Jon Hatchett first contacted PeruNorth way back in March 2022, with a plan for his family to visit his brother, David - who was born in England, but lives in Lima - and then explore the rest of Peru.
As time went by, the trip expanded to be a 6-week highlights of South America itinerary, that finally took place in July and August of 2025.
The first two weeks were shared with David and his Peruvian wife and family, starting with time at Grand Amazon Lodge near Iquitos, before heading south to Arequipa, Colca Canyon and Puno.
David’s family of four returned to Lima, while Jon’s family of five then continued to Cusco, to do the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
From Cusco, they flew to La Paz, from where they visited the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca, before taking a local flight to Uyuni, in order to visit the Salt Flats.
They went overland across the border into Chile, to San Pedro in the Atacama Desert. Another domestic flight took them to Santiago, where they were joined for the rest of the trip by Jon’s mother-in-law.
They then flew to Buenos Aires for three nights, before heading to Iguazu Falls in northern Argentina, on the border with Brazil (and Paraguay).
Their final internal flight took them to Rio de Janeiro for three nights before their international flight home. What an epic!
Here is what they have to say about the experience, starting with David:
Families floating in Amazon River.
“I have just returned from a trip around Peru organized by PeruNorth and it was absolutely fantastic.
From the unmissable wildlife in the Peruvian Amazon to the beautiful historic colonial town of Arequipa, from the condors gliding over the Colca Canyon to the floating islands of Lake Titicaca, this was a holiday filled with wonder.
PeruNorth organized our entire trip, making adjustments to suit our budget. The guides they selected were outstanding.
Roberto, our guide in the rainforest, could spot sloths, macaws, cayman and pink dolphins (my personal favourite) from a mile away and knew everything about every plant and animal.
Alex, in Arequipa and Colca gave us excellent recommendations and allowed us to adjust our itinerary to our interests and timings.
Roy, in Puno and Lake Titicaca was full of information and played games with our kids.
All of the guides spoke perfect English and Spanish as well as Quechua in the Amazon and Aymara in the mountains to communicate with the local people.
The trip was so well organized; all transport (buses and boats) was punctual, smooth and so easy and comfortable for us.
The restaurants selected for us were all high quality and gave us a taste of the local cuisines – alpaca steak with pastel de papa was a highlight.
I would highly recommend Peru and PeruNorth to anyone with an interest in travel.
Thanks Miles”
And this is what Jon had to say about the trip, once back in the UK a few weeks later:
“We had a brilliant time and the organisation was excellent – it went really smoothly.
Some comments below on your questions.
What were your favourite cultural destinations in the itinerary?
Rio (Christo), Uros reed islands, Argentine Tango, Machu Pichu, Bolivian side of Titicaca and pre inca statues
What were your favourite natural destinations in the itinerary?
Rio seaside, Iguazu, Salt lakes, Amazon, Andes
Who were your guides? How did they perform?
Guides were great – our favourites were Roy, Grace and Roberto.
Drivers, transfers all of that was a high standard – reliable, friendly, helpful,…
Which was your favourite accommodation and why?
[Aranwa] Colca canyon with the hot springs and sense of space.
[Antigua Casona] Cusco hotel (lovely old building v central).
Salt Hotel [Uyuni].
Which was your favourite restaurant / dish / drink? Did you lose or gain weight over the course of the holiday!?
Seafood in Lima and steak in BA were highlights.
We were about neutral on weight in general, I think I lost a little.
Food was ok overall – we were missing home cooking by the end.
What forms of transport did you use? Pros/cons?
Lots! It all went smoothly but a few of the long drives got a bit much for the kids.
Boats on Titicaca were our favourite.
Did your itinerary involve any hiking? How would you rate it in terms of difficulty?
Inca trail – was fine for me and my daughters (our 10 year old found it hard but doable). My son has asthma and that got aggravated at altitude – we weren’t to know – so the high andes stuff was v tricky for him/he didn’t do the inca trail
What was the most pointless item in your luggage!?
Too many warm weather clothes that got very little wear over the whole trip e.g. sandals.
What were your favourite natural encounters?
Monkeys, pink river dolphins, caiman (at night in Amazon), condors, llamas – particularly feeding them
Did you suffer any insect bites? Other physical discomforts?
Mentioned the altitude, a few days of dodgy tummies for some of us – but nothing serious at all.
Overall it was brilliant – will have family memories for a lifetime. And so many of them in a relatively short space of time.
It was a fantastic holiday.”