5-Day Amazon River Cruise in Brazil
Planeta Exo
TripsBrazilAmazon

5-Day Amazon River Cruise in Brazil

Amazon
4 Nights·5 Days
Amazon ToursRiver CruisesComfort Adventures

Overview

Five days on this Amazon river cruise in Brazil combine adventure, ecology, and comfort in the middle of the world's largest rainforest. You sail a rustic, regionally built riverboat with three decks, ample social and recreation areas, and a crew ready to make you feel at home, with comfortable en-suite cabins and an all-inclusive package. It is a deeper route into the Amazon than a quick getaway, built for travelers who want real immersion.

The journey takes you into the Jaú and Anavilhanas national parks. With bilingual guides, you experience the forest through hiking, night canoe safaris, piranha fishing, and river-dolphin encounters, while the cruise navigates the Anavilhanas Archipelago, the second-largest river archipelago in the world.

Beyond the wildlife, the experience goes deeper culturally through riverside and Indigenous communities, learning their traditions and tasting regional Amazonian cuisine. This Amazon rainforest cruise is ideal for travelers after a slow, immersive expedition. Want a shorter or longer route? The same river system runs 4-day and 7-day cruises!

  • Full itinerary: forest hikes to the Madadá Caves, piranha fishing, night canoe caiman safaris, river-dolphin encounters, Indigenous community visits, and a folklore bonfire on the beach.
  • Two national parks on one Amazon river cruise: Jaú, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, and Anavilhanas, the second-largest river archipelago in the world.
  • Meet pink river dolphins, fish for piranha on the Rio Negro, and spot caimans on night canoe trips.
  • Visit the Aturiá Indigenous community and riverside caboclo families for genuine cultural exchange.
  • A rustic, cozy riverboat with 3 decks, bow deck, sun loungers, sound system, and showers, carrying up to 16 guests.
  • Sleep in air-conditioned, en-suite cabins with river-facing windows for 4 nights.
  • Activities guided by bilingual, English-speaking local experts, available around the clock.
  • All-inclusive experience: round-trip transfer from Manaus, 4 nights aboard, full board with drinks, every excursion and entrance fee, and the full crew.

  • Please note: This is an all-inclusive river cruise with a small group on board (up to 16 people), visiting two national parks. Daily activities adapt to the river's season (flood or dry) and are confirmed with the crew on arrival.

Itinerary

Day 1

Manaus → Novo Airão / Anavilhanas / Madadá Viewpoint

  • TransferManaus → Novo Airão · ~2h30 · air-conditioned van · 8:30 AM
  • NavigationAnavilhanas Archipelago · dolphins & birds
  • SunsetMadadá Viewpoint

An air-conditioned van picks you up at your Manaus hotel at 8:30 AM for the drive to Novo Airão, going over the day's itinerary on the way. The crew welcomes you aboard for lunch, and the cruise begins navigating the Anavilhanas Archipelago, the second-largest river archipelago in the world, watching for river dolphins and exotic birds.

In the afternoon, you visit the Madadá Viewpoint for sunset, with a light dinner on board. You can sleep in your cabin or in a hammock at the jungle bungalow to dive even deeper into the Amazon Rainforest.

Meals included: Lunch / Dinner

The Jacaré riverboat, a three-deck wooden vessel with green hull, cruising a dark calm river on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, with dense forest lining both banks under a clear blue sky
Two wooden deck chairs on the curved bow of a riverboat during an Amazon river cruise in Brazil, with clouds perfectly mirrored on a glassy dark-water river flanked by dense rainforest
Extreme close-up of a green amazon parrot with a vivid orange-red eye ring and red forehead feathers, gripping and gnawing at dark tree bark during an amazon river cruise in Brazil.
A blue-and-yellow macaw perched on a weathered tree branch during an amazon river cruise brazil, with lush green forest canopy in the background
A passenger leans on the wooden bow railing of a riverboat on an amazon river cruise in brazil, gazing down a glassy black-water channel flanked by dense rainforest canopy reflected in the still water

Day 2

Madadá Caves / Piranha Fishing / Praia do Sono

  • HikingMadadá Caves · ~3h · 5–7 km
  • SwimRio Negro
  • Fishingpiranha · Rio Negro State Park
  • Bonfirefolklore at Praia do Sono

After breakfast, a roughly 3-hour hike through untouched forest reaches the Madadá Caves, with the guides sharing their knowledge along the way, followed by a visit to a caboclo farm and seasonal-fruit orchard. After a refreshing dip in the Rio Negro, you continue to the Rio Negro State Park for piranha fishing before sunset.

At dusk, the boat anchors off Praia do Sono, and a cozy bonfire on the beach sets the scene for local folklore stories after dinner.

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Two travelers crouch beneath a mossy rock overhang on an amazon river cruise brazil forest hike, surrounded by dense green jungle foliage while sheltering from rain in their ponchos
Three guests fishing from a wooden canoe on a calm, mirror-still river during an amazon river cruise brazil, surrounded by dense tropical forest under a partly cloudy sky
Close-up of deep pink cauliflorous flowers with long pale trailing filaments blooming directly from a tree trunk in the Amazon rainforest, spotted on an amazon river cruise in Brazil
A shaggy brown-and-grey saki monkey grips two thin tree trunks and stares directly at the camera during an amazon river cruise brazil wildlife encounter
A small wooden motorboat carrying five passengers drifts across the calm, dark waters of an Amazon river cruise in Brazil, under a bright hazy sky with no land in sight.
A hand wearing a beaded bracelet holds a bamboo fishing rod with a piranha caught on the line during an amazon river cruise in Brazil, dense green forest visible in the background.
Aerial view of a white sandbar cutting through dark tannin-stained Rio Negro waters on an amazon river cruise in brazil, with a small riverboat and green umbrellas visible from above

Day 3

Jaú National Park (UNESCO) / Aturiá Community

  • NavigationJaú National Park · ICMBio base
  • Speedboat / rivercreeks (flood) or Carabinani waterfalls (dry)
  • Night canoecaiman spotting

A full day in Jaú National Park, one of the largest protected areas in the Amazon and a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site. Depending on the season, you take a speedboat through dry creeks and streams (flood season, watching for giant otters) or travel the Carabinani River with its rock formations and waterfalls (dry season).

The boat then docks for the night at the Aturiá Indigenous community, with a nighttime canoe trip to spot caimans.

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

A pink river dolphin seen from above just beneath the dark water surface during an amazon river cruise in Brazil, its warm orange-pink coloring vivid against the black Rio Negro waters
View from high up a massive lichen-covered tree trunk looking down at a calm dark river channel where a wooden riverboat with a turquoise roof and a narrow canoe are moored beside dense Amazon rainforest, on an amazon river cruise brazil
A black-furred monkey with a russet lower body clings to a tree branch in the forest canopy, looking directly at the camera during an amazon river cruise brazil wildlife excursion
A caiman's head barely breaking the water's surface at night on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, its golden vertical-slit eye glowing among floating aquatic plants
A smiling man holds a laughing young girl as she touches the textured bark of a large rainforest tree during an amazon river cruise brazil forest hike, dense green vegetation surrounding them
A hiker in a teal long-sleeve shirt carrying a water bottle walks away from the camera along a narrow leaf-covered trail through dense rainforest on an amazon river cruise brazil excursion.
Guests leaping from the upper deck of the Jacareagil riverboat into a glassy river at sunset on an Amazon river cruise in Brazil, with golden light reflected across the calm black water
A bright shooting star streaks diagonally across a deep blue star-filled night sky on an amazon river cruise in brazil, with thousands of stars visible in the Milky Way

Day 4

Aturiá Community / Monkey Island / Jaú Waterfall

  • CommunityAturiá Indigenous community
  • Giant treecentury-old tree
  • CanoeMonkey Island · Bicó monkeys
  • SwimJaú River waterfall · dry season

The day begins visiting the Aturiá Indigenous community to connect with local life, customs, and stories, savoring seasonal fruits and perhaps playing football with the kids. You then visit a century-old tree near the community and canoe around Monkey Island to observe the Bicó monkeys, with a swim in the Jaú River waterfall in the dry season.

A special farewell dinner under the starry Amazon sky closes the last full day of your Amazon river cruise in Brazil.

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

A smiling visitor with traditional geometric face paint and a beaded wrist cuff sits face-to-face with an Indigenous community member wearing a large feather headdress during an amazon river cruise brazil cultural visit
A couple embracing on a rock ledge beside a wide, amber-tinted waterfall on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, with flat red sandstone outcrops and dense green forest stretching to the horizon under a dramatic cloudy sky
A woman rests her cheek against the massive moss-covered trunk of a century-old rainforest tree during an amazon river cruise brazil itinerary, eyes closed, arms wrapped around it, with towering buttress roots rising behind her into the forest canopy
Slender trees standing in still, mirror-flat floodwater at golden hour on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, their bare branches and leafy crowns reflected perfectly in the dark water, with dense rainforest lining the far bank under a partly cloudy sky
Close-up portrait of a green amazon parrot with red forehead markings and orange-ringed eye, gripping and gnawing at dark tree bark during an amazon river cruise brazil wildlife encounter
A three-toed sloth clinging to a moss-and-lichen-covered tree trunk and looking directly at the camera during an amazon river cruise in Brazil, with lush green forest in the background.
A backpacker climbs between the massive buttress roots of a giant rainforest tree on an amazon river cruise brazil excursion, with lianas spiraling overhead in the dense jungle canopy

Day 5

Jaú → Novo Airão / Return to Manaus

  • River dolphinsinteraction
  • Novo Airãoart workshops & environmental education
  • Transfer→ Manaus · arrive ~3:30 PM

On the way from Jaú to Novo Airão, you interact with Amazon river dolphins, then visit local institutions that promote sustainable development, such as art workshops and environmental education.

The expedition concludes with lunch at a floating restaurant in the heart of Anavilhanas National Park before the transfer back to Manaus, arriving around 3:30 PM.

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch

A craftsman carves a small wooden piece by hand at a workbench covered in wood shavings, with rows of multicolored laminated wood figurines lined up beside his tools during a stop on an amazon river cruise brazil itinerary
View from the bow of a small riverboat on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, with a carved caiman figurehead pointing toward a glassy black-water river reflecting orange sunrise clouds and flanked by dense forest on both banks
Wide dark-water river reflecting warm golden sunset light on an amazon river cruise in Brazil, with a low strip of dense rainforest canopy along the left bank and a pale blue sky fading to amber on the horizon
Collection of small handcrafted wooden boxes with inlaid stripe patterns in warm reds, creams, and dark browns, made from multiple wood species, displayed in a tray during an Amazon river cruise in Brazil stop at a local artisan workshop
A pink river dolphin surfaces from dark Amazon waters on an amazon river cruise brazil, its long toothed beak open and pectoral fin catching warm amber light reflected on the surface

What is Included

  • Route-trip transfer (Manaus ⇄ Novo Airão)
  • 4-night stay aboard your assigned vessel (air-conditioned, en-suite cabins)
  • Meals (full board): three meals a day, snacks, juices, mineral water at will, and fruit caipirinhas
  • All excursions in the daily program, with entrance fees to the attractions
  • Expedition route map, brochure, and Amazon infographics
  • Guided tours (canoe trips, tree climbing, piranha fishing, night caiman safaris, community visits, forest treks, and pink-dolphin encounters)
  • Bilingual guide plus full crew: captain, expedition guide, native guide, chef, helpers, sailors and chambermaids

Not included

  • Flight tickets
  • Extra drinks beyond those included
  • Travel insurance
  • Personal expenses
  • Accommodation in Manaus
  • Any other service not listed as included

FAQ

Reviews

Trustpilot

Check availability for your trip

Free inquiry – no commitment

Who's joining the adventure?

2
0

Your next trip

Tell us about your trip

Contact details

How should we contact you?*

From

$ 2,050/ per person