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Peru Inca Trail

How to get to Lima from Tambopata

The Tambopata National Reserve is the internationally important wildlife reserve on the Tambopata River in southeastern Peru.

It is one of the most popular places for wildlife viewing in the Peruvian Amazon. To travel the 982 miles (1,581 km) from Lima to here, you will always need to take a combination of plane or bus to Puerto Maldonado, from where a private transfer or bus followed by a boat is used to transfer you to your lodge on the Tambopata River .

The last part of the trip, from Puerto Maldonado to the river lodge on the Tambopata River where you will stay, will almost always be included in the price you paid for your stay at the river lodge.

See here for more information on a sample 3-day adventure in the Tambopata region.

By Plane, Private Transfer or Bus and Boat

Duration: 4.5 to 5 hours

The flight time from Lima to Puerto Maldonado is approximately 1.5 hours. There are 2-3 direct flights daily with Latam, the most reliable airline. More indirect flights are also available, with a sometimes long change in Cusco.

Tambopata lodges are scattered along the riverbank for a distance of many miles, and the travel time from Puerto Maldonado to each one will vary. From Puerto Maldonado airport, Padre Aldamiz International Airport (PEM), the standard trip to Tambopata, using the example of a lodge halfway along the Tambopata River like Refugio Amazonas, would be a 45-minute bus transfer to the community of Infierno followed by a 2.5 to 3 hour trip upriver to your chosen river lodge.

Taking into account the constant delays and changes that regularly affect Amazon transportation in Peru, it would be good to make the entire trip in less than 5 hours.

Sometimes, but not always, flights are included in river lodge stay packages; Airport transfers are usually included in all river lodge stay packages. The exception is if you are staying in a homestay like those found in the Baltimore community. Then you will have to take a bus to the community of Laberinto and ask the driver to drop you off at Km 37 of the Puerto Maldonado-Cusco highway. From there, a trail, passable in three hours, leads to the riverfront in Baltimore.

This is the quickest and most expensive option, and by far the most popular.

By Bus, Private Transfer and Boat

Duration: 37-44 hours

The first leg of the trip is the longest of all: by bus from Lima to Cusco, which sometimes lasts as little as 22 hours, but usually takes between 24 and 30 hours. Even buses on this long route take a break of at least an hour and on a private transfer (rare on this route due to the long distance) you will need to allow for a break of several hours or spend the night.

The second leg of this trip is from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado along the Interoceanic Highway (Hwy 30C). On this recently built road, the travel time by bus or private transfer via Quince Mil is about ten hours. It is wonderful to see the transition between mountain and jungle in this section, but by bus this trip is often done at night.

Once in Puerto Maldonado, please note that Tambopata lodges are scattered along the banks of the Tambopata River for many kilometers and the travel time to each one from Puerto Maldonado varies. To a midway lodge, like Refugio Amazonas, travel time consists of a 45-minute bus transfer to the community of Infierno, followed by a 2.5- to 3-minute boat ride by motorized canoe.

This last part of the trip from Puerto Maldonado will invariably be included in your stay at the river lodge. The exception is if you are staying in a homestay like those found in the Baltimore community. Then you will have to take a bus to the community of Laberinto and ask the driver to drop you off at Km 37 of the Puerto Maldonado-Cusco highway.

This is the cheapest and most time-consuming option.

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