ColcaTrek — Local services in Arequipa

The Colca Canyon is a great place to see, but I would not recommend doing a tour. Rather, it seems to me that it is a better value to rent a car, drive around there and stay in a nice hotel (such as the Colca Lodge with hot springs).

I will start from the beginning: If you plan do book this online know that they do not have any system implemented and everything is done over email (more prone to mistakes too). You have then to wire $100 to them to make sure you have a spot. This was more complicated than it seems with my bank and there was a $20 fee involved. Colca Trek made an exception and I transferred them the money over Western Union, which saved me such fee. Still, very cumbersome process.

I booked the 2 day tour. Initially, it was advertised that we would be picked up from our hotel and that we would go to hot springs at the end of the second day. About a month prior we received an email stating that they would not be able to pick us up, rather, we would have to go to their store to get the van. About 15 days prior to the tour we get another email stating that the hot springs are too crowded and that we would do a hike instead. It surprises me that being in this business for so long they could not anticipate how the hot springs would be and not falsely advertise such a feature in their tour.

Very well, we go on our tour. First thing to know is that the Colca Valley/Canyon is a 3h drive from Arequipa. Add in the stops to pee, have lunch, see animals (llama, vicuña, etc) and some rock formations and you've spent pretty much all of your first day with very, VERY skippable things. After dropping our stuff off at the nice hotel they have there, we go on a short hike down to where the Valley narrows down into the Canyon and watch the sunset. This was great, but lasted 30 min, maybe less.

The second day starts early. We go to the Cruz del Condor and arrive there around 7:30. No condors in sight but it was quite nice seeing the beautiful canyon with no tourists around. We go to our downhill bike experience. This lasted 30 min max, which was such a shame. Instead of touring down slowly and appreciating the vistas, our tour guide rushed the way down. Given that we were instructed to stay together and follow him, we all finished this activity so much faster than it should have been. The views are incredible. The valley and the ancient terraces are wonderful. Unfortunately we were not able to enjoy it as much as we could. We then head back to the Cruz del Condor, around 9:00 and this time we see so many condors. It is now packed with tourists too.

To end the day we go on a pretty mediocre hike to a lake. Why we didn't use this time to see more of the canyon/valley is beyond me. We then go back to the hotel, have lunch and then head back to Arequipa.

Now here's why I think you should go to the canyon but not do a tour: the best thing about the Colca, by far, is its geography and the terracing. The condor watching is also another highlight. None of this requires any knowledge. There's no hidden gems. It's right there. If you drive around, stopping at the miradores that you think are nice you'll have a much better, unique and exclusive experience, not having to share it with a 16 people tour. Our tour guide, Sabino, was a nice guy, but the information he offered is not worth the price you pay - in money terms (US$190/person) but also in having to pace yourself with the other 16 people, never really having solitude in a place that kinda requires quiet admiration, etc. Also, the food we ate was ok (I think it's almost impossible to eat bad food in Peru) and the hotel is nice, but, again, not worth $190/person. If you are a couple, and decide to rent a car and stay in the Colca Lodge, for example, you'll spend less, stay in a much nicer hotel, spend as much time as you want admiring the canyon and can then use the savings to buy a good book on the history of...

I did the two-day Colca Canyon tour. The tour was undoubtedly good but it was not great.

Firstly, the staff were definitely amiable although the information I was given beforehand did not adequately prepare me for the trip.

I was specifically told to bring insect repellent. I have no idea why. This was completely unnecessary because I never had to use it. Secondly, nobody bothered to give me the most important piece of advice: bring warm clothes! Nobody in my small group had done so either. In fact, a group member told me that before the tour she had explicitly asked if she should bring warm clothes and was advised it was unnecessary. I was freezing cold at night. This annoyed me because I had warm clothes – back in Arequipa! Yes, it may be hot during the day, but the temperature drops dramatically at night. Nobody bothered to tell me this.

I was expecting a lot more information on the tour but didn’t receive very much. If I contrast this to my Sacred Valley tour near Cusco, we were constantly informed.

The first part of the trip involved an off-road visit to some striking rock formations. Our guide took us on a short walk. However, we got to a point where we were at the bottom of a short but steep incline. It was tough to scramble up and felt dangerous. If I’d fallen, I could have hurt myself. I thought this was an unnecessary risk.

The walks we did were pleasant but were nothing extraordinary. One involved stopping on the road and walking alongside observing local wildlife – but we were walking along the side of the road! I had expected something a little more uplifting than this.

When we arrived at our hotel, it was pleasant but very cold. This could have easily been avoided if someone had told us to bring warm clothes! (Yes, I know I’m harping on about this, but this issue would have been so easy to avoid.) We went for an early evening walk nearby. It was okay, but I wasn’t too impressed at the amount of garbage on the footpath. It was pretty depressing to see. Once we got to the edge of the canyon, our guide asked if we wanted to proceed further. But we were all so cold that we asked to turn back.

On the second day, we went on a bicycle ride. Most of it was downhill so it didn’t require much effort. The views were lovely, and this was fun. This was an enjoyable excursion.

The food at the lodge was decent and basic – but it wasn’t exceptional. By the way, the lodge doesn’t have internet. Although my cellphone provider, Claro, had an excellent signal, it would have been nice to know about the lack of internet in advance. After all, for better or worse we live in a connected world – and it would have been better to have known this beforehand.

The van we travelled in was comfortable enough, but the door rattled slightly. This made for quite a noisy journey. I know this may seem trivial, but for a long trip, it matters. The constant juddering was a bit jarring.

We were asked to complete a questionnaire at the end of the trip. This is always a good idea, but for a questionnaire to accurately reflect people's opinions, it’s much better to give guests the privacy to complete it. Then you are more likely to receive an accurate reflection of what they think. Why so? Well, some people are happy to discuss things in person while others are more non-confrontational and prefer to privately give their thoughts on paper. This was not possible, as our guide was hovering over us the entire time and immediately read the questionnaires after they had been completed.

As I said, this tour was certainly good but not great. Judging by how much this cost compared to other tours, in my heart I cannot really...

Cannot recommend this tour enough - it was an incredibly special experience. From the moment we contacted Colca Treks they were hugely helpful and when we went to their office, they patiently took us through the whole itinerary so we knew what to expect. On the day of the trek, we were picked up from our hostel and introduced to our guide, Salome, and driver Paul, along with the rest of the group (9 in total). Salome and Paul were fantastic and we trusted them entirely. We never felt rushed and they were incredibly caring, ensuring that no one did anything they didn’t feel comfortable with and that everyone was managing ok with the altitude etc. The sites were simply stunning and we found ourselves away from the “general route”. The Colca Trek Lodge is really lovely, the views from the rooms are special and the staff very helpful. The tour was perfectly suited to all interests and abilities - my mother and I didn’t feel held back or out of our comfort zones at any point. The food was also really good! Would recommend this tour to anyone who wants to avoid the typical Colca Canyon trip and have a truly...