Why Book your Inca Trail Trek with
Alpaca Expeditions...?

1. #1 Inca Trail Trek Provider in Peru

Alpaca Expeditions is the number 1 tour operator for all treks that lead to Machu Picchu, especially when it comes to the Inca Trail. We have been ranked #1 on TripAdvisor for 7 years in a row with more than 5,000 5 star reviews. This is a result of a superior quality of our service and endless dedication to our team and community. The Inca Trail requires a tremendous amount of logistics, all handled by our team so you can focus on the views and your hike.

2. 100% LOCAL COMPANY - LOCAL STAFF, LOCAL OWNER AND LOCAL OPERATOR

Alpaca Expeditions is a local company based in Cusco city. Our office is located half block away from the main square and easy to walk and in the center of Cusco. We are direct operator and operate all our own treks: we will never put you into another operator even if we end up with a small group. Tours are never cancelled unless natural catastrophe. Our entire staff are from Cusco. They are all extremely well trained and ready to provide the best quality of service – responsibly and punctual.

3. BOOKING SYSTEM

Simple and clear booking system allows you to comfortably reserve your tour with ease. You receive an itemized invoice within 24 hours of booking showing clearly what you are signed up for. A full sales team is ready to answer any questions.

4. HIKE BRIEFING

Join us at our conveniently located office, close to the center of Cusco, for a 45 minute briefing before all camping treks. Briefings are at 6:30 with your trekking guide and last for 45 minutes. We will answer all last minute questions and hand out your duffel bags that will be carried by the porters.

5. DUFFLE BAGS , BACKCOVERS, PONCHOS, & PERSONAL PORTER

Most of our competitors charge extra for a personal porter to carry your belongings, but not Alpaca. In order to make your trek as comfortable as possible, we include this service in our price. We provide a duffel that can be packed up to 7kg/15lbs of your personal items needed outside of hiking times so you can just carry your daypack of necessities and keep it as light as possible. We also offer free daypack covers to keep your bag dry in case of rain and plastic ponchos. These are recycled and reused.

6. HOTEL TO HOTEL SERVICE

No other company offers this service. We will pick you up directly from your hotel before the trek and drop you back at your hotel at the end. Cusco streets are historically narrow and difficult to pass through, but we will make the special effort to get to you to make this vacation hassle free for you.

7. AMAZING MEALS

We include your meals from your very first breakfast on Day 1 until your last breakfast…always with variety of healthy and delicious meals. We cater to all food restrictions and make sure everyone has something tasty to eat. Only your last lunch in Aguas Calientes after Machu Picchu is not included.

8. WELL PAID STAFF

It is our job to take care of our team and we take this seriously. We offer everyone at Alpaca Expeditions a better salary so that they can live comfortably. And it is very obvious upon meeting our team that they are happy, dedicated and proud of their work.

9. PORTER WELFARE

We treat with respect our Porters. They have the hardest job on the inca trail and we work hard to make sure they are repaid for their commitment. We provide a place for them to sleep safely and comfortably in Cusco and soon in the Sacred Valley. We provide all hiking uniforms and equipment to them for free including hiking belts, boots, warm jackets, down sleeping bags and tents to sleep in.

10. EQUALITY FOR ALL

Tourism is the number 1 industry in Cusco, but historically most jobs have only been open to men. We are working hard to include more and more women in our company in every role…management, guides, chefs and now porters. In 2018 we started our WOMEN EMPOWERMENT initiative opening our doors to our first group of female porters. That number has grown by almost 5 times in 2019 and we hope it continues to grow. We make sure the experience is comfortable and safe for our female porters. We have training sessions to make sure both men and women teammates work side by side with respect. Being a porter is a hard job and not all women are interested in such exhausting work, but those who do seem to love it.

equipment Dining tent - Alpaca Expeditions

11. EQUIPMENT

We use top quality equipment that makes our clients as comfortable as possible. Spacious 4 man Eureka tents are shared by 2, Therm-a-Rest air matts, Black Diamond Walking Sticks. All top quality.

12. PORTABLE PRIVATE TOILETS

Public toilets are terrible on the Inca Trail, cleaned only once a day and with piles of toilet paper. Our company has introduced private portable ecological toilets for only our groups to use. They are set up for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

atellite phones oximeters - alpaca expeditons

13. SATELITTLE PHONES, OXIMETERS, TENSIOMETERS

We are the only company that carries these very important safety devices on all our treks. And we are the only company that has satellite phones that are extremely helpful in emergencies or can just be fun to use to contact your family from the top of a mountain.

14. SOCIALLY CONCIOUS

We are dedicated to our community and environment. We believe that the company should not only focus on how much we grow as business , but on our neighbors and community. We dedicate shares of our income on important social projects focusing on making the lives of our porters and their families better. We bring doctors and dentists to them, we celebrate special moments with clowns and fun activities for their kids, we plant trees in their village, we donate warm jackets and boots. And this year we have donated a year’s salary to the school to make sure they have a professor of English, literature and mathematics. She will teach 150 children at Llullcha community. She plans on sending us monthly reports of how the kids are doing and we hope to share these online.

Sustainable Tourism environmentally friendly

15. ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY

Alpaca Expeditions always has pachama on our mind. We use ZERO plastic…everything we use is reusable and recyclable. We ask our clients to leave plastic ponchos and daypack covers at home, because we supply and reuse ours. We try to create as little waste as possible and lead treks just to clean our trails throughout the year. We have planted more than 10,000 queuna trees in more than 5 villages along the Sacred Valley and Ausangate area. Quena trees are the only native tree from the Andes and according to studies, it’s one of the few trees that helps to protect soil and water on the hills.

16. FIRST AID

Our guides are extremely well trained in different safety and health emergencies that can come up during one of our hikes. Each guide will have a fully stocked First Aid Kit complete with medications required by law, thermometers, oximeters, blood pressure cuffs, bandages, etc. However we still suggest to bring your own first aid with your preferred medications and remedies.

17. OXYGEN TANK

Each of our guides will carry a full tank of oxygen. Passing over 4200M can literally take your breath away and we are here to help anyone in need at any time.

18. BEST STAFF

Of course this should not be last…this is what truly separates us from the rest. We have the most passionate guides, precise chefs and dedicated porters. Our office staff works endlessly answering questions and preparing our clients for their adventure. Our drivers are prompt and courteous. We believe that every question should be answered with yes and a smile and we are so happy to show you our home. As the owner of Alpaca Expeditions, I am honored that my team works so hard for me and for you. Meeting foreigners and learning from our clients is a pleasure…share a story from home and we will teach you about our ancestors.

Alpaca Expeditions Recognitions

ISO (International Organization for Standardization)

In the pursuit to stand out from the rest, Alpaca Expeditions has obtained four ISOs plus our carbon footprint certificate to date. These achievements result from our efforts to implement the internationally-recognized integrated management system. They also represent our commitment to all of our clients and staff of operating sustainability and responsibility in every way possible.

World Travel Awards

Alpaca Expeditions is internationally recognized as a leading tourism company in Peru. As proof, we have been awarded the World Travel Award for Peru´s Best Tour Operator 2021 for the second time.

perus leading tour operator 2021 Alpaca Expeditions-01

TRIPADVISOR RECOGNITIONS

Our goal at Alpaca Expeditions is to create the best experience for all of our clients. We create journeys that are to be remembered for a lifetime. Journeys you can be proud of and can share with everybody around you.