Today I read an article in which the author was talking about how she uses AI to help to make all of her travel decisions. I can see where that could be possible as far as commodities, such as flights, hotels and day tours. AI can help to choose the cheapest flights or ones with the best schedule. It can help to choose the best hotels for you, based on location, star ratings, etc. These are all facts that are fed into data streams.
But can it help to choose which Amazon jungle lodge will give you the best experience?
But can it help to choose which Amazon jungle lodge will give you the best experience?
The internet is full of lodge websites, full of pretty pictures of the lodge and of plants and animals. But a good jungle experience is all about the guides at the lodge. You want to be with somebody that can find the animals, one who can impart their knowledge about plants and animals, one you feel comfortable and safe with.
Years ago I asked a friend of mine who owns a lodge if he was familiar with a new lodge I had heard about. He said "oh yes, that's probably the most beautiful lodge in the area - but their guides are all guides who were fired from other lodges."
Years ago I asked a friend of mine who owns a lodge if he was familiar with a new lodge I had heard about. He said "oh yes, that's probably the most beautiful lodge in the area - but their guides are all guides who were fired from other lodges."
There was a guide in Peru who was one of the most famous guides in the Amazon. Several documentaries about him were made. He was born in the jungle, was trained in jungle survival by the Army and led tourists on jungle survival trips. But alcohol got to him and he became unreliable, so top lodges would not hire him any more. Alcoholism is a big problem in the Amazon and it gets a lot of guides in trouble. - that is not mentioned on websites.
On a recent trip in Peru, I was talking with a guide who had also spent time working in the Brazilian Amazon and the Pantanal, during his 20+ years of guiding, so he was able to tell us about the differences between the environments and the flora and fauna, which helped to enrich the experience.
Several years ago in Ecuador, I was talking with a guide about various Ecuadorian lodges. He said he used to work at one of the ones that I mentioned, but he left because the lodge was in an area where the local indians still hunted, so visitors did not see many animals when they came to stay. - the lodge website does not mention that. Good guides get as much enjoyment at spotting animals as the tourists do, so he felt like it wasn't as much fun for him as it could be and he felt bad for his guests because people come to the Amazon to see animals.
So, for the best Amazon jungle experience, I suggest that you communicate with a real person and not just Alexa or Siri, or any other AI bot.
On a recent trip in Peru, I was talking with a guide who had also spent time working in the Brazilian Amazon and the Pantanal, during his 20+ years of guiding, so he was able to tell us about the differences between the environments and the flora and fauna, which helped to enrich the experience.
Several years ago in Ecuador, I was talking with a guide about various Ecuadorian lodges. He said he used to work at one of the ones that I mentioned, but he left because the lodge was in an area where the local indians still hunted, so visitors did not see many animals when they came to stay. - the lodge website does not mention that. Good guides get as much enjoyment at spotting animals as the tourists do, so he felt like it wasn't as much fun for him as it could be and he felt bad for his guests because people come to the Amazon to see animals.
So, for the best Amazon jungle experience, I suggest that you communicate with a real person and not just Alexa or Siri, or any other AI bot.
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