I am not the most social of people, so I was hesitant about the homestay idea. If not done well, these can seem a little overly voyeuristic to me. But there’s no other way of spending the night actually out on Lake Titicaca, and we wanted to have a bit more immersive experience.
Thankfully, on the section of Amantani Island we visited, the homestays are a bit more like “guesthouses with a purpose.” There are individually-accessed rooms, a common dining area and a desire on the part of the owners to involve you as much as you’d like to be involved. You are welcome in the kitchen, to enjoy the grounds, explore the island on your own, or interact with the kids while the food is prepared. I was able to strike exactly the balance an introvert like myself might prefer.
After dinner, our guide took us on a nice hike to the top of the mountain on Amantani Island. Here sit two dualing peaks – Pachatata (“Father Earth”) and Pachamama (“Mother Earth”). The views from here are unrivaled. One can look west, back to the Peruvian countryside, Puno, Juliaca and the mountains in the distance. Or turn east and see the snow-covered high peaks of the Cordillera Real in Bolivia. Add to this the colors of a dramatic sunset, and it’s pretty amazing!
There were forty or so other travelers at the top of the peak with us, and they all left in a giant pack the moment the sun dipped below the horizon. But if my grandfather taught me anything, it was that the best part of a sunset can often happen after the sun disappears, so we stuck around. With the colors on those distant Bolivian peaks, the dramatic clouds back toward Peru, and the now near-silence at the top of the hill, it made for some of the best 30 minutes of our whole 2-week trip.
Amantani Island sunset (Kevin Moore) Amantani Island (Kevin Moore)
We've used Adventure Life for several trips in the past and have always been very pleased with them. The staff is personable and professional at the same time. Erin put this trip together for us in just a few days, and it has everything we were looking for! I recommend them without hesitation.
benn
1 month ago
I served as the person responsible for planning a trip to Galapagos and Machu Picchu for a group of 14 people. Jane with Adventure Life was very helpful throughout the process. Making suggestions, offering insight, and in the end helped me overhaul an initial plan into something even better. Also, Jane makes all the plans including the flights within and between Peru and Ecuador. Thanks to her this is going to be a stress-free adventure. After making the final decision about the trip, Jane gathered the contact information for all the travelers and sent out the details to each traveler individually with links to pay deposits, upload passport info, and personal preferences. She also ensured a group email was sent out to the entire group welcoming us to the trip preparation process. Our trip is a year from now and we are excited to make this once in a life time trek. I am happy to have organized things through Adventure Life. However, two small issues came up that were a little off putting. First, Adventure Life adds $50 per person to the cost for each traveler as a donation to a Galapagos conservation fund. I think this should he offered as something that can be added at each traveler’s discretion. Instead, it is automatically added, and each person must ask to have it removed if they do not want it included. Second, although the trip deposit may be paid with a credit card without incurring an additional fee, the balance must be paid in another way to avoid a 3% credit card fee. Maybe this is standard with all travel agencies. In the end I would definitely go through Adventure Life for the next big trip.
Brenda Nielsen
1 month ago
I think it was very helpful that Franny and I spoke on the phone. I think she had a better idea of what we were looking for, and she planned a great itinerary for us!
Elizabeth
2 months ago
My representative Kevin was very responsive generally and in crafting our itinerary to our specific priorities.
Rocco Labella
3 months ago
Easy.
Great work on the follow up and details by Waru.