We’ve just got back from a wonderful trip to Australia and I have to say Pethers set deep in the Queensland rainforest is simply stunning. You feel as though you are truly in the heart of the jungle with all the bird sounds around you plus you are totally private enough to take a double jacuzzi bath overlooking the foliage with no chance of being overlooked! The treehouse room was bigger than our London apartment and we enjoyed our daily breakfast (delivered to the room each morning) on a huge balcony in the midst of the trees. We loved watching the parrots swoop overhead! It’s run by a great couple Tim and Ilena who were really friendly and made us so welcome. We had dinner one night and it was the best meal of the trip and reasonably priced. It’s not far from Brisbane -probably an hour and a half but you really feel as though you are miles from civilisation.

28b Geissmann Street
PO Box 117
North Tamborine, Qld 4272
AUSTRALIA
www.pethers.com.au
Phone: +61 7 5545 4577
Email:retreat@pethers.com.au

Google map: tinyurl.com/y9vojgt

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A wonderful rustic lodge situated on the banks of a lagoon which forms part of a flooded forest in the Cuyabeno nature reserve, this is a truly special location offering visitors a unique chance to sample life in the depths of the Ecuadorean amazonic region. It's an eight-hour drive from Quito (or a short flight and three hours by minibus) followed by three hours in a motorised canoe to arrive but the trip is well worth it and the journey itself affords incredible scenery and the chance to see anacondas, many different species of monkey, alligators and myriad butterflies in their natural habitat. It's also a must for bird watchers.
The guides are highly knowledgable about the biodiversity of the region and there are also local guides from the nearby Siona indigenous community.
Activities include day and night walks, piranha fishing, a visit to an indigenous village to make cassava bread (you dig up the root and then help them prepare it - from the ground to the table in under an hour and absolutely delicious!) as well as swimming in the lagoon with fresh water dolphins. The cabins are comfortable and the food simple but fresh.
The real find is that there are no mosquitoes! The flooded forest and the subsequent rotting vegetation below the waterline means the ph of the water is slightly acidic and so mosquito larva cannot survive. The cabins are therefore open and cool, and really give you the feeling of being in the jungle.
Swimming in the lagoon while watching the sunet remains one of the highlights of my time in Ecuador. I can't recommend it highly enough.

www.neotropicturis.com,
Cuyabeno Nature Reserve
Oficina Neotropic Turis
Pinto E4-360 y Amazonas
Quito, Ecuador
Tel.: +593.2.2521212

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The breathtaking view alone is worth the trip to this cabanas shangrila eco lodge! Built on a cliff, 100m over the lazy Rio Anzu in the Amazon jungle, the view of the rainforest stretches to the snow capped volcanoes in the distance. After a day of white water rafting, canyoning, or visiting the local Quichua tribes in the Amazon jungle, sipping on a cocktail or relaxing on your balcony in your hammock, is the perfect way to watch the sun set. Our trip was booked in Tena with local tour guides, Amarongachi. It was definately a trip tailored for the adventurous traveller, but was by far the best we took on a year of travelling the world. Other highlights included the tasty traditional Ecuadorian food, jungle trekking, floating in tubes down the lazy river and discovering baby bats sleeping in the jungle caves.

www.amarongachi.com
Amarongachi Tours
Av.15 de Nov. 438
P.O.Box 154
Tena , Napo, Ecuador
+59362886372

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In the NE of Cambodia, in the Ratanakiri province, just outside of Banlung, is Yaklom Hill Lodge. There are 10 bunglalows, on stilts (like all Cambodian houses), set in beautiful jungle. The bunglalows are basic, but clean, with electricity only in the evening and hammocks outside for relaxing surrounded by the noise of the jungle, huge butterflies and birdsong. The lodge can arrange treks into the jungle or to nearby hill tribe villages. The lodge is also only 2km from Yeak Laom lake, an exquisite crater lake set in protected forest, perfect for swimming and chilling out!

www.yaklom.com/wiki/doku.php
Yaklom Hill Lodge, National Route#78, Phume Phnom, Yaklom Commune, Ban Lung District, Ratanakiri Province
yaklom@gmail.com
Tel: (855-11) 790510

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This must be one of the most authentic rain forest retreats that you’ll find. About a 1.5 hour drive from San Jose you have to get to Las Horquetas to pick up some wellies and wrap your bags in bin bags to protect them from what’s to come. The journey then begins. The lodge is 15km away, but to get to it is like a world away. The only way to get there (unless you rent a horse from a local) is to get taken up in the trailer pulled by a tractor. This takes about four hours along a very bumpy track that you even wonder whether the tractor will make it – at one point we had to get out while the tractor got pulled up a steep slope. This journey is not for the faint hearted and on the way back down we and our bags got completely soaked – but that was part of the fun. As it's so cut off you really need two days here at least. We stayed three but could easily have stayed longer.

The ride up gives you your first glimpse of pristine virgin rainforest with velvet and feathery leaves of various patterns and textures. The final few kilometres you can get out and walk up to the lodge and the guide points out frogs and snakes and identifies trees and flowers. The forest gets thicker and deeper and then you come to a grassed clearing where the wooden lodge of Rara Avis sits.

You really are in the middle of the rainforest here, completely cut off in a pristine green wilderness. The ethos of this place is to conserve the rainforest in a truly natural environment. There is no electricity, no mod cons, the rooms are basic but clean with hammocks on private balconies, there’s no need to lock the rooms and a convivial atmosphere is encouraged with communal eating in the main lodge building. The food is plentiful and there’s an honesty bar. When you’re not walking around the forest you watch in amazement at the hand sized butterflies and moths in the butterfly house, look at the orchids in the orchid house, swim in the pool at the bottom of the waterfall or play football, Guests Vs the Rara Avis team or just hang out chatting to guests whilst trying to photograph hummingbirds or bats at the feeders or just relax to the sounds of the forest in your hammock!

The naturalists are knowledgeable and friendly and the lodge is even used for biological research, with much more of an array of flora and fauna than we saw in any of the other rainforests we stayed at, including stained glass palms – only found at Rara Avis, walking palms, 250 year old mahogany tree, bromeliads, leafcutter and bullet ants, eyelash vipers, frogs smaller that a one pence piece, coati’s and loads of birds. There are walkways through the forest but again these aren’t like the cleared wide pathways in other rainforests reserves such as Monte Verde. They are natural and very muddy (hence the need for wellies) and on one walk our guide was having to hack his way through the forest with a machete – this was a truly magical and authentic rainforest experience and nothing compared at the other places we stayed at in Costa Rica.

It’s not for the faint hearted though – this is a truly wild experience where you feel at one with nature.

Rara Avis Rainforwst Lodge and Reserve
Las Horquetas de Sarapiquí
www.rara-avis.com/
info@rara-avis.com
Tel (+506) 2764- 1111

Google map: tinyurl.com/yc8srba

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Simple lodge set in pristine terre firme rain forest, built by the Huarani people in whose territory it lies. Approached by dirt road and located 77 kms east of Tena on the south side of the mighty Napo river. The four double cabins which sleep 16 in twin bedded rooms, and the open sided dining area, are made from rough sawn timber, thatched rooves and do have insect screens but the running water is cold, not that it matters too much in such hot steamy conditions. There's no electricity but candles and tilley lamps prove adequate. The buildings are all on stilts allowing close contact with the abundant wildlife with squirrel monkeys very prominent. River swimming is available but the main activity is walking the forest trails with native guides to see the spectacular birdlife which includes such sought-after species as Harpy Eagle and Rufous Potoo. A world away from some of the more up-market lodges, Gareno offers a true low-impact experience of amazonian rain forest.

No direct web site but try www.guaponi.com/aboutgareno.htm

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The only way to reach Costa Rica’s Jungle Lodge in the Tortuguero National Park on the Caribbean coast is by river launch, which takes you on a two hour journey right into the heart of dense rainforest. We were warned not to dangle our hands in the water - crocodiles are lurking. Howler monkeys serenade your arrival at the lodge, a charming and comfortable one storey wooden affair with long trellised veranda. The purpose of the overhanging roof was explained when a hammering tropical downpour woke us at 5am. Doors opened and one by one we guests abandoned sleep and enjoyed the warm rain together in the swimming pool. My daughter will always remember the jungle walk where two people’s shoes squelched off in the mud (they do lend you wellies), tiny green frogs that sat on her hand, and the boa constrictor in a tree. My favourite was the 'just after dawn' silent boat rides where our guide pointed out iguanas on the bank, spider monkeys and toucans high overhead in the jungle canopy. The richness of the exuberant foliage around the lodge itself was overwhelming, and just sitting around the pool or watching butterflies from the veranda was enough to experience the jungle and its creatures, barely restrained on all sides.

www.anywherecostarica.com/destinations/tortuguero-costa-rica/hotels/tortuguero-jungle-lodge

Tortuguero, 26-1017, Costa Rica‎ - 223 1200‎

Google map: tinyurl.com/ycg2zlr

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La Sombra is an eco lodge up in the Bosawas, three hours drive north of Matagalpa. It is a three storey wooden lodge with views from the hammock on the balcony over the mist covered forest. $30 per person per day gives three home cooked meals, twice daily guided hikes over the property's beautiful coffee plantation and forest and waterfalls. The lodge produces its own coffee which we were given a bag of as we left. The people who run it are lovely (no English spoken) and the place is relaxed with no phone, no TV and just a few board games to play - fantastic. The drive up goes along potholed roads through fantastic forests up to La Dalia from Matagalpa for three hours and then the drive then gets really gets hard going. Wonderful place

www.lasombraecolodge.com
A 177 km de Managua, Tuma - La Dalia, Matagalpa, Nicaragua
(505)455 3732

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This secluded eco-lodge is located in the heart of the Amazon Basin, a short boat ride down the Rio Tambopata river. It's an incredible place to go to get in touch with nature, with expert staff, they even cater for ecology academics. Each lodge has a completely open wall facing the dense tropical jungle. Great for spotting wildlife from the comfort of your hammock. For more energetic folk, there are plenty of activities Including a medicinal plant walk with the local Shaman. You can also pretend you're a native and take part in the spiritual Ayahuasca Ceremony. Truly a magical place to escape.

www.perunature.com/
+511 241 4880

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Stilt chalets and comfortable longhouses made from natural and recycled materials are set along the perimeter of a hill top, offering panoramic views of lush jungle. The veranda of the longhouses and chalets are almost eye-level with the canopy of the forest. Great for watching birds and sunset/rise. The wooden doors and panels of the chalets slide back so you really can be part of the jungle. More spaces with hammocks and swinging chairs are located within the grounds to create your ‘own’ space to experience nature. An open air pavilion with three levels serves as a basic restaurant, bar and chill zone where one can read, connect wifi or converse with the resident owl. This place is designer rustic but comfortable with wonderful helpful hosts and staff.
This unique tranquil haven is well away from the rather shabby city of Sandakan and the well flogged tourist trails of Sabah. Simply the best place to stay in Borneo.

www.paganakandii.com/Home.html
TAMAN HIBURAN JALIL ALIP
Info@paganakandii.com

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Serere lodge is the ecology project of Madidi Travel to recover a reserve of flood plain in the Bolivian rainforest (one of the Amazon's major tributaries).

We spent four blissful days at the lodge, got to within a stone's throw of various monkeys, snakes etc. and some of the most amazing flora I've ever seen. However, the kicker is every penny of your money goes into the project and helps re-establish the community and wildlife from a shadow of its former self.

www.madidi-travel.com/
Fly from La Paz on Amazonsas or TAM

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Semuc Champey is called the eighth wonder of the world by locals. We were cynical because of the hundreds of other 'Eighth Wonders' we've encountered on our travels, but this is truly breathtaking.

Semuc is a series of natural sparkling turquoise pools in the middle of the jungle, that form a bridge over a buried river which shoots out the other side. If it's hard to imagine, that's because it is just so unbelievable it beggars description. It's worth the detour from the main backpacker trail.

Swim, lounge, hike to a viewing point in the jungle or follow a local guide who will show you which rocks are safe to jump from. We tried a terrifying 10m dive from a cliff. This place is absolute paradise.

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It's a long journey by land, but that old adage about the journey holds true for those that make the effort to reach Cambodia's most remote outpost. Sandwiched between the Vietnamese and Laos border, Ratanakiri is a wilderness of jungle and wide rivers, dotted occasionally by villages where, it seems, traditions are unadulterated by modernity.

Travelling east from Phnom Penh up the Mekong is an adventure in itself. The strange torpedo like motor boats that plough the waters seem out of place in this spectacular country, but they do the job nonetheless.

It is necessary to spend a night in Stung Treng before reaching
Ratanakiri. When I was in there, there was little to do in this town, but the guesthouse was suitable and there was a cafe that served decent fayre.

Moreover following the journey thus far it was a welcome respite, and gave me time to digest the richness of all I had passed that day. North from here is the Laos crossing, famous for its proximity to the many islands within the Mekong and the river dolphins you struggle to glimpse - but that was for another time.

The final leg of the journey was all I could've hoped for; delays,
breakdowns, burst tyres and appalling discomfort, but that is what you want when you travel to Ratanakiri and anything less really would have been rather disappointing.

Arriving in the province is an achievement insomuch as you feel you have arrived somewhere new and untapped. The slack roads and buildings look different to other places in the country; even the people have a certain unfazed look on their faces depicting, perhaps, their Vietnamese neighbours.

Spending a couple of weeks in this part of Cambodia is healing for those who love travel and love what travel represents. For $50 I went with a guide into the jungle to live out my explorer fantasy. Sleeping in hammocks, removing leaches and trekking through dense vegetation with the slight hope of seeing some beast, or happening upon a new Angkor type ruin is a tad hopeful. Still, you feel here anything is possible, and are honoured to tread such virgin land.

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Both the Damai Beach and Damai Lagoon Holiday Inn resort hotels are excellent places to stay in a secluded, beach area surrounded by jungle, about 45 minutes drive from Kuching. Double rooms go for a mere £30 per room.

Damai Beach: Teluk Bandung Santubong, Kuching; tel: 60-82-846999;
www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/hi/1/en/hotel/dmbmy?_requestid=1569234
Damai Lagoon: Teluk Penyuk, Santubong, Kuching; tel: 60-82-846900;
www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/hi/1/en/hotel/dmblg?_requestid=1567669
There is a shuttle bus to both from the Holiday Inn in Kuching.

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An amazingly long and beautiful walk through the jungle. About 9 or 10 kilometres of walkway through amazing primary rainforest, perfectly preserved.

The Treetops trail is awesome - a walkway a hundred feet in the air, through the vegetation. The ground-level walkway is well signposted, and even though it feels like you're in the middle of nowhere, you're never too far away from civilisation.

Runners and walkers scoot round here every Sunday morning - it makes a great start to the day - but the shady paths make it a pleasant walk at any time of the day. A real treasure and a great alternative to hitting the malls while you're in Singapore.

Just get a cab and tell the driver Macritchie Reservoir. He'll take you to the front entrance. Walk so the reservoir is on your left, and keep turning left; after 9 or 10 kilometres you'll end up back where you started.

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