2nd June 2025

Day 1 – Fly to Rio de Janeiro

Today you leave for Rio de Janeiro from your departure airport back home or another location within Brazil country.

Earth Trip can arrange your flights or a pre-Rio extension to your holiday.

3rd June 2025

Day 2 – Rio de Janeiro & Welcome

Today you will arrive in Rio de Janeiro Tom Jobim airport, where you will be met by Alex Robinson and transferred together with the rest of the group to your hotel on Copacabana Beach. This evening we will enjoy a welcome meal in a local restaurant, followed by a beer in a samba bar.

Transportation, transfer, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Mid-range

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Windsor Leme – Rio de Janeiro

Beyond the sea breeze, the Windsor Leme bestows a unique experience with its high-quality service and...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

4th June 2025

Day 3 – Rio de Janeiro

After breakfast overlooking the beach, we begin our day exploring one of the world’s largest urban rainforests in Tijuca National Park. This huge, protected area, busy with handkerchief-sized electric blue morpho butterflies, kitten-sized marmoset monkeys and toucans, covers the entire mountainous heart of Rio de Janeiro.

We will take a light hike Pedra Bonita – a 700-metre-high boulder mountain rising straight out of the ocean and perching over Rio’s southern beaches. The views from its summit are extraordinary. The walk to the top takes an average of 40 minutes.

After the hike, we will visit the city’s beautifully renovated port area – decorated with stunning mural art by South America’s celebrated Eduardo Kobra and dotted with striking modernist museums, many of which were opened for the Olympics. They include Santiago Calatrava’s stormtrooper-white Tomorrow Museum, which looks like a vast spaceship set over the shimmering Atlantic. We will have lunch at Cais do Oriente, one of Rio’s most traditional sea food restaurants, set in little gardens in the heart of the docklands.

In the afternoon we will visit the Sugarloaf, taking a forty-minute trail half-way up and then continuing by cable car. From the summit Rio lies twinkling, at your feet in the later afternoon sunlight, embraced by the open-armed Christ and fringed with endless bays and beaches. It is an extraordinary sight.

The full descent will be carried out via cable car and from the bottom, we will meet out transfer and return to our hotel for the evening at leisure.

Today Alex will be available for tutorials on street and urban landscape photography for those who have pre-reserved.

Transportation, transfer, entrance fees, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Mid-range

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Windsor Leme – Rio de Janeiro

Beyond the sea breeze, the Windsor Leme bestows a unique experience with its high-quality service and...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch

5th June 2025

Day 4 – Rio de Janeiro → Manaus → Amazon River Boat

Breakfast at our hotel will be followed by transfer to the airport and our flight to Manaus in the Brazilian Amazon, where we will be met at the airport by indigenous Munduruku guide Saru who will transfer us to our river boat, which will be home for our next few days.

Once we are on board Saru and Alex will brief you about the boat and what we can expect to enjoy over the next few days. We will then cross the river to an area of little floating villages, taking a launch out on the river to explore local life. As the sun sets, the forest begins its night chorus – of millions of singing cicadas and tree frogs. In the dark we search for caiman – Amazon crocodilians, using a powerful halogen light to find their eyeshine on the water.

Transportation, transfer, tours and writing or photo tuition included

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

6th June 2025

Day 5 – Amazon River Cruise, Tatuyo Community & Meeting of the Waters

This morning, we depart for the lower Rio Negro – the heartland of the pristine Amazon wilderness. We will be visiting the least spoilt, wildest river system on the planet. We begin our journey on the Amazon proper; crossing the astonishing Meeting of the Waters, where the Amazon and Negro rivers meet and flow side by side for tens of kilometres – the jet-black Negro swirling around the coffee with milk Amazon River.

We then continue up the Negro and make our first visit, to a Tatuyo Indigenous village. Originally from the upper Negro valley, nearly 2000 kilometres from Manaus, the village relocated to the lower Negro a few years ago. We’ll have a unique experience with them; they will explain a little of their culture and share some local indigenous delicacies, including deep fried ants, larva and fiery chilli fish. The Tatuyo will perform a welcoming ritual, whose meanings Saru will explain.

In the afternoon we will take a safari by launch to explore the surrounding forests at the end of the day, the best time to spot wildlife. Alex will be on hand to help you with portrait photography and travel photography today.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

7th June 2025

Day 6 – Amazon River Cruise, The Ariaú River & River Dolphins

After an early coffee we will explore the creeks and flooded forest around the Ariaú River in search of monkeys, otters and sloths. We will witness the rainforest wake at dawn, with the chorus of Amazon birds, leaving their roosts, looking for wildlife in the trees at one of the most active times of the day.

We return to the main boat for a hearty breakfast of Amazonian fruits (many of them unique to the region), juices and traditional tapiocas and pastries, alongside standard western fare.

We will then stop to swim in the river with wild pink dolphins, supervised by a local caboclo villager, whose people who have been interacting with the animals for their entire lives. We will learn about a huge air breathing fish, the pirarucu from Saru, which grows to over three metres in length, and we will take further boat trips into creeks and flooded forest in remote areas around the Negro, stopping to try our hand at catching fearsome red bellied piranhas with a rod and line. In 2023 Saru publicly challenged Robson Green to a fishing competition using indigenous techniques against Robson’s start of the art reel and line. He won hands down – catching twice as many piranhas as Robson. Today he will show you how it’s done. Alex is available for photography and writing tips throughout the day.

Transportation, tours, fishing, entrance fees  and writing or photo tuition included

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

8th June 2025

Day 7 – Amazon River Cruise, The Aturiá River & Indigenous Jungle Survival

Overnight we will have entered the heart of the unique Anavilhanas Unesco World Heritage site. This is the world’s largest river archipelago – with nearly 500 hundred forested islands, ringed with flooded igapó forest, unique to the Negro River. There is nowhere like this area – the Negro is so vast here that it feels oceanic – averaging around 20 kilometres wide.

It’s another early start to explore some of the Anavilhanas islands and witness the rainforest wake at dawn, with the chorus of Amazon birds, leaving their roosts.

After breakfast we will take a rainforest hike. Along the way Saru will share some of his indigenous knowledge of the plants and animals in the forest and simple rainforest survival skills. We will have the chance to try to use a traditional bow and arrow and a zarabatana blowpipe, which has been used for indigenous hunting for millennia.

In the afternoon we will explore the Aturiá River, which is particularly rich in birdlife, with the chance possibly to see the rare hoatzin, whose chicks have claws on their mid-wings, like the prehistoric archaeopteryx, the animal which connects dinosaurs with the emergence of birds in evolutionary history.

In the evening Saru will share stories about the mythical creatures of the Amazon, including the Mapinguari – a giant land sloth larger than a grizzly, which may still exist in remote areas of the upper Purus River. Alex will be available for  landscape photography today.

Transportation, tours, fishing, entrance fees  and writing or photo tuition included

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

9th June 2025

Day 8 – Amazon River Cruise, The Anavilhanas Islands & Manaus

Today we cruise down river back through the Anavilhanas Islands exploring them at leisure, towards Manaus, arriving in the late afternoon. On the way Saru and indigenous friends will teach you how to make fish traps, baskets and sieves from traditional rainforest materials. We will stop at the rubber tapping museum to learn about the history of rubber production in the region since pre-Columbian times, how the industry briefly made Manaus the wealthiest city in the Americas, and how the British ended the trade after Henry Bingham smuggled seeds out of the forest to Kew Gardens and beyond to plantations in Malaysia and India.

We will reach Manaus late afternoon. After a tour of the historic city centre with its extraordinary Victorian Opera House and rubber boom mansions we will check into a hotel for our final night.

Transportation, transfer, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Deluxe

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Casa do Frades – Manaus

A hotel with a unique location facing the Teatro Amazonas and Largo São Sebastião, next to...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

10th June 2025

Day 9 – Manaus → Brasília

We have a morning at leisure – to visit the gorgeous 19th Century Teatro Amazonas Opera House or shop for indigenous arts and crafts in the little boutiques of the old centre.

We then take an early afternoon flight. Brazil is bigger than Australia. So to reach the Pantanal wetlands without a long, uncomfortable red eye flight, we stop off in the country’s extraordinary capital city, Brasília, arriving in the early evening. We will have nearly a full day to explore tomorrow.

Transportation, transfer and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Manhattan Plaza – Brasilia

Offering rooms with panoramic city views and featuring an outdoor pool, a sauna and a fitness...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast

11th June 2025

Day 10 – Brasília → Cuiabá

Brasília was purpose-built in four years, heralding a new age of technocratic advance and symbolising the then president Juscelino Kubitschek’s promise to bring ‘fifty years of prosperity in five’. Designed to look like a jet plane in flight it was conceived by urban planner Lucio Costa, landscape artist Roberto Burle Marx, with stark, monumental modernist architecture by Le Corbusier protégé Oscar Niemeyer.

The result is an extraordinary 1950s vision of the future. Tower-block-high white concrete triangles, coronas and domes dominate vast squares. Ministry buildings hidden behind diaphanous marble screens glow amber in lily pad-dotted reflection ponds. Avenues are big enough to land a spaceship on. Today enjoy full city tour – taking in the Unesco World Heritage listed architecture – Oscar Niemeyer’s extraordinary Avenue of Ministries, his vast saucer and dome Senate and Congress buildings, the city cathedral – in glowing marble and concrete and shaped like a Crown of Thorns and the extraordinary Itamaraty Palace – Brazil’s Department of State.

In the afternoon we take a flight onwards to Cuiabá, gateway to the Pantanal where we will overnight before transferring early next morning south to the heart of the wilds. Alex will be on hand to help you with urban photography today.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Intercity – Cuiaba

Intercity Cuiabá is located in the noble neighborhood of Guaiabeiras and close to bars and restaurants...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

12th June 2025

Day 11 – Cuiabá – The Pantanal, Porto Jofre

Welcome to the world’s greatest wetland wildlife destination. We will wake early to reach there, ensuring that we will see plenty of wildlife in the early morning light on our way south to Porto Jofre in the heart of the Northern Pantanal. Situated along the banks of the Cuiabá River, this tiny hamlet is the gateway to the world’s largest tropical wetland – this South American Serengeti and Okavongo, offering the best opportunities for seeing wildlife in the Americas.

One of the main attractions of Porto Jofre is the chance to see jaguars in their natural habitat. The Pantanal is home to the highest density of jaguars on the planet, and the area around Porto Jofre provides one of the best chances to observe these majestic predators. These big cats are often seen lounging along riverbanks, hunting caimans, or swimming across channels, making boat safaris a popular and effective way to spot them.

Beyond jaguars, Porto Jofre’s rich biodiversity includes giant otters, capybaras, toucans, macaws, and countless other species of birds and mammals. The region’s lush landscapes, with its mosaic of rivers, lakes, and forests, create a stunning backdrop for wildlife photography and eco-tourism. Visiting Porto Jofre offers an unforgettable experience, immersing travellers in the raw and awe-inspiring beauty of the Pantanal.

The total driving time is approximately 5 hours, with a stop for lunch along the way (not included). On arrival after checking-in, we will take a boat trip on the river to spot jaguars at their favourite time of day – the late afternoon and early evening. Alex will help you with wildlife photography throughout our Pantanal stay.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Hotel Porto Jofre – Pantanal

Since 1984, a pioneer and only hotel in the Pantanal located at the end of the...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

13th June 2025

Day 12 – Porto Jofre, Jaguars

Today is all about seeing jaguars, and we will maximise our time on the river in search of them in best place on Earth to see them, taking a launch into the heart of the vast state preserve which makes up much of the Northern Pantanal.

In the dry season, we occasionally see jaguars on the exposed beaches of the rivers – a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Other wildlife commonly seen on the river are capybara – in enormous numbers and Pantanal black caiman, a different species to those we will have seen in the Amazon. We will almost certainly also see giant jabiru storks, rare agami herons, black-collared hawks and a proliferation of other wading and water birds. We will have a full day with morning and late afternoon outings by motorboat to explore the rivers and streams, resting for lunch in between. You will need plenty of water and sun protection today. Alex will be available today for wildlife photography tutorials.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Hotel Porto Jofre – Pantanal

Since 1984, a pioneer and only hotel in the Pantanal located at the end of the...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

14th June 2025

Day 13 – Porto Jofre → Pousada Piuval

After breakfast, we will take another safari to see animals when they are most active in the early morning. Then we check out and then drive to Pousada Piuval – a working ranch with guest lodging, famous for its wildlife. Piuval has been successful in attracting jaguars to the property in recent years, making it one of the best locations in the region for wildlife stays.

The total driving time is approximately 2.5 hours, and we can enjoy stops along the way to take photographs of the many wild animals we will encounter.

Upon arrival at Pousada Piuval, we will drop off our bags and have lunch before leaving for jeep and walking safari. We will return to the lodge at sunset, ensuring we capture some great shots along the way.  Alex will be available today for wildlife photography tutorials.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Pousada Piuval – Pocone

The best way to ensure great accommodation during your visit to the Pantanal is with Pousada...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

15th June 2025

Day 14 – Pantanal, wildlife safari

After breakfast we have the option either of exploring the savannah around Piuval on horseback or by Jeep. Both options allow us to explore both the grasslands, wetlands and seasonal streams and lakes. We stand a good chance of seeing rhea (South American ostrich), giant anteaters and coatimundis today.

In the evening we will take a night safari, with a good chance of spotting smaller cats (there are seven felid species in the Pantanal) burrowing owls, nightjars and big eyed olingos – which look like a giant bushbaby.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Pousada Piuval – Pocone

The best way to ensure great accommodation during your visit to the Pantanal is with Pousada...

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

16th June 2025

Day 15 – Pantanal → Nobres, Macaw Lake Roost

After breakfast we will transfer north to the little-visited region of Bom Jardim, an area of open savannahs and cerrado woodlands filled with flowering trees. The cerrado – which is made up of dry, semi-deciduous forest is one of South America’s most threatened biomes, with distinct species from the Amazon and Pantanal. Bom Jardim is famous for its lakes and glassy-clear rivers, where it’s possible to snorkel alongside huge schools of fish and float over a river bed dotted with brightly-speckled fresh water stingrays. There is nowhere like it.

At sunset we will visit the Lagoa das Araras; a lake ringed with buriti palm trees, which provide nests for hundreds of macaws and other parrots. Sunset over the lake to the sound of their raucous song is extraordinary – both for the proliferation of birds and the gorgeous colours in the sky.

Buriti trees lose their crowns when they die, thereby leaving hollow stems that form the perfect habitats for these birds to set up their nests and breed. The reflection of the sky in the water makes the landscape even more spectacular. Especially as the sky turns from deep blue to golden before, the sun sinking red and the sky fading into a night brilliant with stars.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Reino Encantado – Nobres

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

17th June 2025

Day 16 – Nobres, snorkelling in clear-water Amazonian Rivers

Nobres is one of the only locations where it is possible to snorkel in rivers within the Amazon Basin. Most rivers here are murky, but in Nobres they are as clear as mountain air, offering the chance to snorkel with myriad freshwater species – stingrays, turtles, dourado and other fish, in their natural habitat.

After breakfast, we will take a short drive to the Salobra River, where it emerges from the ground as series of astonishingly clear springs. After a short walking safari (where me hope to see agoutis and paca), we will don our wetsuits and snorkels for a leisurely float for around a kilometre. The aquatic life is astonishing. At the end of the river, we will walk back the lodge along the trail past a series of springs, with another good chance of seeing paca, agoutis, armadillos and tamandua anteaters after which you have the afternoon to explore at leisure.

Transportation, tours and writing or photo tuition included

Superior

Brazil Holidays • Brazil

Reino Encantado – Nobres

• Board Includes:
• Breakfast
• Dinner

18th June 2025

Day 17 – Nobres → Cuiabá → Onward Transfers or Departure

This morning, we will enjoy breakfast before checking out and then driving back to Cuiabá. The total driving time to Cuiabá is approximately 2 hours.

Upon arrival in Cuiabá, we will be dropped off at the airport for our departure flight to Rio de Janeiro or elsewhere in Brazil and connections home or to another destination of your choice.

Earth Trip can arrange for an extension to your Brazil trip. You may want to fly south to see the spectacular Iguaçu Falls, head north to the Lençois Maranhenses, Brazil’s new 2024 World Heritage Site – a vast dune desert set between a wild sea and the sertão outback. Between June and December it is pocked with hundreds of beautiful clear-water lakes. Or you may choose to head for Salvador – the heart of African Brazil and the beaches of Bahia, South America’s Caribbean – which is as unspoilt as Jamaica 50 years ago.