Roundtrip Miami to Amazon River

[cmalagngl]

We are considering the roundtrip itinerary from Miami to the Amazon River and return to Miami in 2023 or 2024.  If you have sailed on this itinerary it would be great if you could share your experiences.

[Wizpharm2]

8 minutes ago, cmalagngl said:

We are considering the roundtrip itinerary from Miami to the Amazon River and return to Miami in 2023 or 2024.  If you have sailed on this itinerary it would be great if you could share your experiences.

we took this trip a few years back…here is a link to our blog…if that helps…
 

https://amazonmay2017.blogspot.com/

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

Hopefully, we are doing this sailing this April…. Anyone with us?

sheila

[GOARMY]

We were on Navigator's May-June, 2017 Miami-Amazon River-Miami segment. 

 

While NOT a blog, I was enticed by other CCers planning a similar November, 2017 Mariner itinerary to make contemporaneous comments.  So--

 

Refer you to Mariner Roll Call history.  Go to Page 5.  Title:  "November 17th, 2017 Miami to Miami Radiant Amazon".  As to my comments:  those started on Page 3.  Following are on Pages 4 and 7. 

 

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience while on The Greatest River in the World!  Just took a lot of advance planning--medical-wise--beginning in the 6-8 months preceding boarding at Miami to be properly prepared for that experience. 

 

GOARMY!

 

 

 

[mrlevin]

I am taking this trip mariner December 2023.  With two category upgrade this is cheaper than mariner next month; great deal. I don’t like South America so itinerary fantastic; Caribbean and Amazon only; no other South American ports. 

[BBfromCA]

We did the cruise in 2011. My blog (with separate photo page) is at BillinLodi.com

Scroll down to the 2011 Amazon Cruise buttons.

[forevertravel]

On December 2019 we cruised  from Rio to Miami. It was an awesome cruise. Cruising the Amazon was amazing. To see the meeting of the waters and many other sights was fantastic. I wouldn't mind doing that cruise again. Despite what other people may say, I found Rio a beautiful and fascinating city. We spent three days touring Rio as part of pre-cruise tour.  Do it if you can. It's worth it.

[govanguy]

1 hour ago, Bellaggio Cruisers said:

Hopefully, we are doing this sailing this April…. Anyone with us?

sheila

We are on the roll call. Getting excited. 

[Sunprince]

Is there anyone on the March16th Mariner Amazon cruise? We are also thinking about joining this cruise.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

2 hours ago, govanguy said:

We are on the roll call. Getting excited. 

Will check roll call and sign up. 

[mj_holiday]

We did this cruise in 2018, I wrote a review at the time, but my profile only goes back to 2020.  It was a great cruise, very, very interesting.  One or two of the stops on the river are a little, how do you say corny, the residents seem to think we want to see Indians.  The lectures explained this and so much more before we got to the various ports.  The meeting of the  rivers is just fascinating.

 

The Boi Bumba at one stop on the Amazon is a must see and really try to get a seat up front.  It is a fantastic show and the history about it is very interesting.  There are not enough seats for the entire ship, so need to get this reserved when you can.

 

There are several of books I read prior to the trip on the Amazon which helped make the experience so much more interesting.

John Grisham's The Testament  (fiction, but gives you a feel of the Amazon River)

Tree of Rivers:  The Story of the Amazon

The River of Doubt

The Lost city of Z

 

 

[GOARMY]

Yep--that Boi Bumba (Bomba) was about a hundred minutes of non-stop pulsing music (and dance) overload.  A unique experience.  Thankfully, air-conditioned venue.  (For more, refer to my extended comment(s) on the Mariner Roll Call detailed above.) 

 

If one has ANY hearing issues, recommend NOT sitting too close.  It is overwhelming.  And, if you are in the front row--toward the end, you will likely be "drawn-into" the on-stage performance.  But, if that is your "thing", then go for it.  

 

In 2017, this was a "freeby" excursion.  I would estimate 2/3rs of passengers signed-up.  There were plenty of seats.  Fortunately, no other cruise ships, as I can recall, joined us on that occasion.  

 

GOARMY!

 

 

 

 

[RachelG]

Wish I could do this cruise but my nurse practitioner is pregnant, due mid March and will be off, so I am at work full force.  It is a very good value though.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

17 hours ago, RachelG said:

Wish I could do this cruise but my nurse practitioner is pregnant, due mid March and will be off, so I am at work full force.  It is a very good value though.

Check the Amazon cruise we are scheduled. April 18th. Navigator. Perhaps that works for you. 
sheila 

[labonnevie]

21 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

 

There are several of books I read prior to the trip on the Amazon which helped make the experience so much more interesting.

John Grisham's The Testament  (fiction, but gives you a feel of the Amazon River)

Tree of Rivers:  The Story of the Amazon

The River of Doubt

The Lost city of Z

 

 

Would add The Thief at the End of the World. 

[RachelG]

50 minutes ago, Bellaggio Cruisers said:

Check the Amazon cruise we are scheduled. April 18th. Navigator. Perhaps that works for you. 
sheila 

Can't do--she will be on maternity leave.  

[mnocket]

Any thoughts on doing this cruise in Dec vs Mar?  From what I've read Dec seems to be during the dry(er) season (lower water level, less rain, less mosquitoes) while March is in the middle of the wet season.  Is one time appreciably better than the other?

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

We are going in April… we don’t want to wait until the end of the year..

sheila

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

On 2/1/2022 at 5:27 PM, Sunprince said:

Is there anyone on the March16th Mariner Amazon cruise? We are also thinking about joining this cruise.

It is very tempting, isn't it?  Would love to do this, but won't.  I do wonder about the Brazilian ports and whether they will be open by then.

[Sunprince]

25 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

It is very tempting, isn't it? 

Oh….but Wendy, you can likely drive to the port!  My experience with Regent air isn’t good, so not having the flight component makes things so much easier!

[GOARMY]

mnocket:  

 

For what it is worth--our experience(s) doing this segment have been earlier in the year--April-June timeframe.  The most-recent (May-June '17 referenced above) was at the end of what one of our Lecturer described as the second highest rainfall "season" in the Amazon Basin over the last 100 years.   For this reason, the territorial views observed, we were advised, differed from what one could expect if doing this passage later in a calendar year.  

 

River level:  On numerous occasions, we could not see any landscape on one side; and a far-shoreline outline only on the other side.  Just THE RIVER (pay deference by all CAPS)--or better described as an inland Sea--while in full-flood carrying tree trunks, "stuff", and who-knows what else downstream.  What should have been shorelines in drier times were underwater--or simply washed-away downstream. 

 

Another result:  two of our planned stops were canceled because those locales were, literally, underwater.  Another stop initially-scheduled for a visit while proceeding West (against the swift current) had to be postponed because the severity of flow would not allow safely navigating across that current to dock on the other side.   That particular stop was rescheduled upon reversing course at Manaus--and heading West to East with the current back to The Mouth.  

 

There was no onboard distillation of RIVER water to potable water done for about 10 days because the amount of stuff and silt flowing downstream would have clogged the system.  The Captain  advised of this a day or two before Navigator entered The Mouth.  Postings of this reminder were made in several subsequent "Passages".   Actually, the color of Ocean water had already changed to a brownish tinge well-before we entered The Mouth.  Thus, another result of the mini-Flood was that passengers were asked to exercise prudence when turning on the shower.  

 

Some general observations:  The RIVER will offer a different "territorial" experience depending on what time of year you enter.  A few constants notwithstanding time of year:  The Mouth is positioned almost-flat-at The Equator.  Manaus--your western terminus--is about 2 degrees South of the Equator.  Sooos:  more constants:  uniformly hot, humid, and almost-equal day and night hours.  As for those pesky mosquitoes:  these were never a big issue for us; and did not hear much about them as a particular concern from fellow cruisers.  

 

But, we came well-prepared if bitten.   Those actions--such as meeting with a M.D. specializing in Tropical Diseases for a review of our specific medical histories; going over the intended itinerary with that Doctor; getting recommended vaccinations and acquiring specific medication begun eight months before departing Miami--are also described in my earlier Navigator postings.  Other simple steps were to wear light, long-sleeve tops; and similar long pants.  Headgear at all times when outdoors, and so-on.  Limit the amount of skin directly exposed to Sun and bugs.  

 

This preparatory effort was well-worth it for peace of mind when on THE RIVER.  

 

GOARMY!

 

[cmalagngl]

Thanks to everyone who has responded so far.  Especially thank you for the links to your original blogs/reviews of this voyage.  It is all greatly appreciated.

[2012_Alaska_bound]

Finally found the November 2018 Navigator Amazon Roll call, which has a link to MJ_holiday's review!
 

 

[mnocket]

18 hours ago, GOARMY said:

mnocket:  

 

For what it is worth--our experience(s) doing this segment have been earlier in the year--April-June timeframe.  The most-recent (May-June '17 referenced above) was at the end of what one of our Lecturer described as the second highest rainfall "season" in the Amazon Basin over the last 100 years.   For this reason, the territorial views observed, we were advised, differed from what one could expect if doing this passage later in a calendar year.  

 

River level:  On numerous occasions, we could not see any landscape on one side; and a far-shoreline outline only on the other side.  Just THE RIVER (pay deference by all CAPS)--or better described as an inland Sea--while in full-flood carrying tree trunks, "stuff", and who-knows what else downstream.  What should have been shorelines in drier times were underwater--or simply washed-away downstream. 

 

Another result:  two of our planned stops were canceled because those locales were, literally, underwater.  Another stop initially-scheduled for a visit while proceeding West (against the swift current) had to be postponed because the severity of flow would not allow safely navigating across that current to dock on the other side.   That particular stop was rescheduled upon reversing course at Manaus--and heading West to East with the current back to The Mouth.  

 

There was no onboard distillation of RIVER water to potable water done for about 10 days because the amount of stuff and silt flowing downstream would have clogged the system.  The Captain  advised of this a day or two before Navigator entered The Mouth.  Postings of this reminder were made in several subsequent "Passages".   Actually, the color of Ocean water had already changed to a brownish tinge well-before we entered The Mouth.  Thus, another result of the mini-Flood was that passengers were asked to exercise prudence when turning on the shower.  

 

Some general observations:  The RIVER will offer a different "territorial" experience depending on what time of year you enter.  A few constants notwithstanding time of year:  The Mouth is positioned almost-flat-at The Equator.  Manaus--your western terminus--is about 2 degrees South of the Equator.  Sooos:  more constants:  uniformly hot, humid, and almost-equal day and night hours.  As for those pesky mosquitoes:  these were never a big issue for us; and did not hear much about them as a particular concern from fellow cruisers.  

 

But, we came well-prepared if bitten.   Those actions--such as meeting with a M.D. specializing in Tropical Diseases for a review of our specific medical histories; going over the intended itinerary with that Doctor; getting recommended vaccinations and acquiring specific medication begun eight months before departing Miami--are also described in my earlier Navigator postings.  Other simple steps were to wear light, long-sleeve tops; and similar long pants.  Headgear at all times when outdoors, and so-on.  Limit the amount of skin directly exposed to Sun and bugs.  

 

This preparatory effort was well-worth it for peace of mind when on THE RIVER.  

 

GOARMY!

 

Thank you so much for the informative reply.  Posts like  yours make CC so valuable!  I discussed with my wife and I think we'll go with the Dec '23 cruise.

[Pcardad]

I didn't see it posted here but you should be aware that the excursion to the "indigenous" village.....well, the village is fake. It is set up just for the tourists.