Sugar on top: Rio de Janeiro is a featured destination with Brendan Vacations. Brendan Vacations, a tour operator known for its Ireland tours, has introduced its menu of South and Central America tours for 2012 and 2013. Among the highlights:• On the new, 11-day family-oriented tour called “Conquistadors, Sacred Valleys and Inca Mysteries,” travelers will have the chance…
Category: Peru
Keeping Amazon Time, With a New Watch from Aqua Expeditions
Aqua Expeditions, the company that specializes in luxury Amazon River cruises in Peru, celebrating the launch of its newest vessel, the M/V Aria, by partnering with Gianni Bulgari’s Swiss brand Enigma to custom-create 10 limited-edition “C42 AMAZON” luxury adventure watches. The designer timepieces will be available exclusively onboard the new M/V Aria and its sister ship, the M/V Aqua,…
New Latin America Travel Options for 2012, from Smithsonian Journeys
The Smithsonian Institute is known for its broad array of museums and collections, and its travel program, called Smithsonian Journeys, follows suit with a diverse travel portfolio for 2012. “We are thrilled to branch out to different styles and modes of travel to serve our clientele while maintaining what Smithsonian is best known for: lively and engaging educational content….
River Living: An Insider’s Guide to Amazon River Cruises
Floating elegance: The social area aboard the Delfin 1 Amazon cruise ship. BY CHALLEN CLARKEIf you want to experience the Amazon River by boat, there may be no better place to begin than Iquitos, the most important jungle city in Peru. Despite being only accessible by air and boat, this bustling city has been the…
Top 5 Bars and Restaurants with Atmosphere in Lima, Peru
BY MATT KLINCH Peru’s capital city of Lima has a lot to offer during the day and night. But after moving here from Toronto, Canada, almost a year ago, it’s taken some adjustments. One of my favorite pastimes is going out for drinks in the evening after work. But I quickly noticed that in Lima, Peru, people…
BOOK REVIEW: Tales from the Jungle — A Rainforest Reader
REVIEW BY MELISSA RUTTANAI First published in 1995, Tales from the Jungle: A Rainforest Reader is an explorer’s diary. The book is a compilation of fiction and non-fiction, all set in the wilderness and artfully layered with sensory details that stimulate the reader’s mind. Thirty-five stories are divvied into five themes or chapters: Explorers, Observations, Adventure…
Big Summer Discounts at Swissotel in Lima and Quito
Summer savings: Swissotel is offering discounts at its hotels in Quito and Lima, pictured. BY MARK CHESNUT If you’re looking for a Quito hotel or a Lima hotel this summer, you might want to check out Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts, which is offering 20 percent off the best available room rate at 29 hotels in…
Peruvian Cuisine Makes The Headlines — Again
Ceviche is among Peru’s most internationally celebrated dishes. BY CATRIONA SPENCE Peru’s increasingly renowned cuisine has been making the headlines again. At the end of March, Peruvian cuisine won the first Cultural Patrimony of the Americas award. Now the bid is in to declare the nation’s culinary tradition a World Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. …
Ayahuasca Journeying: Psychotropic Travel in Peru, Part 2
The skies over Peru look different when you’re sipping a psychotropic drink. In Part 1 of this feature, intrepid traveler Maureen Stanucci recounted her quest for Ayahuasca, a vine used in a pscyhotropic drink in Peru. Now, she shares her experience after she reaches the destination and sips the drink herself. BY MAUREEN STANUCCI Our destination…
Ayahuasca Journeying: Psychotropic Travel in Peru, Part 1
BY MAUREEN STANUCCI The first time I came to Peru as a tourist, my friend and I had read about Ayahuasca in a guidebook and thought we might try it out. If you’ve never heard of it before, Ayahuasca is a vine that grows in the jungle and is used in a psychotropic drink for healing…
In Peru, Lima’s Carnaval Shows Underdog Pluck
Carnival in Lima, Perú, is a rowdy, pirate-filled experience. Photos by Matthew Barker. BY MATTHEW BARKER The general rule of thumb for festivals in this part of the world is that the earlier the liquor store opens, the more explosive the party will be. So when my local store ran out of beer at 10:30am,…
Tired of Coach? Fly Around the World by Private Jet
Smithsonian Journeys offers private jet tours around the world, aboard a Boeing 757. Globetrotters with strong wallets and plenty of free time take note: Smithsonian Journeys, the Smithsonian Institution’s travel program has added a new departure of its “Around the World by Private Jet” tour. This 22-day private jet adventure (slated for November 1-22, 2011, in…
Cecilia Noel’s Favorite Restaurants in Lima — and What You Should NEVER Eat
If you enjoyed Peruvian singer Cecilia Noel’s recommendations for live music in Lima Peru (see my previous post), you won’t want to miss her “quick picks” for best restaurants and drinks.Noel also shares her insider tip on what you should always avoid when dining in Peru. Find out what it is in the full article…
Cecilia Noel’s 4 Hotspots for Live Music in Lima
Peruvian singer Cecilia Noel’s personality is so vibrant and warm that it saturates her telephone calls and e-mail; in my limited interaction with her, Noel’s enthusiastic tones and friendly words like “sweetheart” and “my dear Mark,” made even this lowly writer feel like someone special. It’s no surprise that this positive force works well in…