Tour 4: Day trips to the Indians9 days/8 nights from/to Cuiabá - possible from May to November2 persons minimum, 10 persons maximum
Join us on an adventure of a slightly different kind: Become a part of an unknown culture and meet one of the last remaining Brazilian Indian tribes in the “Parque Indigena do Xingu” and in the reservation of the Xavantes Indians in the state of Mato Grosso. Visit the people of the Jacare , who are part of the Xingu tribe, and the Etenhiritipa, who belong to the Xavantes Indians. They live protected by the FUNAI agency (National Indian Foundation) and have the right to use their land as they wish, forbidding entrance to whoever has not been invited by the tribe. As a participant in this tour you of course have such an invitation, along with the unique chance to experience life as a native Brazilian first-hand. A large part of the travel price will go to the Indian community for making this project possible, for the purpose of a "gentle tourism". It will be paid directly to the tribe's chief. We are the first travel business worldwide to get permission to visit the indigenous peoples in the Xingu national park. In early March 2010 we visited the reservation of the Xavantes and Xingu Indians (Parque Indigenas do Xingu). After hard negotiations, we received all the documents necessary from the Brazilian Indian agency (FUNAI) as well as from the authorities in Canarana, Mato Grosso.
This programme is an abbreviated, combined version of Tour 1 and Tour 2 of our Indian tours. You do not spend the night in the Indian village, instead you only visit them on a day trip (all-day tour).
1st day: Arrival in Cuiabá -
Transfer to the Hotel Golden Tulip PantanalUpon your arrival at the
airport in Cuiabá our tour guide picks you up and takes you to the Hotel Golden Tulip Pantanal in Cuiabá. Here you move to your room and have some
rest, relax by the small swimming pool or get ready for the impending
tour at the bar. Right next to the hotel there is the best barbecue
place in Cuiabá, the Churrascaria Gauchó, where you can eat to your
heart's content and enjoy the Rodizio typical to the Mato Grosso (they
are closed on Mondays). If your time of arrival at the airport allows
it, and if you wish it, our guide will go on a short city tour in Cuiabá
with you (not included in the price). The rest of the afternoon/evening
is free. Dinner not included.
2nd day: Cuiabá - Barra
do Garças - Araguaia Park-Hotel (1 night)
After breakfast at 8.00 am drive from Cuiabá to Barro do Garças (about
420 km), located by Rio Araguaia. During the slightly tiring and
exhausting ride you experience the diversity of the federal state of
Mato Grosso, and you get an idea of the vastness of the country. You
pass by countless corn and soy fields, eucalyptus plantations, cattle
herds and sesame fields in the direction of Campo Verde and Primaverde
do Leste, all the way to Barra do Garças. On the road opportunity for
lunch or break at a local restaurant respectively.
Approximately 53,500 people live in Barra do Garças. Here you spend the night at the Araguaia Park Hotel, situated directly by the Rio Araguaia. Due to the bad road conditions with many potholes and some extreme traffic, you should be prepared for a few delays and an exhausting drive. Depending on arrival time there will be a short tour offered for sightseeing in the town of Barra do Garças. Dinner at a local restaurant in Barra do Garças (not included). Overnight stay at the Araguaia Park Hotel, including breakfast.
3rd day:
Barra do Garças - Canarana - Hotel Raios de Sol (1 night)
In the next morning we drive to Canarana after breakfast (about 350 km),
a small town with roughly 22,000 inhabitants, which will be the
starting point for your visit to the Xavantes Indians. Canarana has a
tropical climate and was founded in 1975 to cultivate the land and
to allow farmers from the south-east of Brazil to settle here. The town
is close to the Xingu national park (Parque Indigene do Xingu), located
in the south-east.
30 years ago everything in this area was covered with Amazon rainforest. Now the forest is gone and everywhere soy and corn are grown. Lunch on the way to Canarana at a local restaurant in Nova Xavantina. Dinner in Canarana (not included) and overnight stay at the Hotel Raios do Sol, located in the center of Canarana.
4th day: Canarana -
Aldeia EtenhiritipaAfter breakfast at the
Hotel Raios do Sol you go to a supermarket with your tour guide to buy
the food and water you will need during the next 4 days. Afterwards you
pick up our cook and go to Matinha (about 55 km), a small village with
few houses that isn't charted on any map. Matinha is located on the
border to the indigenous territory. From here you drive for about 35 km
on non-asphalt road to the village of the Xavante Indians. It has been
agreed upon with the villagers that you will not be accommodated
directly in the village, but about 100 m away from the houses in a
bamboo-thatched cabin (without walls). It is of traditional build and
was erected specifically for visitors. You spend the night in the
hammocks or sleeping bags you brought with you; the toilet and shower
are very crude and not up to European standards, which is of course to
be expected out here, far from civilisation. During your stay a cook will prepare all meals according to Brazilian recipes. Besides rice and beans there will be meat, fish, fruit and vegetables on the menu. You also get an opportunity to eat dinner according to indigenous tradition with the Indians. On the first evening the village elders will welcome you and invite you to a first visit to their village; dinner will be served near your cabin.
During your stay in the Indian village you will get to know the rich culture of the Xavantes Indians. Part of it is the interpretation of dreams as an important factor of their everyday life. This means that the day's activities are planned in the early morning according to the dreams dreamt the night before. You can take a bath in a river close to the village or go fishing with the natives. You accompany the Indians to their work on the fields (rice, manioc etc.) and thus get to know the everyday life of the Xavantes. With a little bit of luck you may even get invited to a bow and arrow hunt. Hikes into the village and its surroundings allow you an intimate glimpse into an utterly different way of life, one that is closely linked with the Indians' natural environment. You experience the savannah landscape and go on hikes up into the Serra do Roncador, you partake in village celebrations, go fishing and learn the traditional way to cultivate crops, always accompanied by an indigenous villager and by your tour guide (Pedro Paulo).
You go back to Canarana and spend the rest of the day in the town. The night you spend at the Hotel Raios do Sol. |
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During your stay a cook will prepare all meals according to a Brazilian recipe. Besides rice and beans there will be meat, fish, fruit and vegetables on the menu. You will also get an opportunity to eat dinner according to indigenous tradition with the Indians (only on their invitation, can not be guaranteed).
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5th - 6th day: Aldeia Jacare - Canarana
In the late afternoon you fly back to Canarana and spend the remainder of the evening in the town. You spend the night at the Hotel Raios do Sol.6th - 7th day: Barra do Garças (1 night)
After breakfast you go to Barra do Garças. On the way you have lunch at a local restaurant. Arrival in Barra do Garças in the afternoon, opportunity for a tour of the town. The rest of the afternoon is free. You spend the night at the Araguaia Park Hotel.7th - 9th day: Barra do Garças - Chapada dos Guimarães (2 nights)
After breakfast you go from Barra do Garças to Chapada dos Guimarães, where you will spend two nights at the Pousada do Parque. Here you can relax in peace and process the experiences of the past few days. During a hike through the highland you get an opportunity to take a bath under one of the many waterfalls. The hike lasts about 3 hours, so a certain stamina is required (not mandatory). Dinner at a local restaurant in Chapada dos Guimarães.In the next morning visit to the national park and the reservation in the environment of the Pousada do Parque. Trip to the cave of Casa de Pedra (with an underground river), view from Morro de São Jerônimo; hike through the mesas with their many small waterfalls and a stunning view. Return to the pousada and dinner at a local restaurant in Chapada.
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9th day: Chapada dos Guimarães - Cuiabá
Depending on departure time transfer to the airport in Cuiabá, on request there will be further tours in Chapada dos Guimarães offered in the morning.Route map
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What you should take with you:
Sleeping bag or hammock, toilet paper, soap, shampoo, mosquito repellent, sunglasses, headgear, swimming gear, towels, hiking shoes, torch or flashlight (please dispose of empty batteries at home), light clothing, warm clothing for cooler nights (it gets considerably colder in the evenings and at night), bedcover or sheet and all personal items. Jaundice inoculation is mandatory. You should be in good health and not have any contagious illnesses. A malaria prophylaxis is not required. Please remember to bring a bag for your garbage, which you have to take back to Canarana with you. |
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The Indians, especially the children are always happy about small presents. The giving of a gift from guest to host plays a very important role in the Indian culture (used clothes, sweets, chocolate, small toys, torches, hats, sunglasses, crayons, paper for drawing, ball pens, pencils etc.).
The Indians also expect you to buy souvenirs in the village (products of Indian craftsmanship) to help support them (you should budget about 50 – 70 euros for this). This is part of the Indian mentality and has nothing to do with "ripping off tourists”, which is common in the big cities. The Xingu Indians in particular are known for their brisk trade.
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Prices apiece:
| Tour 4: Day trips |
2 persons |
3-4 persons |
5-6 persons |
|---|---|---|---|
9 days/8 night | 2695,00 € | 2575,00 € | 2465,00
€ |
| single room premium | 600,00 € | 8 nights at | the Hotel |
The following performances are included in our prices:
Transfer airport Cuiabá – Hotel Golden Tulip Pantanal – airport CuiabáTransfer Cuiabá - Canarana - Chapada dos Guimarães - Cuiabá in an air-conditioned vehicle
Transfer Canarana - Aldeia Jacare (Xingu Indian village) by airplane (round trip)
Transfer Canarana - Aldeia Etenhiritipa (Xavantes Indian village) by vehicle (round trip)
1 overnight stay at the Hotel Golden Tulip Pantanal in Cuiabá including breakfast
2 overnight stops at the Araguaia Park Hotel in Barra do Garças including breakfast
3 overnight stays at the Hotel Raios do Sol in Canarana including breakfast
Drinking water on all trips
Food, drinking water and cook during your stay in the Indian village
2 overnight stays at the Pousada do Parque in Chapada dos Guimarães including breakfast and lunch. If the Pousada do Parque is fully booked (there are only 8 rooms available), we will rebook to the Hotel Turismo in Chapada
All tours described above
24-hour support by English-speaking tour guide (Pedro Paulo), as well as the representative of the Jacare Indians (Xingu) and the local guide Paulo in the Indian village of the Xavantes
Not included are:
Other beverages, tips and personal expenses. Lunch and dinner at local restaurants in Barra do Garças, Canarana und Nova Xavantinas, as described above, dinner in Chapada dos Guimarães.Get more information about the tours and booking:
TERRA Discovery Tours
Tel. +49 (0) 23 04 95 37 87
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Aldeia Jacare
This village is located approximately 298 km (GPS distance) from Canarana, in the midst of the “Parque Indigena do Xingu”. Here live about 320 members of the tribe of the Jacare (Xinguanas). The villagers live mostly on fishing and the cultivation of rice and manioc. While the Indians have contact to civilisation they still continue to preserve and live their culture, customs and traditions. Transfer to the village is only possible by plane and depends on the weather.Etenhiritipa Village
The village with its 360 inhabitants has only had contact with the outside world for about 60 years. It is located on indigenous land in the district of Canarana, federal state Mato Grosso. The language is Xavante. You spend the night in a simple cabin, in a hammock or sleeping bag. |
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Note:
Please follow the instructions of both the local tour guide and ours. Never go anywhere alone. It is strictly prohibited to bring alcoholic beverages to the Indian reservation! Before the start of the tour you will receive a declaration of commitment that you have to return to us. We also need your complete data such as birth date, address, profession, passport number, vaccination card and a certificate from your doctor, attesting that you have no contagious diseases.All prices are assuming that the basic political and economic conditions in Brazil do not change until the start of this tour. Due to exchange rate fluctuation and continually rising gas prices, price changes are reserved.
Programme changes due to bad weather and other factors that we have no influence on remain reserved. The transfer from Canarana to the Indian village via airplane is weather-dependent and may have to be postponed. This can cause waiting periods (in that case you will be provided with food and beverages at the airport in Canarana). There is also a bathroom here. However, please do not worry, this is just a reminder of a situation that may arise; we just want you to be prepared. Until today, all transfers via plane were conducted without any major delays.
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