Peruvian Soul

Amazing 3-week trip to Peru arranged and managed by Peruvian Soul Our 3-week trip to Peru in January (rainy season!) was spectacular from beginning to end because of the care and attention from Ann Godoy at Peruvian Soul. We found Ann on the kimkim.com platform for the complexity of trip planning because we wanted to visit so many places. She worked closely with John to tailor the trip to what we wanted to do. She gathered a lot of info about our choice of a daily schedule, hotel types/levels, and much more. The itinerary was perfect for us! -2 days in Lima (met by Ann and Andres) with 1 full day of touring with Blanca who was a great guide. -Abraham took us back to Lima airport for our flight to Puerto Maldonado. -Met at the airport by Oscar (guide from River Expeditions) who helped us shift our luggage for the boat trip to Tambopata (Amazon basin) for 4 days at the Posada Amazonas. Oscar was an excellent guide and John, a birder, was thrilled to see so many new bird species. We did have one full day of heavy rainstorms, but other days were short rain showers that didn’t affect our expedition plans. [Note that the lodge’s website isn’t updated to state that it now has electricity 24/7 in the guest rooms, and its internet (in the common area) was quite good but occasionally went off because of storms.] From Puerto Maldonado airport, we flew to Cusco and were met by Miguel and driver, Ronald who took us to the Sacred Valley and the first of the 3 Casa Andina hotels (excellent) we stayed in. We had very good weather and not much rain. Miguel was an excellent guide and easily sensed what level of activities we could do as we were adjusting to altitude. And gave us history and cultural info on the Inca and Spanish eras in small chunks, which was helpful and made it easier to absorb. After 3 days in the Sacred Valley, we spent an overnight in Machu Picchu (taking the train with Miguel who was our guide there too) with bright sunshine (despite predictions of rainstorms) for our 1600-step climb up to MP and the tour there. And then back to Cusco (and Casa Andina hotel in an historic building) for 3 days of touring with Miguel. Ronald’s driving was masterful, and he was very attentive to us. We then flew from Cusco to Arequipa, met by Gerber and driver Diego. Our 3rd Casa Andina hotel was in the old mint (historic) building. Just lovely. We had a walking tour of Arequipa with Gerber, and it gave us so much perspective on why Arequipa is known for its architecture and is considered to be a European city. Sergio and driver Benigno collected us from the hotel for a drive to Colca Canyon with amazing tour stops along the way. (John got to see even more birds and we saw vicuna and guanacos in the wild.) We stayed 2 nights and mostly had no rain and quite a bit of sun. The highlight was driving to the lookout point for the condors – and arriving to see 7 condors soaring over the space of an hour (rare for the rainy season). From there, we made our return to Lima and back to the US. Ann gave us individual care and attention before we left the USA. And the in-country service was what we needed. We were met at every location (primarily flights) by the guide (and often, a driver), and they also delivered us to the airports when we were departing. And we could never have planned/found the cultural experiences we had. Pricesless. We set up a Whatsapp group before we departed the US connecting us to Ann and Jesus (our emergency contact) who answered our weekend questions. That was invaluable as we needed boarding passes and guide contact info. The full trip details were on the kimkim platform which was pretty easy to use and had most of the details we needed. An amazing trip that exceeded our expectations!

Book your trip of a lifetime with Peruvian Soul. Check out Trip Advisor recommendations. They are a top notch, trusted and expert source for a customized experience in Peru. They have great relationships with local accommodations, restaurants, and many special interest destinations. They have EXPERT tour guides and transportation services. Communication and coordination was outstanding. Don’t hesitate in using their services.

My husband and I used Peruvian Soul through KimKim.com for our two-week Peru honeymoon, which included Lima, Sacred Valley, Cusco, and Tambopata in the Amazon. My overall takeaway: TAKE THIS TRIP. Here’s why: Peru has so much to offer. We had a new adventure every day. The people, culture, history, food, drinks, architecture, animals, views etc. are so fun to experience. We never felt unsafe, lost, or unprepared. The travel agency prepares you before the trip and we tried to be smart travelers anyway. Peruvian Soul, booked through kimkim.com, will make your trip so EASY and SPECIAL. First, the itinerary made for us by Anne based on what we wanted was perfect and we were given freedom to make changes as needed. Second, the inter-country travel is all taken care of by the agency which is a huge help; i.e. you don’t have to buy separate tickets from Lima to Cusco to the Amazon – just your flight to Peru and back. We had private vans for transportation provided and private tour guides. We could have, but ended up not needing a single taxi. Third, all of the tour guides, especially Julio, are professional, extremely knowledgeable (trust me – we asked a lot of questions), and passionate. They knew all of the best photo-ops, every available bathroom, times in between bathrooms, and had good tips along the way like when we needed COVID masks, bug spray, extra water etc. Fourth, a good portion of our Peruvian Soul excursions directly helped the local communities, which was a really cool bonus. COVID in Peru: up until we finally took our flight to Peru we were monitoring the COVID situation to make sure we were safe/eligible to travel. As of Sept 2021, the Peru govt. had a mask mandate in all public places including outdoors. All markets, restaurants, tourist stops were required to take visitor temperatures and give hand sanitizer out. These requirements really didn’t end up being a big deal, and it was really nice having the peace of mind that we were being safe, and Peruvians were being safe. Peruvian Soul also coordinated an antigen test for us our last day in Peru so we could return to the U.S., which was also a huge help since we speak limited Spanish. All in all, you will not regret this trip and fall in love with Peru just like we did.

We used Peruvian Soul through helloreco, and we do not regret it one bit! The itinerary was tailor-made to our interests and the tour guides and transportation are knowledgeable and excellent. They checked on us throughout our trip, and to add cherry on top, they added a special reservation for my birthday!

An incredible adventure! Peruvian Soul was the perfect company to work with on our trip to Peru. From bike rides in Lima, to boat rides in the Amazon, to train rides to Machu Picchu, every step was perfectly coordinated and exceeded our expectations.

Nicholas, Jesus, and their entire team of guides and drivers were amazing. From the moment we arrived to the moment we left, everything was meticulously arranged to show us as much as possible during our week-long trip. The communication before and during the trip was excellent and every question or concern was immediately answered and addressed. Our itinerary was perfectly curated and included the most famous historical sites as well as lesser-known but equally special treasures. We spent time with several guides as we traveled through the country and each was incredibly knowledgeable and gracious. Our week in Peru was phenomenal and it was all thanks to the amazing folks at Peruvian Soul. 10 stars!!!!

We came to Cusco for a yoga retreat and arrived a few days earlier than our group. We were hooked up with this wonderful local company in Cusco, Peruvian Soul, and we couldn't have asked for a better time. It's great to have locals because they know the city, the people, and the history. Our amazing guide, Julio Quispe Fernandez, was the best. He was right there to meet us at the airport and took us to our hotel where check in was super easy. Then we were off. We went on a walking tour of some of the city and his knowledge of the city and it's history was so impressive and interesting. He was so enthusiastic. We later met with Seledonia, who owns Mama Seledonia's restaurant, and we went shopping in a local market to select ingredients for the dinner we would be cooking later at her restaurant. What an experience! All the vegetables, fruits, meats, spices, potatoes on display--it was incredible, and beautiful. We made a delicious dinner and Pisco Sours (yum!) and had the best time with Seledonia and Julio at dinner. We even took several of our yoga group back on Friday night for dinner--and it was even more delicious! The next day we went kayaking on Lake Piuray and had a fabulous lunch all cooked in a clay fired oven outside by some local women. After lunch, we rode a bit and then took ATVs to the Inca Experimental Agricultural Lab in Moray and then we visited the Maras salt flats and learned about the past and present operation of those. So incredible. Our final full day was spent riding bikes along the Urubamba River (approximately 20 miles). The weather was perfect, the scenery gorgeous. We were thoroughly pleased with all of our excursions and the level of detail that was taken to make sure we were picked up at the right times, had knowledgeable guides and responsible drivers, given water and lunch, and then returned to our hotel. We also felt safe the entire time. Highly recommend Peruvian Soul and ask for Julio!