Machu PIcchu and Lima, Ecuador
(28 Reviews)
100% Recommended
Debbie Linder
Nashville, TN
Luxury travel, river cruise & vacation specialist
I was born in Chicago and eventually moved to the western suburbs. We traveled quite extensively as a family and I was always looking forward to the next trip. So I was hooked at a very young age. I started in travel and worked for a leisure agenc...
I was born in Chicago and eventually moved to the western suburbs. We traveled quite extensively as a family and I was always looking forward to the next trip. So I was hooked at a very young age. I started in travel and worked for a leisure agency for 20 years. Totally by surprise and out of the blue I was contacted by a Corporate agency with over 35 million in sales to open, develop and run a new division of their agency geared toward vacation travel. It was an amazing job! My knowledge and expertise really took off with the vacation side for their agency.
I have an extensive following so with my "regulars" and now all of these endless new clients I was seeing burnout. After several years, I decided to open my own agency and create the business I wanted. Golden Travel Inc was born. Yes, the name is a tribute to my love of Golden Retriever's!
For 25 years I worked extensively with the 101st Airborne to organize a local "get together" in their area. They were a group like no other and loved to talk of their experiences, some of my phone calls lasted hours! Once a year we would arrange a group trip with their children and even grand children back to Bastogne and Normandy where we had several wreath ceremonies to commemorate those that were lost and also private events where they could rebond year after year. Many of them had made friends with locals during the war and wanted to go back to visit them. Maybe they just offered them a cup of coffee during the night, but they never forgot. We made that happen, time and time again. In the early years, several made the jump on to the beaches in Normandy. As they got older and less were able to do that, we had 1 jumper that in his mid 90's made the jump onto the beach every year. I remember he told me, "parachutes had come a long way" I could feel the smile on his face.
We leave no stone unturned when it comes to creating the dream.
I have been a travel professional for 42 years and love my job.
My areas of expertise include but is not limited to:
- Europe
- River Cruises
- South America
- African Safaris
- Egypt
- Galapagos
- Machu Picchu
- Russia
- Mexico/Caribbean
- All inclusive resorts
- Ocean Cruises
- Customized European Tours
Whether you travel as a single, couple or groups of friends and family I can customize your journey to include highlights of each destination but also the hidden gems that you don't read about in a brochure. My reputation is about details and custom itineraries.
I am foodie, so taking food tours and cooking classes all over the world I find that food is the breakthrough for each destination. Its a great start on the local culture and the back round of food is what makes each country so unique. If you really want to dive in to the local way of life, I can arrange dinner with a local at their home almost anywhere in the world. That's a once in a lifetime experience!
In our first meeting we will discuss what excites you about travel and then I will work out a truly unique itinerary that highlights all of your desires. We will work things out at a leisurely pace so you have time to wander and explore on your journey.
We provide a beautiful itinerary for all of our clients on all of their travels. We provide this on our app but also as a PDF if you prefer to have things printed.
I feel so fortunate that I have spent my life travelling. There are still those that say, "when I retire" or "someday". Now more than ever in this new world we are living in, we see that tomorrow is not like yesterday. We've all spent a year of our lives basically putting that dream on hold. Its just lost time. So when we can get going again, lets do it - DON'T PUT OFF THAT DREAM!
As your travel professional the first item I want to talk about with you, will be having the proper documentation for your travel. If you don't have a passport and you need it for your destination then we need to get that going. Passport expiration dates are extremely important as different countries have different rules. We monitor entry and exit requirements for your travel travel throughout the world.
Passport, inoculations and visas can change and we are always on top of that. Now more than ever with COVID countries entry and exit requirements are changing daily. This is a changing environment and you need a professional to help navigate this changing world.
I have already had clients that had to change up their last minute plans to get COVID testing when it wasn't required 3 days ago. Hopefully it will get easier but until then I've got your back!
Can Be Reached At
1-630-365-6210
At the top of Machu Picchu
I imagine Machu Picchu is on everyone's bucket list. Well most people anyway. It was high on my list but there was so much on my list that it took 20 years to get there. But we did!
Completely exceeded my expectations on every level. The first thought when planning such a once in a lifetime journey is to choose the right tour operator. For me, it was a Celebrity Cruise tour. (we did combine this with the Galapagos-more on that later) They offer the perfect package for those that want it all like we did but didn't want to make it 2 separate trips. Hey lift is short, I'm not spend in in plane.
We went to Quito a few days early to just have some free time to explore on our own. The Galapagos portion of our trip ended in Lima and we spend the night. The next morning we flew to Cuzco. Set at an altitude of 11,154 feet, it's the gateway to further Inca sites in the Urubamba Valley. We went 3 days early to get acclimated to the altitude which is a must for a visit to Machu Picchu. Stayed at the Monastario in Cuzco, wonderul property and centrally located.
The next day we spent sightseeing and left Cuzco for Urubamba Valley, the sacred valley of the Incas. Went to the colorful market of Pisaq, to see locally made goods. Then toured the impressive Ollantaytambo fortress ruins, featuring terraces carved into the hillside and a crowning temple designed for worship and astronomical observation, just amazing.
The next morning we boarded the famous Orient Express Hiram Bingham train for Machu Picchu. The Belmond Hiram Bingham is a luxury train operating day return trips from the Poroy station outside Cuzco to Aguas Calientes, the station for Machu Picchu in Peru. The train, named after Hiram Bingham, who discovered the largely forgotten Inca city of Machu Picchu, travels from the high Andes down the Sacred Valley, and for much of the journey it runs alongside the Urubamba River.
The train consists of two dining cars, a bar car and an observation car with an open deck. We had brunch on the outbound journey and dinner on the return. We enjoyed the local Peruvian pisco drink in the bar car and there was a live local band on board.
The Belmond Hiram Bingham Train was launched in 1999. In 2014 the company changed its name to Belmond Ltd. and the train was renamed Belmond Hiram Bingham. Our amazing tour guide, Ruth lead us through the almost perfectly preserved buildings and the mysterious passageways underlying the city.
We spent the day climbing up and up hearing the stories of what the village must have been like when it was inhabited. We ended the journey at the highest point which is called the Temple of the Sun and the air sure thinned out. You can tell by my video everyone was short on air! The locality of the Temple of the Sun at Machu Picchu was strategic because the Inca's thought that at the highest point they were in the best location to reach the sky and perform rituals and ceremonies to honor their gods.
Machu Picchu is situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred Valley which is 50 miles northwest of Cuzco and through which the Urubamba River flows. Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", it is the most familiar icon of Inca civilization.
We had afternoon tea at the exclusive Hotel Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge before we return to Cuzco on the Hiram Bingham train.
Spent another night in Cuzco and then flew back to Lima. We decided to spend a few extra nights at the end in Lima because the coastal area around Lima is absolutely beautiful. Its all cliffs and there are fabulous restaurants and its people watching at its finest. There had to be over 100 people parasailing (and taking lessons off a cliff towards the ocean) Moms and Dads helping strap their kids in who were soooooo excited to do that. We were very happy watching!
Its an extraordinary place to visit and all of the areas are safe at both day and night. We walked around after midnight everywhere and it was very populated and well lit.
The story of Harry Bingham is amazing but too long to address here. I have made another story just to introduce him and how he found and saved Machu Picchu.
See my Harry Bingham story!! Thanks for reading this, hope you enjoyed it.