When travelling into the rainforest, it’s best to travel light. Your intrepid journey into the jungle is likely to include light aircraft, pick-up truck, motorised canoe, your own two feet and traditional dugout canoe- so leaving the majority of your luggage in a locker in the land of civilisation and taking the bare minimum comes highly recommended. It also adds to the sense of jungle exploration if all you have is your backpack and your wits.
Packing light when you don’t know quite what to expect can be stressful. Therefore, drawing on experience, Steppes has created our Top Packing Tips for Trips into the Rainforest (3 nights)
Clothing:
– 2 pairs of light trousers (zip off ones are a genius invention, try to get your hands on a pair)
– Lots of socks (these will get damp. Nothing worse than putting on damp socks)
– 1 top per day and one top to save for the evenings (loose cotton shirts are coolest, nothing that clings)
– 2 pairs of pants per day (one pair for before and one pair for after your pm shower)
– Swimsuit (some lodges allow swimming, this is such a refreshing experience, otherwise it’s nice to sunbathe between outings into the wild)
– Hat (preferably an explorer style one)
– Flip flops/sandals for around the lodge
– Closed walking shoes for transfers in and out that don’t mind getting a tad muddy (trainers are fine) – as soon as you arrive the lodge will give you some wellies
– Yoga clothes if staying in a lodge with an instructor (nothing more tranquil than a yoga class overlooking a perfectly still lake)
– A light waterproof mac or poncho in case of sudden downpours
Other:
– Sun-cream (VITAL. When venturing up towers to gaze over the top of the rainforest canopy you need to be protected from the sun)
– Sunglasses (see above)
– Camera and charger (you’ll want photographic evidence that you spotted that sloth/ red and green macaw/ giant otter/ howler monkey)
– Tiger Balm (acts as a decent mosquito repellent, bite relief and after-sun in one tiny pot- perfect for light packing)
– Binoculars (these are an excellent thing to have, so you can help your guides do the spotting)
Don’t forget when packing for your overall holiday to include a bag to put all this in. The above will fit into a normal sized rucksack, which will come in handy as a general day pack too. Don’t forget to roll clothes rather than fold them and you’ll be away. Let the adventure begin…
