Hi Luciana,
Regarding our travel agent:
I highly recommend Amazonas by Viverde for booking a trip into the Amazon. Luciana, our agent, was fully bilingual in English and Portuguese and very accessible via telephone or email. She was very responsive to our questions before and during our trip, and happily found a hotel in Manaus that met our needs for both convenience and budget since our itinerary had us checking in at midnight and checking out at 7:30am the next morning.
We were impressed that Luciana took the initiative to alert us prior to our trip that the hotel was inundated but still operating due to record flooding. The flooding, of course, meant that a number of the hotel amenities (such as swimming pool) were unavailable, but our main interest was the excursions offered by the hotel which were not affected by the flood waters.
Viverde has a secure Site for accepting credit card payments, so be sure to alert your card company in advance to expect a legitimate charge from Brazil for the amount of your trip.
Regarding the Saint Paul Hotel: This hotel was very clean, comfortable and reasonably-priced. Since we were checking in at midnight and checking out at 7:30am the following morning, it did not make sense to spend extra money on a luxurious hotel so this one was perfect for our situation.
Regarding the Ariaú Amazon Towers Hotel: The stark reality of being in the middle of the jungle and the omnipresence of nature was the best aspect of this hotel. Offering comfort and accessibility in the jungle is a difficult balance to strike, and the hotel seems to manage it well while maintaining an evident respect for nature and the surrounding indigenous communities. Air conditioning in the rooms is nice, and the food service in the dining room is plentiful and tasty. We soon learned that the heavy screens and chain-link fencing on the windows and balconies is because nature is everywhere, and keeping the rooms free from bugs and animals was much appreciated.
Take the plunge and get the Ariaú III package and add-in the optional swimming with river dolphins. You’ll never forget it. All the excursions are well worth-it and the hotel provides English-speaking guides (and several other languages as well). While this is perhaps the most exotic trip we’ve ever taken, at no point did we feel endangered because the guides are clearly well-trained and prepared. Take a hat and your own sunscreen (curiously expensive in Brazil) and you’ll be good to go. This place is worth the trip.
Nice bonuses include the fact that the pH of the Negro River is too low for mosquito breeding, so we never had to worry about mosquitoes while were were there at the end of the wet season/ beginning of dry season. Also, be sure to check out the tiered-pricing for children: age 9 and under is free and ages 10-11 are eligible for a 50% discount.
Best regards,
John & Lauren