Twenty-two handpicked tours across Peru and Patagonia — from a 2-day Perito Moreno glacier trek to a 21-day continent circuit. Every Inca Trail permit, every Machu Picchu entry ticket, every W Trek refugio booking managed by our specialists before you book your flights.
The essential Peru week — Cusco (2 nights acclimatisation), the Sacred Valley (Pisac market, Maras salt pans, Moray circular terraces, Ollantaytambo), the Vistadome train, and Machu Picchu at the first entry slot (6am pre-booked). Huayna Picchu option available if pre-booked (200 tickets per day). All altitude acclimatisation structured correctly into the itinerary — Sacred Valley Day 3 is the first active day for a reason.
The 43km Classic Inca Trail from km 82 to Machu Picchu via Dead Woman’s Pass (4,215m) and the Sun Gate at dawn. SERNANP permit included, AOTC-certified guide and porter team (above minimum wage, within 25kg legal limit), all trail meals. 2 Cusco pre-acclimatisation nights included. 3:30am Day 4 departure — first at Inti Punku when the gate opens at 5:30am. Permits sell out in October for the following peak season.
The classic alternative — 74km, no permit required, 4,600m Salkantay Pass, 5 ecosystems from puna to subtropical jungle. Humantay Glacier Lake side trip (4,200m). Nevado Salkantay (6,271m) at sunrise. Coffee farm in the Río Santa Teresa valley. Railway walk to Aguas Calientes at dusk. Machu Picchu first entry slot Day 5.
The abbreviated Inca Trail — begins at km 104 with the best section of the Classic Trail: the cloud forest, the orchid belt, Wiñay Wayna ruins, and the Sun Gate (Inti Punku) arrival at dawn. Better permit availability than the 4-day classic. Overnight at Wiñay Wayna — the ruins in the late afternoon light, private. 3:30am departure for the Sun Gate.
45-minute flight from Cusco to the Peruvian Amazon. The Collpa de Guacamayos macaw clay lick (200–300 Scarlet and Red-and-green Macaws at 6am — the world’s largest accessible clay lick), giant river otters on the oxbow lake, jungle canopy walk, nocturnal caiman and UV scorpion walk. 632 bird species in the reserve. Naturalist guide throughout.
Cruz del Cóndor at 9am — the Andean condor (3.2m wingspan) passing at eye level within 10–20m as it rises on the canyon thermal. The Colca Canyon: 3,400m deep, twice the Grand Canyon. The altiplano drive from Arequipa via the vicuña herds at the 4,910m Patapampa pass. Canyon overnight at Chivay. Return via the Yanque hot springs.
The Uros Floating Islands (totora reed construction, pre-Inca defensive strategy) and an overnight homestay on Isla Taquile (3,850m — the Quechua-speaking community whose knitting quality determines marriage eligibility — UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage). Family-cooked dinner, the Southern Cross at 3,850m altitude, trout from the lake. The most immersive Titicaca experience.
Vinicunca (5,200m) — the mineral-banded mountain accessible only since its permanent snow melted in the 2010s. 4am departure from Cusco, 3.5hr drive, 2.5hr ascent to the summit. Iron oxide (red/orange), chlorite (green), feldspar (white/pink), limonite (yellow) — the geology of climate change visible in mineral colour. Horse option at the trailhead. Red Earth Valley extension recommended. Only after 2 days Cusco acclimatisation.
Lima — the South American food capital — structured as a genuine destination, not a transit stop. Museo Larco (45,000 pre-Columbian artefacts spanning 5,000 years), La Mar ceviche lunch (leche de tigre, corvina, choclo), Central dinner (world’s top 5 restaurant — pre-reserved), the Barranco district, the Miraflores Malecón at Pacific sunset, and Pachacamac archaeological site (the pre-Inca oracle sanctuary).
The W Trek west-to-east: Grey Glacier by catamaran (Day 1), Valle del Francés and the avalanche sound (Day 2–3), Torres sunrise 3:30am departure from Las Torres Refugio (Day 5). CONAF-certified guide (Wilderness First Responder). All refugio accommodation pre-booked. Torres sunrise: arrive at Mirador by 5:30am — 10–20 people instead of the 9am crowd of 200–300. Book 6–12 months ahead.
The full 210km loop of the Paine massif — the W Trek plus the back side that 98% of visitors never see. John Gardner Pass (1,241m) with the Southern Patagonian Ice Field (13,000km² — third-largest outside the polar regions) visible from the summit. Camping throughout the back section. 4-season tent provided. −10°C sleeping bag. The O Circuit is not a harder version of the W. It is a different undertaking.
The 170km² glacier advancing 2m per day. Walkways for 3 hours (calvings audible 2–3 seconds before visible — the 2–4pm afternoon light the best photography window). Ice trek: crampons on the glacier surface, moulins (circular drainage holes 30–40m deep — 3m exclusion rule), ice sails (pressure ridges 3–5m). The blue colour: air-free compressed ice absorbing all wavelengths except blue. Includes lunch and park entry.
Three glacial experiences from El Calafate: Day 1 Perito Moreno (advancing — 60–70m ice face — walkways + ice trek), Day 2 Upsala and Spegazzini glaciers by catamaran (the iceberg field — the specific silence when the engines cut in the middle of icebergs 70–80m tall — the sound of ice under tension), Day 3 optional dawn Perito Moreno (the east light, the empty walkways) or El Chaltén day drive.
All trails from El Chaltén are free. The weather contingency day is not optional padding — it is the structure that turns a probable miss into a near-certain sighting (Fitz Roy is clear less than 10% of days). Laguna de los Tres (3am departure, 1,000m ascent, the alpenglow on the granite face), Laguna Torre (flat 18km, Cerro Torre needle profile), weather monitoring via Meteoblue HRRR (4-hourly). 2am wake call when the window looks clear.
55°S. Beagle Channel catamaran (sea lion rookeries, Magellanic and Gentoo penguins Oct–Mar). End of the World train through the lenga beech forest (the former prison railway). Bahía Lapataia: the end of Ruta 3 — the sign saying Buenos Aires is 3,079km. The Yámana heritage at the Maritime Museum (last fluent speaker, Cristina Calderón, died 2022). Martial Glacier morning. The sky at 55°S.
1,440km through the Chilean fjords on a working cargo and passenger vessel (not a cruise ship). The Commerson’s dolphins (endemic to the fjords, fastest in the southern ocean) in the bow wave. Hanging glaciers descending to the waterline. The Balmaceda Glacier visible from the deck 90 minutes before docking at Puerto Natales. The Última Esperanza Sound (“the last hope” — named by the Spanish who found the passage after exhausting every other option). Departs Tuesday evenings.
The W Trek experience without the refugio bunks. Explora Patagonia (the Lodge at Salto Chico — arguablly the finest hotel in Chilean Patagonia, all-inclusive, 30 guided routes), awasi Patagonia (individual private villas, private guide and vehicle for the full stay), or Las Torres Patagonia (at the trailhead — strategically positioned for the Torres sunrise). Helicopter Grey Glacier approach available. Sommelier Malbec selection. Gourmet mountain cuisine.
The tours that cross both countries and combine the continent’s most iconic experiences into a single extended journey.
The complete Peru in a fortnight: Lima (Museo Larco, Central, La Mar), Cusco (2 acclimatisation days), Sacred Valley (Pisac, Maras, Moray, Ollantaytambo), Classic Inca Trail (4 days — Dead Woman’s Pass, Wiñay Wayna, Sun Gate 3:30am), Machu Picchu (Huayna Picchu option), Tambopata Amazon (macaw clay lick, giant river otters, nocturnal walk), Colca Canyon (Cruz del Cóndor condors at eye level 9–10am). All permits managed. All 13 nights accommodation, all 4 internal flights, all park entries included.
The complete Patagonia circuit across both countries: Ushuaia (Beagle Channel, Tierra del Fuego NP, Bahía Lapataia), El Calafate (Perito Moreno walkways + ice trek, Upsala iceberg catamaran), El Chaltén (Laguna de los Tres 3am, Laguna Torre, weather contingency), Torres del Paine W Trek guided (west-to-east, Torres sunrise 3:30am). 2 border crossings managed. Argentine peso logistics briefed. All accommodation and internal transport included.
The continent circuit that most Australians plan for years and do once: Lima (3 days — food and culture), Cusco and Sacred Valley (3 days — acclimatise), Classic Inca Trail (4 days — permit-managed), Machu Picchu, Tambopata Amazon (3 nights), fly to Buenos Aires (1 night — Palermo Soho, the parrilla), fly Ushuaia (2 days), El Calafate (3 days — glaciers + Spegazzini), Torres del Paine W Trek (5 days guided). Three countries, three ecosystems, the continent’s seven greatest sites. All permits, all 19 nights, all 6 internal flights included.
The efficient continent circuit for visitors with 10 days and high ambitions: Cusco (2 acclimatisation days — Sacred Valley Day 2), Machu Picchu by Vistadome (first slot, Huayna Picchu option), fly Lima–El Calafate, Perito Moreno full day and ice trek, fly El Calafate–Punta Arenas, 4-day Torres del Paine W Trek guided (west-to-east, Torres sunrise), fly Punta Arenas–Lima. The five sites that define the continent, sequenced efficiently. All bookings managed, all permits included.