Jungle Clothes: Everything You Need for the Amazon Rainforest

For our trip to Guyana, we packed a mix of short sleeves and long sleeves. If we were re-doing it, I’d say ditch the shorts and short sleeves. Pack all long sleeve tops and long pants to protect yourself from aggressive insects and vegetation.

Opt for loose-fitting, breathable fabrics instead of anything too tight, since mosquitoes can bite through leggings or thin fabrics easily.

Yes – we were sweating out of every pore possible, 24 hours a day. One night we were excited to be in a hotel with enclosed walls… until we realized it was so stuffy we were sweating as we slept!

Also, long sleeves for the entire trip. We wore short sleeves and shorts once we left the jungle, to places like Kaieteur waterfall and Georgetown, but got attacked by mosquitoes!

Muted Colors

Muted earth tone colors are best to view wildlife. Guyana has some incredible birds, like the Harpy Eagle and colorful Cock of the Rock, in addition to giant river otters and jaguars, so you should absolutely plan on doing some safari drives!

Quick Dry Fabrics

Opt for quick dry fabrics from synthetic material; cotton when wet can take forever to dry and leave you feeling chilled and uncomfortable! Columbia makes some great quick dry synthetic pants that were comfortable and flattering.

Linen shirts are also great to pack – I picked up a bunch of rayon button down blouses from Uniqlo that were comfortable in the heat.

The Amazon jungle floor is often muddy after a rainstorm, with pools of murky mud water.

Bring a solid pair of waterproof hiking shoes. We loved Hoka One One. Their shoes are super comfortable right out of the box and incredibly lightweight!

Try to bring hiking boots that cover the ankle (but aren’t too heavy or bulky). While the Hoka One One boots took up a bit more space in my bag, they were incredibly light weight and comfortable to wear on even long uphill hikes!

Mosquitoes have a weird fetish for feet, ankles and wrists, so if you have short hiking shoes, wear your socks high and tuck your pants into them.

You can’t bring too many pairs of long, thick socks! Smartwool makes some great antimicrobial ones.

There’s nothing better than slipping out of hiking boots at the end of a long day.

We definitely recommend packing sandals with slip proof bottoms. Skip flip flops and pack sandals with straps, since you’ll want to wear socks with your shoes.

I brought this cute buckle pair from Everlane that was chic and comfy. The dark green suede straps matched all of my jungle outfits too!

Most of the accommodation in the jungle is quite basic, so I would also highly recommend “shower” flip-flops that you don’t mind getting dirty. I’ve had a pair from Old Navy for years that are inexpensive and classic.

Depending on the season, daily downpours can be common in the Amazon jungle.

Bring a lightweight rain jacket if you have one, or pick up an inexpensive rain poncho to throw in your daypack.

We love the Arc’teryx imber jackets, which are so light and breathable you can always make room for them and best of all, cover down to mid-thigh! They’re a bit more expensive, but the quality is unbeatable.

The rains in the Amazon also come without much warning!

For trips to the Amazon, our transportation consisted of tiny charter flights, canoes, jeeps and on foot.

A sturdy backpack or strong duffel bag like this one works well and then we also brought a small carry on suitcase for everything else.

We also relied on this small backpack from Arc’teryx for daily use. Some people brought Camelbaks as their day pack to stay hydrated!

Lastly, about a third of our trip was spent on the Amazon river, where a dry bag came in handy to keep our valuables safe and dry.

Double check that your flights don’t carry weight restrictions.

Since we were taking small planes (we often took Cessnas, which fit up to 13 people), we were limited to 40 pounds of luggage per person.

Mosquitoes in the Amazon are SO intense and we are the people who always get bit, so we didn’t skimp on insect repellent!

The U.S. CDC website warns travelers of yellow fever and malaria, so definitely bring bug spray. We went heavy-duty on the insect repellent, and brought clothing spray, bug spray, patches and essential oils.

Because of all this, we managed to make it through the jungle without a bite!

We used everything in liberal doses, so it’s hard to pinpoint which one product was the lifesaver, but I think probably the clothing treatment was most helpful.

It’s really easy to use, you just spray 3 ounces of it per item of clothing and it dries quite fast. Hang your clothes to air out in a well ventilated place for at least 24 hours before wearing. One bottle can treat 4 pieces of clothing.

Binoculars are essential for the Amazon.

The thick jungle and dense forest enables the animals to hide quite easily, so seeing anything without binoculars is pretty tough.

It’s a bit different from an African safari in that sense!

Some of the really cool wildlife in Guyana are giant anteaters, howler monkeys, jaguars and cougars. You can also find anacondas, grand caimans, giant otters and arapima along the river!

The Guyana shield is a mecca for wildlife.

We woke up to howler monkeys screeching from the rooftops of our lodges, were spied on by spider monkeys as we cruised down the Essequibo river and managed to track down a Jaguar at night.

The birds were colorful and breathtakingly beautiful as well. I’ve never thought bird spotting was all that interesting, but Guyana changed our minds!

From the harpy eagle (which looks photo shopped even in real life) to the brilliant blue herons which acted as our river tour guides, we were pretty amazed at what Guyana has to offer.

The one disappointment?

A couple other great items to pack are hand sanitizer, tissues and wet wipes. The eco lodges in the Amazon are quite basic and most don’t offer much besides soap.

Even still, the water can be pretty hard and the local soap can leave a tough-to-remove film, so if you have your own laundry detergent or body gel then I’d recommend packing that.

We also heavily relied on our own shampoo and conditioner to keep our hair looking as manageable as possible – although it still frizzed up into a poof ball.

Sun protection in the Amazon is a must, since you’re basically right on top of the Equator!

I had ordered a gorgeous sun hat but unfortunately it didn’t arrive in time for our trip, so I used this ugly but functional sun hat instead.

Try to get something that shield more of your face and neck than a regular baseball cap.

We also found these shemagh scarves really helpful for covering up our neck and chests! Basically, any accessory that helps to cover up skin is fantastic for the jungle.