How to travel to Iquitos

Travel to Iquitos

Iquitos City is located in the north-east of Peru, it mainly comprises the Selva Baja (lowland rainforest) or Llano Amazónico (Amazonian plain) region, 347 feet above sea level (106 m.a.s.l.). Tropical Amazon Basin.

Iquitos is located in the confluence of Nanay, Itaya and Amazon River (left bank). (Map of Iquitos & Loreto).

Iquitos is perhaps the world's largest city that cannot be reached by road. Its communication is based on river and air transport.

Distances to Iquitos - Loreto, Peru:

From	Distance	Duration by Air	Duration by River
Lima	627 miles (1,009 Km)	1h 55'
Pucallpa	615 miles (990 Km) by river	1 hour	4 to 7 days
Caballococha	192 miles (311 Km) by river (frontier with Colombia and Brazil)	1 hour	2 days

Iquitos by Air - Domestic Flights into Peru

The traditional way for get to Iquitos is by air.

Iquitos is easily accessible by air, commercial flights leave daily from Lima (1 hour and 55 minutes) and connections, from Tarapoto (50 minutes) and from Pucallpa (1 hour). International flights from Panama and connections.

The city of Iquitos counts with the small but busy International Airport Coronel FAP Francisco Secada (IQT Airport Code), with comfortable facilities. The airport is located 7 Km outside the town.

Book cheap domestic flight tickets from / to Iquitos (itineraries and airfares)

Iquitos by River

From Pucallpa (La Hoyada Port, 2.5 Km from the City), via the Ucayali River, with stops at the Requena and Contamana ports; it can either be a launch or a motorboat (a large but slow vessel, with a capacity for 250 people), which takes between 4-5 days, depending on the current.

From Yurimaguas, via the Huallaga and Marañón Rivers, with a stop at Nauta. Either via launch or "motorboat" (takes 3-4 days depending on river levels).

From Caballococha, downstream Amazon River, 2 days by boat. Frontier with Colombia (Leticia) and Brazil (Tabatinga), located in the Amazonian trapeze.

Puerto Masusa, located in Avenida La Marina, 3 Km. north of Iquitos City, is where cargo and passenger boats leave from.

River Cruises

Distance from Iquitos to:

Yurimaguas (Province of Alto Amazonas) 388 Km (241 miles) / 4 days by boat.
Nauta (Province of Loreto) 115 Km (71 miles) / 2 hours by bus or 14 hours by boat.
Caballococha (Province of Mariscal Ramón Castilla) 311 Km (193 miles) / 2 days by boat.
Requena (Province of Requena) 157 Km (98 miles) / 19 hours by boat.
Contamana (Province of Ucayali) 431 Km (268 miles) / 3 days by boat.