Galapagos cruise (MC Anahi) was superb.  Definitely the right choice for us being on a smaller yacht.  Great mix of people (6 Germans, 6 yanks & 3 brits).  Captain & crew were all excellent, taking care of various dietary needs & very careful getting us from yacht to pangas.  The weather was hotter than expected & the guide reckoned it was 35C some days.

Naturally, getting so close to wildlife was superb.  Invariably a matter of feet from sea lions, Blue Footer Boobies & other birds, etc.

We really couldn’t have done this trip without your help and the whole trip was outstanding.

We want to thank Tom at Andean Trails for helping us figure out an itinerary and then put it together into a perfect package. We wanted to do and see a lot in Peru and Ecuador from Machu Picchu to the Amazon jungle to the Galapagos Islands. There were a lot of moving parts from private tours of Sacred Valley to bus and train rides required between towns that needed to be organized.

I have always been able to book our own tickets and tours but this trip was way too complicated to figure out on our own and Tom’s expertise was exactly what was needed. Tom has been to all of these places before and so he speaks from experience. I think that was most important. Knowing that he had actually stayed at the lodge that is 4 hours by boat up river from any town in the Amazon jungle was reassuring.

He is definitely a specialist in this part of the world and when he recommends a place that he has already tested out – you can be assured that it will be great.

Highlights: Our adventure had many highlights. If could have been Machu Picchu itself or possibly accomplishing the climb all the way up Wayna Picchu. It may have been just being in the Amazon jungle and waking up to the sounds of howler monkeys overhead every morning or it may have been seeing a jaguar lying on the beach basking in the sunshine. Or was it the male blue footed boobies doing their little song and dance when a female was around. The beautiful downy white, red footed boobie babies who seem to perceive that no one will hurt them so they sit contently in their nest not two feet away from where we were walking. Each part of our trip was completely different and amazing.

Accommodation and guides: Our accommodations were great – certainly quite unique in some places but clean, safe and not the norm. Tom’s organization was perfect. Everything went off without a hitch. Our guide Lucy in the Amazon was fantastic. She was our favorite. Our guide in Machu Picchu was terrific, a little more Peruvian accent but great. Rosia in the Galapagos was not as good but we would still rate the Islands a huge success. The Angelito was a great boat and the staff, crew, meals and accommodation was perfect.

Back home and finished all the washing!! A great trip.

Thanks so much for all your organising and planning. Everything went very smoothly.

We all enjoyed the trip and Patagonia lived up to our expectations. We were so lucky with the weather and all the helpful people we met.

We chose Andean trails after finding you online. As soon as we got talking about our options, it was clear you guys were hugely knowledgeable and could help us plan the perfect trip. We had an incredible time!

Overall Organisation: excellent, couldn’t have been better!

Highlight: It’s hard to pick just one, but exploring the suspension bridges above Grey glacier was amazing, exploring the French Valley, and watching a huge chunk of glacier carve away were some of our favourites.

Low point: I’m not sure we really had a low point, it was all amazing.

Accommodation: hotel in Puerto Natales was great, really quirky, good service. As expected the refugios on the trek were pretty basic but perfectly ok, the cabin at Cuernos though was brilliant!

Food: Again, as expected the food in the refugios was very basic, but edible. Our food in Cuernos refugio was actually very good, a nice treat in the middle of our trek! In the hotel, our breakfast was very good.

Guides: We didn’t really have any, but the lady that met us at the bus station and took us to our hotel was very friendly and helpful.

We enjoyed spending a short period of time in Puerto Natales, spending money in the local shops and restaurants. All the locals were super friendly. Hopefully we contributed to the tourist economy. We were very aware of our impact on the natural environment in the park, and the clear impact humans are having with erosion of paths etc. We were as careful as we could be to make sure we had as little environmental impact as possible.

What would we do differently? Not much really. Other than do some training for the hike, 32km on the first day was hard going!!

We love hiking and spending time in the outdoors. We had a couple of friends that had done the W trek and their experience sounded amazing. We weren’t disappointed!

Thanks for all your help and advice in making our trip an experience we will remember forever!

Although there were a few challenges along the way everything was set up perfectly with all transfers, accommodations & fabulous guides being as advertised and on time.

It was a beautiful trip with so many highlights.  We were really pleased with our hotels and so very happy that we chose this option – and your generous offer at no extra expense.  The hostel guests did not enjoy their stay as much as we did – but that is normal – hostels can be challenging even up you are with your own “friends”.

Our guide Gaston and all others along the way were exceptional.

Weather got in our way in Torres Del Paine so we missed 2 of our hikes – but know we couldn’t do anything about it.  We had to go out by boat as the river overflowed the roads – not sure how many days our bus driver Nico had to stay before he could drive out.  Also at Magellan Strait we had to wait 9 hours before we could cross – the waves were HUGE!

That put us arriving at the Estancia @ 2 am – and they still served us a fabulous dinner!  The Estancia stay was one of our favorites although I wasn’t thinking it would be anything great – a sheep less sheep ranch is not what I had in mind.  The owners were wonderful!

Hotel Mercure in Igauzu was top shelf!  Another highlight!

Just wanted you to know how happy we are with our experiences in Patagonia – all went so smoothly with you & the local guides ensuring us a fabulous experience.  Thank you Alan & the rest of your team.

We really wanted to get an overview of Ecuador. We chose Andean Trails on a recommendation and couldn’t have been more pleased.

We ended up with a different and better Galapagos experience than we would have had with the organization that we had begun before hearing about you. Everything went so smoothly during the planning and during the trip. The trip was far beyond our expectations. Thanks so much.

Probably the most important aspect was the guide and driver we ended up with for most of the upland trip – Miguel Vera – we’ve had a lot of guides over the years and he was just stellar!

Many highlights: Quito. Loved Santa Lucia. We were the only guests our days. Just a magical place. Our hiking days with Miguel.

And the Angelito, guide and crew were stellar. We really felt as if we couldn’t have seen the Galapagos in a better way.

We loved the Cuenca part of the tour, the handicrafts and especially Cajas National Park. Also, just the drive down the 14,000’ drop from the top of the mountains to Guayaquil.

We found all of the lodges well-chosen. They were all more upscale than we had expected.

Mostly we were left with the desire to return and see more of the country.

Mary and I returned from our trip to Patagonia yesterday, and although we are very tired, we are extremely pleased with our journey.

In a nutshell, you did a terrific job implementing our trip. It was clear that you had done extensive research to find the best resources for our trip.

Transfers were handled professionally and smoothly. We had one glitch in El Chalten. There were two buses for El Calafate that day, one large and one small. The driver waited for the large one, but we were in the small one. It was not a long walk to the hotel, and it did not effect our trip at all. Every other transfer was perfect.

The hotels were all excellent. They were expecting us, and the employees were universally friendly and helpful.

Our guide in El Chalten, was a most wonderful young woman (Sol Giadorou). My wife and I both loved her. As a guide, she was knowledgeable, patient and flexible. As a person, she was one of the most impressive people we have ever met. We felt like a family by the time we left.

I had been reluctant to add the extra expense of a guide, but my wife insisted. Wow, was she right about this.

Patagonia was endlessly interesting and extremely beautiful. It was also quite challenging at times; we had days with very strong winds, rain, and sleet. We also walked more than we have in a long time. We are 65 now, and definitely past our prime. But this was a trip where the effort was rewarded many times over.

Again, thank you so much!

Greg and Mary Staples

– What was the highlight of your holiday? Was there a low point?

Highpoint – the great tour guides and visit to Machu Pichu.  Low point was a flight cancellation in Lima.

 – How would you rate accommodation/ food/ guides/ overall organisation?

Fantastic!  The hotels were all lovely and the tour guides were friendly, smart and helpful. In Lima when we ran into trouble with a flight cancellation, Alan’s team on the ground went to great lengths to rebook us on a new flight (with a different airline).  Had it not been for your office in Peru we would have been stuck in Lima over night and missed out on Tambo del Inka, which was a lovely resort.  

 – Did you feel you benefitted the local communities?

Somewhat.  We are not shoppers, so each time we wound up at a ‘market’ we didn’t really buy. 

– What would you like to do differently next time?

Spend more time in Cusco and the Sacred Valley.  We could have skipped Lake Titicaca.  

–   Out of interest why did you choose the places you visited and why Andean Trails to organise your trip?

 Our goal was to visit Machu Pichu and Alan put together the rest of the trip around that highlight.  We came away with a great feel for Peru and (fingers crossed) would love to revisit one day.

Overall, we loved the trip and found your organisation to be excellent. We definitely appreciated your prompt help while we were travelling, and attention to details (like arranging the bottle of fizz for Steve’s birthday).

We would highly recommend you specifically, and your company more generally, to anyone thinking of a similar trip in the future. It was great that you recommended we get setup with WhatsApp to communicate with you and the local people – the few times we wanted on-the-ground advice, that was very effective and your quick replies greatly appreciated! Thanks so much Tom.

Iguazu: All excellent, including the guide. Having seen both sides, definitely recommend people doing that (seeing both sides over 1.5-2 days). The basic boat trip is expensive, but worth it – a distinct view of the falls.

Patagonia self-guided: Overall the whole Paine W thing was excellent, including the hikes, dorms, camping, food (packed lunches very good and dinners spectacularly good food; breakfasts bland :-).

Both days’ hikes wonderful and tough and worth coming to Chalten for (and we got lucky with weather). Very happy we went self-guided.

Martial glacier hike: The hike is *tough* – overall tougher than anything else in the trip as a whole (except perhaps one part of Fitz Roy in Chalten). But, as we survived it, we were very happy in the end!

Trekking tip: For all of the trekking, we’d strongly recommend that if people ever walk with poles, it is worth bringing them, and for some of it (particularly Ushuaia and Fitz Roy) it is a good idea even for people who don’t regularly use them.

Many people might not think it worth the hassle to bring their own (or rent once here), but we were very grateful to have ours (and saw a lot of people making do with sticks they found).

The highlight was natural beauty, animals, boat trips, snorkelling etc. Really great organisation. 100% smooth.

Tom very responsive to initial enquiry and Andean Trails great online reviews.

Not sure if there’s anywhere posher to go after Galapagos? Black Sheep definitely an experience!

I had to write to say, thank you for organising a terrific holiday for us! The scenery and the people were wonderful!

The scenery in Peru was just as stunning. However….the people surpassed the scenery!!! Manuel was our guide….he was fantastic and his enthusiasm for his country/people/culture was palpable! The porters was SO impressive and did everything they could to ensure we had a great trip!

The Huchuy Qosqo trek….was amazing and the homestay with Wilma and Demicio touched all our hearts!!! They welcomed us into their home and we had such a lovely night with them…it was a privilege! I’d recommend this to anyone going!

Thank you again Tom! We’ll certainly be recommending ye!!! Already have!

High points: the trekking, stunning landscapes, the immersion of the jungle. Lovely people. No low point.!!

Accommodation/ food/ guides/ overall organisation – all excellent. Guide and porters especially worth a mention.

Tom gave us very good advice on the Inca Trail, i.e. to run it out of sync with the bigger groups. So no big crowds.

I just wanted to say a big thank you for all the organising you did for our trip. We had a great time and it’s a trip we will never forget! I wanted to mention that everybody out there did a very good job and all hosts and drivers were really lovely and helpful people.

So many highlights….wildlife in the Galapagos was incredible! To see tortoises, sharks, iguanas, sea lions, penguins etc so close up was amazing!

We just got home last night from a WONDERFUL, AMAZING trip!!! Thank you so much for your careful planning – everything was excellent, starting from Jorge, our driver in Quito to all the wonderful people that helped us in the Galapagos. Thanks so much, Kat – really, truly! Ecuador is a beautiful country! You really made our trip great!!

Truly everything was great-excursions, food, accommodations, hospitality, organization…etc.  Our trip was well planned out, but still allowed for a lot of flexibility.

It was just the right amount of physical challenge for my 14 year old son and me. We’re both fairly active people, but also wanted some exposure to culture and variety. This trip struck a great balance of all we were looking for-adventure, culture, relaxation.

Our guides were knowledgeable, patient and easy going. We felt very well cared for.

I think the high point for both of us was when we climbed up the final steps on the Inca trail at the Sun Gate and took in the view of the amazing Machu Picchu. It was truly awe-inspiring.

I also felt that our accommodations were well curated to have minimal environmental impact and our excursions allowed us to patronize locally owned establishments.

Thanks for helping us plan our unforgettable adventure.