Caiman, Pantanal

Perhaps best luxury location where you are guaranteed to see Jaguars in the wild. The experience provided during the stay was perfect and the staff experience was warm, exceptional and caring. Naturalist Natalie went beyond expectations to provide best experience in flora and fauna education, history and identification. Food served were tasty and met our dietary requirements and they made sure our stay was comfortable. It is a must see and stay location to view Jaguars, anteater, deer, multitude of birds, caimans and others.

Stayed here with 2 teenage grandchildren. Everything was 1st class. Thanks to our excellent field guide, Gabriel and driver Juliano. They worked hard to make sure we spotted the elusive jaguars, caimans, anteaters and other animals and those beautiful tropical birds. The food was fresh and delicious and we enjoyed 2 very special dinners. Would definitely recommend!

We stayed for four nights in March and were reluctant to leave - the lodge was just perfect for us.||||The setting is idyllic - be prepared for the drive off the main road which although in good condition, is bumpy and takes nearly an hour, but once there the reward is amazing.||||The staff are so welcoming and helpful, nothing was too much trouble - providing cream for mosquito bites and tape to mend my suitcase which had taken a hit near the wheel when it was thrown onto a broken conveyor belt.||||There are many different, beautifully styled communal siting areas both inside (with air con) and outside, where open fires are made for the evening when it gets dark, a gym , a swimming pool and a small gift shop. Our bedroom was large and spacious, the bed very comfortable and the bedding of the highest quality.||||Everything about our bedroom was explained on arrival - there were two thermos flasks which were re-filled every day with filtered water. There were two portable flasks (one each) which were a gift to us, which we used all the time on holiday, a branded material shoulder bag each which were also a gift to us, together with two beautifully carved small wooden birds (also a gift to take home as a memory) which had been placed either side of the bed.||||We went out early each morning in the dark for a safari and came back for breakfast and went out late afternoon in the warmth of the day with a breeze from the open air safari vehicles, coming back when it was dark for an evening meal. Lunch was also provided, together with hot drinks, fresh juice and soft drinks. Chargeable wine, spirits and cocktails are also served. All the meals are served in a dining room, the food is waiting for you to make your own selection and at every meal a member of staff explained what every food item was - as a person who is not particularly adventurous with food I don't recognise, I found this very helpful and enabled me to eat different foods!||||One evening after our safari there was a bbq which was held into an open, hacienda type building which had been set up for us, the tables looked beautiful. Meats were being cooked on an open fire and there was local musical entertainment all evening. The staff brought over our different wine bottles from the main Casa for our table, there was a welcome drink and hot flannels to wipe our face and hands. The evening was magical and when we were ready to go back, one of the safari jeeps took us on the short journey back to the main Casa Caiman lodge.||||The area is a wetland area and very hot too when we visited in March, so a high factor sun cream and a really good mosquito spray is absolutely necessary. Long leg trousers with a cuff on the bottom of the leg for the safari and consider yourself fortunate if you manage not to get bitten (it goes with the territory I think).

We had a wonderful three day stay at this lodge. Service, food and staff were excellent. Our guide, Gabriel and driver, Juliano were very knowledgeable and accommodating to our needs. Gabriel made sure we saw a jaguar which we sited on our last game drive.

I cannot praise this Lodge enough. We stayed 4 nights and I can only say that our experience was out of this world! I cannot recommend it highly enough.||Our accommodation was fabulous, we loved the lodge and the wildlife spotting with our lovely guide Luisa was exceptional. Her knowledge, passion and enthusiasm made for a memorable experience and we had 13 jaguar encounters plus ant eaters,tapirs,3 types of deer,capybaras,caimans,tarantula,2 types of snake,peccaries,rheas,macaws,toucan and many other fabulous birds.||We spent a day with the Oncafari team which was absolutely worth the money as we got to experience a research project in action as we observed the treating of a wound and collar replacement of a tranquillised jaguar.||The lodge is gruelling to get to. The transfer took 4 hours each way, including an hour on a dirt road but it is definitely worth it. We did not find the mosquitos a big problem except for one afternoon out in the trucks but nothing that repellent did not fix. I did find it better not to linger too long by the pool as there were some kind of small bugs. I wore long trousers and long sleeved shirts all the time but avoided getting any bites. We did not have a problem with bugs or mosquitos in our rooms.||I thought the decision to provide only buffet style meals meant the food was perhaps a bit limited but we always found something we liked to eat and the orange juice was out of this world.||The weather while we were there was hot and mostly dry with just one morning when it rained but we still had fantastic jaguar viewings even in the rain.||We saw a jaguar catching and eating a caiman, a mother and son catching and eating a capybara, a mother and daughter playing in a water hole,a mother and small cub both playing and resting, another jaguar sitting soaking in a water hole, another mother and small cub hiding in the bushes, the tranquillised jaguar, as well as sightings of jaguars sitting and walking. It was all wow!|Obviously as with any wildlife experience luck plays a part and patience is needed but our stay at Caiman Lodge really exceeded our expectations.

We loved our stay at Caiman! Luisa (spelling?) was a wonderful guide who is passionate about her work which we appreciated. We saw several jaguars and most animals known in the Pantanal. Yes, the mosquitoes are bad right now but I believe everyone should know that based upon the lodge’s location. The lodge has insect repellent and medication if you ask for it. We did not have mosquitoes in the room as some have commented, but we are also used to humidity and mosquitoes to some extent. Other than that; the food was amazing and our room could not have been better! We used the hotel recommended transportation service as well and they were wonderful.

Beyond disappointing experience. We are guest from Malaysia that decided to come in March based on the advice of the booking agent, PlanetaEXO who advised us that it was possible to see jaguars at the Caiman Pantanal lodge all year round. Based on their advice, we decided to come in March, not knowing that it was the 'low season' and harder to spot jaguars. We spent 4 days here and went on 6 safari trips and did not see any jaguars. Imagine my shock when I found out that we actually came in the 'low season' and if we came in the 'high season' between June to September, we could have easily spotted the jaguars. Coming to Brazil from Malaysia is not just an investment of money, but time and effort. It took us 2 days to fly into Campo Grande airport from Kuala Lumpur and another 3 hour car ride to get from the airport to the lodge. We had to take time off from work and made arrangements for family members to look after my elderly mother while we were away. What should have been a trip of a lifetime ended up with us not seeing any jaguars and me crying with my husband in the room on our last day after we figured out that we were misled by our tour agent. We could have easily came during the high season between June - September if we were advised honestly but unfortunately their lies pretty much ruined it. Extremely, extremely disappointing...

A top notch lodge with 5*+ staff who ALL care about the guests and the environment.|Good food and a very comfortable room.|It is a bit of a trek but you can take an air transfer if you budget permits which is easier.|Special mentions to our guide “Paula” and driver “Edson”|Bird watching guide “Vitinho” and his brother plus front of house host “Sai”.|Do go to see Oncafari and the Macaw project.|One word of warning this is the Pantanal and Mosquitoes live here, they bite ! Do not go if this upsets you.