Violent crime against tourists in Manaus is highly uncommon. However, avoid robbery by avoiding crowded or deserted places. From 5-7AM and 7-8PM, the buses are packed with people going to and from work, so avoid public transportation during this time. Pick-pocketing takes many forms: it could be a well-dressed teenager on a crowded bus, or 2 middle-aged women pretending to look at wooden spoons in the market. Avoid the east zone, it has a really bad reputation in Manaus for being dangerous
Be very careful of other drivers, because of the bad traffic in the city they drive for a long time to reach their destination (thus very fast).
Do not buy tours from people at the airport or on the street in Manaus. Not only are you likely to get ripped off, you will never get your money back. The best guides are hired by the best companies; the best shysters don’t work for the best companies. If you don’t want to book a tour before arriving and want to book a tour in Manaus use a reputable published guidebook first or just look for the official tourist information center (CAT), they'll help you out and even make free calls if required. Tour companies are relatively easy to find in downtown Manaus and many will meet you at no charge.
The tour companies (even the ones in Lonely Planet) tend to trick the tourists sometimes, they ask you "may I do the reservation?" if you say yes and later cancel they will want to charge you 25%. It is not legal unless they let you know about it and make you sign something, so remain alert. Ask other tour operators to check prices. Do not believe agents who claim to work in partnership. It's also not true. Prices vary, so take your time to search.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Manaus
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Manaus - updated Apr 2024
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Manaus Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
