Napo Wildlife Center

In the middle of the Amazon Rainforest, within the Yasuní National Park, there is a place where tourism mixes with the most beautiful songs of nature and the ancient culture of the Amazon people.

Napo Wildlife Center is an ecological complex built with traditional Kichwa architecture, owned and managed by the Añangu Indigenous Community. This exclusive place has 20 private cabins, where 12 are standard and 8 are luxury suites. The cabins are decorated with local art and all have private bathrooms with hot water, are fully equipped with ventilation, electricity, safe box, mosquito net and a balcony with hammock, featuring the most incredible views of the jungle and the Añangu lagoon.

The Napo Wildlife Center is a good example of an ecotourism project. The community has invested in a unique environmental system, probably the most advanced in the Amazon. All wastewater is processed to keep the wetlands clean. Energy is generated by solar panels, industrial batteries and silent generators, which is an efficient system with minimal impact in the environment.

In the center of the project, there is the Panoramic Central Tower, an architectonical icon where we offer different common recreation and comfort areas for our visitors. These resting areas with amazing landscape views include the observation platform, meeting room, bar and restaurant to enjoy local and international cuisine, delicious cocktails and a souvenir boutique.

The food service is based in a combination of local and international cuisine, with a complete variety of exotic fruits and organic products. Breakfast is a daily buffet, lunch is a served menu (entrance, main course, dessert and soft drink) and dinner is a daily buffet, including local specialties. A coffee station is available, where you can drink unlimited tea, water or coffee. Additionally, we offer our guests a complementary bottle, so they can fill it out with drinking water from the dispenser in the restaurant. There are also jars provided in each cabin, plus a variety of drinks available at the bar of the restaurant.

The Yasuní National Park is home to a biodiversity of more than 600 species of birds, 173 species of mammals, 83 reptile species, more than 100 species of amphibians, 382 fish species and more than 100,000 of insect species, that have been counted so far.
In addition to its importance in biological diversity, the YNP is known by its cultural value, as its territory is home of people of local groups, like Kichwa of the Amazon, Waorani and Shuar.

Some activities included for all of our guests are:

• Forest Trails: To explore the great variety of wildlife such as insects, birds, reptiles and mammals. Some typical animals you may watch in the jungle are: anacondas and other snake species, spiders, giant armadillo, birds such as hoatzins, macaws, toucans, parakeets, parrots as well as monkeys, tapirs, ocelots, etc.
• Canopy Observation Tower: Get a close up view of the jungle and its diverse flora and fauna. This 36 meters observation tower was built just next to a huge tree and it offers you the best view of the Amazon Rainforest. Observe flocks of colorful birds flying and the magnificence of the trees, flowers and nature the Amazonia gives us.
• Canoe Riding: Explore the black waters of the Añangu Lake and the Napo River creeks on board of a motorized or paddle-canoe! In the river, creeks and lakes of the Amazon jungle we can find hundreds of different aquatic animals such as fish, caimans, turtles, piranhas and giant otters.
• Parrot Clay Licks: Are the most stunning nature spectacles to see in the Amazonia. These are natural banks of clay, where birds and different animals go to eat the mineral. This event starts early in the morning when hundreds of vibrantly colored birds visit the licks.
• Interpretative Center: Learn about the Kichwa Añangu community traditions and culture of the Napo Wildlife Center hosts. Women of the community will welcome you with typical dances, rituals, handcrafts food and drinks.
• Birding: More than 610 bird species inventoried within the Yasuni National Park, give the visitors the best experience in bird watching, an unforgettable adventure in the most biodiverse place on earth.
• Cultural Center: Kuri Muyu is the name of the Cultural Center, it means Golden Seed in Kichwa, and symbolizes the invaluable wisdom and strength within each seed of knowledge. Visit the Kuri Muyu Cultural Center to learn more about Kichwa dance and music. The women of the community, also known as Mamakunas, display the Kichwa culture, crafts, customs and traditional uses of the natural resources, which surround the Añangu people.

All this Community effort have been widely recognized internationally, as gains are reinvested in projects like the local school, the Health Center, alternative electricity generation, housing and others. The main benefit for the Community, is the creation of direct jobs for Añangu people and from members of near communities, who can find alternatives to working in petroleum or logging companies.