The city of Iquitos is located in the northern Amazon, to the east of the country. It is the capital of the Loreto Region, which with almost 30% of the national territory is the largest and northernmost in Peru. The city is located on the banks of a secondary branch of the Amazon River, in front of a large permanent target called Padre Isla, wooded and almost twenty kilometers long. The city is surrounded by a number of minor rivers and canals.
A short distance away is the confluence of the great Napo River with the Amazon. In this fluvial world, communications depend as much or more on navigation than on land transport, which is practically non-existent outside the city of Iquitos.
In Amazon of Iquitos there is a recently opened zoological park, as well as some interesting buildings, the product of the rubber fever of the last century, such as the old mosaic houses facing the boardwalk, and the first prefabricated house in America: the Iron House, designed and built by Gustave Eiffel and brought from Europe in parts (nuts and bolts included) and assembled in the place where it is located, in the center of the city.
Weather in Iquitos
The weather in Iquitos is very warm, excessively rainy and oceanic.
The annual mean maximum and minimum temperature (period 1950-1991) is 31.4 ° C and 21.8 ° C, respectively.
The mean annual accumulated precipitation for the period 1950-1991 is 2773.1 mm.
From December to May, the weather in Iquitos is full of rains
Although there will be sunny days in Iquitos all year round to enjoy, it is important to know that the rainy season occurs between these months and that many outings can be affected by them, since hiking can be dangerous.
In addition, the highest temperatures occur in the month of March, as it reaches 37 ° and the heat can be unbearable, while February is the rainiest month. The positive thing about this climate in Iquitos is that the fluvial increase of the rivers make them more navigable for unforgettable canoe trips.
If you are a lover of beautiful landscapes, the rain makes the vegetation have bright colors and gives visitors incredible visual effects. What is important to know is that the number of mosquitoes is greater and it is best to use repellent all the time, as well as a Vape at night to sleep free of mosquitoes.
How to get to the city of Iquitos?
The traditional way to get to Iquitos is by air. Alternatively navigating the Amazon River and its main tributaries such as the Ucayali River and the Marañón River.
The city of Iquitos does not have highways that connect it with other large cities in Peru; There is only a 115 km highway from Iquitos to Nauta. Cars only circulate in the urban area and surroundings of Iquitos, the fluvial environment predominates.
The massive means of transport in the city are motorcycles, including «mototaxis», there are also public transport buses and conventional taxis. Transportation to nearby towns and the interior of the department of Loreto is done in river boats or seaplanes.
Airway
The city of Iquitos has the «Coronel FAP Francisco Secada» International Airport (IQT Airport Code), with comfortable facilities, located 7 km. from the center of the city of Iquitos.
This airport receives regular domestic flights from Lima (1 hour and 30 minutes), Tarapoto (50 minutes) and Pucallpa (1 hour). Iquitos has direct international flights from Panama City. Sporadic flights to Iquitos from Yurimaguas (40 minutes) and Leticia – Colombia (1 hour).
Waterway
Many tourists who want to have the experience of navigating its mighty rivers start their journey from the port of Iquitos along the Amazon River and can reach ports in Brazil and its mouth in the Atlantic Ocean, reaching ports such as Manaus and Tabatinga in Brazil and Leticia in Colombia. From the port of Iquitos, motor ships sail regularly to Pucallpa and Yurimaguas.
The navigation from Pucallpa to Iquitos can take from 4 to 7 days along the Ucayali River, with stops in Requena and Contamana if you decide to travel by «motor ship», a boat with capacity for 250 people, and from Iquitos to Yurimaguas 3 to 6 days. The large rivers most used are the Amazon, Napo, Marañón and the Ucayali.
In this area you can find a very peculiar kind of boat called «peque-peque» (a canoe with a motor), the «pecamari» (boat with half roof), speedboats with powerful engines overboard, and medium-sized boats dedicated to the transport of local people and others dedicated exclusively to cargo, with regular itineraries. Small boats can be rented for private service.
Cruises in the Amazon
Sailing along the Amazon River is an incomparable experience and the tour operators of Iquitos offer organized programs of 4 to 8 days, some with set sail from the port of Iquitos and others from Nauta to navigate in the area of ??the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve.
Tourism in Iquitos and the Amazon River
Iquitos is an ideal destination for ecotourism lovers and those who want to feel intimate contact with the unspoiled nature of the Amazon forests; From Iquitos you can go into hostels and lodges in the middle of the jungle with programs for exploring the jungle, especially in protected natural areas with immense biological wealth, with many living species still unknown to science, or navigate on a cruise on the Amazon River and enjoy one of the most biodiverse areas in the world.
Iquitos was a village inhabited by the jungle tribe the Iquitos, from whom the name was taken at the time of its founding in 1864. During the Spanish colony and the gold rush caused by the legends of El Dorado and the Pais de la Canela, Iquitos it never had historical figuration.
In the city of Iquitos you can find handicrafts of the jungle tribes, as well as you can enjoy excellent regional cuisine, typical drinks, a city with a busy life and great nightlife, or sessions with shamans who use ayahuasca. There is great diffusion of folk medicine and quackery based on the large number of medicinal plants that exist.
Tourist Attractions of Iquitos Perú
Church or cathedral of Iquitos
Located in the main square of the city of Iquitos. It was built between 1911 and 1924 in the neo-Gothic style.
Its single-nave structure maintains the details of the European model with a carved wooden pulpit on the right side.
An interesting detail is the Swiss watch that was installed in 1925, its care was in the hands of Mr. Manuel Pinedo.
Iron House
It is located on the corner of Próspero Street and Putumayo Street, in front of the Plaza de Armas in the city of Iquitos.
It was built in 1887, it was designed by the French architect Gustavo Eiffel
Its two-story structure, with balconies on both facades and a four-sided pyramid-shaped roof, is supported by forged iron columns.
Former Palace Hotel
It is located on the corners of Putumayo Street and the Malecón Tarapacá
This building was completed in 1912 and since then it has been considered the best and most luxurious in Amazon of Iquitos.
Its three floors have been carefully decorated with balconies and iron bars from Hamburg, Carrara marbles, Sevillian mosaics and arabesques.
It is estimated that about 40,000 pounds of gold were invested in the details.
Visiting Hours:
Monday to Sunday 8:00 a.m. at 8:00 p.m.
Zungarococha Lake
12 km from the airport checkpoint southwest of the city of Iquitos (approximately 30 minutes by car).
It is located on the right bank of the Nanay River, it is ideal for swimming, canoeing or enjoying the scenery.
Port of Bethlehem
It is located on the right bank of the Amazon River.
The villagers have built their houses on wooden stilts or rafts, so in times of flood, they tie them to each other and live on the second floor.
They are especially dedicated to fishing, but when the river goes down, they use both floors of the houses and cultivate the surrounding land.
The market, 200 meters from the port, is the center of the typical products of the region and therefore a very visited place.
Principal Museum
It is located at Jr. Napo 236 (3rd floor), it presents a sample of native animals of the region and a collection of local crafts. It is currently the seat of the Municipality of Maynas.
Visiting hours:
From Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. at 12:45 p.m.
Amazon Museum
It was built in 1863, it is an exponent of the neoclassical style in the region, it was restored in 1999.
It preserves a collection of 80 life-size fiberglass sculptures representing the main ethnic groups of the Peruvian, Brazilian and Venezuelan Amazon.
The place is shared with the Military Museum and an exhibition of photographs that portrays the history of the city of Iquitos.
Visiting hours:
From Monday to Sunday from 8:00 a.m. at 9 p.m.
Quistococha Tourist Complex
It is located around the Quistococha lagoon. The complex has 369 hectares and has an artificial beach known as Tunchi Playa, you will also find there a museum, an aquarium, a serpentarium and trails for walks around the lake (which has a depth of 8 meters).
For the convenience of visitors, there is a tourist restaurant, a playground and sports fields and boats are rented to stroll through the lagoon.
Visiting hours:
From Monday to Sunday from 8:00 a.m. at 5 p.m.
Santo Tomás farmhouse
It is located on the banks of the calm waters of the Nanay River.
It is a good place to swim, ski, or go gliding or canoeing.
The area is inhabited by a peasant community whose main economic activities are fishing and pottery.
Santa Clara
It is located 12 km south of the city of Iquitos on the banks of the Nanay River (approximately 30 minutes by car).
When the flow of the Nanay River drops, you can see and enjoy a beach with white sand.
It is one of the most attractive places around the city of Iquitos.
Bellavista Nanay
It is located 3.5 km south of the city of Iquitos (20 minutes by motorcycle taxi).
Boats are rented to walk along the Nanay River and visit the neighboring hamlets of Padre Cocha and San Andrés.
Puerto Almendra
It is located 12.1 km from the Iquitos city airport checkpoint (approximately 30 minutes by car).
There is the El Huayo Arboretum Botanical Garden in charge of the Puerto Almendra forestry research and teaching center.
The center maintains plots with representative forest species of the Nanay basin.
Ecological circuits, walks and visits to the farms of the inhabitants of the area are offered.
Rumococha Lake
It is located 3.8 km from the airport control booth, southwest of the city of Iquitos on the banks of the Nanay River (approximately 15 minutes by car) It has a closed arch shape, it is characterized by its calm waters that facilitate Fishing.
The amazon river
The immense and ancient Amazon River is the largest river in the world, and it looks like an immense sea of ??fresh water in perpetual motion.
The Amazon has very crooked curves that, along its route, form large-radius angles and constantly evolve.
There are contradictions about its length, which is estimated to be approximately 6,762 km. Until its mouth in the Atlantic.
If you travel to Perú, we also recommend you to visit another impressive destinations in the city of Cusco like the tour to rainbow mountain peru or the humantay lake tour from cusco, which only takes one day. But if you are gonna to stay more days in Cusco, other archaeological places you can know will be the choquequirao trek peru, the salkantay trek to machu picchu, and the classic inca trail 4 days 3 nights.
