雅姆旅館 - 全包式(Jamu Lodge)

Het Cuyabeno Nature Reserve ligt in het noordoosten van Ecuado. Cuyabeno is vanuit Quito per nachtbus of prive transport in zo'n 7 a 9 uur te bereiken. Een en ander is afhankelijk of de rechtstreekse route (die op 17 juli 2023 na meer dan 2 jaar te zijn gesloten weer is geopend) kan worden gebruilt of de langere omweg moet worden gebruikt. Ja je moet vroeg opstaan en het is inderdaad een lange zit, maar het is het allemaal 100% waard. Je wordt afgezet bij de brug waar de lunch al voor je klaar staat. Je zware bagage (beste laat je zoveel mogelijk in je hotel in Quito achter) gaat in de kano onder een zeil. Zelf stap je na de lunch met camera en kleine handbagage in de.passagierskano met relatief comfortabele stoeltjes. In ongeveer 2 a 3 uur (afhankelijk wat je allemaal onderweg ziet) vaar je naar de mooie lodge. Diep in de jungle en even helemaal afgesloten van de buitenwereld. Het Cuyabeno Nature Reserve is vernoemd naar de gelijknamige rivier die hier stroomt. Het is een beschermd natuurgebied en een geweldige plek om de planten en dieren van de Amazone te spotten. Dat laatste valt nog niet mee. Naast een dosis geluk hangt het met name af van de skills van de gids en bootsman, wat ke onderweg ziet. Wij hadden een fantastisch duo. Beide heren wilde heel graag dat je een fantasche tijd beleefde. Veel moeite werd gedaan om de dieren te vinden en de kano zo te positioneren dat iedereen aan boord goed zicht had. Goede en interessante uitleg. De kamers / huisjes in de.lodge zijn mooi en comfortabel ingericht. Opladen van je apparatuur moet wel in de gemeenschappelijke ruimte Wij deden dit telkens bij het eten en hadden altijd volle batterijen. De douche is redelijk warm en de bedden onder de klamboe (wel nodig want huisjes zijn grotendeels open) liggen goed. Alles is prima verzorgd. Eten is GEWELDIG. Prima kwaliteit, prima van smaak en mooi opgediend. Je eet gezamenlijk op vaste tijden met je groep en gids aan een tafel. Elke maaltijd was een feestje. Al het het personeel is voordurend bezig om jou een onvergetelijke tijd te bezorgen. Alle excursies zijn allemaal goed te doen en leuk. Zwemmen bij zonsondergang in het meer, een avondwandeling, met spinnen, schorpioenen etc, een bezoek dorpje/stam, kanotochten op zoek naar vogels, slangen en kaaimannen, wandelen door de jungle. Alles is inclusief. Tussendoor is er voldoende tijd om te relaxen. Op een reis naar Ecuador mag de Amazone als een "Once-in-a-lifetime-experience" niet ontbreken. Wat ons betreft kan je het niet beter doen dan in de Jamu Lodge. Wij zouden hier graag nog een keer terugkomen. Wat een wereldplek.

Imagine arriving to the meeting point on time and not picked up by you lodge. Ne reception at the point. The lodge offered us to sleep at the restaurant and be picked up tomorrow. When we left the place, they charged us an additional 100$ for leaving the place!

What a time we had at Jamu Lodge! Our guide Veronika made sure to show us all of the exciting nature and animal life on site, answered our numerous questions about wildlife, local people, and Ecuador, and was generally a kind, informative, and lovely guide to spend 4 days with! She made sure we had everything we needed and seamlessly organized things for us behind the scenes, like a trip to her home community to make cassabe (yucca bread), early morning bird-watching trips, nighttime walks, medicinal plant walks, swimming in the Laguna Grande, and caiman-spotting. She freely shared her vast knowledge of the area and took care of our safety. The Jamu Lodge staff were equally amazing, providing us with 3 solid, delicious meals, as well as well-timed treats and lemonade to revive us post-adventuring. The food is superb, healthy and delicious. They also offer to accommodate food restrictions and preferences. The accommodations were beautiful and comfy, with mosquito netting, very clean rooms and bedding, clean drinking water and biodegradable soap/shampoo. Keep in mind that the rooms are not fully enclosed near the roof, so you may have some visitors like cockroaches and cute little insect-eating bats (we named ours Sparky). We loved falling asleep to the sounds of nature. The mosquitoes were there but not as bad as expected. Still, make sure you take appropriate precautions and wear bug spray. Overall, this was an unforgettable time and I would absolutely do it again! Thank you, Jamu Lodge and Veronika, as well as the local Siona community for welcoming us into their lovely community for a visit.

Had a great experience in the Amazon at Jamu Lodge! Adrian was a great guide and very knowledgeable about everything we saw. The lodge was very nice, had great amenities, food, and communal area. Lots of wildlife too - we saw birds, tarantulas, snakes and a caimen. One thing, is that we did the 2 night stay and the itinerary that was online was different than what we actually did. Still had a great time, was just hoping for more hiking/walking in the jungle. We definitely recommend Jamu Lodge for your trip to the Amazon!

Verónica, Adrian, and Kevin were wonderful guides. We saw all sorts of monkeys, caymans, birds, snakes, even an anteater snacking on a termite colony. The food was pretty good and everyone was kind and helpful. The lagoon swim and the trip to see Verónica's mother and sister for harvesting/cooking yucca and cacao and meeting the shaman was fascinating. Definitely take the flight from Quito to Coca to spend only 4 hours on the bus and 2 in the canoe, but when going to the rainforest, one expects a challenging travel experience. We were a group ranging from 13 to late 70s and we all managed. But yeah, it's remote and it's humid.

Wonderfull lodge in the middle of the rainforest The crew makes you feel at home and the guide knew the places to spot the birds, reptiles and mammels. The meals are tasty and more then enough . Rooms are an experience , no windows only gaze so the you always hear the sound of the rainforest

Our guide, Veronica, was great. She kept us busy every day and night. I liked that the lodge is small, and all of the staff were very friendly. But, the bus rides to and from the boat launch were absolute hell. 12 hours of hell each way on a creaky bus with only two bathroom stops. It was totally unacceptable. I hope they find a different way to transport unsuspecting guests in the future.

The staff at the Jamu Lodge were kind and attentive. The day trips were fun and engaging. The food was plentiful and tasty. Unfortunately, when it was time to pay our bar tab was twice as much as it should have been. Two different prices for liter Pilsner beers on the walls and menus. One read $3 and one $4. We actually paid $6 per beer because the owner considers one bottle two beers. Ever ordered half a bottle of beer? Me neither. A little deceptive. Not cool!

Amazing place, highly recommend! The room was super clean and as luxurious as it is going to get in a jungle. The staff is super friendly ans the food was amazing too, much better than some other lodges (we heard from other travellers). The jamu lodge is super well organised, great service Nd everything checked often, including for animals on paths, safety etc. Programme was full but excellent. Good mix between boat trips, hikes, swims, and rest. Our guide had great knowledge of all species and his English was really good. We saw tarantulas, boas, anacondas, caymans, pink Amazon dolphins, piranhas, sloths, many monkeys, many many birds and butterflies. The only thing I would do differently in the future is booking for 3 nights instead of 4. Most travellers do 3 nights, so when we did 4 we had to change group and guide halfway through which was a shame. But other than that, wow super impressed!