Hotel Pantanal Norte

viewing wildlife from boats on the river

Hotel Pantanal Norte sits at Porto Jofre, at the very end of the Transpantaneira, on the banks of the Cuiabá River. It is the largest and longest-established of the Porto Jofre lodges, adapted over the years from its origins as a fishing hotel into a full ecotourism base.

The scale shows in the layout: dining is split across three rooms in one building, spaces feel more hotel-like than lodge-like, and the pace at busy times is brisk rather than leisurely. The pool is medium-sized with reasonable views, but the overall feel is functional rather than characterful. This suits guests who see the hotel primarily as a base for the river rather than somewhere to linger between safaris.

In the early season (June), the hotel can share its grounds with domestic Brazilian fishing groups alongside safari guests. In practice this has not caused problems on our visits, but it is worth knowing about in advance.

The floating jetty here is larger than at the smaller lodges nearby, with boats heading out in several directions at once each morning. With a private guide and boat, this makes no difference once out on the water.

Rooms

Rooms are functional rather than characterful, in a mix of original river-facing rooms and more recently finished rooms further back; river access is the reason to stay here, not the room itself.

Room : x36 : river-facing or garden-facing, air-conditioned, a mix of original and more recently finished rooms

Activities

Hotel Pantanal Norte provides the following guided activities, with two river safaris a day included in the room rate:

• Motorboat safari

Direct river access here sits in the highest-density jaguar viewing area anywhere in the world, and this working, high-volume base does the essential job well rather than aiming for a boutique stay. We always use a private guide and boat here rather than a shared lodge boat.