With any trip, there are bound to be highs and lows. As a travel blogger, it can be difficult at times to talk about the negatives because there is so much pressure to have a picture-perfect lifestyle. But the most important thing is honesty, which is why I wanted to talk to you about our stay at the Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge in Tena, Ecuador.
During our recent trip to Ecuador, Exoticca Tours handled all of our lodgings. When we booked the trip, they gave examples of hotels that they frequently book for their guests but were told that the finalized hotel may be different from the sample itinerary. However, Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge was on the original itinerary, and I was really excited about it! One of my favorite international stays of all time was at a rainforest lodge in Costa Rica, so I was looking forward to another opportunity to stay so close to nature and enjoy the lodge’s unique amenities.
I did some initial research on each hotel before we left, and I was very impressed with everything that the hotel offered. But once I left the website and started reading reviews, I started to get mixed signals. Some people had major complaints about their stays, while others raved about the amazing time that they had.
So how did we fare? Well, that’s what I want to share with you today. Here’s how I really felt about Suchipakari Jungle Lodge.
What I Liked About Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge
The Location Was Gorgeous
The Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge is located right in the rainforest of Tena, alongside the Napo River. The rooms and community buildings all sit at the top of a rise, nestled in between giant trees and colorful patches of greenery.
The lodge also has several hectares of preserved rainforest that they use for wildlife walks and as a safe haven for the creatures who live in the Amazon. It’s a beautiful and peaceful area that provides a safe glimpse into the world’s largest tropical rainforest.
The Amenities Were Spot-On
The lodge has a number of great amenities for guests to enjoy, including a lovely pool (with a fancy swing), a bar, an onsite restaurant, and a spa.
While we were too busy to take a dip in the pool (and sufficiently soaked from an Amazon rainstorm), I did take advantage of the lodge’s spa services. They offer several great treatments, including hydrotherapy and floral baths, mud wraps, steam baths, and quite a few massages. Everything is very reasonably priced, ranging from $20 hydromassages to $70 chocolate or mud body wraps.
I wanted to try one of their unique baths, but they weren’t available due to rainy weather, so I “settled” for a massage. After a long day exploring the rainforest, it felt like heaven! It felt fairly similar to a Swedish massage, but there were definitely some techniques that I hadn’t experienced before, and that made it all the more enjoyable!
I also appreciated that the hotel lobby kept a fresh supply of filtered water and “jungle juice” (a tea made from the coca plant) available for us throughout the day.
They Offer Great Add-On Adventures
The lodge is in a great location for exploring both the Amazon Rainforest and the lifestyle of the Kichwa people. Suchipakari Jungle Lodge offers a number of add-on excursions (some free, some paid) for guests to enjoy. You can take a day trip to swim under a waterfall, tube down the Napo River, go bird-watching (or caiman spotting), visit an amphibian conservatory, and more!
The website has nearly 20 different activities to choose from, with a variety of time commitments, prices, and energy/fitness requirements. That’s pretty impressive!
We chose to take one of their all-day tours, which included several amazing stops and excursions for one day. I’ll likely provide more in-depth details about this trip in a future post, but here’s what we got to do:
- Hike through the Amazon Rainforest
- Ride a motorized canoe ride down the Napo River
- Take a guided tour through AmaZOOnico, a rescue center for native animals that were victims of poaching or the black market
- Visit an indigenous family for lunch, watch a chicha-making demonstration, and test our blowgun skills
- See Caimans at Caiman Lagoon
- Visit another indigenous Kichwa village for a pottery-making demonstration
It was an absolutely fantastic day, and we had so much fun learning about the Kichwa people in the Amazon, as well as all the unique animals that live there. One of Suchipakari’s guides, Carlos, was with us the whole day to make sure we got everywhere safely and to give us fascinating information about the area.
The whole day only costs $75 per person, including a traditional lunch, our guide, and all transportation.
We also went on their Amazon night walk to spot nocturnal creatures and a daytime walk where we learned how the indigenous people use plants for medicine, communication, and handicrafts.
What I Didn’t Like About Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge
The Food was Hit or Miss
We ate four meals (not including our traditional lunch on the all-day tour) at Sucipakari, and each one was a bit of an adventure. They served us a mix of traditional Ecuadorian food and other, more familiar cuisine, like spaghetti, cake, etc.
Some of the food was absolutely delicious, like the plantains, bolones (fried plantains with cheese), rice, ceviche, and fruit desserts. Other dishes (particularly the non-traditional ones) were a bit “off.” It’s possible that this is because they made each dish with an Ecuadorian twist, but the end results were a bit lackluster.
The Rooms Had Some Issues
Let me preface this by saying I am well aware that we were staying in the middle of the rainforest. There are certain things you just can’t control in that situation, and you need to have a “camping mindset.” I get that. However, there were a few things that I didn’t love about our rooms, and the other people in our group had some issues as well. I say them here so you know what to expect.
On the plus side, the room was beautiful. The bedroom had a very quaint feel to it, with nice wooden features, a decent number of power outlets, and wifi access. Up to 3 people could sleep there with a full bed and a twin bed. The bathroom looked very upscale and brand-new: rock walls, a glass rain shower, a modern toilet, and a big sink.
But beyond the pleasing aesthetic, we discovered a few problems.
Open to too many elements
First off, the windows and doors had gaps and holes. Thankfully, most of the windows were glassed and screened, but it was no problem for bugs and other critters to get into our room through the door gap. As soon as we turned on our lights the first night, we saw two jungle roaches, I discovered another in the shower, I’m fairly certain there was at least one more somewhere in our room. I would have felt better if the door had a firm seal, but there was no guarantee that other creatures wouldn’t crawl or slither in during the night.
Lack of circulation
Another issue was the air circulation. Our room had a fan, but it didn’t do much beyond swirling the hot, muggy air around. Combined with the threat of bugs, I hardly slept the first night. (TBH, the bed was a little damp, which didn’t help.) Obviously, I have no idea what A/C would involve in that part of the jungle. But since we had both electricity and wifi in our rooms, it seems better cooling options would be possible.
Housekeeping issues
Finally, we didn’t have any housekeeping issues, but multiple people in our Exoticca group did. One couple came down to dinner the first night and reported some sort of feces on their pillow. They suspected either a lizard or bird had gotten in and left the mess. Another family told us later that one of their beds had soaking-wet sheets. They couldn’t tell whether it had been made up wet or if some rain came through the window screens. But either way, they had to squish together for the first night in the remaining dry beds.
Credit Card Charges Have a Hefty Fee
My final negative was with the payment fees. I’ve mentioned this in previous posts, but cash is king in Ecuador, and the lodge was no exception. Our stay was pre-paid through Exoticca, but we needed to pay for our add-on tour and spa experience before we left.
The total was around $200. And since I didn’t want to blow through all the cash I’d brought with me, I opted to do credit because I knew that some places would only accept cash later on. Unfortunately, that meant we had to pay an additional 5 to 7% in processing fees. So if you’re smarter than I was, you’ll just bring some extra cash! But if you don’t want to be carrying that much around, be prepared to pay a bit more than expected.
Closing Thoughts on Suchipakari Amazon Eco Lodge
If you’re used to camping or roughing it, these probably sound like complete non-issues, haha. And I completely understand that. I also realize that it could be hard to impossible in this secluded area to fix screens, spray the perimeter for bugs, and install better cooling elements. For other people, though, I realize that these would be real deal-breakers, and I wanted to share the full picture.
So would I recommend the Suchipakari Amazon Lodge to other people? Yes…but only to a certain kind of traveler.
Although I love hikes, unique stays, and jungle vibes, I’m not a big “roughing it” kind of person at the end of the day. I appreciate a comfy bed, bug-free quarters, and controlled room temperatures. (Just being honest.) I personally felt like the upscale spa aspect clashed with the rustic accommodations, and I think that threw me off a bit, too.
But if you’re backpacking around South America, crashing at cheap hostels, and really into embracing that lifestyle, I’d say go for it! After all, the lodge has so many amazing activities to enjoy, great staff, and some stellar spa treatments.
That’s all from me today. I hope this post answered any questions you have about Suchipakari and helps you decide whether or not it’s a good fit for you.
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