Explora Journeys in Santarem (Pará)

Santarem sits where the clear blue-green Tapajos River meets the silt-brown Amazon, a port city founded by the Portuguese in 1661 and one of the oldest in the Brazilian Amazon. The headline sight is the Meeting of the Waters, where the two rivers run side by side for kilometers without fully mixing, visible from the ship and up close by small boat. It is also the gateway to Alter do Chao, a white-sand river beach often called the Caribbean of the Amazon.

What to do on a day in Santarem (Pará)

• Meeting of the Waters: the line where the dark Tapajos and the muddy Amazon run side by side without blending, best seen by small boat right off the city, with a chance of pink river dolphins
• Alter do Chao: a white-sand Tapajos beach village about 38 km from Santarem (roughly 40 minutes by road), with the Ilha do Amor sandbar reachable by a short boat hop
• Mercado Municipal and the riverfront markets: stalls of Amazonian fish, fruit, and handicrafts along the waterfront
• The riverfront promenade (Orla) and the blue-painted Catedral Nossa Senhora da Conceicao in the historic center
• Tapajos National Forest (FLONA): protected rainforest with giant sumauma trees and wildlife, reachable as a guided day trip that should be booked ahead

Getting ashore

Ships either dock at the downtown pier or anchor and tender, depending on cargo traffic, with the city center about 2 to 3 km from the landing and a shuttle usually provided. One day works well for either the Meeting of the Waters by boat or a run out to Alter do Chao, but not both at leisure, so pick your lane before you land.

When to book the ship's excursion vs your own →

Weather and when to visit

• November to December (Grand Journeys Amazon calls). Typically hot and humid, highs around 31-33 C, humidity often above 80 percent. November is near the end of the lower-water dry season; December opens the rainier high-water months, so expect short heavy showers building through the period.