Meet the people behind the expeditions

We don't visit the Amazon. We're from it.

A team of naturalist guides born and raised in the Amazon, sharing the rivers and forests we grew up in, and looking after the communities that call them home.

Luiz at the Amazon Luiz Expeditions office in Manaus

Our story

It started with one guide and one river.

Luiz grew up on the waters of the Rio Negro. Long before this was a company, he was taking friends and visitors out on the river, walking the trails he learned as a boy and answering the same question over and over: what is the forest really like when you live in it?

Amazon Luiz Expeditions is the answer. Today Luiz leads a small team of naturalist guides, boat drivers and cooks, all from the region. We keep our groups small, we plan every trip ourselves, and when you message us, you talk directly to the people who will take you into the forest.

No middlemen, no script. Rivers, trails and stories we know first-hand.

"We don't show people the Amazon from a script. We show them the Amazon we know."

Luiz · Founder & lead guide

Our guides

Naturalists by training. Locals by birth.

Knowledge

Naturalist guides

Our guides pair a lifetime in the forest with naturalist training. They read the river, the trees and the weather, and they love explaining what you're seeing, in English, Portuguese or Spanish.

Roots

Born on these rivers

Every guide on our team was born and raised in the Amazon. The places we take you are the places we grew up in, fishing, paddling and walking since childhood.

Care

Safety first, always

Small groups, well-kept boats and equipment, and guides who know exactly where they are. We plan conservatively so you can relax and enjoy the forest.

Local communities

Tourism that gives back to the forest's people.

The Amazon is not a backdrop for us. It's home. Every expedition is built so that the money you spend here stays here, with the families and communities who keep these rivers alive.

We hire local, always

Our guides, boat drivers and cooks are all from the region. Working with us means working close to home, on fair terms.

We buy from riverside families

Fruit, fish, farinha and supplies come from riverside producers and local markets, not from city wholesalers.

We stay with communities

Whenever an itinerary allows, we use community-run lodges and family homestays, so your stay supports the people hosting you.

We leave places as we found them

Small groups, no shortcuts through fragile areas, and a simple rule we never break: the forest and the people in it come first.

"When the forest does well, our families do well. It's that simple."