Lima, Cusco, and Machu Picchu Itineraries & Tours

Our trip to South America had been in the pipeline for several years so when it came to putting it into actuality we wanted to make sure that it was just right. We hunted around to find a travel agent who could tailor a package to suit our needs. We came up with a list of 4 travel agents in 4 different countries but eventually we chose this travel agency. Our decision was based on  the the travel agency's approachability (whenever we emailed a question we always received an immediate and comprehensive response); also our agency's flexibility in being able to add or alter different options, and their friendly and helpful advice.Our contact was with Heather who made herself available to chat on Skype at all times. (It is very reassuring to be able to personalise travel arrangements - it makes it seem less like dealing with an anonymous organisation and more like chatting with a friend and mentor.)Our agent provided us with a comprehensive written itinerary which left nothing in doubt. She organised all transfers, internal flights, tours with local operators (some private, some group). At one stage when demonstrations in Cusco interrupted train and bus services, Heather immediately stepped in to organise suitable alternatives. We understand that other tourists did not fair so well and were stranded on train platforms or forced to pay for exorbitant hotel accommodation.Our 43-day tour included visits to 6 countries -  Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil. Right from the onset in Quito we were met by a wonderful guide who shared his knowledge of Ecuador - its geology, its history, its politics and its food. Our agent marked the beginning of a series of friendly, well informed and entertaining tour guides from the different regions we visited.We had an amazing holiday visiting all the well known tourist sites - Galapagos, Machu Picchu, Colca Canyon, Lake Titicaca, Iguasu Falls and Rio de Janeiro. And a few maybe a little less touristy such as Paracas and the Ballestas Islands, the Peruvian Amazon basin, Nazca lines and the Bolivian Salt Lake of Uyuni.When we used bus transport it was reasonably comfortable, hotel accommodation was always clean and comfortable and airport transfers were always on time. All hotels included breakfast which naturally varied from one hotel to another but it was always quite adequate and healthy. At different times when other meals were provided such as on the Galapagos cruise, in the Amazon Basin, on Lake Titicaca and during the Sacred Valley tour the quality of the food was quite impressive.We are now considering another visit to South America - this time to Patagonia and we will definitely be looking at involving this travel agency again with our trip arrangements.Muchas gratias!

We were extremely happy with every aspect of our trip to Peru and the outstanding assistance and support by Stuart, Satish and others at our Peru travel agency. We flew directly to Cusco and spent two nights there seeing the various sites in and around the city with a private guide, then a private guided tour to the Sacred Valley by van spending the night in Ollantaytambo. The next morning we took the train to Machu Picchu and had a private tour of the ruins followed by a stay in the wonderful Inkaterra MP Pueblo. The following day we took the train from Aguas Caliente to Cusco - a very pleasant and comfortable way to travel. The next morning we were off to the airport traveling to Puerto Maldonado for a three night stay in the Inkaterra Amazonica Reserva. We had wonderful guides with a special hats off to Jorge in Cusco and SV. Our MP guide was also excellent. We had terrific support getting around in all the locations and would highly recommend this travel company to not only our friends but to all who consider traveling to and about Peru!

We traveled to Peru for the first time in October, 2017.    It was a seven-day privately guided tour from Lima to Cusco, the Sacred Valley (Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes)  and three days in the Peruvian Amazon.     We thoroughly enjoyed every day on our trip!

Zicasso and our travel company planned the trip very well for us, with boarding passes, transportation and lodging that met our expectations, as well as excellent guides.     We would definitely consider using them for future travels!

We just came back from a private 14-day-tour of Peru with this travel company. We visited Lima, flew over the Nazca Line, went to the Amazon jungle, visited the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, and Cusco, then finished up with the Lake Titicaca. Overall we had a great time. We are very happy with the itinerary,  all the transferrings, most of the hotels and tour guides.  Before the trip, we were worried about the mosquitos in the jungles and the altitude of the high lands. But we barely got any mosquito bites due to the dry season. We had spent several days in Sacred valley before heading to Cusco, nobody in our party had altitude sickness. 

Our family of four had a great trip to Peru! Zicasso’s travel agency put together a pretty elaborate 12-day tour that included Lima, Paracas, Nasca, Ica, Sacred Valley, and Cusco from Los Angeles.

The hotels were nice, the optional activity and restaurant recommendations were perfect, and the guides and drivers were fantastic. They really attended to all the details and made it a great vacation.

The first 10 days of the trip were very good.

Our travel agent put together a terrific itinerary for the Sacred Valley/Machu Picchu/Cusco portion, which balanced the needs of us seniors and our more active offspring. She recommended a Humantay Lake hike rather than the requested Rainbow Mountain excursion, which was an outstanding replacement. Starting in the Sacred Valley helped us successfully acclimatize to altitude. Our local guide's exceptional knowledge of Inca history and the area greatly enhanced our appreciation of everything we experienced there. We also loved the Amazon Rainforest and our resort there. It was an entirely different experience that complemented what we saw and did in the Sacred Valley etc.

While very good, there were some small misses that prevented this portion of the trip from achieving a five out of five, caused by insufficient attention to detail in execution relative to our past Zicasso trips. Most notably, each time we checked into our hotels (five), there were problems with room allocations. While it was eventually sorted out, it was an ongoing annoyance. Execution of the days' itineraries also presented minor hitches throughout and boxed lunches that had been paid for had to be specifically requested by the hikers.

The last three days of the trip, to the Paracas area, were a giant disappointment. There were major disconnects between the itinerary and what we experienced, which seriously marred an otherwise great trip. It seems there were significant communication breakdowns between the agency and those "on the ground" tasked with delivering, resulting in us not getting most of the experiences we had looked forward to. This portion of the trip would rate only two out of five, at best. Neither the guide nor the driver knew the area. To their credit, the agency owned up to under-delivering and voluntarily offered us a partial refund upon our return.