Otorongo Expeditions Amazon River Lodge

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Review For Otorongo Amazon River Lodge

Review For Otorongo Amazon River Lodge

5 star taken from TripAdvisor


Above & beyond anything we could have reasonably expected - Lalana F. 2012

It’s been eight years since I stayed at Otorongo Lodge on the Amazon River in Peru with my daughter. The other day, we were talking about our time there in 2012. I was remembering that I had never written a review to express the appreciation we have and continue to have for the support offered by Otorongo, which went above and beyond anything that could have reasonably been expected.
Upon arrival in Iquitos, my daughter (17 at the time) and I went to confirm our
reservations to travel downriver the next morning for a four-day stay at the lodge. Later in the day, she told me for the first time about a personal health issue that was flaring up that would prevent her from going. My daughter agreed to go back to the office with me, which fortunately was still open, to see if anyone there had any ideas. We spoke to a kind woman named Elena who we had seen earlier. She calmly said that she could take my daughter to see a doctor even though it was late in the day. Elena led us through the streets of Iquitos to a pharmacy, where we
waited a short while. She stayed with us and translated as my daughter talked to a Spanish-speaking doctor who gave her some medication and assured her that she could make the trip. I told my daughter that we could go down to the lodge and return at any point if she wanted to.
As a result, we had the experience of hiking into the Amazon rainforest, catching piranha, seeing dolphins and sloths, visiting jungle villages, holding a sizeable snake, and interacting with two friendly and knowledgeable local guides whose names I know I don’t have right (Hernan and Thierry?). The adventure we had supported my daughter to grow by dealing with unexpected events and new situations in a way that has been most useful in her life as a young adult. And for
me, spending that time with her in a safe but unknown situation has been something we have been able to build upon in our relationship.
But that is not all that happened. On the way back upriver, with a plane flight scheduled early the next day, my daughter realized that she did not have her cell phone. It was not possible, in her mind, to leave Iquitos without it. Back in the
Otorongo office, another kind woman—I believe one of the owners (Ivy, Anthony’s
wife)—radioed down to the lodge. Not long afterward, she told us that the phone had been found in a hammock that my daughter had been lying in. The phone could be brought back the next day, but by that time we would be flying to Lima. The woman assured my daughter that she would send the phone back to her in America, which helped the trip to end on a bright note. The cell phone arrived a few weeks later. Much belated thanks and best regards to those at Otorongo…