General Tour Information
ENTERING BRAZIL: A passport and visa are required for Americans traveling to Brazil for any purpose. Non-US citizens should check with their Brazilian Embassy to determine current visa requirements. Brazilian visas can be obtained in advance from the Brazilian Embassy, 3009 Whitehaven St. N.W., Washington, D.C., 20008; telephone (202) 238-2818, e-mail consular@brasilemb.org, or from a visa service such as CIBT.
MAP AND COUNTRY INFORMATION: You can view maps of Brazil in the University of Texas series here. Click on the lower right of the map to adjust size. You can review the U.S. Department of State background notes on Brazil here.
HEALTH: The CDC currently recommends vaccination or other protection against Hepatitis A or immune globulin (IG); typhoid; yellow fever; and as needed, booster doses for tetanus-diphtheria and measles. The CDC recommends malaria prophylaxis for some areas we visit on the Mato Grosso tour, although our local contact there states that the risk for malaria is low in the area. You can review the latest CDC advisories here.
CLIMATE: July is an excellent month to visit this area of Brazil as it is the end of the dry season. Although rain is possible and occasionally storms blow in from the South Atlantic, the weather is typically hot in the Pantanal with occasional cool mornings. We can expect hot, humid weather at Alta Floresta. Though not usual, cold, foggy conditions can occur at Chapada at this time of year.
PACE OF TOUR AND DAILY ROUTINE: We’ll start early most days (5-6 a.m.) so as to be out in the field for the first few hours of the day when birds are most active. We will normally have very early breakfasts at our lodging. While at Cristalino Lodge we will return each day for lunch and a siesta, venturing out into the field again in mid/late-afternoon. Whenever possible we will schedule optional birding trips so as to give those who wish the opportunity to take a few hours off to relax. Most trails at Cristalino Lodge and in the Pantanal are flat and well maintained but may have numerous exposed roots and rocks. One trail we walk is quite steep for about 1/2 kilometer and requires a moderate level of fitness. Although we walk at a slow pace on rainforest trails, we will bird for five or six hours at a time on most mornings. Be aware that you will not be able to return to the lodge on your own if you become tired. If there are walks you do not feel you are able to do, there is excellent birding around the grounds of all of our hotels and lodges.
ALTITUDE: Locations visited during this tour are at low elevations, from Sea Level to about 1,000 feet.
ACCOMMODATION: We’ll be staying in good quality hotels or lodges throughout the tour. All rooms will have a private shower and toilet. The hotel in the Pantanal is on a working ranch and is a bit more basic. The rooms here are smaller than in some of the other hotels we’ll be staying at, but do still have private bathrooms. Accommodation in Rio Cristalino Lodge is in bungalows with private facilities. Electricity is provided through a generator and is available for a few hours daily.
DRESS: Dress will be informal throughout the tour. The Brazilian people tend to dress up, especially when going out to dinner, so shorts are not appropriate in hotel restaurants in the evenings except in the lodges in the Pantanal.
TRANSPORT: During the tour we’ll travel in a variety of vehicles including motorized boats. When we use more than one vehicle, there will always be a leader in each. Many of the roads used will not be paved, so be prepared for some dust.
SMOKING: Smoking is not allowed in the vehicles or when the group is gathered for meals, checklists etc. If you are sharing a room with a non-smoker, please do not smoke in the room. If you smoke in the field, we ask that you do so well away and downwind from the group.
If any lodge, accommodation or location where the group is staying or is gathered has a more restrictive smoking policy than WINGS’ policy, the more restrictive policy will prevail.
GENERAL INFORMATION & CONDITIONS OF WINGS TOURS: Please take a moment to read the WINGS General Information & Conditions. This section contains important information about how we conduct tours, e.g., what is included in the tour price, refund and cancellation policies, pace of the tours and other information that will help you prepare for the tour.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: A more complete General Information for Tours to Brazil will be sent to each registrant on receipt of their booking. Final information with instructions for meeting the group, hotel addresses, etc., will be mailed about three weeks before trip departure. Other news will be communicated as necessary.
Updated: February 2008