Less than 1km north of the city center, this ethno-botanical park offers one- to two-hour guided tours (free with admission) of rainforest plants and indigenous dwellings, by mostly indigenous guides. The park is run by Shuar plant expert Teresa Shiki and her biologist husband, Chris Canaday, a font of knowledge about everything from jungle plants to ecological dry toilets. Teresa helped found and plant the park and prepares natural medicine.
Get here by following Loja north of town for about 300m until you reach a gas station on the left. Turn right and follow the road right to arrive at the park entrance, across a footbridge over the river and passed the El Jardín hotel. To return, a beautiful trail (called the paseo turístico ) continues past Omaere for 1.7km along the river to the Puyo–Tena road, where you can flag down a bus back to town every 20 minutes, or return along the trail.
