The Acajatube Lodge
We arrived at the Acajatuba Lodge around three in the afternoon and were greeting with some local liqueur. Lodge consists of a main dining room/building and 25 huts, each divided in two rooms. All the buildings are circular, build with native materials and covered with thatched roofs. The setup is pleasingly primitive. You have electric light but no air conditioning or hot water (OK, that wasn´t that pleasing, but not a big deal). The screened windows in the huts and open walls in the main lodge kept everything breezy and bearable. The buildings are connected with elevated wooden walkways. There is a tall observation tower which also serves to hold the water tank and communication antennas. Three or four pairs of Macaws roam the premises.
Apparently we arrived in low season. Right now the rivers are high and it rains a lot. The places we want on canoes are not boat accessible during the dry season and you are likely to see more birds then, too. So when we arrived, there were only four other guests there. Jennifer and Ann May (?), two laid off Silicon Valley managers who´ve spent last year traveling all over the world, and their friends Tigger and Elizabeth. They had arrived the previous day and were staying longer.
After dinner we went on a motorized canoe tour where we got pretty close to the local flora - most of it was over land that´s only flooded during the rainy season. We saw some cool black-yellow birds (I don´t remember the name) that build their nests next to (rather large) was nests. They feed their chicks wasp grubs and if their nests are disturbed they flap their wings to agitate the wasps to chase away any intruders. Luckily we didn´t get close enough to see this behavior.
We saw lots of interesting trees and plants. Wild rice growing in the water. Rubber trees from days past when collecting rubber from wild trees was big business. And spiky trees that you have to pay attention to if you want to avoid a serious infection.
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I'm heading to Manaus in a few weeks and am considering Acajatuba Lodge, but wanted to make sure what it's like: I don't want to be with piles of tourists yelling in the jungle to each other... I don't mind rustic, I want safe and low key, low touristy value, nice little spot to stay... Am I going to the right place? I know it'll be higher season at this time of year, but is the feel of the place good?
We really didn't get to see much of Manaus, but I would definitely recomend spending as much time out in the forest as you can. Rio Negro feels like a healthier environment (mosquite wise) than Rio Solimões so I would stick to that side of the Amazon.
Acajatuba lodge would be a good place for you. We felt it had a nice vibe and would gladly return in high season - but this time we'd stay for a longer time. The Lodge is maybe 15 minutes upriver from the Ariau Amazon Tower (you'll pass it on your way) and seems less touristy than the Tower. They both seem to have similar activities. Most of the "eco" places in the Amazon are going to be very different from the resorts in the city. Much more rustic and quiet.
Sure, you might run into some "loud" tourists (we didn't), but I get the feeling that the majority of people going to this type of place are interested in seeing the nature - you're much more likely to see binoculars than a walkman. Speaking of which, try to buy or borrow a good pair of binoculars when you go - I wish we had done that, too.