Santarem Brazil Amazon
55
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Crystal Cruises (10 Cruises)
Crystal Symphony
8 Cruises
Explora Journeys (12 Cruises)
Explora I
9 Cruises
Oceania Cruises (14 Cruises)
Regent Seven Seas Cruises (8 Cruises)
Silversea Cruises (3 Cruises)
Frequently Asked Questions
On the town's riverfront, halfway between Manaus and the Atlantic, in the state of Pará. A walk along the quays is enough to grasp the crossroads role the town has played for centuries.
The point where the silty, milky-coffee water of the Amazon runs alongside the dark clear water of the Tapajós for a startling distance without mixing. The liquid boundary is plainly visible from the ship's deck.
Alter do Chão takes forty-five minutes each way: it is feasible, but it fills the day. For a short call, the riverfront and Santarém's market make a satisfying alternative on foot.
A village set on the clear-water bank of the Tapajós, about thirty-five kilometres from Santarém. Facing the main square lies Ilha do Amor, a white sandbank ringed by clear water and reached by canoe in minutes.
Yes, in warm fresh water. The region has over a hundred kilometres of river beaches along the Tapajós. Their extent shifts with water levels: generous in the dry season, more modest when the rains raise the river.
Products many travellers meet for the first time: açaí, cupuaçu, cassava flours and fish of spectacular size. Woven hammocks and plant-fibre baskets make good souvenirs, light and durable.
Guided trails beneath the great trees of this protected reserve, where buttressed sumaúma trunks reach proportions that leave groups silent. Monkeys and birds announce themselves by sound more often than by sight; local guides read the forest like a book.
Sometimes. Amazon pink river dolphins surface along the boundary between the two currents, and boats often cross that line on the way back from Alter do Chão. Nothing is guaranteed, but the chance comes up regularly.
It was founded by the Portuguese in 1661, making it one of the oldest towns in the Amazon. Its riverfront still runs to the rhythm of two-deck wooden boats loading fruit, fish, hammocks and passengers for the riverside villages.
Yes. Swimming at Ilha do Amor is a hit with children, and locals come here on weekends with coolers and soccer balls. The forest hike suits school-age children better, because of the humid heat.
