yvona

We are considering a trip to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands with Overseas Adventure Travel. Has anyone traveled with them? What have been your experiences? I understand there is a wet and a dry season. What is the best time to go to these two destinations? This is a dream trip, so we want to make the right decision! Yvona

Deb136548

I have traveled to Machu Picchu with OAT. It was an amazing trip. From the itinerary, to the guides, to the hotels, to the service, it was extremely well done. The small group is the only way to go. My only watch-out is that the travlers tend to be an older group. I was the youngest in the group (and the guides). We were lucky and everyone was "young at heart". I am planning to do another trip in October to Galapogos Islands with OAT and some of the travelers from MP are joining us! Have fun!

yvona

Thanks so much for the input--that really helps!

birder57

Hi folks: I just returned from a fantastic trip first to the Galapagos, then to Machu Picchu. It was just terrific. We were on The Explorer II ship, a great experience, for Galapagos. The daily excursions, usually two, were terrific. I would suggest you be in very good phys'l condition as there is a whole lot of climbing, esp onto the islands, and it was quite challenging, esp if you're fearful of heights. But what we saw was amazing: blue footed boobies doing their mating ritual, and then mating; waved albatross doing theirs; we could barely avoid stepping on sea lions and boobies and marine iguanas. The whole experience with the Explorer II was incredible. The staff was great; the guides awesome.

Machu Picchu--wow. Again: be in good shape as there is a lot of walking and climbing up uneven granite stone steps.

Not one bit of trouble with altitude sickness. I did get a bad headache as we landed in Cusco that lasted hours, but a menu of tylenol finally took care of that.
How does one describe the Andes??? Breathtaking doesn't do them justice.

We took the VistaDome train to Machu Picchu. All the people so friendly. The market at the train station in Agua Caliente a lot of fun, and negotiating was fun.

Re money: in Ecuador Amer dollars all the way. In Machu P, also. But in Cusco (what a GREAT town!!), the local stores seem to prefer soles. They will not take paper money that is torn, even if the tear is miniscule. Re VISA or MC: only if you spend $100 or more.

We went to the Inca Museum in Cusco, and at the souvenir store there we had an interesting experience: on the bottom of the display case, nearly hidden, VISA signs. The owner said yes, he takes VISA. BUT: when we went to use our card, he insisted we walk two blocks with him to the bank and withdraw money.....We left, and he lost a big sale.

People in Cusco so friendly. The kids come up: "Lady, I am Kevin Kossner, you buy from me", or "I am Diana Ross". Other names: Martha Washington, Tom Cruise, George Washington. It was so cute. The endless 'pestering' by all th ose kids could be annoying too. You just say "No, senor" or "Bastante", and keep walking. "No tengo dinero" (I don't have money") doesn't help much.

Food: we ate--as a result of recommendations from the forum here--at Inka Grill in Cusco. Food TERRIFIC.

Texas Girl: I hope your trip was good and you are okay. To all of you: your suggestions were wonderful and our trip was beyond terrific. If you have any questions, just email me.

Jed

birder - With what group did you go?

birder57

Jed: there were 4 of us. The trip was planned through Far Horizons Travel Agency, with Phyllis. She did a terrific job. We were met every step of the way, and never worried or felt uncertain. Phyllis got our tour with General Tours, so we did Galapagos first then went on to Machu Picchu. Staying at the hotels we did (Hotel Colon in Guayaquil, Ecuador; Monasterio in Cusco; and Sanctuary Lodge in Machu Picchu) was a bit hard on the wallet, but feeling absolutely safe re food, water, and personal safety, made it important to do that. As an outsider, I would not know what hotel to stay in otherwise, and so was willing to pay the extra. If you want Far Horizon's phone number, email me ([email protected]) I live in Tampa, but the friend I went with lives in Panama City, and Phyllis has done all his travel related affairs for nearly 20 years.

prabwin

We just returned from a Lindblad Espedition to Galapagos and Peru. Can't praise the tour enough...it was fantastic. Lindblad operates their own ship in the Islands, and has the top naturalists (one of our guides was hired the following week by Harrision Ford for a private cruise!) Lindblad is expensive...but they are an unbelievable operator. Ecology and environment are #1...important to us.
The Peru leg was similar to previous writer: Hilton Colon, Sanctuary Lodge, and the fantastic Monastario in Cusco! First class all the way...and you pay for it. But it was a special trip for us, and we didn't want to take any chances on something going wrong. Lindblad is basically foolproof...the best of everything.
FYI: athe ship holds about 80, and each island excursion is on a zodiak with 12-15 people and a naturalist...so the group is large, and the "trips" are small. Perfect. Peru leg had about 25 people and two guides...both fantastic.
Whatever you do, don't miss this trip...it's so worth the money!!!~
By the way...we spent two days in Machu Picchu -- (arrived at 11:00 AM, and left at 2:00 the next day...REQUIRED!!! NO DAY TRIPS -- you miss so much. Spend the night at the Sanctuary Lodge...spend the money, trust me. Machu Picchu after 4:00 PM is magic...no people -- amazing!!

Lolo

I traveled here with Tauck, but a very good friend went with OAT and loved it. The difference is mainly in the hotels, OAT being less $. Remember, the islands and all the things you will see are the same. It all depends on your pocketbook as to which operator you should go with.

jacobsonel

I went on the OAT trip to Peru and the Galapagos and could not fault it for any reason. The guide was excellent and I enjoy the small group experience. Thier prices are usually the best available. We also took the extension to Ecuador and enjoyed that very much, too. I would recommend the 18 day trip, but not the 11 day one. We kept bumping into that other group and they seemed to be spending a lot of time in the airports and moving from place to place. Maricela was our guide and she is famous for her skills. If there is anyway you could find out ahead of time what trips she will be leading, I would try to book one of those. I wouldn't worry too much about the weather---we had cold and heat and rain; I think we went in March. I've been on 7 Oat trips and pretty much enjoyed them all except that sometimes they fly you all over creation from your home city and tend to switch hotels. Ellen

Sassyrn

We have reserved a trip to Machu Picchu & the Galapagos leaving Oct 2...I noticed someone esle was thinking about Overseas ADventure Travel at that time. we traveled w/ Oat to africa last year & they did a suberb joy...we will use them for alot of our travels as the year continue...joan

AllisonL

Hola...We have reserved OAT's "Real Affordable Peru" leaving Dec. 2. We are considering the Lake Titicaca post trip extension. I have been with OAT on their "Discover Thailand" trip. It was excellent! By the way, I am 49 years old and was the youngest one on the trip, but it made no difference, as all the participants were energetic, interesting, and savvy travellers. Allison

Sassyrn

We are traveling to the galapagos in October...any suggestions re: wetsuits... shortie or full length? we're traveling w/ o.a.t... joan

Chef_Don

Just got back from OAT trip to Peru. I agree with many of the others on this thread. OAT was great and we had no problems at all. The hotels have changed from Amy's description, but most of them were more than adequate. The only small room we had was in the Hanaqpacha Inn. The Incaland Hotel was replaced with La Recoleta de San Agustin which is an old convent, and very nice. We stayed at the Antigua Miraflores in Lima which is not as nice as the Jose Antonio. I tracked the weather on the Internet for about a month before we left (May) and it said that Cusco was having showers almost every day. Checking today (end of May) it is saying the same thing. We did not have any rain on any of the days we were in Peru. I guess the travel sites are more correct than the weather channel, in that May thru August are dry.

atravelynn

Sassyrn,

Wetsuits are needed year round unless you are extremely hearty. I have a full suit but others wore shorties.