Hacienda Mateo

Welcome to Paradise!

Do you want an authentic Amazon Jungle experience?

OUR FARM- The farm is 400m high in the Amazon Rainforest, in the foothills of the Andes, surrounded by wild jungle & other village farms. We have been here for 10 years. We are far away from the city and enjoy fresh air, water, and tranquility. A great place for star gazing! There are many rare birds, butterflies and wild animals in the surrounding jungle. We have dogs, cats and chickens.
We practice organic farming. We have a tree nursery and reforestation project, some (stingless) bee keeping and chickens. We produce coconut oil (not every week) and natural products, soap, insect repellent, etc here as well.
We make woven products from platano trees, ceramics plates, cups, and bowls etc.
We have been here for over 10 years. In that time natural healing methods have always been important to us. We have met many natural healers, and have discovered a way of eating and drinking that has made remarkable improvements in our quality of life, and many others as well. If you are interested, we can share this with you while you are here.

-WHAT YOU CAN DO HERE-
We try to provide a warm communal environment for our volunteers, where you can have memorable experiences.
You will have one of two shared rooms, 3 meals a day which is a collaborative affair in the kitchen. We are deep in the jungle and we always try to chose natural and local food sources for health, sustainability and at times a lack of availability. For many of our Worldpackers cooking together to make creative meals is one of their favorite experiences while here.
We usually have pizza night once a week made in our own pizza oven.
We also have sushi night once a week.
Working hours are only 5 hours a day, 5 days a week. On your time off, there is 1000 meters of riverfront with cascades where you can sunbathe, wild swim etc, and great hiking right on the property as well as other natural wonders close by. Stay in shape with our daily group wourkouts. You can go for a hike in the forest right here, play football or volleyball in one of our 2 native communities within a 25 minute walk from here, or go for a shorter walk to visit some of our friendly neighbors farms.
If you are interested, we may even arrange for you to help teach English at a local native high-school, in your free time. We often make a trip into the city usually on the week-end. We can plan some trips to the local natural attractions here in the Amazon, and check out the night-life for whoever is up for it. Whatever, your preference is I'm sure we can point you in the right direction.
We are currently developing an Ecological community housing project. You may be able to help with tree planting, tree nursery, gardening, coconut oil production, construction, etc. Just ask us what tasks are most likely to be ongoing during your time here. It's not very rigid, so sometimes you can participate in the activities you are more interested in.
We have a really wide variety of things to do. We're not just looking for helpers but also people to share this beautiful place and experience with. We have an incredible river with cascades on the property that we are developing as one of our main tourist attractions. We are currently building a Hostel, coming soon!
I'm a native english speaker from Canada, and our workers are local Peruvians, almost all volunteers speak decent enough English and Spanish so you will experience the best of both worlds.
If you want to see everything from the Amazon jungle, eco-construction, deeper cultural interactions with the locals, to producing coconut oil you came to the right place. Ask us and we can let you know which activities should be possible during the time you are here.

See our instagram: blackjaguarhostel
Coming soon!

Disclaimer: We have travelers from all over the world. Naturally the language that almost everyone will have in common is english. If you can't understand or speak English you may feel left out at times.

Hacienda Mateo is a very small operation.
We are located in an isolated rural community.
It is very dificult to get things done here.
Everything we have achieved in over 10 years, involved being very adaptive to the local culture and environment. We take every day as it comes. Tasks on any given day is dependent on the weather, who shows up for work, and priorities on that day.
If you need an organized stay, with your days planned well in advance then we are not for you.
Our workers have responsibilities towards their own farms, and often don't show up when scheduled.
Technicians often don't repair things correctly, or on time.
This is why we have learned to adapt to the reality here in the rural Amazon.

There is no malaria or yellow fever here at Hacienda Mateo or in this entire Province and Region.

A message on personal safety.

Many people have a misconception of the level of violence in Latin America.
As a person born and raised in Canada, living and traveling in Latin America for over 10 years, I always feel secure here in general and particularly in Lamas, Peru.

Peru has it's hot spots, but Miraflores and San Isidro for example are generally the safest parts of the city of Lima.

Tarapoto is one of the safest bigger jungle cities you will find in Latin America.

Lamas, which is just 25 minutes from Tarapoto is beautiful and even more safe than Tarapoto.

After speaking with hundreds of male and female solo travelers the most common problem is having a pickpocket take your cellphone usually in a disco or on your way back to the Hostel at 3am.

Travelers generally have the common sense to:
Avoid dangerous areas (hot spots).
Not wear expensive jewelry.
Travel in groups when possible.
Uber in cities with higher levels of violence.
Be aware of Tinder scams.
Not bring anything you don’t want to lose, if you might get drunk while out.

If you stick to the established areas that travelers go to in Latin America, and follow the advice of those that live there, you will rarely have major problems even in the dangerous cities

-HOW TO GET HERE:
It's easy and safe to get here.
We are located 30 minutes past the city of Lamas, in San Martin Peru. Lamas is 25 minutes outside of Tarapoto. We are 55 minutes away from the airport.

We have trusted contacts
that will help bring you as close as possible then walk with you to our gate for the last several hundred meters.

To get from Lima to Tarapoto by air, we would recommend Star Peru ( https://starperu.com/es ) The flight is 55 minutes.

By bus we would recommend Civa or Movil Tours/Bus. They are the largest bus operators in this region and have new and clean buses. The ride should be about 23 hours.
We will give you clear instructions on getting here from Tarapoto, the biggest city in the region less than an hour away from our farm.

Our volunteers are diverse, from all over the world who usually have English and some Spanish as a common language. We usually have groups of 4 to 8 volunteers who get to know eachother personally, forming strong connections. Oftentimes future travel partners are met here.
We are located in an isolated rural Amazonian community.
Transpotation to and from here needs to be planned and coordinated in advance.

Feel free to ask me about anything. I check my Worldpackers inbox daily.

Current projects:
Coconut oil production (not every week)

Soap making

Crafts from sustainably available materials

Hostel and Eco-lodge project

Reforestation project

Food forest

Ceramics

How is all of this even possible?

This project has been made possible through the inspiration of Jesus Christ.
This project has been made possible by approaching problems with an open heart and a positive attitude, while looking for mutually beneficial solutions for everyone involved including the earth itself.


If you are coming here with positive energy, and want to help us achieve our dreams, we hope to see you soon.

Best wishes.

I am a native english speaker from Canada, and I've been living here in Peru for several years. Our workers are local Peruvians. However, oftentimes they don't come to work. Everyone that comes should expect to be treated as a welcomed member of the family.