Luxury Galapagos and Machu Picchu Tours: Pros and Cons

There are several ways to visit both the Galapagos Islands and Machu Picchu. This article focuses on a luxury Galapagos and Machu Picchu tour, and details both the pros and cons of this vacation option. But first, let’s understand what defines a Galapagos and Machu Picchu luxury tour.

The most obvious feature of this tour option is that it features two of South America’s most remarkable destinations: The Galapagos Islands in Ecuador, and Machu Picchu in Peru. Often times, people get confused and think they can cruise to Machu Picchu. This is not possible. Machu Picchu is located in the mountains in inland Peru. To be more specific, it is located outside of the city of Cuzco, the former Incan capital city. The Galapagos Islands, on the other hand, can be visited during a cruise. This series of Islands is located 600 miles off the coast of mainland Ecuador and is home to some of the most unique wildlife in the entire world. A Galapagos and Machu Picchu tour takes you to both of these locations, and require a connection international fight from Ecuador to Lima, Peru, and then from Lima to Cuzco. When you decided to upgrade to the luxury option, you can expect 24-hour travel assistance, that you will stay in the nicest hotels, and have the most informed and professional guides possible.

Now that we know what to expect, let’s start off with the cons of taking a luxury vacation to these two destinations. First of all, the Galapagos Islands are an extremely expensive destination to visit. Even if you attempt to visit the islands on a budge, it is impossible to pay less than several thousand dollars for a Galapagos vacation. If you want to take a luxury Galapagos cruise boat and have professional guides, the cost once again increases. And if you want to take a longer cruise, such as a 10 day excursion compared to a standard 5 day trip, expect once again to pay more. Now, when you add another South America travel destination on top of this already pricy excursion-in this case Machu Picchu-I’m pretty sure you can guess what happens: the price increases. Machu Picchu is not nearly as expensive to visit as the Galapagos Islands, however there are also built in fees that you cannot avoid, such as train tickets and a high entrance fee.

Now that we’ve gone over the bad, let’s focus on the good. And in the opinion of many people who have traveled to these two places, the pros far outweigh the cons. Both the Galapagos and Machu Picchu are some of the best rated travel destinations in the entire world. Both are unique and offer great insight into nature, history, and human culture. The benefit of seeing both of them during one trip is that in the end it will save you money because: you’ll eliminate extra international flights back to South America, you’ll only have to pay for one South America travel company to help you book one vacation, and you optimize your vacation days. There are also, of course, benefit to upgrading this vacation to a luxury expedition. As previously mentioned, it is impossible to visit these places properly on a low budget, so before you consider traveling here, you should be aware that you will spend several thousand dollars on this South America adventure. That said, paying a bit more for the best rooms, food, guides, and experience doesn’t cost proportionally a lot more, but can drastically improve your travel experience. South America hotel standards can vary drastically compared to the United States and Europe, so to make sure you’re staying in a place that meets your standards, the best bet is always to bump your luxury level up a bit.