Seeking Advice on South American Cruise

My DW has a bucket list item to visit Mach Picchu and there are two Azamara options with either a pre or post cruise excursion to Machu Picchu.

We speak neither Spanish nor Portuguese and have no extended experience with South America travel.

I would appreciate it if people could comment on their experiences with travel through South America so that we could decide if this option is for us. Also, has anyone done a multi-day excursion through Azamara?

Thanks,

If I were you, I would do it post cruise with an organized tour from Lima. I would recommend at least 5 days. Flying from Lima to Cuzco, take it easy the first day because of the altitude. Visit Cuzco on the second day and travel by train to Machupichu on the 3rd day. 2 nights Machupichu and return to Cuzco and Lima on the 5th day.

Trip advisor has probably names of tour operators who can offer you a similar or better program. Tours in english no problem.

Ivi

My DW has a bucket list item to visit Mach Picchu and there are two Azamara options with either a pre or post cruise excursion to Machu Picchu.

 

We speak neither Spanish nor Portuguese and have no extended experience with South America travel.

 

I would appreciate it if people could comment on their experiences with travel through South America so that we could decide if this option is for us. Also, has anyone done a multi-day excursion through Azamara?

 

Thanks,

Our Machu Picchu pre- and post-cruise tours are new! I’d love you to participate!

Here’s the itinerary for the post-cruise option for the Azamara Pursuit November 20, 2018. The tour component does include flights to Machu Picchu. https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/int/voyage/1542690000/11-night-s-america-voyage-5-night-post-machu-picchu

If I were you, I would do it post cruise with an organized tour from Lima. I would recommend at least 5 days. Flying from Lima to Cuzco, take it easy the first day because of the altitude. Visit Cuzco on the second day and travel by train to Machupichu on the 3rd day. 2 nights Machupichu and return to Cuzco and Lima on the 5th day.

Trip advisor has probably names of tour operators who can offer you a similar or better program. Tours in english no problem.

Ivi

I can not say on here but use an American tour company or use the company thst has the train name in it, both can be made the length you want. Also one night in MP enough. But please add SV to it. Most people do nit add more of Lima. You need to see it all.

On another line right now and most guests I met did not use the ships line.

If I were you, I would do it post cruise with an organized tour from Lima. I would recommend at least 5 days. Flying from Lima to Cuzco, take it easy the first day because of the altitude. Visit Cuzco on the second day and travel by train to Machupichu on the 3rd day. 2 nights Machupichu and return to Cuzco and Lima on the 5th day.

Trip advisor has probably names of tour operators who can offer you a similar or better program. Tours in english no problem.

Ivi

Second, third, fourth, and fifth this suggestion. Highly recommend Kuoda Travel. Based in Cusco and they will customize your tour to however you want it. And, pay about 1/2 of any cruise line price for a private tour customized for you with locals who live and know the area. Easy to find by googling and their English is great. All small groups.Wonderful people, Loved the tour and NO, get nothing for recommending them.

Second, third, fourth, and fifth this suggestion. Highly recommend Kuoda Travel. Based in Cusco and they will customize your tour to however you want it. And, pay about 1/2 of any cruise line price for a private tour customized for you with locals who live and know the area. Easy to find by googling and their English is great. All small groups.Wonderful people, Loved the tour and NO, get nothing for recommending them.

I heard good things about them. To late fir me as I booked with an American company. My own agent never heard of them. But did not realize base there. Never use the ship..overprice and to short

I heard good things about them. To late fir me as I booked with an American company. My own agent never heard of them. But did not realize base there. Never use the ship..overprice and to short

Robin, Just ask Wes and Ida. I recommended Kuoda to them and they did Machu Picchu with them before boarding your cruise and raved about them as much as I did.

If I were you, I would do it post cruise with an organized tour from Lima. I would recommend at least 5 days. Flying from Lima to Cuzco, take it easy the first day because of the altitude. Visit Cuzco on the second day and travel by train to Machupichu on the 3rd day. 2 nights Machupichu and return to Cuzco and Lima on the 5th day.

Trip advisor has probably names of tour operators who can offer you a similar or better program. Tours in english no problem.

Ivi

I would recommend a couple days in Lima to visit the Larco Museum and some of the great restaurants. Fly to Cusco but go directly to the sacred Valley to acclimate to altitude. After spending a night or two seeing the sights, take a train to Macau Pichu for either the day or stay one night. From there travel to Cusco for 2 nights and fly out from there. I used Journeyou division of Condor travel and was happy with the job they did for our group of 8. Great guides.

Our Machu Picchu pre- and post-cruise tours are new! I’d love you to participate!

Here’s the itinerary for the post-cruise option for the Azamara Pursuit November 20, 2018. The tour component does include flights to Machu Picchu. https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/int/voyage/1542690000/11-night-s-america-voyage-5-night-post-machu-picchu

The 11 day Miami to Lima cruise is what originally spared our interest as we have a voucher that has to be used by the end of the year. Now the 21 day Lima to Buenos Aries is peaking our interest as well. Once you make the decision to commit to Lima, then you want to make the most of it.

Bonnie, do you know which tour operator is being used for the pre/post excursion to Mach Picchu?

I can not say on here but use an American tour company or use the company thst has the train name in it, both can be made the length you want. Also one night in MP enough. But please add SV to it. Most people do nit add more of Lima. You need to see it all.

 

On another line right now and most guests I met did not use the ships line.

Thanks for your reply. Just want to clarify one point, I am assuming that the reference to "SV" refers to "Sacred Valley"?

We have compared the tours offered by both Azamara and Celebrity and have concluded that the Azamara offerring is one day longer in Mach Picchu. Also the Celebrity cruise is a Galapagos cruise with a post excursion.

The 11 day Miami to Lima cruise is what originally spared our interest as we have a voucher that has to be used by the end of the year. Now the 21 day Lima to Buenos Aries is peaking our interest as well. Once you make the decision to commit to Lima, then you want to make the most of it.

 

Bonnie, do you know which tour operator is being used for the pre/post excursion to Mach Picchu?

All our tour operators are well vetted.

Cusco is much higher than Machu Picchu, so going directly to the Sacred Valley and touring the Cusco area after that might make adjusting to the altitude a bit easier.

My sister did a Celebrity Infinity ship’s excursion in 2011. She loved it, but wished it hadn’t been so rushed. She said she would recommend at least 5 days.

My husband and I have travelled independently twice in South America. But it is not an easy place to make arrangements and get around. So unless you are a keen independent traveller I would recommend having a trip organized for you.

We stayed a couple nights in the Miraflores area of Lima and had a private taxi tour one day, going with the driver we had arranged to pick us up at the airport. Another day we walked around Miraflores on our own.

I agree with going to the Sacred Valley first. It is worth touring the fortifications at Ollaytaytambo and visiting the market at Pisac at the very least. We arranged for a private tour of the area from our hotel in Ollaytaytambo but I would advise doing this ahead of time.

Then take the train to Aguas Calientes. Two nights in Aguas Calientes at the base of Machu Picchu is a minimum. We ended up spending one long day in MP and went everywhere reading our guidebook as we went.

Take the train back to Cuzco and spend at least two days there. We absolutely loved it. We took a group tour one day and otherwise wandered around on our own.

Just wanted to say 'thank you' to everyone for your input. We went with the Azamara pre-cruise to Mach Picchu to keep things simple. It is also covered by the 1/2 off 2nd guest offer so I am using that as a rationale to stay with the cruise line.

So if you are on the Lima to Barcelona cruise or the Barcelona Christmas cruise, then hopefully we will run into each other.

Thanks again for all your great advice.

My husband and I are doing the Dec 1 cruise from Lima to Buenos Aires with the pre cruise trip to Machu Picchu and then because we are so close to Christmas we will then take the Christmas cruise on the same ship up to Rio de Juenerio ,my spelling is bad, and back. Since we are down there we are thinking of the land trip to Iguazu Falls and then home. We are so looking forward to this and hope our experience is fantastic. Mach Picchu has been my dream since the sixties when I first learned about it.

Thank you, Robin. Since we will be taking a direct flight to Lima from

Toronto, Canada we do have to leave 3-5 days before we meet up with our guide. So we are going to stay in Lima and do the museum touring and other things I think. Our land tour is 5 days , we will fly from Lima to Cuzco and from there straight to the Sacred Valley where we will spend 1 1/2 day touring different sites. then up to Machu Picchu for two days, first day seeing the ruins and the second day hiking up to the Sun Door. It’s going to be packed with things to do and I’m so excited about it. Got my hiking shoes, waterproof, pack ,socks. Now I just have to figure out clothing. Layers for sure and rain gear. I’m thinking of rain pants and a rain poncho so that my pack and camera can fit. under it. I figure we will get rain as this is at that end of November.

Our Machu Picchu pre- and post-cruise tours are new! I’d love you to participate!

Here’s the itinerary for the post-cruise option for the Azamara Pursuit November 20, 2018. The tour component does include flights to Machu Picchu. https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/int/voyage/1542690000/11-night-s-america-voyage-5-night-post-machu-picchu

Celebrity has been offering the Machu Picchu option on its Galapagos Xpedition cruises for about a decade.

Thank you, Robin. Since we will be taking a direct flight to Lima from

Toronto, Canada we do have to leave 3-5 days before we meet up with our guide. So we are going to stay in Lima and do the museum touring and other things I think. Our land tour is 5 days , we will fly from Lima to Cuzco and from there straight to the Sacred Valley where we will spend 1 1/2 day touring different sites. then up to Machu Picchu for two days, first day seeing the ruins and the second day hiking up to the Sun Door. It’s going to be packed with things to do and I’m so excited about it. Got my hiking shoes, waterproof, pack ,socks. Now I just have to figure out clothing. Layers for sure and rain gear. I’m thinking of rain pants and a rain poncho so that my pack and camera can fit. under it. I figure we will get rain as this is at that end of November.

First off go to your Dr here. I used the alitude pills twice a day .taking the first one before I left Lima. I felt a little dizzy A couple of times. I onky had the tea in morning. Ercic de Grey said he was eating the tea leaves. Never needed them.

Lima..I did the old part of the city while still on a cruise ship. From hotel I did museums, a food tour and swam. I booked the food tour from home. The museums driver at hotel.

For MP I wore a sweatshirt thst ended up around my waist. I stated with a cheap rain poncho over sweatshirt. I did this trip late Feb into March. Rained hard. 30 minutes at MP..then light then sun. None in SV.which was very warm in daytime. Nights cold. Cusco saw rain twice and one of those I was on the way to dinner.

I stayed at all Belmont hotels. Heated bathroom floors. Saw five churches inCusco. Eat at Fallen Angel. Food was good not great but wow decor. Also Chicha,s there. SV the place to go begins with H.

I climbed both Pisac and Olly. Also Pisac has a lovely garden to go in.it was 10 sols. Three sols to a dollar. Go to B and N for Fommers book. Just sit and read. Was a huge help

First off go to your Dr here. I used the alitude pills twice a day .taking the first one before I left Lima. I felt a little dizzy A couple of times. I onky had the tea in morning. Ercic de Grey said he was eating the tea leaves. Never needed them.

It’s funny you should mention this because it’s been on my mind the past couple of days. I’m flying to Quito in August and spending a few days there and researching and reading Wikipedia it says it’s the second highest city in the world next to La Paz and the elevation is over 9300 feet which is quite a bit higher than I’ve stayed at for a period of time with no acclimatisation. I need to get me a trip to my pharmacy before I go and maybe try some of Eric's leaves! Altitude sickness is something I don’t want.

Phil

It’s funny you should mention this because it’s been on my mind the past couple of days. I’m flying to Quito in August and spending a few days there and researching and reading Wikipedia it says it’s the second highest city in the world next to La Paz and the elevation is over 9300 feet which is quite a bit higher than I’ve stayed at for a period of time with no acclimatisation. I need to get me a trip to my pharmacy before I go and maybe try some of Eric's leaves! Altitude sickness is something I don’t want.

 

Phil

I did not know this. I listen to Heike and Eric last summer. saw her pictures again. I knew i was going i in the rainy season-had the right clothes. I was over 7000 feet in Peru for 10 days and i am sure at times over 8000. When I say dizzy i felt like at times electric current was running thru me. mostly when i held things. i never needed to rest or was sick. i heard those stories here. I drank tons of water. i am always drinking and drank more.

not sure why you are not flying to anything city first . many tourists start in SV in Peru and then Cusco. I missed one pill and knew it. get enough for 2 a day and take one on the plane. I took my first one about 3 or 4 hours before i landed. Heike never mention taking pills or drinking tea but Eric did.

not sure why you are not flying to anything city first . many tourists start in SV in Peru and then Cusco. I missed one pill and knew it. get enough for 2 a day and take one on the plane. I took my first one about 3 or 4 hours before i landed. Heike never mention taking pills or drinking tea but Eric did.

Yes, on reflection I should have done. It just didn’t occur to me that Quito was so high until I spoke to a friend who lives in Pasto, Colombia which is also at altitude and it got me thinking. It’s a done deal now. No acclimatisation and I’ll make sure to take meds with me and as you mentioned, drink plenty. I love herbal tea so perhaps I’ll take a little supply with me.

Phil

Have never used acetazolamide for altitude adjustment/sickness. In a group last year in Lhasa (12,000 feet) and don't believe anyone used "altitude sickness" pills. The hotel did have an "oxygen lounge" and several regrouped in there for a while. Problem with doing that is one has to reacclimatize afterwards. Need to "take it easy" and let the body adjust. More challenging as we get older. Have experienced hypoxia at 30,000 feet - not fun. Heading for several 11,000-plus foot mountain locations in Switzerland in three weeks and don't expect any problems since the climb is slow which permits the body to adjust.

Phil

You are going to a different country but everything I read on Peru was to allowe the body to adjust. The pills worked for me. Eric made me think he lived on tea and tea leaves, inPeru the tea is a cocoa leave blend in mornings and later a mint tea. Read the cocoa leave tea can keep you awake.

Just take it easy in the beginning and take your pills. Real coffee abs booze can cause some problems in some people. Notice thst at first but then I was ok with drinking at night. I felt drinking water really helped.

Phil

 

You are going to a different country but everything I read on Peru was to allowe the body to adjust. The pills worked for me. Eric made me think he lived on tea and tea leaves, inPeru the tea is a cocoa leave blend in mornings and later a mint tea. Read the cocoa leave tea can keep you awake.

 

Just take it easy in the beginning and take your pills. Real coffee abs booze can cause some problems in some people. Notice thst at first but then I was ok with drinking at night. I felt drinking water really helped.

Thanks for the advice. I’ve literally only been thinking of this the past three days and will take heed of what you’ve said and what I’m reading. I’m not really a coffee lover, but live on mint tea. And I’ll go easy on the booze until I’m at sea level! Lol

Phil

Thanks for the advice. I’ve literally only been thinking of this the past three days and will take heed of what you’ve said and what I’m reading. I’m not really a coffee lover, but live on mint tea. And I’ll go easy on the booze until I’m at sea level! Lol

 

Phil

The first two days one drink was enough. the 3d day I was on the train to MP. Then i drank but late at night... Glad you are at least thinking about it.

Enjoy the time there. Personally I do no believe reactions have to do with age, weight or height it just kills some people and others are fine. I take blood pressure meds so i was careful but could do all the ruins. i jmsut watch what i ate and drank more than normal water.