Machu Picchu CelebrationsAfter ravaging a grand breakfast buffet in our hotel, we headed back across the street to board our flight to Cusco. Cusco is steeped with incredible amounts of intact heritage, and sitting at 11,500 feet above sea level, is one of the highest cities in the world. For a city that is isolated in the Andes, it has more sprawl and is larger than one would expect, with a population of about 400,000. The descending flight into Cusco gives passengers the impression that they're approaching a city absent of most modern amenities. This couldn't be further from the truth. Despite the fact that this city looks quite run down from the air, it has the ability to impress even the most seasoned and discerning traveller.
We were greeted by our smiling driver who was holding a sign as we exited the airport - he knew us by name even before we had the chance to introduce ourselves (nice touch Adventure Life!). He kindly helped us with our bags and assisted us in getting a cup of cocoa tea upon arrival at our hotel. Our hotel was quaintly tucked into a quite back alley, not far from the main square of Cusco. As avid skiers who have carved many turns above 10,000 feet, we suspected that we would be alright with the change in elevation, but still drank several cups of the tea as a precaution.
Marco, our guide for the next five days, met us in the lobby shortly after our arrival and we ventured out to begin our tour of the city. It was colder than expected, but bright and sunny. It reminded us of crisp fall days in New England, with morning temperatures around 32 and daily highs around 65. We purchased hats and scarves from the street vendors to keep us warm until the sun heated things up in the afternoon.
We toured many of the archaeological and historical sites in the city center of Cusco and in the process Marco gave us a basic education of Incan history and Architecture. This would shape our journey for the next five days. Each day we visited different ruins and at each site Marco provided more information, layering the history like an Italian sandwich, a technique that made our trip increasingly fascinating as the days progressed.
Aware of our burning desire to try the local cuisine, Marco arranged dinner for us at a charming restaurant on the second floor of an old colonial house; he even scored us the table in the window, lit by candles. What a guy! We wasted no time diving into the local cuisine and ordered Causas with Guinea Pig. A Causa is a traditional Peruvian layered mashed potato dish that is to die for. Enjoying a unique national specialty such as Guinea Pig was very interesting as well, but I'm not sure it's what we expected - not that we had any particular expectations, as large rodents aren't a common dinner item in our house. The Guinea Pig comes out whole, teeth and all, on a platter. It's a bit startling for a person who isn't used to their food looking and grinning, at him or her. A decadent chocolate dessert finished off the evening, and we called it a day.
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
3 weeks 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.