Bolivian Amazon

A chronic lack of developed tourist infrastructure means that accommodation is basic in these off-the-beaten-track regions and travel in rural Bolivia in general requires patience and an open mind. However, precisely due to the frustrating inaccessibility of Rurrenabaque, the Madidi National Park and the jungles of the River Beni; Bolivia is able to offer extremely specialist wildlife-watching opportunities in remote jungle hideaways, untouched by human civilisation. The rainforests come alive at night and nocturnal walks in the Bolivian Amazon are particularly rewarding. Come the morning, mesmerising burnt orange sunrises accompanied by the chorus of tropical birdsong take your breath away.

Pampas tours from Rurrenabaque give you the opportunity to enjoy piranha fishing excursions, swimming alongside rare pink river dolphins, and caiman-spotting, as well as keeping your eyes peeled for a huge range of bird and monkey species. These tours often involve long riverboat journeys through vast, swampy lowlands teeming with life, offering a truly immersive experience of the Amazon basin. Truly intrepid explorers can head to the Noel Kempff National Park on the border with Brazil and enjoy vistas of spectacular hidden waterfalls in some of the most pristine jungles on the South American continent. Remote, raw, and incredibly biodiverse, this is nature at its wildest.