Private tour to Machu Pichu

[P14HOG]

Does anyone have any details of private tours to Machu Pichu. I am horrified at the price that Celebrity are charging (£1800) per person. We are in Lima for 2 days next November arriving on Infinity. There must be a cheaper option.

[BosoxI]

Does anyone have any details of private tours to Machu Pichu. I am horrified at the price that Celebrity are charging (£1800) per person. We are in Lima for 2 days next November arriving on Infinity. There must be a cheaper option.

 

There probably are cheaper options but do consider what you're undertaking. We paid quite a bit for a Princess tour but it was worth every last penny, everything was first class and we had absolutely no problems. A simply wonderful trip.

 

Two weeks later terrible rains fell, stranding hundreds of people in the little town Aguas something or other, I think. Many of them must have been on their own. I wonder how they made out. My point is that this is not a four hour tour where alternate means of returning to the ship are available. This is a fairly major undertaking. Consider it carefully but do go, it's fantastic.

[sippican]

Does anyone have any details of private tours to Machu Pichu. I am horrified at the price that Celebrity are charging (£1800) per person. We are in Lima for 2 days next November arriving on Infinity. There must be a cheaper option.

 

Of course there are cheaper options, there are also cheaper cruiselines.

You may receive more helpful replies by posting on the Expedition forum, as some there have continued on to independent tours following that cruise. We had originally intended on doing the same. (We booked the 10 day Expedition option last year.) The MP forum on Trip Advisor may also. be informative.

Just last week we extended our package to include the MP SV tour. We did extensive research on alternative companies, taking into consideration accommodations, transportation, what is included, costs, reviews on Trip advisor, etc. During our recent TA on the Silhouette we also had the opportunity to speak with a number of people who have done the trip, both with and without the X extension. The overwhelmong opinion was to do it through X. Celebrity's expereince is top notch the entire way. Cost was the other factor, alternative highly-rated companies were mostly comparable costwise, and in some cases more. When doing comparisons remember that X includes everything for the entire trip.

Good luck with your search.

Edited November 30, 2016 by sippican

[ECCruise]

If you are on the Infinity and have the 2 day tour available, I would not do it with either Celebrity or privately.

 

Way too much money for way too little time in Aguas Calientes and the ruins. Doing it as extension (examples given here) are a whole other kettle of fish. I would still do it privately there (we paid 1/3 the cost of the=X=program, had top notch hotels, private guides everywhere, double the amount of time at the ruins and more. Just a top notch package.

 

Honestly, for what they are charging I would return home to the UK and return at a later time when you can do the area justice. With prudent shopping, it probably would not be prohibitively more expensive than the =X= tour. And, you would be able to spend more time in Lima (which is a wonderful city and which you would completely miss if you go from the ship), Cuzco and the Inca Trail area.

[P14HOG]

Thanks for your thoughts

[bunnyette]

If you are on the November 23, 2017 sailing from Fort Lauderdale...there is a very active roll call with some private excursion options to Machu Picchu. I am still pondering whether to do an extension or not after the cruise.

[P14HOG]

If you are on the November 23, 2017 sailing from Fort Lauderdale...there is a very active roll call with some private excursion options to Machu Picchu. I am still pondering whether to do an extension or not after the cruise.

I'm new to this forum. How do I find the roll call

[Godsonsafari]

I looked at that thread for the 11/23/17 departure (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2289383&page=33): something that caught my eye is that the boat overnights in Callao, but then you pick it back up in Pisco. To those who've never traveled to Peru before: Pisco is around Paracas, roughly a 4 hour ride south of Lima. There is no airport there providing service. If you need to be back on board the ship by 5PM for a 6PM departure, you'll need to leave Callao by no later than noon, which means an AM flight from Cusco. That's a tight window to hit if you're on an independent tour and doesn't leave a ton of room for error. If you are going on that departure, you'll be arriving at around the start of the rainy season, and this can lead to delays. It can also lead Perurail to shut down service between Cusco and Ollantaytambo (as is the case right now for Jan-Apr '17), which means you may have to transfer to the train only after a long bus ride through the Andes after you arrive in Cusco.

 

A "cheap" excursion to Machu Picchu will still involve round trip airfare, round trip train fare (which is inflated in cost), the bus fare, the tickets into MP (which are ~$40/person), and all the costs within (pay toilets, limited dining options at exorbitant pricing), plus your lodging. There is no "cheap" way to do Machu Picchu. It can also be physically taxing. If you are not used to high altitudes, it is important to grasp that everything once you step off the plane in Cusco will be at high altitude. Are you prepared to do a lot of climbing at 8,000 feet?

 

In the frame work of this being just a side trip as part of a longer, much more expensive vacation, here is my suggestion. If your heart is absolutely set on going to see Machu Picchu, book through Celebrity and get the guarantees involved. If it sounds like something that is good to see but not something that you need to experience at this time, skip it, do things in Lima and the surrounding area and book yourself a fancy excursion in Pisco to go see the Nazca Lines or the Ballesta Islands.

Edited November 30, 2016 by Godsonsafari

[PTMary]

In 2009 we visited Machu Picchu on our own. For the same cost of the ship's excursion, which would have us off the ship for three days, days we paid for, we opted to go six days early and do it on our own.

 

We flew into Lima, Peru, then to Cusco, Peru, where we stayed for two nights at the Libertador Palacio del Inka Hotel, one of the hotels used by the cruise lines. We then took the luxury train to Aqua Caliente, at the base of the mountain that Machu Picchu sits on. We arrived at about noon. While our luggage was being transferred to the hotel, our private guide took up to Machu Picchu for an afternoon of exploring and watching the sunset, and then went to our beautiful hotel in Agua Caliente, the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel. The next morning we were back at Machu Picchu for the sunrise, with more exploring on our own, then back to the train station by 5:00 pm for the trip back to Cusco for one more night there. The next day we flew to Santiago, Chile, where we explored the city and spent the night, then transferred to Valparaiso for more exploring and another night at the Manoir Atkinson, before boarding the ship.

 

All of this was arranged by our travel agent. Included were all transfers, the round-trip luxury train to Agua Caliente, the private guide for our first Maccu Picchu day, entrance to all sites, a private tour of the Cusco area, and all hotels. The total cost was almost identical to the ship excursion cost.

 

Since our cruise departed Chile and ended in Ft. Lauderdale, this worked out perfect for us. We had twice as much time to enjoy the area, including several days in Cusco and almost a day and a half at Maccu Picchu, compared to only a few short hours on the ship excursion.

 

Plus, we did not miss out on those three paid days on the ship. After all, why pay for lodging at two places at the same time? ;)

Edited November 30, 2016 by PTMary

[RDC1]

In March I was on a Princess cruise around South America. There was a large group doing the Princess excursion to Machu Picchu. There were also others doing the trip on their own.

 

The travelers were spread across two flights from Cusco to Lima. The second plane had an engine failure on take off. The plane had to abort and skidded off the runway. No one was injured, but it closed the Cusco airport until the next morning. The ship waited, but had to leave once it was clear that there was not any way to get the passengers back to the ship.

 

Those on the Princess excursion had all of their travel arrangements taken care of, they were put up in very nice hotels. The ship made a special stop to pick them up in Ecuador two days later. A couple doing the trip on their own and another couple that booked it through American express also joined the ship in Ecuador.

 

The largest group of independent travelers (which rumor on the ship said was a CC group, which I believe, because in the roll call prior to the cruise someone had posted " what can go wrong we are on the same flights as the Princess excursion passengers") rejoined the ship a few days later in Costa Rica. They had to do everything themselves, including all of the additional travel expenses. I suspect the ship excursion would have been cheaper for them.

[dabear]

In 2009 we visited Machu Picchu on our own. For the same cost of the ship's excursion, which would have us off the ship for three days, days we paid for, we opted to go six days early and do it on our own.

 

We flew into Lima, Peru, then to Cusco, Peru, where we stayed for two nights at the Libertador Palacio del Inka Hotel, one of the hotels used by the cruise lines. We then took the luxury train to Aqua Caliente, at the base of the mountain that Machu Picchu sits on. We arrived at about noon. While our luggage was being transferred to the hotel, our private guide took up to Machu Picchu for an afternoon of exploring and watching the sunset, and then went to our beautiful hotel in Agua Caliente, the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel. The next morning we were back at Machu Picchu for the sunrise, with more exploring on our own, then back to the train station by 5:00 pm for the trip back to Cusco for one more night there. The next day we flew to Santiago, Chile, where we explored the city and spent the night, then transferred to Valparaiso for more exploring and another night at the Manoir Atkinson, before boarding the ship.

 

All of this was arranged by our travel agent. Included were all transfers, the round-trip luxury train to Agua Caliente, the private guide for our first Maccu Picchu day, entrance to all sites, a private tour of the Cusco area, and all hotels. The total cost was almost identical to the ship excursion cost.

 

Since our cruise departed Chile and ended in Ft. Lauderdale, this worked out perfect for us. We had twice as much time to enjoy the area, including several days in Cusco and almost a day and a half at Maccu Picchu, compared to only a few short hours on the ship excursion.

 

Plus, we did not miss out on those three paid days on the ship. After all, why pay for lodging at two places at the same time? ;)

 

We did almost the exact trip . We flew into Lima and on to A C the same day. We stayed at the same hotels, took the deluxe Hiram Bigham (now Belmonde) train, toured Maccu Picchu with private guide in the afternoon and the following morning. We had massages at the Inkaterra, went to the market in A c in the afternoon before catching the train . It was a great trip.

Edited November 30, 2016 by dabear

[ECCruise]

For many of the reasons posted above, there is NO way I would do it as a ship's excursion. Too short a time, too many things can go wrong, you miss days of lodging and meals (that you are paying for) while you are gone.

 

Either do it as an adjunct before or after, or, if need be, return and do it right. Otherwise it can be just a "check it off the bucket list" (and a very pricey check it is) trip, the kind of thing that we have no interest in.

[north29]

Than expensive cruise ship tours notice I said PERU. We did all of Peru with a local Peruvian native now American citizen who runs 4 trips a year and a local Peruvian handcrafts shop. I think the cost was at that time $2500 PP plus air from Orlando and it was a all inclusive trip. He will only travel in Spring and Fall due to weather issues please note weather.

If you have the money heck do the cruise ship go for it but Peru is a great place to visit not just Machu Picchu.

[bunnyette]

I'm new to this forum. How do I find the roll call

 

Here is the link to the Celebrity Infinity Roll Calls. Just locate the one for November 23.

 

My personal opinion is that MP is better done after the cruise, then no fretting or rushing if things go wrong.

[BosoxI]

And I was surely going back to Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Experience teaches it's best to seize the day. We never know what future political and personal situations might arise. Better a few expensive days now than a missed opportunity, never to be repeated