All activities / Wildlife Safaris / Gran Chaco
Wildlife Safaris in Gran ChacoPY
Paraguay's vast dry-forest wilderness: South America's best mammal-watching after the Pantanal, with jaguar, tapir, giant anteater, and the Chacoan peccary found nowhere else.
Why here
The Paraguayan Chaco is widely assessed as South America's best mammal destination after the Brazilian Pantanal, and it is the only realistic place on earth to photograph the Chacoan peccary, a species science believed extinct until living animals turned up in this thornforest in 1975. Night drives produce jaguar, puma, tapir, and giant anteater; the endemic bird list includes the Chaco Big Six that draw listers from every continent. Defensores del Chaco, the country's largest national park, has almost no tourism infrastructure, which is precisely the point: you will not see another vehicle, ever.
Best months
May through September is the season: dry, cooler, with wildlife concentrated at water. October through March the Chaco runs 40 to 45 C and expeditions stand down. This is expedition photography, self-sufficient vehicles, long distances, basic lodging, and the tolerance matters more than the camera skills.
Getting there & around
Fly to Asuncion (ASU), then five to eight hours up the Trans-Chaco highway to Loma Plata or Filadelfia, and guided 4x4 only beyond. Tours run 10 to 12 days, small-group or by request; book three to six months ahead.
Skill levels: intermediate, advanced
Schools & guides (2)
Birding Ecotours
OutfitterAn international nature-tour operator running a 12-day Paraguay Chaco birds-and-wildlife expedition, dates by request.
Paraguay Birding & Nature Tours
GuideParaguay-based operator led by guide Oscar Rodriguez, running Chaco itineraries from two to ten days including custom photography tours, with fixed departures.