We rate this tour exceptional! I was concerned about this trip when I read a critique written from april 2014 that was not very favorable. Our group of 6 had a very adventurous 2 weeks visiting Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands. There were many early mornings and late evenings, but all were required in order to see and do everything listed in the itinerary.

All of the hotels we stayed at were exceptional. Most were at Casa Andina Private Collection. When you consider that many times we were in the middle of nowhere, they were the best available. The Sumaq Machu Picchu was 5 star in a spectatcular location. My wife skipped the morning tour of Machu Picchu and visited the hotel spa and later walked the city. Those of us who went to MP hiked to the Sun gate and the Inca Bridge. Difficult walks but well worth it. Our tour guides were excellent. All of the restaurants we visited were very good.

The Galapagos were also spectacular. The Isabela is an expedition boat that met all of our requirements. It had a fun bar/lounge area and very good food (you finally get to eat raw vegetables on the boat). The boat tour has a demanding schedule that starts with a 7AM wakeup call and 3 shore expeditions each day. Evenings were spent in the lounge doing karaoke. The snorkeling was great but you needed to get away from the crowd, sea turtles and sea lions were the high point. The hiking was challenging with impressive views and lots of close ups of birds and marine iguanas. The tour guides were very good and helped those who had difficulty getting around. Read more