South America is home to amazing sights and wonders of the world. From the marvel of Machu Picchu to the lush Amazon rainforest, and the carnival rhythms of Rio to the barren expanses of the Atacama Desert, South America is a continent full of exciting contrasts. Gaze at the colossal peaks of the Andes, sip on a glass of Malbec in Argentina, and feast on Brazilian barbeque. Whichever tour you’re embarking on you are sure to have the trip of a lifetime!
Your Wendy Wu Tours experience begins before you travel and we are there every step of the way until you return home. Our customers are our priority, and we will do all we can to ensure your holiday is one to remember.
This Travel Guide provides you with practical advice and cultural information to help you prepare for your holiday. We are aware that this can seem like a lot of reading material, but we ask that you take some time to familiarise yourself with this information prior to departure and refer to the contents within throughout your travels.
Your Tour Dossier (provided with your travel documents) provides a straightforward description of the physical activities involved in each day’s sightseeing. If there are any challenges, from the length of time spent on your feet, the duration of drives and flights, to the standard of remote
accommodation for our more adventurous tours; they will be explained there.
More about your holiday
Almost everything will be different to what you may be used to. We have found that our passengers who embark on their journey with a sense of humour and adventure and who accept
that things do not always go to plan, are those who find their experience most rewarding. Although South America is developing quickly, please note that health and safety standards
overseas can differ greatly from those we enjoy at home, often of a lower standard. However, all of our suppliers meet local and national safety standards as a minimum.
A typical day’s sightseeing may include the bustle and noise of a city street, sights and smells of a local market and interacting with the locals. Travelling in South America requires patience and potential delays are to be expected due to different standards of service. Although English is widely spoken throughout South America, especially in the hotels and tourist restaurants and bars, your National Escorts and Local Guides will be indispensable during your trip.
At Wendy Wu Tours we are continually working with our suppliers to maintain and improve safety standards by seeking good practice in health and safety and we will do our best to ensure that your holiday is safe and trouble free. Part of the enjoyment of travelling abroad is experiencing a different way of life and cultures, but it may also mean experiencing different safety and hygiene standards than those we are used to at home. We want you to have an enjoyable holiday so we ask that you take extra care, use your common sense as well as refer to notices and follow the advice from your National Escort/Local Guides.
Our tours are operated at a moderate pace with appropriate rest stops and are designed to be comfortable for people of all ages. A normal level of fitness and mobility is all that is required to enjoy our tours – unless stated in your Tour Dossier.
Our National Escorts and Local Guides always endeavour to provide the highest level of service and assistance, but they cannot be expected to cater for passengers who are unfit to complete the itinerary.
Important Information about Machu Picchu
If your itinerary includes Machu Picchu, you must provide full name, date of birth, nationality and passport number to us at time of booking. Visitors must bring their passport with them to be allowed entry to Machu Picchu and this must match the information provided to us in advance.
Hand luggage on board train to the citadel should not exceed 5kgs with specifications not exceeding 40 cm x 35 cm x 20 cm. You will need to bring an overnight bag of this size for your one-night stay at Machu Picchu.
The following items are not allowed in – food, single use plastics, professional cameras (i.e. equipment that needs accessories for its use such as tripods) and cameras that have magnifying lenses exceeding 2kg; drones; selfie sticks; walking sticks without a rubber tip; aerosol sprays; high heeled shoes; sharp objects; banners or posters.