Safety + Regulations
Amazonia Expeditions’ Lodges on the Tahuayo River are in full compliance with all laws, regulations, and licensing necessary to operate in Peru including at the Federal, Regional, and Local level. This includes but is not limited to the following:
- Regulations set by the Peruvian Government that cover food licenses, fire hazard safety, sanitation, and other safety aspects.
- Regulations enforced by the Peruvian Coast Guard for boating safety and licensed boat drivers.
- Regulations from local governmental entities including Forestry & Natural Resource officials.
- Mutual agreements made with the local Ribereño communities along the Tahuayo River which we have maintained a close relationship over the years.
- Federal laws prohibiting the mistreatment, abuse, and profiting of captive wild animals.
It is also important to note that all Amazonia team members (guides, maintenance staff, boat drivers, etc.) are employed formally and legally in accordance with Peruvian Law. We also pay all our taxes which benefits the welfare of the entire country.
Why is it important for us to mention this?
Many tourism businesses who operate in Iquitos (and throughout Peru) are informal and do not comply with some or any of the above-mentioned regulations, licenses, or labor standards. Even some business with excellent reviews on online travel sites like Trip Advisor or Booking.com are not guaranteed to be operating legally. These sites often do not take this type of information into account in their rating systems.
Informal operators have the advantage of being able to sell tours much cheaper than formal businesses. However, this comes at the expense of workers, consumers, and the tourism industry overall.
- Informal businesses often do not pay required taxes.
- Workers are often underpaid and receive no other benefits or protections.
- Consumers, who often unknowingly travel with these companies, receive lower-quality experiences, potentially risk their safety, and are often put in uncomfortable situations.
In the end, the decision for where to travel comes down to you, the traveler, but we just want to make sure you have all the information before you make your decision. Remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is…
Wilderness Safety
While in the rainforest, your travel group will have your very own Amazonia Expeditions jungle guide. All of our guides are local to the rainforest, they understand the beauty and dangers present in this environment. We do not hire freelance guides, all of our head guides are full time staff members of Amazonia Expeditions. Read more here: https://perujungle.com/about-us/#guides Our guides are trained to the highest standards, building on our 40 years of experience working in the rainforest environment. All guides receive extensive training on safety procedure, local biology, and all of our guides have been professionally trained and certified in wilderness first aid.
Mosquitos
Just like every other tropical environment in the world we do have mosquitoes (please follow the preparations instructions we send). However, the blackwater ecosystems of the Tahuayo River basin do not have the mosquito species Anopheles darlingi or Aedes aegypti. Thus there is no danger of zika, malaria, dengue or yellow fever at our site. No malaria preventatives or vaccinations are necessary for the trip. To read more see: https://perujungle.com/your-zika-and-malaria-free-experience/
CAUTION: of other lodges that advertise they are also disease free. If a lodge has photos of giant lily pads (which only grow in alkaline water) or operate on the roadway south of Iquitos city, they should not claim that.
Access to Medical Care
We are in remote wilderness, 140 nautical km from the nearest road. Despite this, our main Tahuayo Lodge is only minutes from the nearest medical clinic. In 2006 we built a medical clinic for the native communities of the Tahuayo River. We greatly expanded and modernized the facilities in 2019. In 2021 Peru’s Ministry of Health upgraded the status from clinic to “Hospital Level 1” due to the high quality of medical care offered. While the hospital is for the indigenous communities, our guests can also have access for any need. In both of our lodges we are the only company to have emergency cardiac resuscitation equipment (AED), and other lifesaving equipment. Lodge staff is trained and certified in first aid and know how to use this emergency life-saving equipment. In extreme situations we can evacuate guests (by boat) to the private hospital in Iquitos in less than 3 hours. Please note that in 40+ years we have never had a serious injury/illness that required evacuation. Read more here: https://angelsoftheamazon.org/health-care/
Boating Safety
You will be spending a large amount of time on the water while you are with us. Rest assured that we follow all boating safety protocols and our boat drivers are highly qualified. All speedboats are inspected for safety frequently by the Peruvian Coast Guard. PFD’s (Life Preservers) are always standard with our boating activities from canoe to speedboat. We have appropriate child-sized life jackets available for both children and infants.
Canopy Safety
Our ACCT (Association for Challenge Course Technology) Certified course https://www.acctinfo.org/ was designed and constructed by the pioneering company Adventure Playground. With over 32 years of experience, no other company has better expertise, knowledge, and installation experience. Founder and owner Victor Gallo led the construction and design of our project. Our course is inspected frequently by ACCT certified personnel. The course is inspected daily by our own staff with guidance from our on-site canopy specialist (who has completed the ACCT certification course in Costa Rica). To read more see: https://perujungle.com/canopy-zip-lines/
