Fun Christmas Activities in Amazon (Updated 2026)

Very first experience to learn about a variety of things focused on conservation and rescue.

We began our visit by watching a short video about the history of this center. Our guide then took us to each of the enclosures where the animals are kept. We saw capybara, agouti, peccary, manatees, macaws, caiman, paiche (giant fish) and turtles. This center is best known for taking in manatees that have either been orphaned or rescued from captivity and preparing them to be released into the wild. We learned a lot and loved that they focus on educating the young children about the wildlife so hopefully future generations will not keep these creatures captive or eat them.

Great rescue that does important work. The biggest annoyance is the 45 min drive from Iquitos. We paid our mototaxi driver 80 Sols to drive us there, wait the 1.5 hour and return us to downtown Iquitos. We did not have issues like other reviewers with paying but we were clear that we’d pay once we returned to Iquitos. There was a large group of mototaxi’s waiting at the entrance but we were very thankful to have the return trip pre-arranged and pre-negotiated and not have to bargain our way back to the city.Beware the Centre’s sign is tiny and not easily visible from the road. Despite having it on our phone’s map, we didn’t see the center from the road. Our mototaxi drove past it and then had to double-back and asked for directions multiple times before we found it. It’s exactly where Google Maps has it marked but the entrance might be obscured from the trees and many mototaxis parked in front.Whether you get a private guide or are in a big group depends on the timing of your arrival. Go early or towards the end of day if you want to increase your chances of being in a small group. We ended up being lumped in with a large group of over 20 Spanish speakers. As the only English speakers the tour was predominantly in Spanish with only a little English thrown in for our benefit. The guides we met did speak excellent English and were very enthusiastic and knowledgeable. So it would be a much better experience if you are lucky enough to get a private tour.We weren’t sure how many animals there would be but there were sadly lots of animals that needed rehabilitating on our visit in March 2026. We saw 3 baby manatees, multiple caiman, dozens of turtles, an adult capybara, a peccary, 2 giant otters, 2 baby monkeys and hundreds of parrots and macaws. We felt the facilities were clean and appropriately outfitted given their goal is to release animals back into the wild as soon as possible. They were upfront about which animals are too injured to be released and I noticed those animals were in larger enclosures. They were clear on their no-touch rule which makes sense to improve each animal's chances to be re-wilded. I think the comments from visitors who felt the cages were small or dirty, don’t appreciate the scale of the work that this center does. We were happy to support this center and would recommend it to any animal lovers.

It was a great experience. We had a private English tour with Jessica who was very knowledgeable and very friendly. We saw and learned about manatees, birds, fish and the rescue and release efforts of the centre. Highly recommend a tour if you’re in Iquitos.

Do not have Carlos as your guide! I have visited this park atleast 10 times. It is well worth it to go. Their tank with Paiche fish is outstanding. The animals are well taken care of and you can see them up close before you head out to the jungle. However, this time I had a guide named Carlos and he was arrogant, full of himself and demeaning to anyone that asked questions. He is not concerned with you learning about the animals, rather, his goal is to be percieved as superior. He has an inflated ego. Other people there have just as much or more knowledge but are friendly, kind and want you to have a wonderful experience. It's great place - just avoid Carlos at all costs!

We got to see lots of animals being well taken care of. Even had an English speaking guide to explain the things they are doing for the animals and community. Definitely worth to learn and see what they are doing.

What an amazing facility if your in the area itis a MUST to see. The passion and dedication of the staff and vounlenteers was undeniable. I was in awe watching baby manatee be bottle feed. And impressed with the process and length of time it takes to release a manatee, parrot, turtle or any other animal they had in their facility back into there natural habit. In this case would be a National Park.

My children loved the whole tour.. carry water and cap... my 2-year-old girl enjoyed the whole tour, loved the animals and my 10-year-old son threw himself off the zip line

Such a good and interesting place to visit while in Iquitos. Very informative and accessible outside Iquitos. Your visit supports the project. It is better if you go with a tour guide so you can also visit other places on the way.

After our Amazon River cruise on the way back to Iquitos, the tour stopped by the Manatee Rescue Center. The center works on rehabilitating manatees and other Amazonian animals back to the wild. For animals that cannot be rehabilitated, the center will take care of them or release them to the preserve nearby. Our guide there was very warm and polite to us. He was informative and told us how the center worked and how it was founded. He is very dedicated to preserving the rainforest and hopes that we learn how to do our part.

It was nice to take a walk through part of the Amazon and learn about the program to save Manatees. I also liked seeing the white sandy piece of jungle.

Beautiful place and seeing that the rescued animals are recovering. The guide was good. He told us the story of the animals and plants they handle. #SaveTheManaties #JusticeForJorgito

The Amazon Rescue Center is one of my favorite places outside Iquitos. The effort of those volunteers in impressive. You can learn about the good care they are doing to rescue the amazonian manatee. Actually, they are now working on rescuing other animal species that are endangered.

Very interesting and informative experience and our guide translated our whole tour into English for us. A good way to spend money towards something worth while in helping the rehabilitation of the animals!

CREA is doing such incredible work for the wildlife in the Amazon rain forest. I could have stayed and stared at the manatees for hours. Our guide also woke up the sloth for us to meet, and it was a highlight of my whole trip to Peru. The part of the tour about plants was not quite as exciting, but there were some fun places to take pictures. It felt special to contribute to CREA's mission and is a fun activity in Iquitos for visitors of all ages!

I had the opportunity to visit CREA twice over the past week. The first time was as a solo traveler. I was given the option to join a larger group, or to wait for an English group (10 minutes). I opted to wait, and I am really glad. The tour guides really helped me to understand the mission of the place, the history of each animal being treated, the treatment plan for each animal & more. It was obvious that they were working hard to truly care for these animals.My second visit was to meet with the director about their business. I came away from that meeting so inspired by what they are doing (and I am not any sort of environmentalist. Respect the environment—yes, but sometimes I disagree with environmentalists. So this is saying a lot.)Go if you want: —to observe rescued animals as they are being rehabilitated. —to support a state accredited agency that is working hard to protect endangered & injured animals (this is not a zoo). —to learn more about the troubles facing the animals of Amazon. —to get out of Iquitos and see the countryside. —you have kids with you. They are great at teaching kids.Do not go if: —you only want to pet animals. They are very protective of the animals as they recover and want them to be able to integrate back into the wild safely. —you are expecting a fancy facility. The facilities are nice, but not fancy.Notes: It is approximately 1 hour, each way, from Iquitos by motocar. I paid approximately 100 soles ($32) for the roundtrip taxi which was probably high, but I was okay with that. We were gone about 3 hours.Wear bug spray, just in case. My first visit was bug-free but my second had a few more (nothing too annoying).Bring water. The Amazon basin is hot!The facilities will be a little difficult in a wheelchair, but not impossible if someone strong can push.