FAQs

Virtually all travel agencies are located outside Peru do not have an office in Peru. Our firm has two offices in Peru, in Lima, and Cuzco ready to serve you and solve any problems you may have while in the country. Others are just middle men who add huge profit margins to the prices provided by their associate Perú operators. We wholesale most of our packages to tour operators across the world without the intervention of local and foreign travel agents, thus saving you considerably. In other words, you get near wholesale local prices. Inkaland Group Online does not aim at high profit margins. Our company wants people from all over the world to enjoy Peru at a reasonable cost and return home to recommend our service to their friends.

This depends how far in advance you prefer to plan. We book last-minute trips all the time and we also arrange tours that are planned years in advance. Major considerations are visa requirements, holiday and festival availability, and seasonal demand (ex. “dry season” in Peru).

Yes, our clients live all over the world and we have qualified professional guides that speak between 3-4 languages (ES, EN, PT, NL).

Family travel is one of our specialties. Our Travel Designers can recommend certain hotels and destinations that are highly recommended for children.

Our travel experts have lived overseas for years and we pride ourselves in having the expert knowledge to take you to places that are not frequented by many tourists. For example, you can visit a small Andean village far from the tourist centers, stay in a local home, or dine with a local family.

Unfortunately this is generally not possible. In Peru, hotels are very strict about the number of people who can stay in one room. Usually a maximum of three adults are allowed in one room, except in specific cases such as ‘family rooms’. Please note that children a certain age (usually 10 or 12 years, depending on the hotel) count as ‘adults’.

All tour prices are based on the services detailed in each tour’s itinerary. Services are sold as a complete package and we is not able to provide a breakdown of the component costs of a trip. However, if you would like to discuss possible ways to reduce the cost of the trip, please let me know and I can give you some ideas.

We provide our clients with extensive restaurant recommendations and are happy to make advance dinner reservations. From haute cuisine to local favorites to traditional dinners in private homes, we know all the best places to have a variety of dining experiences.

All tours can be customized to include personalized shopping as part of the private cultural touring in each location. There is no extra cost for this special service. Whether you simply want plenty of time to browse in museum gift shops or interesting shopping streets, or if you want more in-depth private shopping excursions, we offer insider access to shops and people, expert advice, private specialist guides fluent in the local language and culture, and full-service logistical support such as packing and shipping. Our Travel Designers maintain a vast, sophisticated knowledge base of the best local craftspeople, shops, markets and other sources of high-quality goods.

GENERAL Most of the time you will be fine with a pair of comfortable shoes, sports footwear of some kind is usually preferable as the archaeological sites will often involve some walking on uneven ground. TREKKING A pair of good hiking boots, with sufficient ankle support and good grip are necessary. They should be waterproof if you are hiking during the rainy season (November through April). Experienced hikers are often happy in hiking shoes or even a sturdy pair of tennis shoes/trainers, but that is personal choice. JUNGLE Hiking shoes/boots can also be useful, but lodges and cruises provide rubber boots of various sizes for if the ground is very wet. The maximum size they tend to have is EUR45, so if you have larger feet, you might like to bring a good pair of waterproof, high-ankle hiking boots during the rainy season. Open-toed shoes and sandals are NOT recommended.

People in Latin America tend to dress quite casually, although they will dress up for special occasions such as church, weddings and very special dinners and will often wear very smart clothes for work. As a visitor, you are not expected to dress up, even in the fancier hotels and restaurants, although you are welcome to do so if you wish to. Visitors to some churches, are asked to wear long pants or skirts rather than shorts. It isn’t a dress code, but for the jungle and Machu Picchu, you may prefer to wear long pants and sleeves to protect you from sun burn and any biting insects!

We generally provide vehicles big enough for you and your luggage to fit comfortably. We do not generally place a limit on luggage, although if your group is bigger than 6 people and you all plan to bring large amounts of luggage, please let us know to ensure that the vehicle we provide has enough space. That said, there are luggage limits specified by other providers, as follows: INTERNAL FLIGHTS We generally use LAN, Avianca and TAME (For the Galapagos Islands only) for your internal flights and these both allow: Two pieces of checked luggage with a combined weight of 23kg (50lbs) One piece of carry-on luggage of 8kg (17lbs) on LAN and 10kg (22lbs) on Avianca One personal item, such as handbags, laptops and photographic equipment If you are travelling to Huaraz, the carrier we use is LC Peru (the only airline operating this route) and the baggage restrictions are the following: One piece of checked luggage of 15kg (33lbs) One piece of carry-on luggage of 5kg (11lbs) One personal item, such as handbags, laptops and photographic equipment MACHU PICCHU The trains have a luggage limit of 5kgs (11lbs). This is rarely enforced but, since there is no motorized transport in Aguas Calientes (other than the buses from the center of town to Machu Picchu) and there is limited luggage storage space on the Vistadome trains, we strongly suggest that you take only an overnight bag and day pack with you. The rest of your luggage will be taken to your hotel in Cusco by your driver, so it is waiting for you on your return. JUNGLE Different jungle lodges have different polices, but generally there is a limit of 10kg (22lbs) per passenger, plus your day pack, due to the space available on the boats. When you arrive in Puerto Maldonado, you will have the opportunity to re-pack your things at the operator’s headquarters, and they will provide you with a duffle bag for the items you wish to take, if you don’t have a suitable bag/case. The rest of your luggage will be kept safely in locked storage at the operator’s headquarters. Jungle lodge operators all ask that valuables not be left in the storage room; you should take these things with you. TREKS Different routes and trekking operators have different luggage limits, depending on if there are porters or mules carrying the equipment. In general, the limits are the following: Inca Trail group service: 7kg (15lbs), including the rented sleeping bag and sleeping mat (around 3kg/7lbs in total) Inca Trail private service: 7kg (15lbs), including the rented sleeping bag (around 2kg/5lbs) Inca Trail luxury service: 10kg (22lbs), bedding separate Other treks group service: 8kg (17lbs), including the rented sleeping bag and sleeping mat (around 3kg/7lbs in total) Other treks private service: 10kg (22lbs), including the rented sleeping bag (around 2kg/5lbs) Other treks luxury service: 11kg (25lbs) ), bedding separate

Depending on the exact itinerary agreed with your Travel Designer, you will be arriving into Lima by plane and will have some time in Lima before your international flight departs. This time may involve a tour or be allocated as free time in the Miraflores district. If you stayed at a hotel (often the Wyndham Costa del Sol Lima Airport Hotel) at the beginning of your trip, they are usually happy to hold your baggage for you whilst you explore. If not, there is a secure luggage storage facility at the airport with hourly and daily rates. Your host will be able to help you work out what to do with luggage during the day.

Some guests choose to buy a cheap phone (around $15-20) and SIM card (less than $5) for their time here, although making calls and sending texts abroad can be expensive. Many guests pay for international roaming or an international plan on their phones from their home country, but costs depend on your network provider. If you need to contact to Us for any reason, your hotel will be happy to let you use their phone and your guide is also able to call us. It is important to note that if you are travelling to various countries, a ‘pay-as-you-go’ cellphone bought at the first stop won’t necessarily be useful in the other countries. Please note that in some areas, cell service in is poor: Travelling between Cusco and the Sacred Valley and Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes the service is patchy. On the Inca Trail there is service on day 1 (until Huayllabamba) and day 4 (from the Sun Gate). On other days there tends not to be service, except in certain patches (parts of Phuyupatamarca campsite and parts of Wiñay Wayna). On the other treks there is little or no cell service once you depart from the starting towns. In the Amazon jungle in all three countries, there is little or no cell service. Outside the main populated towns in the Galapagos Islands, there is no cell service.

Almost all accommodations in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador have Wi-Fi throughout their facilities and the vast majority also has at least one computer for use by clients. Some important things to note: In some hotels in the Sacred Valley and Aguas Calientes, the internet can be slow, mostly in the rooms, but sometimes this is true in the main areas and the even the ‘business centers’. In most jungle lodges there is little or no access to the internet. On the Galapagos cruises and Amazon cruises, there is little or no access to the internet. Since the cell service is poor on the treks, clients will not be able to access the internet most of the time, even if they have data on their phones.

Almost all accommodations in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador have Wi-Fi throughout their facilities and the vast majority also has at least one computer for use by clients. Some important things to note: In some hotels in the Sacred Valley and Aguas Calientes, the internet can be slow, mostly in the rooms, but sometimes this is true in the main areas and the even the ‘business centers’. In most jungle lodges there is little or no access to the internet. On the Galapagos cruises and Amazon cruises, there is little or no access to the internet. Since the cell service is poor on the treks, clients will not be able to access the internet most of the time, even if they have data on their phones.

Agency personnel are available to contact in the case of emergency, 24 hours a day. You will be given the numbers of Mery, our director, and our Customer Service Supervisor in your Detailed Itinerary, so that you can call them should the need arise. You will also be able to email to Us, an email address that is checked during and outside office hours, although phone calls are much more effective and quickly answered in urgent situations.

Your Travel Designer will be your main point of contact in the run up to your trip and will make sure you have all the information you need. You will still be able to email your Travel Designer or call him/her at the office during your trip, but it is better to communicate through info@inkaland.com since emails sent here go directly to the Operations Team who can make logistical decisions and help you more directly. Your Travel Designer will always be happy to help out where necessary and receive your comments and feedback during or after the trip.

CURRENCY Peru: the Nuevo Sol. Some hotels, larger tourist-focused stores and restaurants do accept US dollars, but in markets, supermarkets and for smaller items, you will need to use the local currency. Try to make sure bills you receive as change or when changing money are complete with no rips or tears as some providers reject torn bills. Ecuador: the US Dollar. Try to ensure you have smaller bills ($1, $5, $10 and $20) as many places do not like to change bigger bills ($50 and $100). Some coins are different to US coins, so don’t be alarmed, and check with your guide if you are unsure. Make sure bills you bring with you are in good condition. Bolivia: Very few places accept the US dollar, so it is always necessary to change dollars to the local currency, but it is very easy to do so. CHANGING MONEY You will always find better exchange rates in-country than trying to do so outside. If you want to have some local currency with you on arrival, change only a small amount in your home country or at the airport. In both Bolivia and Peru, exchange rates are much better in the exchange houses (or on the street in Bolivia) than in banks. Any dollar bills that you want to exchange must be in pristine condition as otherwise they will be exchanged for a lower rate or rejected. $1 bills are generally not accepted or exchanged well below the going rate. Check any money that you receive carefully for any rips and tears as well as for validity. False bills are relatively common in both countries. USING CREDIT AND DEBIT CARDS In the majority of places you are visiting (including all larger towns in the Sacred Valley, Aguas Calientes and even Uyuni) there are cash machines from which you can withdraw cash from your account at home. You can withdraw in either dollars or the local currency. Sometimes withdrawing dollars has reduced charges (check with your bank). Many hotels and larger restaurants and stores (or those parts of groups/chains) will accept payment by credit card.

Tips are not included in your price. Tipping is not obligatory in Peru, Ecuador or Bolivia but is a kind gesture, gratefully received, when you feel the service merits it. Tipping taxi drivers is not customary, but people often tip guides, drivers, waiters and hotel staff. You can tip larger amounts (e.g. $10 upwards) in US dollars, but smaller amounts should be in local currency, otherwise the person you are tipping won’t be able to change them. Please make sure that any bills you give are in good condition. Since your guide and driver will be with you for the duration in each location, you may wish to tip at the end of your time together instead of each day.

Quotes usually include internal flights, accommodation for each night, all breakfasts, some other meals, entrance tickets, transport and guide services for included tours. Water will also be provided in the vehicle and most hotels. Assuming that these things are included, some examples of additional expenses are: Restrooms (usually s./0.50 or s./1) Additional water (s./1.80 per 500ml), snacks, soft and alcoholic beverages Meals not included (In Peru you can find meals from s./6 for a lunch ‘menu’ to $150 for a 10 course tasting menu and everything in between! A decent meal will usually cost between $20 and $40 per person) Tips (see above) Souvenirs (anything in the range of a few soles for a woolen llama keying to hundreds of dollars for silver work and high-quality textiles) Laundry (most hotels offer laundry facilities, each with their own tariff. If you want a cheaper (and possibly less reliable) option, there are many laundries offering services throughout the cities; your host/guide can help you with this) Taxis to get to restaurants or on free days (under s./10 in Cusco and usually between s./10 and s./30 in Lima, depending on where you’re going) Any tours or entrance fees to attractions not specified in your itinerary Visa fees (usually paid before entry, but in the case of Bolivia, US and other citizens can ´pay at the border) Entrance fee to the Galapagos Islands National Park (payable in cash on entry at the airport)

GENERAL Most of the time you will be fine with a pair of comfortable shoes, sports footwear of some kind is usually preferable as the archaeological sites will often involve some walking on uneven ground. TREKKING A pair of good hiking boots, with sufficient ankle support and good grip are necessary. They should be waterproof if you are hiking during the rainy season (November through April). Experienced hikers are often happy in hiking shoes or even a sturdy pair of tennis shoes/trainers, but that is personal choice. JUNGLE Hiking shoes/boots can also be useful, but lodges and cruises provide rubber boots of various sizes for if the ground is very wet. The maximum size they tend to have is EUR45, so if you have larger feet, you might like to bring a good pair of waterproof, high-ankle hiking boots during the rainy season. Open-toed shoes and sandals are NOT recommended.