Peru and Ecuador Highlights
Peru
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May 22 - Jun 2, 2024
My son and I took a 11 day trip to Peru and Ecuador and it was outstanding. The planning process with Kimkim was excellent and Anahi did a great job for us. We made some custom changes and everything was handled smoothly. All of our pickups, transportation and logistics ran perfectly and we were safe and comfortable every step of the way .
The Peru portion started with a visit to Lima and our guide Sylvie was wonderful. From there, we went to Cusco which was our launch point to 3 places - Machu Picchu, Humantay Lake and Rainbow Mountain and we did 3 hikes on 3 consecutive days by design as we wanted an active trip. All 3 destinations were stunning and Machu Picchu is a special place. Lot's of llamas and alpacas too! Our guide Leo out of Cusco was amazing and we made a new local friend spending 5 days with him.
We went on to Ecuador and visited the Galapagos Islands. Truly amazing place and the conservation work they are doing there is inspiring (as are the tortoises). Our trip ended in Quito and our guide Pablo did a wonderful job walking with us in the city and showing us the sights.
Overall, the trip was very special for us with lots of great memories. This was our second trip in 6 months to South America with Kimkim and they have both been special. My thanks to Kimkim and all the wonderful people that we met along the way!
Hotel Reviews
Very nice staff!
Activity Reviews
Sylvie is an amazing guide -- she gave us a lot of great information and was very kind. Loved walking through the downtown streets in Lima.
Great visit. We enjoyed the presentation and also looking at the stars outside. They guides there was very energetic!
Enjoyable day! We drove for about 2 - 3 hours with Leo and stopped in a few places along the way. The llama experience was incredible where we stopped and got a close up encounter feeding the llamas, vicunas and alpacas. Many thanks to Leo for doing that and for giving us clever photos we could take to make the visit memorable. Also enjoyed the Sacred valley tour and going up the structures. It was incredible and a great preview of Machu Picchu which was the next day.
Spectacular day! I've always known that Machu Picchu is one of the seven wonders of the world and I can see why. It was truly stunning. The travel logistics were very smooth with a car ride, train ride and then bus ride. Train ride with Peru Rail was very comfortable. We really enjoyed the tour with Leo and he gave us detailed explanations of Machu Picchu, Temple of the Sun, Temple for Pachamama etc. He showed us the detail of how the blocks align so well, the irrigation systems etc. -- it was so great to hear the stories from him. Return to Cusco was smooth.
Another great day. The drive to the lake was very smooth and it was fun to stop at a local place to eat in the morning and taste the local food. The hike itself was very nice - Leo was very kind as I was a bit slow (I am 58) and we took our time to get there. Enjoyed chatting with Leo about life, philosophy and our dreams for our families in the future. The lake itself was spectacular.
Leo did a wonderful job giving us a lot of the history and background of the Incas and pre-Inca times. We really enjoyed listening to him as we wanted an immersive experience in the local culture which he provided for us.
This was a special day. Our drive to Rainbow Mountain was great -- it was great to drive through the Andes, see the local villages and people living on the hills. Lots of llamas! Life in the hills is not easy but people seem to be happy and it was nice to see lots of smiles. Rainbow Mountain is 16,000 feet above sea level so it is a low oxygen environment. Having said that, it was great to hike and we took it nice and slow and it was a pleasant experience. The mountain is amazing and the colors are so beautiful - really worth visiting! We got some amazing pictures with llamas up there.
Great boat ride and seeing all the animals.
Enjoyed meeting Pablo and the walking tour was excellent. Really enjoyed the stop at the chocolate tasting place. Due to timing of our flights, our tour ended up in the late afternoon which was great because we got to see the city at night and it's beautiful!!
