Loreto

Loreto is located in the northeast of the country, the largest region of Peru, this is a spectacular place where it is covered with dense vegetation, with low elevation hills and slightly undulating surfaces crossed by several rivers of the Amazon River basin. Despite being the largest department in the country (368,852 km²), it is also one of the least populated. It’s capital is the city of Iquitos.

Photo by DC_Colombia on instockphoto

In this department you will find exotic landscapes such as the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, home to pink dolphins and the Allpahuayo Mishana National Reserve for its soil types and endemic birds. Its forests grow on white sand and have a very diverse fauna and flora.

Photo by SL_Photography on istockphoto

Good to know

Location

Northeast of the country. It limits to the north with Ecuador and Colombia, to the east with Brazil, to the south with the department of Ucayali and to the west with the departments of San Martín and Amazonas.
Altitude

220 meters above sea level. (Iquitos)
Climate

It is hot, humid and rainy.
Seasons

Empty (april-september) and growing (october-march).
Indispensable to bring

Comfortable clothes for walking, light shoes, mosquito repellent, sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, long sleeves, flashlight, cash, and camera.
Distance to other cities

Iquitos - Pucallpa 587 km.
Iquitos - Leticia (Colombia) 368 km.
Fun fact

In Iquitos there is neither summer nor winter. The seasons are measured according to the waters of the rivers, therefore, there is only: empty (April-September) and rising (October-March).

Main tourist attractions

Iquitos city

Capital of the department of Loreto and the largest Amazonian city in Peru. In Iquitos you can walk its streets appreciating its architectural beauty, walk along the Tarapacá boardwalk, taste delicious food and enjoy the warmth and joy of its people.

Pacaya Samiria National Reserve

Pacaya Samiria, the largest flooded forest in the Amazon as well as the largest reserve in Peru, was declared a National Reserve in February 1982, to conserve its valuable flora and fauna resources, as well as its beautiful landscapes. Its extension exceeds 2 million hectares, territory shared between the provinces of Loreto, Requena, Ucayali and Alto Amazonas.

This impressive place is located 183 kilometers southwest of Iquitos. Where you will find abundant fauna where there are 130 species of mammals; 330 species of birds; 150 species of reptiles and amphibians and; 250 species of fish. Its vegetation is one of the richest in species of the tropical forest. The flora of the reserve is varied and impressive, having identified nearly 850 species so far, with a large presence of palm trees and 22 species of orchids.

Alpahuayo Mishana National Park

It was created in January 2004, with the aim of protecting one of the largest white sand forests or “rods” in the Peruvian Amazon, an ecosystem rich in endemic flora and fauna, with many species that have not yet been fully identified by The science. Researchers have reported the existence of 145 species of mammals, 476 birds, 120 reptiles, 83 amphibians, 155 fish, 522 butterflies, in addition to 1,780 plant species.

Some of these species are new to zoology, such as the equatorial huapo primates (Pithecia aequatoriales) and the black stump primate (Callicebus lucifer); the antbirds Herpsilochmus gentryi, Percnostola arenarum and Myrmeciza castanea and; the Zimmerius villarejoi flytrap. The reserve has more than 58 thousand hectares, belonging to the community of Mishana, province of Maynas.

Quistococha Tourist Park

It is located at Km. 6.3 of the Iquitos-Nauta Highway, to the southwest of the city of Iquitos. It is built around the Quistococha lagoon.

The complex has 369 hectares and has an artificial beach known as Tunchi Playa; In addition, you will find there a museum, an aquarium, a serpentarium and trails for walks around the lake, which has a depth of 8 meters.