Buenos Aires, Iguazu, Rio & Manaus

Welcome to Argentina! For most travelers, Buenos Aires is the entry point to Argentina… and what an entrance it is: this vibrant city feels almost European! Its cosmopolitan population of Italian, Spanish, French, and many other nationalities, combined with stunning architecture, cultural activities, and attractive neighborhoods with small shops, cafés, and international restaurants, make the atmosphere relaxed and welcoming.

Upon arrival, our local representative will meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel. After settling into your accommodation in the trendy neighborhood of Palermo, the rest of your afternoon and evening is free for you to spend at your leisure. We recommend exploring the area near your hotel where you’ll be able to soak up the atmosphere of this thrilling city stopping off at one of the nearby boutique cafés or lively wine bars. Having found somewhere for dinner and experienced one of South America’s top restaurant scenes, explore Buenos Aires’ nightlife at one of the local wine bars in Palermo, add an exclusive wine tasting to your itinerary or, take a leisurely stroll back to your hotel.

Tip: Porteños eat dinner late; usually restaurants will open their doors around 20:00.

Meals (x)

After breakfast, you will be collected from your hotel for your city tour of Buenos Aires, where you will discover the history and modern life of this world-renowned city.

The tour provides an in-depth introduction to its architecture, the culture of its people, its anecdotes, and secrets. Buenos Aires is exceptional, dynamic, sophisticated, and overwhelming. It is an exquisite combination of a European atmosphere and the charm of Latin American cities. You will begin at the famous Plaza de Mayo, before venturing out to the old tango districts of Buenos Aires: Monserrat, San Telmo, and La Boca. You will then move on to the busiest areas – Puerto Madero, Retiro, and Plaza San Martin – and then, districts with wonderful green spaces and old residences: Palermo and Recoleta.

In the evening, enjoy a great dinner and a Tango Show, located in the heart of San Telmo, this refurbished ‘conventillo’ is a classic example of the Buenos Aires culture. La Ventana takes you back to older times. The interior architectural style has been preserved and creates an ideal setting for a unique experience: 32 performing artists, two tango orchestras, a folklore ensemble, dancers and singers, a menu of traditional and international cuisine, and an exquisite list of Argentinean wines.

Meals (B, D)

After breakfast this morning, you will be transferred to the airport for your flight from Buenos Aires to Iguazu!

Upon arrival, you will begin your exclusive tour of the Argentinean side of Iguazu Falls. You’ll head towards the Iguazu National Park where you’ll climb aboard a small train at the entrance of the National Park – your first stop will be the ominously named Devil’s Throat (Garganta del Diablo) which stands at over 262ft, making it the biggest waterfall of Iguazu! Having soaked up the enormity of the Devil’s Throat, your guide will take you along the wooden walkways and trails of both the upper and lower circuit. With over 270 separate waterfalls and the copious verdant jungle of Iguazu, exploring this Natural World Wonder of the World is one of the most unforgettable experiences.

The various trails that take you above and around the waterfalls are built a few feet above the jungle floor. These raised platforms not only protect the natural habitat of the jungle wildlife but will also take you to secluded viewpoints offering unimaginable views across the whole National Park. If you’re looking for a bit of adventure while visiting Iguazu, we highly recommend booking the optional (not included) Great Adventure boat tour that takes you right under the rainbows and mist of Iguazu’s waterfalls. Make sure to pack a change of clothes or swimwear and a watertight bag for your valuables because you will get wet!

After a full day exploring Argentina’s side of Iguazu Falls, you’ll head back to the visitors’ center and from there, your transfer will take you to your hotel in Iguazu where the rest of your evening is free to spend at your leisure.

Meals (B)

After breakfast, you will spend another day at the Iguazu Falls, a Natural Wonder of the World, but today you’ll have a private guided tour of the Brazilian side. Situated inside the Iguazu National Park, the Iguazu Waterfalls enthrall visitors from all over the world. This huge series of waterfalls plunges through a gorge onto the Iguazu River. They are more than three kilometers wide and 80 meters high. They are wider than Victoria Falls, higher than Niagara Falls, and are more beautiful than either. The falls create a never-ending spray of water and decorate the sky with rainbows. Walking by a 1.2-km trail, you will be treated to an amazing panoramic view of the over 275 waterfalls. The best panoramic views of the world’s most beautiful waterfall are from here, especially the frontal view of Garganta del Diablo or Devil’s Throat, which is over 80 meters high and is the most powerful and spectacular waterfall of them all, this is the waterfall that made Eleanor Roosevelt say, ‘Poor Niagara…’

After the visit, you can relax in your hotel and enjoy the evening at your leisure.

Meals (B)

At the designated time you’ll be taken to Foz do Iguaçu airport for your flight to Rio de Janeiro!

Landing in Rio, our local representative will be waiting for you at the airport to greet and take you to your hotel. Once you’ve settled into your accommodation, the rest of the day is free to explore some of our favorite local spots. Stroll along the long boulevards next to the beaches of Ipanema, Leblon, and of course Copacabana. Along the way, you’ll find plenty of huts selling delicious freshly squeezed juices and coconuts which will refresh you as you soak up the breathtaking cityscape.

Relax and perhaps watch the sunset at the beach before going for dinner at one of the restaurants along the promenade. We recommend trying one of Brazil’s most famous and traditional dishes, feijoada carioca (stew of beans with beef and pork served with white rice and farofa) washed down with a refreshing caipirinha cocktail or a local beer – Brahma and Skol are our favorites! Following dinner, you can go back to your hotel to relax or go to one of the local samba bars to dance the night away!

Meals (B)

This half-day private tour will take you to the Tijuca National Park, the world’s largest urban forest. Arriving at the top of Corcovado Mountain you’ll visit the world-famous statue of Christ the Redeemer. In 2007, the statue was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and standing at the base of the 124 ft. tall statue, you’ll be treated to some truly amazing views over the city. Enjoy eye-catching views of the forest below and where Rio de Janeiro’s mountains dive into the clear blue water.

After visiting the statue and the Tijuca National Park, you’ll head back to your hotel passing by the golden beaches of Ipanema and Leblon.

Meals (B)

To understand the history of Brazil there is nothing better than taking a tour of the old city center of Rio. You’ll visit the impressive Cinelandia Square which was built in honor of the second president of Brazil, Floriano Peixoto, and features important buildings such as the Rio Opera House, the National Library, and the Fine Arts Museum. Continuing your tour through the historic center, you’ll also visit Rio’s Chamber of Deputies, the former Imperial Palace, and the ornate Candelaria Church.

Having explored the city from the street level, you will head towards Sugarloaf Mountain where you’ll take the cable car to its summit. Ascending the famous natural landmark of Sugarloaf Mountain you’ll be able to enjoy stunning 360-degree views across the sprawling city below, Guanabara Bay, Copacabana Beach, and up to Christ the Redeemer statue.

You will also get to learn how to make and taste the most famous and traditional Brazilian drink – a caipirinha !! The perfect end to a perfect day.

Meals (B)

After breakfast, you will be collected from your hotel at the scheduled time, and transferred to the airport for your onward flight to Manaus. 

Today will be an entirely new change of environment as you get closer to the Amazon Jungle! Take the time to unwind in Manaus, breathing in the clear air you can explore the city at your leisure! Make sure you get an early night as your cruise adventure starts tomorrow!

Meals (B)

AM: This day we embark on the Motor Yacht Tucano in Manaus, Brazil. We depart on the Rio Negro and as the vessel glides upstream we will have our first talk about Amazon environments. By late afternoon we enter one of the world’s largest river island systems, the Anavilhanas Archipelago. The boat will weave along a winding channel with rainforest on both sides in a riot of brilliant vegetation.

PM: Weather permitting, we will go for a launch excursion in the gnarled and dense flooded forest along the river’s edge. We may see some Squirrel Monkeys and we may hear the other-worldly growls of Howler Monkeys echoing through the primitive rainforest. The Amazon has one of the greatest collections of birds in the world and we are sure to see some of these brightly colored jewels perched in the treetops.

We return to the M/Y Tucano for hors d’oeuvres on the observation deck and a toast to the rainforest sunset. Following dinner, we will embark on our launches in search of nocturnal creatures such as the Caiman, the Amazon’s crocodilians. We may also see one of the large night birds such as a Great Potoo, with its bulging eyes and large mouth, adapted to swallow the huge Mariposa Moths.

Meals: (B, L, D)

AM: Shortly after sunrise this morning we explore the Anavilhanas Archipelago, a reserve that includes the world’s largest system of river islands and also areas of tall dense rainforest. Here we will see the strange environment called the igapó, the black water flooded forest, where dense forests grow right out of the dark water of the Rio Negro. Mid-morning we return to the vessel for a hearty Brazilian breakfast. After some time to relax, weather permitting, we will disembark in mid-morning and dividing into very small groups we will go for a walk in the type of rainforest known as the terra firma. Here we have a good chance to see the markings, if not the animals themselves, of some of the Amazon’s great mammals like peccaries (wild pigs) or even a jaguar.

PM: Around mid-day, we return to the vessel for lunch and a siesta. In the afternoon we will go for an excursion in our launches along the edges of the dense forest and listen to the sunset chorus of birds, howler monkeys, and frogs. Weather permitting, tonight we will have an excursion to spot caiman (the Amazon’s crocodiles) and other nocturnal creatures. We very often see arboreal porcupines or sloths scrambling high in the limbs.

Meals: (B, L, D)

AM: Today we will voyage to the west side of the Rio Negro and continue to scout in our launches and walk in the forest. We will explore, according to the weather and water depth, areas rarely visited by anyone else.

PM: Tonight the M/Y Tucano goes downstream, and river depth permitting, will enter an east bank affluent of the Rio Negro and explore on deep into the rainforest on this small river. After our nocturnal exploration of the rainforest in our launches we return to the Tucano for “Caipirinha Night” and perhaps try a bit of samba on the top deck.

Meals: (B, L, D)

AM: We begin the day with a dawn excursion hunting for wakening wildlife followed by a full Brazilian breakfast. We will then go one last time into the forest.

PM: In the mid-afternoon, we will begin to journey downstream to arrive late in the day at the “Encontro das Aguas” – a stark several-mile-long line where two of the world’s largest rivers, the Amazon and the Rio Negro, join in a turbulent maelstrom. Here the dark water of the Negro runs beside the opaque brown water of the Amazon.

At sunset, the M/Y Tucano will once again turn her bows upstream on the Rio Negro and journey to our overnight anchorage north of the City of Manaus. As we pass in front of Manaus, we will marvel at the scale of one of the world’s largest and most vibrant port cities over a thousand miles from the sea. Tonight we will have a farewell dinner and prepare for an early departure in the morning.

Meals: (B, L, D)

AM: Early this morning, after a hearty breakfast, all guests disembark from the M/Y Tucano.

Travelers will be transferred to the Manaus city center and will disembark at the Millennium Hotel or Hotel Villa Amazonia. For those passengers that do not have a hotel arranged for the end of the cruise, we recommend that they disembark from the transfer bus at the Millennium Hotel.

Meals: (B)