Napo Wildlife Center is Located in the heart of the Yasuní National Park, a UNESCO a Biosphere Reserve, the Napo Wildlife Center provides visitors with great opportunities to explore the treasures hidden in the sacred lands of the Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador. One of the particularities of this hotel is that it is 100% managed by the Kichwa Añangu community, making it the greatest example of a community-based project that benefits the local community and preserves the diverse flora and fauna of the area. With 12 ample and comfortable standard cabins and 8 suites, the Napo Wildlife Center complex offers the most comfortable accommodations of the Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador and unique opportunities explore the treasures hidden in the forests and creeks of the jungle.
LIFE IS COMFORTABLE AT AMAZON JUNGLE:
Located in a privileged area of the Ecuadorian Amazon, the Napo Wildlife Center is one of the largest eco-lodges in the Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador. The typical local open-air architecture and modern style of the hotel make it the ideal place for an unforgettable jungle experience with luxurious amenities. The Napo Wildlife Center features 20 red thatched-roof huts and a main hall with a 360° panoramic view of Lake Anangu and the surrounding forest.
IN NAPO WILD LIFE CENTER:
Energy is generated by solar panels, industrial batteries, and silent generators, which is an efficient system with minimal environmental impact. All water is appropriately processed to maintain a healthy biome. Every aspect of life has been considered with both our guests and Mother Nature in mind.
SERVICES
Staff
The friendly local staff are the backbone of the napo wildlife center experience and are always available to attend to any special needs you may have.
Bar
Enjoy a beer or cocktail. they have a well-curated wine list including wines from Chile, Argentina and Ecuador.
Wi-Fi
Satellite WiFi is available for a small fee. A single payment will ensure you are connected for the whole stay.
Electricity
Silent, high-efficiency engines generate the energy needed to provide 24/7 electricity at the Napo Wildlife Center, It has 110 volt electric plugs in each cabin.
Boots & Ponchos
Clean and disinfected bubber boots and rain ponchos are available for all guests at the Lodge, free of charge.
Menu
Breakfast: Daily buffet
Lunch: Served menu (appetizer, main course, dessert, and soft drink)
Dinner: Daily buffet including local specialties
Water
Purified, safe drinking water is available at multiple points around the Lodge – there’s no need to bring your own bottled water.
Communications
In case of emergency, both cellular telephone and radio communications are available from the Lodge. In addition, each of our guides maintains permanent radio contact with the Lodge during all excursions and activities.
DISCOVER THE MAGIC OF THE AMAZON
PREMIUM PROGRAM
4 DAYS / 3 NIGHTS
$1525
Per person
CHECK AVAILABILITY
Departing from Quito, a 30-minute flight to Coca will bring you over the eastern Andes mountain range. After landing during the mid-morning, a 5-minute transfer will take you to “The community Anangu” Port, where you will embark on a comfortable covered motorboat. Here we will ride along the Napo River for about 2 hours while enjoying a box lunch and coffee, which is provided en route.
Along the way, you will have opportunities to spot birds like herons, kingfishers, and others. After arriving at Napo Wildlife Center’s entry dock, we disembarked for a short break and to visit the restroom. Next, we take you on a majestic and peaceful 2-hour paddle canoe ride surrounded by trees and wildlife, paddling along a narrow creek that connects to the lake where the lodge is located.
There will be chances to see some species of monkeys as well as large birds like toucans, parrots, or even macaws. A late afternoon arrival to Napo Wildlife Center with an overwhelming view of the Añangu Lake will be accompanied by a welcome drink followed by a briefing from the local manager.
Wake up for an early breakfast and an early start to reach the most accessible parrot clay licks in Ecuador, about 1 hour away from the lodge. Guests reach this destination just before parrot activity kicks off at the clay lick between 7:30 to 8:30 am to ensure the best viewing experience. A total of 11 species of parrots, parakeets, and macaws can be seen daily. Many other animals also visit on a less frequent basis.
Later, hike along a forest trail to visit the Kichwa Community of Añangu and share time with a family on one of their many activities. Enjoy lunch at Napo Cultural Center, where you share with people of the Kichwa community.
Then return to the creek and hike through a Terra Firme Forest for about 30 minutes until we arrive at the second parrot clay lick. If the weather conditions permit, we will be able to find different species of parrots, parakeets, and even macaws.
When you arrive back at the lodge during the late afternoon or early evening, a delicious dinner will be awaiting you.
After another early breakfast, we leave the lodge to experience an amazing view of the rainforest from a 36 meter tall canopy tower, a great way to see the hustle and bustle of life above ground-level. This is the second tower at the Napo Wildlife Center, located about 30 minutes from the lodge deep within the Terra Firme forest. As you ascend the 12-floor tower, you pass through different levels of the forest and emerge at the top of a huge Ceiba tree.
Flocks of colorful tanagers pass right through the canopy of the tree. Blue-and-yellow macaws fly past while, in nearby trees, adorable spider monkeys search for fruit. Two species of large toucans call in the early mornings and afternoons, and the life of the forest canopy is laid out before you. Birds that are virtually impossible to see from the forest floor far below are suddenly right beside you, usually oblivious to your presence. The canopy tower opens a whole new world to guests of the Napo Wildlife Center!
Lunch is served at the lodge. Your afternoon can include discovering another Terra Firme trail, where we hike along primary forest to see the forest interior, possibilities of finding lizards, colorful manakins, or the unique and endemic Golden-mantled tamarin monkey. After the hike, explore the lake and creeks in a dugout canoe and enjoy a likely chance meeting with our local Giant otter family on the way.
Your last day will entail an early departure and final 2-hour excursion canoeing back to the Napo River. The creek may reveal new sights of giant otters, monk saki monkeys, and rare birds along the way. Once we have reached the river, you will transfer to the motorized canoe to return the way you came. You will arrive in Coca after an approximately 2-hour boat ride to check in for your Coca – Quito flight. Precise schedule to be announced according to departure details and arrangements.
EXTENDED STAY
5 DAYS / 4 NIGHTS
$1868
Per person
CHECK AVAILABILITY
This morning we will take a short flight from Quito to the town of Coca, lasting about half an hour. A short drive from the airport to “La Mision”, the main port of Coca, will bring you to “the gateway to the Amazon” where Francisco de Orellana set sail in 1541.
Our method of transportation will now be a comfortable covered canoe powered by twin outboard motors where we can enjoy a box lunch and coffee provided en route. This craft will take us downstream on the Napo River for about 2.5 hours to the Napo Wildlife Center (NWC) welcome station.
Here we will take a short break and make use of the facilities before transferring to smaller canoes that are used instead of motorized vehicles to maintain the pristine landscape and habitats. Over the next couple of hours, we will paddle you up Añangu Creek to the NWC lodge, which is situated on the bank of a tranquil lake amid a vast tract of primary rainforest where hunting is prohibited. On this canoe ride, you have high chances of spotting wildlife! Various species of monkeys, as well as large birds like toucans, parrots, and even macaws, can be seen.
After a buffet breakfast, experience life above the forest floor by visiting the 36-meter canopy tower. This tower is located about 30 minutes from the lodge and deep within the forest. Get an excellent sample of the 600+ species of birds recorded so far, with a close look at colorful tanagers, macaws, toucans, flycatchers, and even spider or howler monkeys feeding themselves on the nearby trees. The canopy tower opens up a whole new and exciting world to the guests of the Napo Wildlife Center.
Return to the lodge for a typical Ecuadorian lunch. After lunch, there are many options to choose from for your afternoon activity. Climb the central tower for birdwatching, go kayaking, or simply relax in your hammock if that’s more your speed.
You may choose to hike through the marvelous Terra Firme forest to discover the ecology and the role of plants in the complex world of the Tropical Rain-Forest. Vines, ancient trees, bromeliads, and orchids stand out in this impressive natural garden. After the hike, explore the surrounding lake and creeks for the chance to run into a Giant otter family. A delicious dinner awaits for you in our lodge restaurant at 7:30 pm.
This morning we will visit the best parrot clay licks in Ecuador!! An early start will allow us to see different creatures while paddling downstream on the Añangu creek as far as the welcome area. Then, we take the motorboat for a 10 minute ride for a beautiful view of thousands of parrots such as the amazon-mealy, blue-headed, and orange –cheeked, among others who land at the natural river-side formation to eat some clay.
Later, we return to the welcome area and start a short hike to the parakeets’ clay lick. Here hundreds of cobalt-winged parakeets remain crowded in the trees waiting for the most confident members of the flock to decide it’s the best time to get minerals from the clay. Marvel as they all take turns landing at this clay lick in a flurry of color and sound.
Lunch at Napo Cultural Center. In the afternoon, visit the interpretation area to learn about the traditions of the ancestral Kichwa community of Añangu through song, dance, and conversation. Then head back to the lodge late in the afternoon. You will be welcomed back with a refreshing fruit drink, and dinner following at 7:30 pm.
This morning we will hike along the Tiputini trail. Enjoy the mixture of Terra-Firma and swamp forests while searching for more wildlife such as golden-mantled tamarins, white-faced capuchin monkeys, two and three-toed sloths, pigmy squirrels, and maybe even a carnivore’s tracks on the forest floor.
We return to the lodge for lunch and a well-deserved rest. In the afternoon, paddle canoes will take you deeper into areas of the surrounding creeks with more possibilities of seeing unique wildlife like the hoatzin. After dinner, we can all discuss and share our experiences of the community and Napo Wildlife Center.
Early breakfast and last excursion canoeing back to the Napo River. The creek may reveal new sights of giant otters, monk saki monkeys, black-capped donacobius, and other birds. The motorized canoe will take you back to Coca for the flight back to Quito.
GO BIRDING
5 DAYS / 4 NIGHTS
SPECIAL PRICE
CHECK AVAILABILITY
A 30 minute flight from Quito to Coca over the eastern Andes mountain range is the beginning of this fantastic experience. After landing, a short 5 minute drive will bring you to the Coca port where you will take a comfortable covered motorboat ride along the Napo River. Approximately 2 hours later, and after spotting some birds along the way, we arrive at Napo Wildlife Center’s first welcoming area which is complete with restroom facilities.
After arriving at Napo Wildlife Center’s welcoming area, we will switch watercraft and take a magical and peaceful 2 hour dugout-canoe ride along a narrow creek where motorized vehicles are prohibited. The Añangu stream connects to the lake where the lodge is located. Along the way, we’ll see our first hoatzins and get a taste for the diversity of the region, with birds perhaps including rufescent tiger-heron, sungrebe, red-bellied macaw, and green-and-rufous kingfisher. We reach our final destination by arriving at the lodge in the late afternoon. Enjoy your first night at NWC lodge.
(The days can be extended as required by passengers)
One or two mornings, we will visit the very sturdy canopy tower which offers privileged access to a world apart from the rest of the rainforest. Three full days or more will only scratch the surface of the full range of avifauna in western Amazonia. Get a feel for the complexity of precious habitats and microhabitats within easy reach of the lodge.
Flocks of oropendolas, aracaris, tanagers, and euphonias roam the canopy in search of fruit. Spangled and plum-throated cotingas sing from the treetops while raptors perch on vantage points to dry off in the morning sun. White-browed purpletufts and crowned slaty flycatchers compete for insects, numerous parrots and macaws fly by or drop in if there is a fruiting tree nearby, and many other species wander past (and through!) the towering tree.
Good forest trails offer access to another component of the avifauna with woodcreepers, antbirds, and tinamous are particularly well represented. We should be able to encounter the vocally striking screaming piha and the visually striking black-necked red cotinga. Keep your eyes peeled, cameras charged, and binoculars at the ready.
Several clay licks (or “saladeros”) exist on the NWC lands. Here we should see (and hear!) the spectacle of hundreds of parrots and parakeets coming in to eat clay. It’s a unique sight to see, and it never gets old! The river-edge forest, where we’ll visit the local community that built and expertly runs the lodge, is home to numerous other species such as turquoise and magpie tanagers, rufous-headed woodpeckers, and swallow-winged puffbirds.
We’ll also enjoy numerous canoe rides around the lake by the lodge and along adjacent creeks, where the songs of silvered and plumbeous antbirds reverberate through the flooded forest. Birds we will be seeking here include the poorly known zigzag heron, a habitat specialist called the point-tailed palmcreeper, the orange-crested manakin, and the striking long-billed woodcreeper. Plenty of different species of monkeys and the impressive giant river otter are also highlights.
And then there are islands in the Río Napo which, depending on their age, support a varied avifauna distinct from that found on the “mainland” only a few hundred yards away! Island specialties we hope to see include the black-and-white antbird, olive-spotted hummingbird, and at least three species of spinetails. Plus more “expected” river birds such as the capped heron, collared plover, and yellow-billed tern will surely make an appearance.
Today we will make the journey back along the Añangu stream and head back up the Napo River to Coca for the return flight to Quito.
PHOTOGRAPHY
5 DAYS / 4 NIGHTS
SPECIAL PRICE
CHECK AVAILABILITY
Departure from Quito in the morning and travel to the Añangu community. We take out the cameras when we reach the black water “Añangu” stream. After brief instructions and advice, we start taking photos on our the way to the majestic Napo Wildlife Center.
Arrival and check-in at the lodge. Photography from the NWC tower at sunset, followed by a delicious dinner. We will then talk about all of the possible activities to do during the next few days at the lodge.
You can choose from the following activities for a full combination of experiences during sunrises, mornings, afternoons, sunsets, and nights. Many can be combined and repeated depending on the weather and the interests of the group. There are plenty of options to choose from whether you are staying for a 3, 4, or 5-night tour.
SUNRISE ACTIVITIES
• Sunrise in the hotel tower (1 to 3 hours)
• Dawn in the NWC canopy tower (30 min to 1 hour duration)
• Parrot clay licks and Kuri Muyu Cultural Center (all morning and lunch)
MORNING AND AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES
• Hike a trail leading to the tower (2 to 4 hours)
• Blackwater creek and lake for otters, caimans, monkeys and birds (2 to 4 hours)
• Monkeys and birds arround the lodge
• Macro photography on the trail behind the lodge
NIGHT ACTIVITIES
• Night walks on the lodge trail to photograph amphibians, reptiles, and insects
• Night walks on the path to the tower to photograph amphibians, reptiles, and insects
• Observation of alligators and frogs around the lake
• Talks (detailed below)
TALKS ABOUT
• How do I use my camera?
• Essential tips to achieve a good photo in the jungle
• Photographic composition
• Storytelling
• The correct use of flash
• Post-processing and cataloging your images
• Conservation Photography
• Photo criticism workshop and portfolio review
FAQ
INCLUDES:
- River transportation Coca - Napo Wildlife Center - Coca.
- Accommodation in Napo Wildlife Center.
- All meals.
- Community guide and naturalist bilingual guide.
- Rain poncho and rubber boots.
- All excursions and activities as per detailed itinerary.
DOES NOT INCLUDE:
- Air tickets Quito-Coca-Quito USD 256 per adult (from 12 years old) / USD 205 per child (up to 11 years old, 11 month) (Rates subject to change without prior notice). with airport assistance in Quito and Coca’s airports, including a land transfer to the private dock in Coca.
- Beverages.
- Gratuities.
- Personal expenses and other non specified.
- services (laundry and internet).
- Passport
- Binoculars
- Flashlight and batteries
- Camera, memory and flash
- Insect repellent
- Sun protection (cream / sunglasses / hat or cap)
- Light long pants and long-sleeved shirts for walks
- Shorts, short sleeve shirts and swimsuit for the Lodge
- Comfortable shoes and extra socks
- Small day backpack
- Plastic bags to protect cameras, binoculars, batteries.
- All prices are per person, valid through the year and are quoted in US dollars.
- Children under 5, hotel free in same parents room plus airfare to be paid.
- Children under 11 years and 11 months get 30% discount on hotel prices in the same parents room and airfare.
- NWC recommend for families with children to take a private guide
- Please note that air rates are subject to change without previous notice.
- Departures available any day of the week, except sunday.
ABOUT PRIVATE TOUR OR SPECIALIST TOUR (PRIVATE GUIDES ON DAILY BASIS (must be booked for total length of the stay)
- PRIVATE GUIDES daily (must be booked for the total length of the stay)
- BILINGUAL NATURALIST GUIDE 100 USD
- COMMUNITY GUIDE (SPANISH) 40 USD
- BIRD SPECIALIST GUIDE (BILINGUAL) 130 USD
- GERMAN OR FRENCH GUIDE 110 USD
