Apart from his possibly unparalleled knowledge of San Rafael birdlife, and his unbelieveable eagle-eye for spotting birds and ear for identifying them by call, we really appreciated Alberto's attention to... read more detail in many other aspects: for instance, provinging us with Paraguayan foods and dishes while catering to our dietary requirements; providing towels for when we stayed at a lodge which didn't provide them; and ensuring we'd be able to charge our devises when electricity supply at the lodge was uncertain. From the very beginning Alberto worked with us to plan a trip which matched what we wanted to do and see. High recommended!

  I truly cannot recommend Wildlife Paraguay enough.
My boyfriend and I went on a 12-day tour with Wildlife Paraguay through the Chaco and Pantanal in July 2021. We were... read more so happy with the quality of our tour, the brilliance of our guides, the level of service provided by Alberto to tailor the tour to what we were interested in, and the above-and-beyond help to monitor COVID travel protocols before, during and after our trip. The stops on our tour were Laguna Capitan, Chaco Lodge, Bahia Negra, Tres Gigantes, Chavoreca, Defensores del Chaco, Teniente Enciso and Filadelfia, each of which provided unique ecological characteristics and many animal sightings. Wildlife Paraguay also provided a fantastic bike tour of Asuncion, which was a great way to start our visit to Paraguay (more info on this at the end of the review).

The staff of Wildlife Paraguay are scientists who have years of experience researching the ecology and wildlife of Paraguay and therefore have expansive knowledge of the species, ecosystems and ongoing studies in the regions where they provide tours. It was fantastic to have a guide (Nico) who was able to provide a breadth of information about the places we were traveling and the animals around us. While we were interested seeing the large mammals associated with northern Paraguay, we were also very interested in the birds. Luckily for us, Nico could identify nearly every bird species by sight/ call and showed us how to locate and interpret animal tracks. While we didn’t see a jaguar, we did spot jaguar tracks and saw many other animals, such as ocelots, giant river otters, rheas, capybara, caiman, foxes, howler monkeys and koati.

Each of the locations we stayed in had distinct characteristics and we felt that every new stop was unique and interesting. To maximize our opportunities to see wildlife, we went on three walks nearly every day – one at sunrise, one in the afternoon and one at night. Each of these was a great adventure and we saw unique birds and mammals in each location.

In the Pantanal, there were three trails through the forest (designed by one of the Wildlife Paraguay guides!) and lookout towers, which provided many opportunities to see the diverse wildlife of the Pantanal. We also were able to go kayaking in the river to get another perspective on this amazing ecosystem. When it was hot, we hooked up our hammocks and took a nap under the palms.

We did a mixture of camping and staying in lodges/ hotels on our trip, which we thought was a good balance. Wildlife Paraguay provided a high-quality tent, air mattress and blankets for the camping nights and there were plenty of supplies for cooking by campfire. The food was very good, and they will tailor the meals to your preferences.

The COVID travel restrictions changed frequently before and during our trip to Paraguay, and Alberto was incredibly helpful in monitoring and fulfilling the requirements. Even after our tour was over, he kept us informed on everything we needed to know to travel to Brazil and back to Paraguay and helped us fill out the required forms. We were amazed by how helpful and kind he was throughout the trip.

To be honest, our tour with Wildlife Paraguay almost inspired me to change careers and become a biologist. Nico is such a passionate scientist who inspired us to carefully study the environment around us throughout the tour and ask questions about why things are the way they are. Alberto and Rebeca are equally brilliant. They are the ideal group to provide tours of Paraguay. Above all else, they are really great people who will remain friends long after our tour!
One last thing - Alberto created a biking tour of Asuncion, led by Nico (our guide), which was a great way to travel through the city to explore different landmarks and neighborhoods. Nico provided a fantastic overview of the history, politics, culture, and ecology of the city and took us to a local market to get our first taste of Paraguayan food. I highly recommend this tour for anyone seeking to get a better understanding of Asuncion, greater history of Paraguay, and a good workout!

I was so impressed by our experience with Wildlife Paraguay and would recommend it 10000x over because of the level of organization, quality of the tour locations and accommodations, amount of wildlife and overall excellence of the guides.

  A phenomenal day traveling the Chaco with Dr. Alberto Esquivel. He is a delightful man and truly an expert in his field of study. His knowledge of the wildlife in... read more Paraguay is amazing. My birding tour was a gift from my wife. I was so fortunate to have Alberto as my guide. It was a one on one magical day. He picked me up at our hotel early in the morning. He is so easy to talk to and so very knowledgeable of the country and it's wildlife. Midway in the morning he stopped his vehicle in the shade of some trees and served a great breakfast. He provided a folding table and a couple of chairs for us to enjoy a really good breakfast. It was a wonderful day thanks to Alberto. I learned so very much about the area and the wildlife. I have some fantastic bird photos from that day. Even if you are not a "birder" this is a tour anyone can enjoy. Thank you Alberto!