amazon river cruise

amazon river cruise

Why not sail up the river Amazon and see the great river. It is great river to see with great rainforests and different cultures along its course. It has many different scenic views with many cities and towns on the bank of the river. Why not take a boat trip or cruise up this great system.

Amazon River (Portuguese: Rio Amazonas; Spanish: Río Amazonas) of South America is the largest river in the world by volume, with a total river flow greater than the next top ten largest rivers flowing into the ocean combined. The Amazon, which has the largest drainage basin in the world, accounts for approximately 1/5 of the world's total river flow. Because of its vast dimensions, it is sometimes called The River Sea.

River cruise ships are smaller than ocean-going cruise ships, typically holding 90-240 passengers (though there are ships that take only 5 passengers, and others can carry 1,000 passengers). Some river ships resemble five stars hotels, with sun decks, dining rooms, lounges, fitness facilities, swimming pools, casinos and other entertainment. Accommodation, meals onboard, entertainment and special events (holidays, festivals, contests, concerts, etc.) Due to their smaller size and low draft, river cruise ships can go where ocean cruise ships cannot, and sometimes to where no other transport is practical: rivers are an excellent way to reach some attractions.

The river systems and flood plains in Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela whose waters drain into the Solimões and its tributaries are called the "Upper Amazon".

The width of the mouth of the river is usually measured from Cabo do Norte to Punto Patijoca. But this includes the ocean outlet, 60 km wide, of the Para river, which should be deducted, as this stream is only the lower reach of the Tocantins. It also includes the ocean frontage of Marajó, an island lying in the mouth of the Amazon. The waters of the Amazon support a diverse range of wildlife. Along with the Orinoco, the river is one of the main habitats of the Boto, also known as the Amazon River Dolphin. The largest species of river dolphin, it can grow to lengths of up to 2.6 metres. The Bull Shark has been reported 2,220 miles up the Amazon River at Iquitos in Peru. The Arapaima, or pirarucu is a South American tropical freshwater fish. It is one of the largest freshwater fish in the world, reportedly with a maximum length in excess of 3 m and weight up to 200 kg. Also present in large numbers are the notorious Piranha, carnivorous fish which congregate in large schools, and may attack livestock and even humans. Although many experts believe their reputation for ferocity is unwarranted, a school of piranha was apparently responsible for the deaths of up to 300 people when their boat capsized near Óbidos in 1981. However, only a few species attack humans, and many are solely fish-eaters, and do not school.

The Amazon has over 1,000 tributaries in total, 17 of which are over 1,000 kilometers. Some of the more notable such as ; Branco, Casiquiare canal, Huallaga, Putumayo (or Içá River), Javary, Jurua, Madeira, Marañón, Morona, Nanay, Napo, Negro, Pastaza, Purus, Tambo, Tapajós, Tigre, Tocantins, Trombetas, Ucayali, Xingu, Yapura. Many of these rivers are great see.

While the Amazon is clearly the largest river in the world by most measures, the majority of the geographic community today regards the Amazon as the second longest river, just slightly shorter than the Nile. However, even by this measure, the Amazon may yet reign supreme; as scientists employ new equipment and methods to the measurement of rivers, there are scientific studies indicating that the Nile may be, in fact, the shorter of the two.

The Amazon basin, the largest drainage basin in the world, covers an area of some 6,915,000 square kilometres, or some 40 percent of South America. It gathers its waters from 5 degrees north latitude to 20 degrees south latitude. Its most remote sources are found on the inter Andean plateau, just a short distance from the Pacific Ocean. So it almost cuts up the continent.

The area covered by the water of the River and its tributaries more than triples over the course of a year. In an average dry season 110,000 square kilometres of land are water-covered, while in the wet season the flooded area of the Amazon Basin rises to 350,000 square kilometres. At its widest point the Amazon River can be 11 kilometres wide during the dry season, but during the rainy season when the Amazon floods the surrounding plains it can be up to 45 kilometres wide.

Today, the Upper Amazon has a series of major river systems in Peru (many of which are alike in Ecuador) that flow North and South into the Marañón and Amazon River. Among others, these include the following rivers: Morona, Pastaza, Nucuray, Urituyacu, Chambira, Tigre, Nanay, Napo, Huallaga, and Ucayali. The same as in the snow-crested Andes high above Lake Lauricocha in central Peru, the headstream of the Marañón River - which for many years had been seen as the origin of the Amazon - rises in the glaciers in what is known as the Nevado de Yarupa. Rushing through waterfalls and gorges in an area of the high jungle called the pongos, the Marañón River flows about 1,600 miles from west central to northeast Peru before it combines with the Ucayali River, just below the provincial town of Nauta, to form the mighty Amazon River.

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