Romantic Machu PicchuAfter an early night, we were waiting at the entrance gates to Machu Picchu when they opened at 6 am. There were about 30 or so people in line in front of us, but because we knew where we were going from the day before, we were the first to arrive at the guard tower that morning intending to watch the sunrise. Unfortunately, the clouds did not cooperate with our plans and so there was no sunlight to be had for the first couple of hours but even just watching the clouds move through the city was a sight to behold. We staked out the guard tower for a while taking pictures of the resident llamas or of the city when there was a break in the clouds. Everything about this trip had been magical to this point and an experience that I will cherish and be grateful for having the rest of my life but it was on this morning that my life was truly changed. Tim grabbed my hands, looked in my eyes and said that sunrise or no sunrise, he loves me and wants to spend his life with me and as I stood there shocked and teary eyed, he gets down on his knee (the good one), and pulls a ring out of his pocket as he asked me to marry him. A small group of onlookers cheered as I said ''YES!'' and my brother (who knew Tim's plan) and my sister in law (who did not) got pictures of the whole thing as it unfold. I will forever get to laugh and tease at the fact that Tim proposed to me with coco leaves in his mouth and he gets to laugh and tease that the reason his bag was so heavy was because he was carrying a big rock around with him, but truly the experience could not have been more perfect for either of us. The rest of the day was a bit of a blur. We walked to the Inca Bridge, explored every corner of the Machu Picchu ruins and then reluctantly headed to the buses to take us to Agua Caliente where we had lunch before meeting up with Teddy and hopping on the train back to Ollantatambo and ultimately the drive back to Cusco.
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
2 months 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
3 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.