Taking our kids to the Amazon, tips and more

The Amazon of Ecuador is a great idea for traveling with children.

We have planned our small holiday to visit the Amazon with our little ones and it went perfectly well!

The decision we took was to do a slow travel, and plan our own activities. So we found
a hotel in Tena city, which was small property, including breakfast, with a swimming pool and comfortable room.

There are many options to travel in the Amazon, you can find all inclusive hotels that will take care of everything and you just follow the tour guide.  Or you can find other options that will include only accommodation and breakfast, so you can choose what to do, where to eat and plan your journey.

We decided to travel around the area, visiting the butterfly house at Punta Ahuano, visiting the local zoo and finally, taking some time to visit the riverside with the locals.

It went well to do this trip like this, as we had some time to rest and spend time at the hotel, with the swimming pool. Our little ones had the time to nap, after a long day, eating small meals with room service or at the restaurant.

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Here below, you will find some tips for planning a great trip to the Amazon with small children, in local hotels, with only breakfast included:

PICK YOUR HOTEL OPTION: 

Pick a hotel that will include breakfast and that will have an open restaurant for dinners. Sometimes kids are very tired after the long day, and taking them out for dinner could only make them grumpy and dinner will be just as stressful for parents.

RENT A CAR OR HIRE A PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION IN QUITO: 

There are many places to rent a car. Please rent a big 4x4 so it can be easy to access dirt roads.

The road to Tena city is in very good conditions and traffic is not heavy, however, be careful when it rains, because you may find some land slides that will close the road for a few hours.
In case this is more difficult, you can always hire a private driver with a comfortable SUV or Van who will take you to Tena. Once there, you can use the same transportation whilst your stay or take taxis (pick up trucks) who will be taking you to the local sites.

BRING YOUR OWN RUBBER BOOTS: 
Before you go, make sure you take appropriate rubber boots for your children. All inclusive hotels provide boots, however, it may hurt your child's feet, so it is better to bring their own rubber boots. In case you don't have them, don't worry! Tena has a local market that sells them for very low price.

RAIN COATS ARE NEEDED:
The Amazon is a place where weather is unpredictable, actually, it is predictable: It will rain at any time or moment, so bring always a rain coat and additional clothing.

ACTIVITIES IF RAINING: 
Do not worry about rain! 
It will go away after a few hours, and we suggest to take the tour to the butterfly house when this happens. It is a good option to learn about their reproduction cycle and playing with the flying butterflies. 

Here you can spend up to one hour. For this trip, you will need to go to Ahuano river shore, park your car and then pay the river motor canoe to cross the river. 
Once there, hire a taxi pick up to take you to the butterfly greenhouse and ask him to wait for you, otherwise you may needs to walk to the river shore, which is quite close but sometimes children get a little fussy and then the walk may not be such a good idea...specially if it rains...

VISITING THE LOCAL ZOO: 
This is a nice family trip. The zoo is outside Tena city. Here you can find endemic and native species, you will learn about their habitat and how they live. The highlight on this zoo are the monkeys, birds and the anacondas!

BATHING AT THE RIVER: 
There are many places around Tena and Misahualli where locals go to the river for a nice refreshing time. You can find the options once there and the information  can be given by the hotel's staff.

Here you have the chance to bath and children will enjoy of the sand and rocks! They can play for hours!!

RESTAURANTS: Tena city has several local restaurants where they offer menu lunch or "a la carte" dishes. Their specialty is sweet water fish called tilapia. You can find it cooked in different ways such as fried, steamed or the most typical will be wrapped in local leaves and grilled. Outside of Tena there is Misahualli town which is more touristic and there you can find also some restaurant options for your meals.

HOTELS: Tena city has a good hotel offer with different price range. I would suggest to take the middle to superior options for a better Amazon experience. 

Here below are the hotel options I suggest for a self planning trip:

Terraluna: Located 5 minutes from the center of Tena city, but far from any noise. It is a nice property with swimming pool and good service. You have the option to have a standard room or a suite. Restaurant is available for all meals, but request the service in advance.
El Abuelo: Located a few blocks away from the center of the town, it is a tourist class hotel, that offer breakfast only. Clean and cozy. Not many green areas for children.
Hamadryade Lodge: This lodge is a luxury option, outside of Tena city with top class service, restaurant and great views of the Amazon. They offer half day and full day tours with additional cost.

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