Gary with Large Peacock Bass
Amazon Peacock Bass Fishing - Brazil
Rio Negro - Flies or Lures
River Plate Anglers - Floating Cabins
Since 2002, the Brazilian authorities have granted River Plate Anglers exclusive entry permits to fish river systems that flow through Indian reserves and government preserves. Over the last two decades, River Plate has perfected the floating cabin system to fish the Amazon River for peacock bass. River Plate now offers 12 exclusive rivers. River Plate has earned and kept its Exclusive Entry Permits for more than 20 years by funding and implementing a variety of assistance programs for local communities and tribes, collectively called the Community Base Preservation Management Program (CBPMP).
Peacock Bass Fishing - Private Waters
Season: River Plate's season runs from June through February, which are low-water months in the Amazon Basin when 70 to 80% of the flooded jungle dries up, concentrating peacock bass to two to three percent of the area they usually inhabit.
The River Plate Advantage: Water Levels are key to fishing the Amazon. Rivers in the Amazon do not dry up at the same time. There are four distinct rainfall seasons/zones across the roughly 1,000-mile swath of the Amazon where most of the good peacock bass fishing occurs. River Plate has exclusive rights to fish 12 rivers. They are able to select the best water levels of their ten private rivers within a vast 1,000-mile wilderness. They have been watching and perfecting this system for years and have backup plans in case of rainfall anomalies.
The Floating Camp is moved 1-2 times per week.
12 Private Rivers in the Rio Negro System
Group Size: Eight anglers per camp and six fly-in safari floating River Trains.
Species: Peacock bass are the main attraction, but other hard-fighting species include the pacu, catfish, piranha, jacunda, pirarucu, bicuda, and more. Catfishing is popular in the evenings, and they have equipment you can use, but you'll need to find bait.
Peacock Bass: Their explosive topwater strike, combined with an astonishing ability to break heavy lines/leaders and straighten even stout saltwater hooks, makes peacock bass one of the most sought-after species in the Amazon basin. Peacock Bass are very territorial, which is why commercial or sportfishing can rapidly over-fish popular areas.
The Marmelos River reopened to fishing in 2017. River Plate has exclusive fishing rights to the Marmelos River (south of Manaus), fishing there from mid-July through August. Before this agreement, the Marmelos had not been fished in four years.
Uneuixi/Roçado Fishery - Click here to visit the page.
XL Peacock Bass - Flies or Lures
Typical Fishing Day:
6:30 a.m. - The staff will walk by your cabin to make sure you’re up.
7:00 a.m. - Breakfast is served.
9:00 a.m. - Your guide is ready to leave. You’ll fish the river and its adjacent lagoons. The floating cabins are moved twice during the week while you're out fishing to unfished areas.
Midday - You’ll return to the cabins for lunch and a nap or enjoy a BBQ on the beach and fish until late afternoon.
At about 5:00 p.m. - You'll return to camp. Relax in a chair in the river and wind down with a snack and a Brazilian Caipirinha - kai-purr-REEN-yah - cachaça, lime, and sugar.
9:00 p.m. Dinner is served.
The Fishing Program
Fishing Season: runs from June through February, which are low-water months in the Amazon Basin when 70 to 80% of the flooded jungle dries up, concentrating peacock bass to two to three percent of the area they usually inhabit.
Boats: 21 ft. all-welded aluminum shallow-draft bass tunnel boats with 40 HP outboard motors, trolling motor, high-back swivel seats, fishing platforms… and light enough to navigate the shallow sandbars. All packages are for two anglers per boat and guide. Most of their fisheries are narrow, well-defined rivers. It's almost impossible for the guides to get lost.
Guides: Carefully trained local guides are very familiar with the Amazon. They speak very little English. Many have guided with River Plate for over 15 years. You will have the same guide throughout the week.
Equipment: River Plate provides baitcasting and spin tackle, including heavy and mid-action TFO rods, Shimano reels, and all lures except jigs. Equipment is subject to a $100.00 loss or breakage fee.
Floating Mobile Cabins
Floating Cabins: During your trip, the floating cabins are moved one to two times per week to fresh, unfished waters.
These deluxe, shallow-draft floating cabins can bypass shallow water and sandbars. Mobility is key to exceptional peacock bass fishing. The floating cabins draw only four inches of water and navigate past shallow-water natural barriers.
The 12 x 15 ft. air-conditioned cabins provide comfort and style with 110 and 220 electricity and a private bathroom with a shower. Comfortable twin-size beds or queen-size beds for single or double occupancy. Their staff of 14 and a bilingual host offer personalized, hands-on attention. Free daily laundry service.
Communications: Satellite phone calls are $5.00 per minute. Starlink Wi-Fi will be available for the 2025 season.
24-hour 110 AC and Private Bathrooms
Chilled Wines, Ice-Cold Beer, Soft Drinks...
Meals: You'll have a cooked breakfast in the dining cabin. You'll take a packed lunch with you on the boat. Four-course dinners feature fresh fish, beef, or chicken with regional sides.
Alcohol: Chilled wines, ice-cold beer, soft drinks, and Brazilian-style margaritas are included.
Getting to the Floating Cabins:
Most guests fly from Miami to Manaus, Brazil, a five-hour flight. You’ll fly to Manaus on a Friday or Saturday, depending on your trip start. A River Plate representative will drive you to the Quality Hotel Manaus for your overnight stay, a 10 to 20-minute drive. You'll have an early breakfast at the hotel before departing at 6:00 to 6:30 a.m. for the floatplane flight to one of their six River Train camps. Flights vary from 45 minutes to two hours, depending on the river you'll fish. You'll unpack, attend a brief orientation, eat a quick lunch, and fish all afternoon.
The package includes one hotel night in Manaus and a roundtrip floatplane flight from Manaus to the cabins. All floatplane flights have a strictly enforced luggage weight limit of 15 kg or 33 pounds per person. Soft duffle bags with no rigid bottoms are required. You can leave your main luggage at the hotel in Manaus. The hotel staff can keep your luggage until you return from fishing.
Departure Day: After breakfast, you'll take a floatplane flight back to Manuas. The package also includes a day-use stay at the Quality Hotel on the final day before you fly home.
2024 and 2025 Rates
Season: June through February
Two anglers per boat and guide
7-nights and 6.5-days guided fishing:
(6 nights at camp and one hotel night in Manaus)
Two anglers per cabin $6,490.00 per person
One angler per cabin $6,990.00 per person
Rivers Fished:
July - August 2024: Marmelos River
September - October 2024: Matupiri and Igapo-Açu
September - December 2024: Lower Jufari and Xeruini
November - December 2024: Omero River
November 2024 - February 2025: Itapara River
January - February 2025: Upper Jufari and Kabori Rivers
Premium Fishery:
Rocado River - October - November:
$6,990.00 per person - double occupancy only.
5-nights and 4.5-days guided fishing:
(4 nights at camp and one hotel night in Manaus)
Two anglers per cabin $5,490.00 per person
One angler per cabin $5,990.00 per person
Rivers Fished:
July - August 2024: Marmelos River
September - October 2024: Matupiri and Igapo-Açu
September - December 2024: Lower Jufari and Xeruini
November - December: Omero River
November 2024 - February 2025: Itapara River
January - February 2025: Upper Jufari and Kabori Rivers
The Packages Include:
• All fishing in exclusive remote private rivers.
• Roundtrip floatplane flights between Manaus and camp
• One night at the Quality Hotel Manaus on arrival,
and a day room on departure day
• All necessary ground transfers in Manaus as per itinerary
• Floating cabin lodging
• All meals at Camp
• All beverages at Camp, including wine, beer, hard liquor, and bottled water
• Wi-Fi in Camp
• Daily laundry and maid service at Camp
• Guided fishing
• Use of baitcasting and spin tackle, including heavy &
mid-action TFO rods, Shimano reels, and all lures except jigs
• Fishing license
• Our 65-page eBook Fly-Fishing for Peacock Bass
by Larry and Guy Schoenborn
• All community fees and leases for private waters.
The Packages Do Not Include:
• International airfare to Manaus, and return• A Brazilian eVisa is required as of 04/10/2025
• Gratuities for guides and staff, $500 - $600 per person
• Fly-fishing outfits and flies
• Baitcasting jigs and catfishing rigs
• Satellite phone calls, $5 per minute
• Massages at Camp
• Food and beverages in Manaus
• Extra hotel nights
• Special airport transfers when not arriving/departing with the group
• Tours, shopping trips, and items of a personal nature
• Global Rescue
• Travel insurance
• Anything not mentioned under inclusions.
• Fishing with Larry adds a 2.5% convenience fee to all credit card transactions
A Typical Fishing Day:
7:00 a.m. – Breakfast is served.
Help yourself to fresh fruit, daily homemade muffins, pancakes, and eggs before you begin your day. You will definitely want to try one of their special foods, such as Tapioca crepes with coconut cream milk.
9:00 a.m. – Head out to the river. You and a fellow angler will join your assigned guide in a shallow-draft bass boat. Morning fishing usually runs 3 to 4 hours, but that’s adjustable according to your preference.
1:00 p.m. – Enjoy a traditional Amazonian peacock asado (BBQ) on the beach. If you want to stay out all day, enjoy a refreshing swim in pristine, friendly waters while the guides fire up the barbecue. Or, find a shady spot, stay in the boat, and enjoy delicious empanadas and sandwiches with homemade bread and more. Afterward, take a short nap in a hammock (no biting insects) or continue your refreshing swim. On the other hand, peacocks are often active in the middle of the day, so you might want to skip this free time and go fishing.
1:00 p.m. – Return to the River Train for a full meal and a short nap. Remember, you are never far from your River Train, which could even be moving on any given day in your direction.
5:00 p.m. – Enjoy fishing until early in the afternoon. On your return to camp, enjoy a professional massage for an added fee, or sit in the river in a chair with water up to your neck and wind down with a snack in one hand and a traditional Brazilian Caipirinha in the other. Recount the day’s events and swap stories with fellow anglers while parrots squawk overhead. Sunsets in the Amazon are often amazing.
9:00 p.m. – Dinner is served. Enjoy a variety of local foods, including traditional Brazilian dishes. Service is buffet-style. Go back for seconds. Or thirds if you are really hungry. End your evening on a high note by sipping a glass of wine on the sandbar outside your cabin. The silence is inspiring, and the absence of ambient light lets you see more stars than you ever imagined. Yes, that sound you just heard was a big peacock smashing bait somewhere out there in the dark. Time to rest up for tomorrow’s fishing!
Sample Itinerary for 6-day Package:
Friday: You'll fly from the U.S. to Manaus, Brazil. At the international airport, as you exit Customs, you'll be greeted by a staff member who will drive you to a four or five-star hotel for the night. (The package includes the hotel night upon arrival.)
Sunday: Breakfast at 6:00 a.m. At 7:00, you will be transported to your Cessna Caravan charter plane for the 90-minute flight to your safari camp, which is located on private Indian lands northwest of Manaus. You will settle in, have lunch and fish in the afternoon, and return to your floating cabin around 5:00 p.m. for dinner and the night.
Monday - Saturday: Breakfast at 6:00 a.m., departing for the day’s fishing at 7:00. You will return to camp around 5:00 p.m. for dinner and the night.
Sunday: Breakfast at 7:00 p.m. You will depart the camp on a Cessna Caravan charter around 9:30 a.m., arriving in Manaus around 11:00 a.m. Upon arrival, you will be driven to a hotel where
you will have a day room or transported directly to the international airport, depending on when your return flight departs to the U.S.
River Plate Angler's Policies:
Deposit Policy: A deposit of 50% per person is required to secure a fishing reservation. In case of a cancellation by the guest or agent, the deposit is forfeited in full unless a replacement is found by the agent. RPA has the right to fill the empty spots, and there will be no refunds of deposits and/or final payment to the agent; this event overrules the odd number prohibition, i.e., RPA accepts an odd number group, in this case, forfeits deposit of canceled reservation and holds the right to complete the group with another person. The final payment is due 90 days before departure.
Cancellation Policy: At this point, participants are responsible for total land costs, and no refund will be made unless a replacement is found by the agent (RPA has the right to fill the empty spots, and there will be no refunds of deposits and/or final payment to the agent nor of any unused portion of the land package). Receipt of the deposit and final payment by River Plate Anglers legal vehicles implies an acknowledgment that the issuer of payment has read and accepted the cancellation/refund and responsibility clause.
Fishing with Larry recommends Travel Insurance.
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