, and you are able to go a 60km radius in all three countries without a passport or crossing a border security. All of the locals can also roam this 60km as they please. It is also interesting, as once you cross from Leticia to Tabatinga, you can tell. The language changes from Spanish to Portuguese, and it gets a lot busier and filled with more garbage. Since we did not know Portuguese, we decided on staying in Leticia, Colombia, and were not at all disappointed. Since we spent most of our time in Leticia and we loved it, that is where this post will focus on.

Now, as a budget backpacker, you need to be savvy on how to get here. We gave ourselves a big window of when we could go, and waited for the cheapest flights. We lucked out and found a flight from Medellin to Leticia for $130 each, one way. However, flights can go up as high as $400 one way. As well, it is typically cheapest to fly from Bogota, but for some reason, we lucked out and found a cheaper one from Medellin, which is where we were anyways. Basically, you just need to be flexible with dates and look on any and all sites to find the best deal. Then to save more money, we decided to cross the border into Peru like the locals, as we were finished with Colombia, and trying to head South. As I have mentioned before, cross border flights in South America are extremely expensive. To beat this, we took a cargo ship from Leticia, Colombia, down the Amazon river into Iquitos, Peru, and then flew into Lima, Peru from here, for quite cheap (As this is now an in-country flight). This cargo ship took 4 days, and included 3 meals a day, and only cost approximately $20. This is an amazing price for 3 nights accommodations, and all your meals. You were responsible for bringing your own hammock to sleep on, but I love hammocks so this wasn't a problem. I also loved this experience, not because we saved SO much money, but because we were the only tourists on the boat. Everybody else was locals, and they were all incredibly friendly. It gave us a chance to practice our Spanish, and learn all about some people's stories and lives. We also made friends with two little girls, who were eager to learn English in exchange for helping us with our Spanish. Below is a picture of the eldest girl, who was very patient with us. These cargo ships also go into Brazil, so that would be another option when leaving or entering the Amazon.

Image 1: My new friend and I

Now that you know how to get here and leave for a reasonable amount of money, what should you do while here? The number one answer is definitely a tour. I am normally against organized tours, but here is one you shouldn't skip. Almost all tours have you go to an island with a local family, and the local guides have so much knowledge about the lands, the exotic fruit, the different animals, and how to navigate the forests and river, that it would be impossible to experience it without them. They also cook local meals for you, and you give you a true Amazon experience. Now the only problem is choosing a company. We spent a full day walking around trying to find one, and there are so many different prices and types of tours available. There are some horror stories you will hear of awful tours and some amazing stories of great tours, so its difficult to decide. We definitely lucked out, and found a guy at our hostel whose family was from Leticia, but he lived in the states for a while. He spoke perfect English, Spanish, and the amazonian native tongue, and was just starting a tour company with a local family who lived on an Island. I normally don't advertise for people, but this tour was SOOO amazing, and a great price, I just have to. If you ever go to Leticia, you need to go on a tour with David Ortiz Landinez. You can find him on facebook and won't be disappointed. The tour cost us $300 for 3 days, 2 nights, and we saw everything! The accommodations on the island were the perfect mix of rustic and beautiful, and the local family was super friendly. We went piranha fishing, looking for crocodiles at night, looking for pink dolphins during the day, night time hikes and canoe trips, jungle walks animal spotting and everything in between. Each day was jam packed with various activities and we saw and did everything possible! This was also a great price as similar tours went for as high as $600-$800 for the exact same amount of time.

Once you have had your fill of wildlife on your tour, its time to return to Leticia. While here, you can do many things for free. First, you can see a beautiful sunset where thousands of birds congregate and find their spots in the trees every night. It's a spectacular view! You can also walk around and take in all the culture and bustle of the city. A walk down to the port is always excited, and you really should take a short walk into Tabatinga, Brazil, just to see the difference.

For cheap food, there is the best street food, but it only opens up for dinner. It costs very little, and includes your meat (Sausage, chicken, fish, or meat), lots of rice, and plantains. It is super delicious and really filling. For lunch, there is a lot of little shops all over town, or you can go to the massive supermarket and cook something for yourself.

Accommodations are also pretty cheap, but beware at how hot it will be each night! Definitely look for a hostel with lots of fans as the humidity actually makes it very uncomfortable for sleeping, and I can usually sleep just about anywhere.

Lastly, make sure you bring TONS of bug spray, with deet in it. The mosquitoes are insane all over the Amazon, and since there is Malaria present, its best to cover up.

So that's all I have for now, but if you'd like, take a look at all the pictures below to get a sense of what to expect!