Iquitos, Peru

Riding on a tuk tuk to the bus station in Nauta

Iquitos, Peru is a throwback to another time! There are very few cars in the town even though the town has almost 500,000 people. Instead, they use a vehicle called a tuk tuk. These are similar to the tuk tuks you see in Thailand, but different.
What struck me was how the streets look with no cars and just tuk tuks.

Plaza de Armas in Iquitos

Iquitos is on the Amazon river and the humidity and heat runs high. However, it's a town so no wild animals running around. Though we did hear a nasty cat fight overnight from our hotel.
Be sure to find a hotel with air conditioning. If you can find one with a pool, then you will be super happy.
Hotels are pretty cheap and basic. Most people just stay here overnight while waiting for a flight to/from Lima or shuttle to take them to the jungle.
We found a hotel on Booking.com and got 10% cash back.

Tuk tuks are front riders instead of side riders like in Southeast Asia

View of the Amazon from the main street in Iquitos

 There are some side trips to do while in Iquitos - a butterfly farm and a stingray feeding area. We did not partake in any of these and instead just chose to walk around, eat a meal and visit a local supermarket.
The market had a hot meal area inside where you could have bought a meal for cheap. We opted for some snacks and drinks from the market instead.
Bottom line, Iquitos is not a destination, but if you have a stop over, there are some options.