Delfin Amazon Cruises

Story

Founded in 2006, Delfin Amazon Cruises pioneers luxury river cruising in the Peruvian Amazon and becomes the world's first Relais & Châteaux cruise company. For nearly two decades, Delfin Amazon Cruises leads you into the heart of the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, the largest protected flooded forest on Earth, where deep navigation knowledge, resilient operations, and lasting partnerships with local communities and conservation organizations shape every journey. Family-led and independent, the company remains committed to authentic, small-scale cruising aboard intimate vessels built in Iquitos by local artisans using sustainably sourced materials. Every voyage connects you with the Amazon through local naturalist guides, refined hospitality, Amazon-inspired gastronomy, and immersive experiences that celebrate the region's extraordinary biodiversity, culture, and traditions.

Mission

Delfin Amazon Cruises invites you to believe in wonder again by offering an intimate encounter with the Peruvian Amazon. You explore one of the world's most ecologically complex and culturally rich regions aboard elegant, small-scale vessels designed to reflect the Amazon itself. Local guides, personalized service, storytelling cuisine, and authentic Amazonian experiences bring you closer to the rainforest, its wildlife, and its people. Through long-term partnerships with conservation organizations, regenerative initiatives, and sustained support for local artisan communities, Delfin Amazon Cruises ensures every journey contributes to protecting biodiversity, preserving culture, and strengthening the region's future.

Vision

Delfin Amazon Cruises strives to redefine luxury through authenticity, connection, and a true sense of place. You experience the Amazon as the central focus—not simply a backdrop—while traveling responsibly with respect for nature, local communities, and cultural heritage. By continuing to innovate through conservation, regeneration, sustainable design, and immersive hospitality, Delfin Amazon Cruises aims to preserve the Amazon's extraordinary landscapes and traditions while creating meaningful journeys that inspire you to slow down, explore with intention, and experience the rainforest at its most authentic.

Delfin Amazon Cruises believes the Amazon requires more than reducing environmental impact—it requires active care. As you travel through the Peruvian Amazon, you support a long-term commitment to restoring biodiversity, strengthening local communities, and protecting the cultural heritage that defines the region.

Since 2006, Delfin Amazon Cruises has operated exclusively in the Peruvian Amazon, honoring both the rainforest and the communities that call it home. Vessels are built in the docks of Iquitos, decisions are guided by the river, and partnerships remain rooted in the territory. This commitment embraces biocultural regeneration, restoring biodiversity while preserving the ancestral wisdom that sustains Amazonian life. Four guiding pillars shape every initiative: planning and operations, community empowerment, biodiversity and cultural conservation, and climate action.

In July 2025, Delfin Amazon Cruises launched BioRest, its flagship biocultural restoration program along the Marañón River in collaboration with the communities of San Francisco, Amazonas, and Puerto Prado. Three community agreements support the program, with 18 participating families restoring a 172-hectare corridor through the planting of 1,680 native plants. By 2026, more than 3,000 trees and shrubs will be planted. BioRest also integrates agroforestry systems, ethnobotanical gardens, community field schools, and the recovery of traditional plant knowledge, connecting biodiversity conservation with social well-being and economic resilience.

You also contribute to scientific research while exploring the Amazon. Delfin Amazon Cruises partners with ProDelphinus to study Amazon river dolphins, while guides and guests participate as citizen scientists by submitting wildlife observations to SERNANP and international databases such as eBird and iNaturalist. Ongoing bird and botanical inventories support BioRest, and butterfly research in Puerto Prado helps expand scientific understanding of the region's biodiversity.

To reduce environmental impact, Delfin Amazon Cruises launched its Carbon Footprint Program in 2025 to measure and manage greenhouse gas emissions across hospitality, logistics, and river operations. Using the My Impact platform aligned with the Relais & Châteaux framework and IPCC methodology, the company establishes a decarbonization baseline that supports Peru's national climate commitments. Current goals include eliminating single-use plastics by mid-2026, reducing emissions per guest-night by 20% by 2030, optimizing water treatment systems, diverting up to 40% of organic waste through composting, and maintaining recycling partnerships with local municipalities for glass, plastics, and metals.

Culture remains a living part of every journey. Delfin Amazon Cruises builds long-term relationships with river communities based on reciprocity, working closely with women's artisan associations that transform chambira fiber into handcrafted products sold onboard. These partnerships provide fair and sustainable income while preserving ancestral craftsmanship. Guides and crew share Amazonian stories, myths, and traditions through authentic cultural interpretation, while ongoing training in environmental education, citizen science, and cultural interpretation strengthens every guest experience. Crew members also receive certification in safeguarding children and vulnerable adults, reinforcing a commitment to every community served.

Dining onboard reflects the same philosophy of restoration and connection. In 2025, 80% of ingredients came from regional producers, including Amazonian specialties such as paiche, camu camu, and aguaje. Future plans include incorporating crops grown through the BioRest program, creating a direct connection between ecological restoration and culinary experiences.

Delfin Amazon Cruises also invests in the people who make each voyage possible. Ninety-nine percent of the team is Peruvian, with most employees coming from the Loreto region, while approximately 30% of leadership positions are held by women. Respect, continuous learning, and well-being remain central to the company's culture.

Looking ahead, Delfin Amazon Cruises continues expanding biodiversity monitoring with SERNANP, ProDelphinus, and IIAP, growing BioRest through community nurseries, seed banks, and field schools, developing fair trade partnerships with artisan communities, and publishing measurable sustainability indicators aligned with international frameworks. Every voyage supports a living commitment guided by science, community, restoration, and long-term care for the Amazon.