Visiting Manaus with kids is a great destination to explore the beautiful Amazon region of South America. Manaus is located in the north of Brazil and from here you can get great access to nature. It is the capital of the state of Amazonas and was a very rich city in the 19th century due to the rubber industry. You can certainly still see elements of this in the city. You can go on several organized tours in Manaus with the family and in this blog we will give you all the information for visiting Manaus and the Amazon with kids.
Best travel time Manaus with kids
Manaus has a tropical rain climate, where it is often very hot in the city. Because of this, it is always above 30 degrees on average, which can take some getting used to, especially with kids. It rains often in Manaus, and sometimes you are unlucky enough to find it raining all day in the city.
If you want the best chance of having dry weather in the city, June through August does represent the best travel time to visit Manaus with kids. Then you have the least chance of rain.
Transportation to and in Manaus
The city of Manaus is located in the middle of the jungle, making it not a city that is easy to visit while touring Brazil with kids. It is best to fly to Manaus from major cities in Brazil. Because it is not super easy to get to Manaus with the family, we would spend several days in the city.
With kids on a tour of Brazil, you don’t want to feel like you have to rush all the time. Therefore, it’s fine to spend a day acclimatizing in Manaus and then take a tour to the Amazon for a few days. Then you end up back in Manaus to fly on to the next destination. Therefore, you quickly spend 5 days at this special destination in Brazil.
The city of Manaus
In the city itself, there are not super many children’s activities. You can still see some of the city’s prosperous history in the city. For example, the city’s theater is fun to take a look inside. We also only spent one day in the city itself and did a small tour here, but to recover from the trip, this is definitely fine.
In addition, near the city you can go to a special phenomenon and that is Encontro dos Aguas. Here, the black water of the Rio Negro and the brown water of the Amazon flow side by side for miles without mixing. We also viewed this by boat and it is fun to see, but again not extremely special. You go to Manaus primarily to visit the Amazon with kids.
Amazon with kids
You can book several tours to the Amazon from Manaus. The shortest tours are only one day and if you want to see a little more of the Amazon, you can also go to this area for four days.
One-day Amazon tour: on this tour you will depart from the hotel in Manaus to Lake Castanho (travel time 1 hour) and continue into the area in a motorized canoe (travel time 2 hours). You can spot the pink river dolphin in the water here and also swim with it.
We ourselves have swum in the water with these dolphins in the Amazon in Bolivia. Here we played with a bottle in the water and the dolphins came up to us very curiously. We thought it was a very special experience at the time that these dolphins lived here in the middle of the jungle.
Then you will have lunch in the jungle and can fish for piranhas. We ourselves have done this in the rainforest of Suriname and we were surprised how easily the locals can fish that way with a simple fishing line with something like a chicken bone attached. Towards the end of the day, you will then also go in search of alligators that also swim in this area.
This way you will definitely get to experience something of the Amazon. For more information on this day-long tour, take a look here.
Multi-day tours: in addition to a one-day tour, you can also book multi-day tours in Manaus to the Amazon. Then you basically do the first day the same as the one-day tour, only you stay overnight in the Amazon. You will then go on a hike through the jungle on day 2 and you can also meet the local people in this area.
So you are going to take several boat trips in the area and, of course, you will have a great chance of spotting different animals such as monkeys and lots of different birds. You’ll take it a lot slower with the family on a multi-day tour and you’ll be in the Amazon a lot longer.
So you can swim in the water here, even though we found it a little scary after we saw and piranhas and alligators. Still, spending the night in the Amazon is a lot of fun and, of course, quite an experience for kids. For more information on a multi-day tour to the Amazon, take a look here.
Practical tips for families
If you are visiting the Amazon with kids, there are a few things to consider. We list them briefly below.
- Malaria: malaria is prevalent in the Amazon region and therefore your kids may need to take malaria pills. A number of vaccinations are also recommended for kids, for Yellow Fever, Typhoid fever and Hepatitis A and B, for example. Therefore, before your trip, always be well informed about what you all need to visit the area and take your preparation measures in time.
- Mosquitoes: not only can the mosquitoes in the Amazon carry malaria, but it’s just irritating when you get stung. So be sure to bring plenty of mosquito spray if you’re traveling to Manaus with kids. You will definitely need those in this area. Of course, it is also possible to buy this in a big city like Manaus. We also brought our own mosquito net, but we hardly ever used it.
- Clothing: even though it is hot in the Amazon, covering clothes can come in handy for all kinds of insects you may encounter here. You should also be sure to bring closed shoes. If you go on tours then this is also mandatory. You never know what you might encounter in terms of animals. So be sure to check beforehand to see what you all need to wear when you book a tour. Usually the tour organization will indicate that.
Family-friendly hotel Manaus
You can stay in Manaus with kids just fine. You have several family-friendly hotels in Manaus that you can book. We list the best-reviewed accommodations for different price ranges. Click on the blue link for more information!
Budget accommodation: Hostel Manaus
Mid-range accommodation: Novotel Manaus
Luxury accommodation: Juma Ópera Boutique Hotel & Spa
For a list of all family-friendly accommodations in Manaus, take a look here.
