JunglePro Lodge

Set along the upper Tambopata River, deep inside the Tambopata National Reserve, JunglePro's lodge reaches guests only by boat, a journey of two to three hours that itself turns up capybaras, caimans, and monkeys along the banks. The reserve here holds three oxbow lakes and sits near the Chuncho Macaw Clay Lick, one of the largest gatherings of macaws anywhere in the Amazon. It is a compact stay. Fifteen cabins, each 45 square metres, come with mosquito-screened windows, en-suite bathrooms with gas-heated water, ceiling fans run on solar power, and Wi-Fi that reaches the whole property. Some have balconies; some have hammocks strung for the afternoon heat. A fifty-metre canopy tower rises above the surrounding trees, used for dawn and dusk birdwatching and the odd sighting of monkeys moving through the upper branches. Meals are taken together in an open dining room facing the forest. Guides here average years of fieldwork rather than seasons, and groups stay small, with no more than ten guests per guide inside the reserve. Nights bring walks for nocturnal wildlife, including tarantulas the size of a hand. You can hear the forest shift after dark, when the day's birds give way to frogs and insects. The lodge runs entirely on solar energy, with no grid connection for kilometres in any direction.