Amazon - Peru
Northern Peruvian Amazon
The gateway to the Northern Peruvian Amazon is the city of Iquitos, the largest city in the world with no road access (the only way to get here is by riverboat or by plane). Though the source of the Amazon River is found high up in the Peruvian Andes the first place where the river is officially called the Amazon is at Iquitos. From here you can access pristine forest including the largest protected flooded forest area in the Amazon Basin of the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve.
Southern Peruvian Amazon
Southern Peruvian Amazon is best accessed from Puerto Maldonado, the Brazil-nut capital of Peru. From here you can reach the various lodges in and around Tambopata Reserve which offer some of the best wildlife viewing opportunities in the Amazon including Giant Otters, prehistoric-looking hoatzins, caimans and various monkeys. This area is also home to numerous species which have disappeared from other parts of the Amazon. The deeper you travel into the forest away from the city the better your jungle experience is likely to be. This area is, arguably, the best place to access the Amazon given the balance between jungle experience and accessibility.
A second area in the Southern Amazon which is often best accessed by charter flight from Cusco is Manu Biosphere Reserve. This large protected area is harder to access but does offer the intrepid traveller a rewarding Amazonian experience with over 1000 types of birds, 160 types of mammals, 100 types of reptiles, 140 types of amphibians and 210 types of fish.