Manu National Park

Manu National Park rises from about 150 m to 4,200 m above sea level, from the high Andean grasslands above Cusco, down through the cloud forest, to the lowland rainforest of the Amazon basin. This guide explains which parts of the park you can visit, what the official entrance fees are, how to get there from Cusco and what to expect, from a local operator founded by a Matsiguenka guide born in Manu.

What is Manu National Park?

Manu was created by decree on May 29, 1973. UNESCO recognized it as a Biosphere Reserve in 1977 and as a World Heritage Site in 1987, and in 2002 Peru enlarged it to its current size of 1,716,295 hectares (about 6,600 square miles), across the Cusco and Madre de Dios regions. The park is managed by SERNANP, Peru’s national protected areas service, which reports that 99% of its surface is in good condition.

The zones of Manu: which ones can you visit?

Not all of Manu is open to visitors. The area is usually described in three parts:

• The core zone covers most of the park and is closed to tourism. It is home to indigenous peoples, including groups living in voluntary isolation.
• The Reserved Zone along the lower Manu River, with the Otorongo and Salvador oxbow lakes, can only be visited with an operator authorized by the park. Access is controlled at the Limonal ranger station.
• The Cultural Zone along the Alto Madre de Dios River, around Pilcopata, Atalaya and Boca Manu, is where native communities and most rainforest lodges are. Short tours of 3 to 5 days stay here.

SERNANP organizes visits in three sectors: the high Andean sector at Tres Cruces, which you can visit on your own or with a guide; the Manu River sector; and the Pusharo sector, known for its petroglyphs. Both the Manu River and Pusharo require an authorized tour operator.

Manu National Park entrance fees

Official SERNANP rates, in Peruvian soles. On all our tours the park entrance fee is already included in the price.

Many websites still quote older, lower prices. Always check the current rates with SERNANP or with your operator.

How to get to Manu from Cusco

Manu is reached by road. According to SERNANP, the drive from Cusco through Paucartambo to the park entrance at Acjanaco and the Tres Cruces viewpoint is 143 km (89 miles), about 4 hours. From there the road drops through the cloud forest to the river port of Atalaya, where the trip continues by boat.

Our tours leave Cusco at about 6:00 a.m. in a private minivan and reach the lowland rainforest on the first day. On tours of 6 days or more, the boat continues down the Madre de Dios River to Boca Manu and then up the Manu River into the Reserved Zone.

What you need to visit Manu

• An authorized operator for the Manu River (Reserved Zone) and Pusharo sectors.
• Yellow fever vaccination. SERNANP lists it as a requirement for visiting the park, and the US CDC recommends it for travelers going below 2,300 m in the Cusco and Madre de Dios regions. Get it at least 10 days before your trip.
• The right season. SERNANP recommends visiting from April to November, the drier months. From December to March it rains more often and the road can be slower.

Wildlife in Manu

What you see depends on how deep you go. In the cloud forest, the Andean cock-of-the-rock, Peru’s national bird, and woolly monkeys are the highlights. In the lowlands of the Cultural Zone you visit parrot clay licks and oxbow lakes with hoatzins, caimans and capybaras, and look for several species of monkeys. In the Reserved Zone, the Otorongo and Salvador oxbow lakes are home to giant otters, and the macaw and tapir clay licks let you watch these animals up close. Jaguars are sometimes seen on the beaches and logs of the Manu River, but no one can guarantee a sighting.

Native communities of Manu

Indigenous peoples are the only permanent inhabitants of Manu. Some communities welcome visitors and run community tourism; others live in voluntary isolation deep in the core zone and are protected by Peruvian law from outside contact. The communities you may meet on our tours include:

• Santa Rosa de Huacaria, near Pilcopata, home to Wachipaeri (Harakbut) and Matsiguenka families.
• Palotoa Teparo, a Matsiguenka community and the gateway to the Pusharo petroglyphs, a rock wall carved with figures of animals and the sun whose origin is still debated.
• Shintuya, a Harakbut community on the Alto Madre de Dios River, known for its crafts and nearby hot springs.
• Shipitiari, a Matsiguenka community that runs community tourism and protects its forest, where many of our groups watch tapirs at night.
• Diamante, a Yine community on the Madre de Dios River near Boca Manu. The Yine were long-distance traders and skilled navigators.

Our founder, Percy Huanca, was born in Manu into a Matsiguenka family, and our guides and crew come from these communities.

Manu tours from Cusco

We run tours from 3 to 8 days. The 3 and 4-day tours visit the cloud forest and the lowland rainforest of the Cultural Zone; the 5-day tours add a native community, hot springs or a tapir clay lick; and the 6, 7 and 8-day tours reach the Reserved Zone. Compare all our Amazon tours by length, lodges and price.