Annnd we’re back….

Apologies for the four month hiatus, but we are back and fully committed to bring you all the recent news from the wonderful Bolivian Amazon destination of Rurrenabaque.  Just some quick news updates…

1) Rurrenabaque now has a facebook page!  Check it out and LIKE us!!

2) We continue our new adventures into social media with a Twitter account as well!  Follow US!

3) We also love to hear what you have to say about the businesses in our town.  Be it a delicious restaurant you ate at or an awesome tour.  We love to hear from you, so write about it on Trip Advisor!  Be it good or bad, we love feedback so we can constantly improve our destination.  Please check out Trip Advisor’s page for Rurrenabaque here!

4) Rurrenabaque is SOOOO close to launching its new website.  We apologize for the construction signs on the url… http://www.rurrenabaque.com.bo   It will be up soon, and its real pretty, we promise.

5) Rurrenabaque has evaluated 15 local tour operators and we now have 8 of them officially accepted into the Green Action Best Practices Program.  This program aims towork with local businesses to improve their ability to practice sustainable tourism (aka… no feeding wildlife, no hunting, definitely treating employees nicely, and absolutely improving safety and services for clients like youuuu readers!  Its a great thing, and the operators will be featured on the website.  It is our hope that with lots of goood positive reinforcement from travelers like yourselves that other businesses in Rurrenabaque will be inspired to participate.  Wanna know more about where we got out criteria to evaluate the businesses… go here.

Hope your travels or travel plans are going well everyone.  Remember, Rurrenabaque brings the Amazon right to your doorstep!

Rurrenabaque Restaurant Spotlight #5

This Spotlight is giving a shout out to a fun little bar with, in my opinion, the best pizza in town.  The Cafe Luna, located right in front of the Amaszonas Airlines office, is a fun ambience with your typical Rurre fare.  Cafe Luna has a great flat screen for watching sports when you are in town as well if there are any big matches you want to watch.  There is a pool table as well, and a book exchange for those of your looking for something a little more active (body and mind) during your visit.  

The menu as you will see, will offer you meat dishes such as the Hindu Chicken, Sweet and sour chicken, steak, rice, fries, etc… Its fairly normal bar fare for the destination, but the pizza is where its at.  The prices are a little more expensive on the pies (by around 50 cents american) but they are well worth it in my opinion.  The ambience is great and full of plants and a jungle feel.  There is even an open part, where you can sit under the stars and dine.  Luna Cafe is a great place to go chill after your adventures in the Bolivian Amazon.  

Its on the main drag, Calle Commercio, right across from the Amaszonas Airlines office.  

Rurrenabaque Tour Spotlight #4

Its been awhile since we have posted.  Apologies for the momentary lapse, but we are back and hope to continue blogging about Bolivia’s Amazon Adventure destination Rurrenabaque.  We wanted to review the tour operator Bala Tours for this tour spotlight.

Bala tours is a trailblazer in the Rurrenabaque sustainable tourism industry, that is actually becoming more and more popular as tourists become more conscious of the impact’s their tours are having on the destination.  Bala Tour’s owner, Alcides Santalla, has worked for many years as a tour operator in this region.  He saw the opportunity to do tourism differently and go after a different type of tourist demographic apart from the normal backpacker market that everyone else targeted.  He created Bala Tours and invested in higher quality infrastructure and services for his clients.

Bala Tours offers some of the best services and infrastructure Rurrenabaque operators have to offer.  Their most popular product is the Pampas tour, where their lodge is the only operating company that offers more private accommodations in the Pampas.  Delicious food and a private bathroom in your room allows your stay in the Pampas to be more enjoyable and private.  They also offer tours to their lodge within the Madidi National Park, where tourists can explore the jungles of the Bolivian Amazon.

The prices for this higher level service are around the middle of the price scale between San Miguel del Bala and Chalalan.  Tours will cost around 80 dollars a day, but include everything except alcoholic beverages.  Bala Tours is a great option for the Pampas if you are looking for a bit more quality during your stay.

You can find more information on Bala Tours at their website… www.balatours.com

You can book a tour or make inquiries here… http://www.balatours.com/contacto.htm

Rurrenabaque Restaurant Spotlight #4

This week’s restaurant spotlight features the delicious menu of the international chef Juliano, at… Julianos.  Julianos is a medeterranian/italian mix of wonderful large portioned plates that will fill you up just right.  The ambience is another wonderful thing about this restaurant as nice lighting and good music gives off a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere where you can sit and enjoy your meal with friends.

The service is something that sets this restaurant apart from the rest.  Their waiters actual wait on you, and Juliano always is out and about asking his guests if they are enjoying themselves and their food.

The cozy restaurant is located across from pimiento y canela (rurre restaurant spotlight #2) and just up from the corner where the flecha tours and jaguar tours are located.  It has a big sign out front so you cant miss it.

The Menu serves up delicious chicken (I recommend the tamarindo chicken), beef (try the thai beef plate, really good), fish (all the fish is great), and delicious pasta dishes.  They have ice cold beer and great juices as well.

The price usually goes around 40 bolivianos per plate, and the portions are big and have delicious baked potatoes (not fries) and vegetables in the side.

 

 

Rurrenabaque Tour Spotlight #3

Tour Spotlight time.  Thinking about what tour to take on your trip to the Bolivian Amazon.  Let this blog guide you with great up to date information on tours and prices.  This weeks Tour spotlight will move away from those community tourism businesses and direct some attention to the small private sector businesses that exist in Rurrenabaque.

There are over 20 operators in town that will be competing for your hard earned money.  As you know, in life, you get what you pay for, so if you are looking for a budget operator (which there are plenty of), expect to sleep in a crowded dorm with below par mattresses and mosquito nets.  This blog tends to look for the more quality operators, and likes to promote those operators who are also participating in a certification program that improves both the services of the operator and the environmental awareness of their operations.

Today’s spotlight goes to Mashaquipe (Ma-sha-kii-pay).  This operator is ran by retired Madidi National Park rangers, so you know they have a vast amount of knowledge on the jungle.  They also offer pampas, which, I must admit, I havent addressed too many tour operators who offer this popular product yet.  There will be much more to come, I promise.

Masahaquipe offers 3 day/2 night tours to the jungle and pampas.  They specialize in Jungle tours and have their own lodge inside the Madidi National park.

They also offer expeditions/trekking into the jungle for 8 to 10 days if you are the adventurous type.

I think what makes these guys unique is their willingness to adapt and change their business to better suit the needs of today’s tourist.  They are pioneers in the trekking model for jungle trips, and are extremely flexible in terms of creating your own experience.

The prices range from 40 dollars (shared rooms) per day- 50 dollars (private rooms) per day for their jungle tour (these are as of December 2010).  The pampas tour is competitive pricing with all the other agencies who offer it, which is around 700 bolivianos for the 3 day/2 night tour.

They have a website that has some pretty good info (in spanish only) at http://www.mashaquipe.com/

Rurrenabaque Restaurant Spotlight #3

Like many small tourism towns, there are always a few gems of restaraunts that are worth checking out and never really mentioned in the guidebooks.  The restaurat featured in this week’s spotlight for Rurrenabaque does not exactly fit that description.  La Perla de Rurrenabaque is a delicous spot to eat, do not get me wrong.  Yet, it is also one of the more established restaurants in the area, and this blog is here to tell you that the hype is all relatively true.  La Perla de Rurrenabaque (The Pearl of Rurrenabaque) offers large portions at reasonable prices.

The space is great, with lots of outdoor dining, and the service is actually pretty good relatively speaking.  The beers are always cold, and the menu offers a wide variety of rurrenabaque classic dishes.  The music is great, and the ambience takes you back to another time.

This is the place to be if you are looking to experience the bounty of the Beni river.  Their fish dishes are their strong point, especially if you are into garlic.  They have an amazing “pescado al ajillo” (fish in garlic sauce), that is served piping hot and deliciously marinated in the truly delicious garlic sauce, which you can mix in with the rice and vegetables they serve along with it.

The menu offers a wide variety of options and the prices range from 30-40 bolivianos per dish.

Rurrenabaque Tour Spotlight #2

This weeks Tour Spotlight will focus on our friends at San Miguel del Bala.  In terms of infrastructure these guys have almost rivaled Chalalan, and they’re service continues to improve as well.  San Miguel del Bala is another Tacana community owned and operated lodge, and has been in operation for a little over five years.

San Miguel del Bala offers its clients anywhere from a full day cultural exchange tour to a fully immersed 5 day/4 night adventure in the jungle.  They have two lodges, the first one is a short 45 minute boat ride up the Beni River.  You will stay in lovely private cabins with private baths, and eat right alongside the river for all your meals.  The first lodge offers many cultural activities such as visiting the community of San Miguel and going on an old hunting trail learning how they used to trap animals.

The second lodge is located deep inside the Madidi National Park, and offers San Miguel del Bala’s clients an opportunity to explore the forest.

Price: $75US/day (2 person minimum)   $65US/day- for a full day

Whats included:

• Guide
• All meals (organic and local)
• River Transportation
• Lodging
• Towels!!
• Bottled Water

Whats not Included:

• Entrance fee to Madidi National Park  (125 Bolivianos)
• All alcoholic beverages and sodas

Check out their website at www.sanmigueldelbala.com

Promo Video for your viewing pleasure below

Rurrenabaque Restaurant Spotlight #2

Sorry for the long hiatus, but we are finally back online here at the official Rurrenabaque blog.

We shall commence this blog anew with an update on our restaurant spotlight, which will be the second installment of this mini-series in the search for legit local cuisine that is neither pizza or pasta (which is Rurre’s response to food that tourists like).  Today’s restaurant spotlight goes to Pimiento y Canela (Pepper and Cinnamon).  This little lunch stop is located right across from Julianos, a block up from the Flecha Tours office on the right.

Sadly, it only serves lunch 6 days a week (closed sunday), but offers some of the best options for a set menu lunch in Bolivia.  Vegetarian dishes are always available (and good), as the owner and head chef, Marcela, offers her clients a delectable blend of traditional Bolivian dishes with flavor visits from Asia, Italy, and Mexico (no Bolivian food has nothing to do with Mexican food).

Go see Marcela for a delicious lunch for a ridiculously cheap price.  14 Bolivianos with soup  12 Bolivianos with only the main plate.  Juice included

Blockades lifted in Rurrenabaque

All transportation is flowing freely into Rurrenabaque again after 5 days of road blockades, with some days of airport blockades as well.  Come on down!!!

Rurrenabaque Tour Spotlight #1

Rurrenabaque has almost 20 tour operators in town, offering a variety of activities from zip lining, to pampas tours, to exploring the jungles of Madidi.  This blog will recognize those operators who are working to conserve the amazing natural resources of the amazing Bolivian Amazon through a certification program that evaluates an operator’s business practices.  This program, called Authentic Rurrenabaque, will develop the destination’s image as a place where tourism is used as a way not only to fuel the local economy, but conserve the region’s amazing natural resources for generations to come.

This week’s spotlight will discuss Chalalan Lodge.  Chalalan, is an obvious way to start these installments.  It is the most well known lodge in this region, with its international sustainable tourism awards, and wonderful website (www.chalalan.com), Chalalan is an amazing example of how tourism can truly benefit the people and the place.  With their offices in La Paz and Rurrenabaque, potenial clients have many booking options (see website for more details).

Here is the downlow…

The Experience: Private Bathrooms, Private cabins alongside the famous Chalalan Lagoon, where you will be a welcomed guest as you explore Madidi’s majesty as well as the wonderful cultural interactions with the Tacana community of San Jose de Uchupiamonas, who own and operate the lodge.  Your adventure deep into the Madidi National park will leave you with a new found appreciation for just how amazing he amazon is as well as the indigenous people who have lived there for generations.

Whats included in the price- Price includes

-Reception and transfer from/to airport in Rurrenabaque
-Air ticket reservation service
-One night accommodation in tourist class hotel in Rurrenabaque.
-Comfortable motor boats from Rurrenabaque to the Chalalán Ecolodge and back
-Accommodation in traditional cabins at the Ecolodge.
-Bottled mineral water during your stay at the lodge accord to the program
-All meals at Chalalán
-Bilingual local guide service (Spanish – English)
-Different guided activities in Chalalán area

Depending on the itinerary and the class of accomodation you would like, the prices range from 105-120 $USD a day.