Best of Machu Picchu and Galapagos: 9 Day Discovery Tour

Overall, fabulous. It was a trip of a lifetime. Zicasso's tour agency planned the perfect combination of the Galápagos and Machu Picchu, with time in Ecuador and Peru as well. They made great suggestions on the number of days and boat for the Galápagos, as well as which hike to plan. The guides the travel specialist set us up with were top-notch.

Zicasso's trip planner is excellent! She planned a personalized itinerary for me and my family, with activities for all different ages in our travel group. We truly enjoyed our experience in Quito and the Galápagos Islands. 

Our tour guide did a wonderful job taking us around Quito and ensuring we got to fully experience the city (including historical landmarks and local spots). In addition, one of our family members had altitude sickness and he put a lot of effort into helping her get assistance and even medical care in the airport. 

Five stars for our agent and our guide.

We had an absolutely amazing trip. The Inca Trail and Machu Picchu are by far some of the most memorable experiences we've ever had. Our guide and driver were incredibly kind and accommodating, and our guide especially was very knowledgeable, with so much respect for the surrounding nature and culture.

When we initially discussed our plans with Zicasso’s travel agent, all we knew we wanted to do was the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, and we allowed her to provide recommendations for how to fill some additional time in Cusco while we acclimated. She did not steer us wrong! Touring Cusco itself, seeing Sacsayhuaman, several spots in the Sacred Valley, and the Maras Salt Mines were all unforgettable experiences. We also loved the hotel she had us at in Cusco. It was a great spot to be able to explore the city on our own time.

After seeing all of the coordination, especially for the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu, we're so relieved we chose to go through Zicasso for this trip and were connected with our travel agency. Not a single thing went wrong. Our guide was on top of every detail and it was great knowing our agent was just a text or phone call away.

The trip was well organized on a short notice and I truly appreciated it. All staff was courteous, responsive, and punctual. Zicasso's travel agent was instrumental in putting the details together and was always available to answer questions or address concerns. The entire trip also involved many connections and transfers, and almost all were handled well. All of the drivers drove professionally and in a safe manner. A few areas where improvement would be helpful are those of communications within the various members of the team, attentiveness of the guides to clients for the entirety of the visit, and of receiving relevant information earlier. For example, on at least three occasions, conflicting information from different sources required unnecessary followup clarification. Additionally, the guide in Cusco, Sacred Valley, and Machu Picchu never went beyond providing the most basic information about the sites. It felt to us that it was just a job for him, not his passion. He also spent an inordinate time on his phone. Lastly, it would be helpful to receive the General Travel Advice documents at least a month before the trip, and not 10 days before as was the case.

We had a great trip to Peru! Zicasso’s tour operator was super-helpful in working through the final itinerary and activities with us and answered a lot of questions we had on everything, from what cities to visit, hotels, and even trains. Our travel agent was great in handling the finalization of the itinerary and keeping us informed as our trip came closer. The final itinerary, provided a few weeks before our trip, detailed the times for meeting our guides and our pick-ups and drop-offs, which was very helpful.

Our guides were amazing!  We had a great time with them in Lima, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Cusco. The drivers and vehicles provided through our travel company were great, with safe drivers in clean and comfortable vehicles.

Our trip was planned perfectly to help us adjust to the climate. Starting in Lima and ending in Cusco worked great for us and allowed us to get used to the higher elevations. In the end, our itinerary was nine days/eight nights and we didn't feel rushed at all during our trip.

The trip went great. We asked for some significant travel in a short period of time and Zicasso’s travel company was able to make it work for us. I really liked using the travel app; it made it easy to keep track of activities. The local guides were also great. The guide in Quito was especially detail-oriented and kept on schedule. The Galápagos was a real highlight; for those interested in nature and animals, it's a must-see.