Grand Amazonian Adventure

Beautiful sunset over the Amazon River.

The capital of Pernambuco, Recife raises the curtain on this incredible Grand Voyage in three acts.

The first focuses on Natal and Fortaleza, whose surprise lies in their remarkable Sahara-like landscapes. The final act promises notorious Devil's Island, Venezuela's vibrant capital and three very different but equally delightful Caribbean idylls. Taking centre stage and cutting a giant swathe through South America, the mighty Amazon steals the limelight on this Grand Amazonian Adventure. Discover the rainforest - a dark green world densely interlaced with leaves, trunks and creepers. Along the river's scrawl of tributaries and lagoons indigenous tribes still live traditional lives. Your voyage of Amazonian discoveries is accompanied by nature's symphony - the cackles, croaks, squawks, whoops, warbles and whistles of rainforest wildlife joined by the precise tunes of tropical songbirds.

Grand Amazonian Adventure

Recife, Brazil

Recife is one of the largest cities in Brazil and is popular with tourists who come to explore Recife's rich cultural roots and beautiful beaches.

Native Indians, black slaves, Portuguese settlers and Dutch colonists all left their mark on Pernambuco. Behind its capital, Recife's go-ahead, high-rise skyline, old and new scramble together, and on the city's doorstep Olinda is a baroque jewel and Dutch colonial gem. Before an overnight flight to the UK you have time to explore the 'twin cities', cruise the waterways of Brazil's Venice, or relax on the beach 'Boa Viagem.

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Natal, Brazil

4,000 acres of dramatic wind-swept dunes decorated with a sprinkling of natural, clear lakes, Natal is a gateway to spectacular Sahara-like scenery where an exciting dune buggy adventure awaits. 16th century Fort Reis Magos, the fort of 'Three Wise Men', stands a stoic reminder of the city's European past. Natal - meaning 'Christmas', was founded by Portuguese explorers on December 25th, 1599.

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Fortaleza, Brazil

Jangadeiros' - local fishermen aboard jangadas - crude log rafts with triangular sails, skim Fortaleza's green waters as they have for centuries. In the city, artisans handcraft gossamer pieces of heirloom lace. Tradition is very much alive if you look beyond Fortaleza's impressive, sprawling skyline! Cachaca is Brazil's national spirit, the essential ingredient in a caipirinha. Sip one on Cumbuco Beach - one of Brazil's best-kept secrets.

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Belem, Brazil

Belem, at the mouth of the Amazon River, is a large city with millions of inhabitants and is one of Brazil's busiest ports. It has a long and varied history as colonial port, wealthy from the rubber boom, and retains the charm of tree filled squares, churches and traditional blue tiles.

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Cruising Amazon River, Brazil

Experience an exciting cruise along the mighty Amazon River, the second longest river in the world. Discover the rainforest - a dark green world densely interlaced with leaves, trunks and creepers. Along its scrawl of tributaries and lagoons indigenous tribes still live traditional lives.

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Santarem, Brazil

Santarem, first settled in 1661 by Jesuit priests, is a city of about 200,000 people and is the second largest Brazilian city on the Amazon River.

Numerous riverboats tied up along the pier, some unloading goods and produce, others transportation for far-flung river communities. Santarem - surrounded by lakes and lush forests, is the hub of Middle Amazon. Take a look at the simplicity of the Amazonian way of life, or an eco-adventure in Santa Lucia Forest Reserve. Cruise to the 'Wedding of the Waters' where the crystalline waters of the Tapajos meet the murkier waters of the Amazon running side by side before entwining like a braid of hair.

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Boca da Valeria, Brazil

This small Indian village, where you can buy handmade crafts, is hidden in the midst of the jungle lakelands where the screeches of colourful parrots fill the air and trees stand waist-high in water.

A one-room school, a small church and an even smaller museum greet our arrival by tender on the shores of the Amazon. Tucked against the forest canopy, this typical village is home to a population of about 75 locals of Indian and Portuguese descent. Stepping ashore where the Valeria River meets the Amazon, visitors will be greeted by the children, decked out with exotic pets that range from parakeets to iguanas. In exchange for a small gift, they will happily give you a tour of their homes, built on stilts to cope with rising water levels during the rainy season.

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Manaus, Brazil

Manaus is 900 miles (1,450 km) inland from the Atlantic in the heart of Amazonia, and a hub of tourism for the rivers, the jungle tours and the river cruises.

Following one of the tributaries that leads from the Amazon, Discovery will reach the meeting of the waters. This unique phenomenon sees the Rio Negro run for miles side by side with the Rio Solimoes. Watch as the waters, with their distinct colours and densities, run alongside each other.

One thousand miles up the Amazon lies its greatest city: Manaus. Hemmed in by the rainforests, this is an unlikely place to find an ornate opera house. Built in 1896 on the crest of the city's rubber boom, the spectacular three-tiered theatre gathers together a variety of styles. Elsewhere, our visit to the region is an opportunity to admire the giant Victoria Regia water lilies, their pads stretching up to seven feet across!

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Parintins, Brazil

Parintins is a large city which is world famous for the Boi Bumba Festival, said to be second only to Carnival in Rio, that happens over three nights every year in June.

Oblong riverboats moor shoulder to shoulder along the shores of island Parintins - an island city that lies in the midst of the Amazon.

A highlight of the calendar is the annual Boi Bumba parade, led by the competing schools of Caprichose and Garantido. Tradition dictates that one must watch the other in absolute silence while the opposition cheers madly, before the roles are reversed. Celebrated in June, this festival is something the locals work towards around the year until the floats, dancers and actors come together to parade around the appropriately named Bumbodromo, a stadium built in the shape of a bull.

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Alter do Chao, Brazil

Alter do Chao - the sandbar directly in front of the town forms a picturesque white-sand island, known as Ilha do Amor (Island of Love) and is the subject of a thousand postcards.

You'll be amazed by the clear waters that lap the bay at Alter do Chao, a favourite weekend escape for city dwellers of nearby Santarem.

A walk through the forest leads to the top of a conical hill or another shaped like a church altar, from which the village gets its name. Take in the dramatic views of the Tapajos River where it meets the Amazon, or browse the collection of original Indian Art in the museum with its distinctive painted adobe walls.

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Macapa, Brazil

Macapa, situated at the mouth of the mighty Amazon River, is surrounded by encroaching jungle and the lush greenery of the Brazilian rainforest.

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Devils Island, French Guiana

Ile Royale - in the ruins of the penitentiary hospital artistic convicts have left frescoes and drawings giving a naive and restrained impression of their everyday life.

Step ashore on tiny Ile Royale where prison ships once landed cargoes of hardened criminals. The remains of barracks, prison headquarters, a chapel, watchtower and prison hospital illustrating the words immortalised in Henri Charriere's 'Papillon'. From across the strait - secure and inaccessible due to rocky shores, strong currents and dangerous seas - spy Devil's Island, the place from where there was no return and the most infamous prison in history!

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Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago

The idyllic Maracas Beach is the closest to the capital, Port-of-Spain, and is a favourite for swimming, body surfing or simply enjoying the mesmerizing waves.

The birthplace of Calypso, a multicultural melting pot stirred by the descendents of settlers from Europe, Asia, South America and the Middle East, Trinidad today is very different from the island Christopher Columbus set foot on in 1498. Venture away from the glitter and bustle of Port of Spain - Trinidad's lively capital, to Caroni Nature Sanctuary where wildlife and birds live amidst an almost surrealistic beauty.

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La Guaira, Venezuela

La Guaira is your gateway to Caracas - a vibrant, modern metropolis nestled in the shadow of lush Avila Mountain. Take a cable car to its lofty heights and look down on an eclectic mix of soaring skyscrapers juxtaposed with sprawling shantytowns. Follow in the footsteps of the city's most famous son, South America's revolutionary hero, Simon Bolivar.

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Aruba, Aruba

Aruba - discovered by the Spanish, colonised by the Dutch and a clandestine hideaway for pirates and buccaneers, who preyed on ships transporting treasures back to the Old World! Step ashore and discover mysterious ochre-coloured rock drawings, divi-divi trees sculpted into graceful shapes by constant trade winds, and a unique desert landscape with tall cacti, aloe and great tumbles of boulders standing like a legacy of ancient angry gods.

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Montego Bay, Jamaica

Montego Bay - laid back and lively all at once - has magnificent beaches of white sand and a coral reef just off the coast, which is a favourite destination of snorklers.

Montego Bay - since the 1950's one of the favourite playgrounds of the world's jet set! Nature has been generous to Jamaica - a place Columbus is said to have called "the fairest isle mine eyes ever beheld". From the island's premier resort explore the truly breathtaking Dunn's River Falls, relax on a traditional bamboo raft on idyllic River Lethe, or spot wildlife around Black River Morass - Jamaica's largest wetland area.

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Fares

Cabin Type Fare
£
2 Bed Inside from 3799
2 Bed Outside from 4389
Suite from 6269

Additional Information: Cruise aboard our new ship Voyager.

To enquire about this cruise please contact Bawtry Travel by completing the Cruise Enquiry Form in the right hand column.