Hey everyone,

We’re planning a family trip to the Galápagos Islands and Machu Picchu from June 26 – July 12, 2026, and would love advice from those who’ve done something similar. Our group consists of 12 adults and 5 children (ages 1.5, 3, 3.5, 4, and 5.5 at the time of travel), so we’re looking for a customized itinerary from San Francisco (SFO) that balances adventure and comfort.

Some key factors we’re considering:

• Galápagos: Land-based itinerary (no cruise) due to traveling with young kids. Any recommendations on accommodations, excursions, and child-friendly activities?

• Machu Picchu: Needs to be suitable for both senior travelers and young children, with a solid acclimatization plan for the altitude. Any tips on making the journey smoother for both age groups?

• Logistics & Accommodations: We’d love to hear about the best ways to structure flights, transitions between Ecuador and Peru, and lodging options (standard vs. deluxe) that worked well for families.

If anyone has organized a similar trip or worked with a great travel company that customizes itineraries, we’d love to hear about your experience!

Thanks in advance for any recommendations or insights.

Please tell us what resources you have already been using to plan this trip. Guide books? On-line resources? Other?

Also -- how do you plan to visit the Galapogas with a strictly land-based option?

Answers to these questions might help us provide more useful input.

We’ve been using Fodor’s, TripAdvisor, Reddit, and attended the Bay Area Travel Show for research. I’ve also looked into tour operators like Happy Gringo and CNH Tours.



For the Galápagos, we plan to stay land-based but take locally operated day trips to explore the islands. If a particular excursion is too rough, some members of our group will likely opt to stay back with the kids. Our group often splits into smaller groups based on interest and energy levels, so this setup should work well for us.

I would strongly encourage you to consult at least one paper guidebook -- you can learn things you would not find through online searches and wouldn't know to ask. IME, the Moon Guide and Rough Guide are particularly good for Peru. I haven't been to Ecuador or the Galapagos yet.

For altitude sickness and its prevention, I urge you to consult the CDC web site.

For Peru, you might also want to get vaccinated for yellow fever. Again, I urge you to consult the CDC website.

I hope that helps and wish you luck with your planning.

I'm topping this thread in case someone with greater knowledge can provide some useful input.

I do not think that Machu Pichu or the Sacred valley is the best place with young children. They will not remember much and it would give me too much stress to keep them safe.

I have to admit I agree I would reconsider this plan with young children. I loved my time in the Galapagos and Machu Picchu but that included hiking, snorkeling, and cruising. I did not however, do a land-based trip so am not sure how well that would work. Traveling in that area of the world also has occasional complications. For example, we were almost stranded in Ollantaytambo enroute to Machu Picchu as there was trouble with the train tracks. One of our planes had engine trouble and the ground crew was unable to advise us whether or not our plane would be taking off. Both of these incidents resulted in many hours of delays which was hard enough for two adults let alone a large group with young children.