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Dancers in the Puno, Peru's Candelaria Festival

Peru Travel: February Welcomes the Virgin of Candelaria Festival in Puno, Peru

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmPXyQkbyX8] Starting early next week, the city of Puno, Peru is transformed for the Virgin of Candelaria Festival. Thousands of dancers and musicians fill the streets with sounds and fantastic costumes to fill the senses. The Virgin of Candelaria is the patron saint of Puno; this festival honors the saint with one of the regions most celebrated and elaborate festivals, bringing together two major Andean cultures: the Quechuas from the [...]

 

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One of Easter Islands' famous Moai: LAN airlines offers new ways of traveling to Easter Island from Lima, Peru

LAN Airlines New Direct Flights Make Custom Trips Easier and More Affordable

UPDATE 10/28/10: As of Oct 28 (interestingly enough one day after I posted this article) LAN announced flights from Lima to Iguazu will now go through Foz do Iguazu International Airport (IGU, Brazil) replacing the original published operation from LIM-IGR in Argentina. Still totally doable — but now many travelers (including US travelers) will be required to purchase a visa for Brazil. LAN airlines recently announced new direct flights from [...]

 

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Alex with Adventure Life travelers, DeAnne and Simon Phillips, on the Cachiccata Trek in Peru

Meet Adventure Life Peru Guide, Alex Vereau

Some of our Peru travelers have already had a chance to meet Alex, one of our Peru guides. For those who have not it’s my pleasure to give a brief introduction. The Particulars: Alex has worked as a guide in Peru for the last 13 years — primarily leading trekking and cultural tours in Peru to some of most sought-after destinations in the region. Born in Lima, he spent his [...]

 

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Machu Picchu ruins in Peru - Photo by John Keller

Update on Travel to Machu Picchu and the Cusco Region

We have updated information regarding the re-opening of access to Machu Picchu and Machu Picchu Town (also called Aguas Calientes). Following up on our blog post from earlier this month — there are changes to the original schedule that may affect your upcoming Peru trip. The short version: The damage on the lengthy, “backroad route” was greater than originally predicted, and the anticipated Feb. 22 re-open date of Machu Picchu [...]

 

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The Inca ruins of Machu Picchu, hidden in the Peruvian Andes

Peru Mudslides Affect the Railway. What This Means for Your Trip

UPDATE: As of Feb. 22, 2010, there are changes to the original schedule regarding re-opening access to Machu Picchu. Click here for details. Many of you are familiar with the heavy rainfall that hit southern Peru at the end of January. Peru is no stranger to such downpours, but this season the rainfall that hit the region, flooded the Vilcanota and Urumbama river and caused mudslides that made headlines for [...]

 

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Local Peruvian women selling medicinal plants

Cusco Witches Market: From Charms to Chicha

Traveler, M.J. Holliday, shares her experiences at the bustling and sometimes bizarre witches’ market, in Cusco, Peru. By M.J. Holliday Five hundred years ago, the Inca empire flourished in South America. At its center was the Sacred Valley of the Incas, and the capital city of Cusco, Peru. The Inca were farmers, scientists, engineers and astronomers. When Fransisco Pizarro arrived with the Spanish armies in the sixteenth century, Inca medicine [...]

 

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Lost city of the Incas was not a true city

Lost city of the Incas was not a true city

MSNBC has a great article on Machu Picchu. An excerpt is below. Follow this link for the full story! Machu Picchu may have been less of a city, than a spiritual destination for the Inca. New research argues the ceremonial path into the city was conceived as a replica of the path followed by the first Incas in cosmological myth.

 

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Hiking Peru's Classic Inca Trail

Inca Trail Trekking: About and how-tos

      My husband, Aaron, and I trekked the Inca Trail last July. We work and play in the Montana Rockies, so we are no strangers to trekking beautiful mountain ranges. But the Andes and the Inca Trail are truly in a league or their own. The historic ruins and rich culture are as captivating as the incredible landscape. Another fellow Inca-Trail-trekker, Doug Klostermann, shares his Inca Trail experiences [...]

 

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Sally light-foot crab and wildlife viewing tours in the Galapagos

Swine Flu Concerns in Central and South America

Based on reports from the World Health Organization as of May 8, 2009, there are few confirmed cases of swine flu in Central and South America in two countries that Adventure Life visits.  Presently, there is one confirmed case in Costa Rica as well as Guatemala. Safety and security of our travelers is of the highest priority, and Adventure Life will continue to monitor the global swine flu situation.  We [...]

 

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and learn about its origins, production, and recipes at a historic tavern in Lima

A Taste of Peru

What better way of learning about a new place and culture is there than by sitting around a table to share a meal and enjoy some new flavors?  Studying a place’s culinary history helps uncover the relationship between food and culture and the many stories that are passed on through generations.  And Peru is full of legends and traditions. Peruvian cuisine has hit the headlines recently in many culinary magazines, [...]