Colonial Tours: is it good as the Trip Advisor says?

by the Colca Specialist

Colonial Tours is a travel agency that it is recommended in several travel guidebooks and be sure that if the Colca Specialist pays 500 US to the representatives of these travel guidebooks I would appear in them.

If the Colca Specialist appears one day in one guidebook it would be thanks to the work well done with each one of our clients and not because I payed 500 US to appear in the guidebook.

Well, there are many travel agencies in Arequipa and just a few ones are responsible enough with their clients.

Colonial Tours is a travel agency which has enough experience in these kind of tours in Colca Canyon but it is not the best. There are many complaints against this travel agency which became famous because of car accidents, because of being late all time and because of having poorly paid tour guides who have no insurance, nothing.

What kind of responsible tourism is this that the tour guides are poorly paid and have no insurance?

Now we understand why the tour guides are eager to take their clients to the touristic restaurants in order to get commissions.
There are many tour guides whose English is chaotic and whose knowledge is very poor. It is because the travel agency he or she works with is not responsible enough with their workers. If they are not responsible with their workers you can easily realize that they don´t care about their clients.

If these guys would be properly paid they would have money to improve their languages and update their knowledge. If they would be paid properly they wouldn´t have to travel everyday in order to cover basic needs ,neither to show their bored faces to the clients.

In order to make it in tourism you should have a vocation of service. If you don´t have it is simple: you won´t be successful in this business.

Travel agencies should be responsible with their workers and with the people and the environment of the places you visit. That is called sustainable tourism.

As tourists we should have to be responsible too and we should avoid buying tours to companies that don´t practice sustainable tourism. In that way we would collaborate with the development of the areas we visit.

Another funny thing is to see web page of the different travel agencies in Arequipa. 90 percent of them say that the do social work and that they are involved in volunteering programs. Volunteering programs have to be checked carefully. Lots of lies.

Don´t believe those travel agencies that tell you that tips are included in the tour price because they will never arrive to your guides hands. If you want to tip your tour guide because of the good service provided, do it, but you don´t have to tip in advance.

As part of the propaganda many travel agencies from Arequipa put pictures of children of Colca Canyon who supposedly are being helped with the money from donations ,but when you find out you discover that nothing was done with your donations. The same situation happens in Puno.

Many travel agencies from Puno use donations for their own purposes and the donations never arrive to their destiny. Careful with those mystic associations or travel agencies who are sending fake Incas to United States in order to perform condor sacred dances that are fake,dances that nobody knows, not even the most famous peruvian historians or anthropologists. None of these groups are guaranteed by INC (National Cultural Institute of Peru).

The sacred music they play is the music we hear in restaurants everyday, music that most of Peruvians hate, because the same songs are played in all the touristic restaurants you visit. The fake Incas collect money in order to keep the last inca survivors alive and when you ask their names and surnames both are Spanish! Funny right?

Only an innocent could believe those stories. The donations for the children never arrive to their destiny and with the money obtained they buy cars or motorcycles. The fake Incas are musicians who have a deal with esoteric travel agencies from Puno. Next time I will write more about that with more details. The Colca Specialist became a Mythbuster!

Well, travel guidebooks have to be serious with their job and have to inform their clients properly.

If the clients are complaining against the bad service of a specific company, write to that company you are recommending in your travel guidebook and suggest them to improve their service. By the contrary, the clients will realize that the info provided in the guidebook was wrong and they won´t advice their friends to buy your travel guidebooks.

There are many travel agencies in Arequipa that need to improve their services. In the internet you can find all the information about them and there are a lot of complaints against Colonial Tours in web pages and blogs done in english and Spanish languages. Colonial Tours needs to improve its service quality and to solve its problems with its workers in order to be a good responsible travel agency from Arequipa.

If a worker has a problem,the company has a problem too. If the workers don´t work properly the clients satisfaction will be affected and your business can go bankrupt the less expected moment.

Is Trip Advisor reliable enough? I don´t think so.

The Colca Specialist.

Walking in Coporaque with the Colca Specialist

by the Colca Specialist

Coporaque is one of the beautiful villages in Colca Valley. In one publication of my blog you can read more about this place where the incas established their center of power when the Kollawas and Cabanas were conquered.

This tour I did was specifically to visit this place. The are many advantages of traveling in a private tour is that you can take it easy and you can have more time for your pictures and visits.

Our holidays are important. Quality and not quantity is the rule for having an unforgettable trip in Peru and in Colca Canyon.

Well now it´s kodak time and I will guide you in this beautiful trip to Coporaque.

This is a picture of Chachani volcano at 5:00 am in the morning. The sun is about to come in the highlands of Arequipa!

Great! The sun is coming out in the highlands of Arequipa...How many of us have we seen a sunrise in the morning?

We arrived to Chivay at midday after some stops we did on the way. After our lunch we went quickly to Coporaque and on the way we can see this little gorge on the way to Coporaque!

After the little gorge, we stopped in this place to see the views of these fields in the area of Coporaque.

Along the way to Coporaque we can see remains of the old terraces that are still being cultivated in this area of Coporaque.

Now we are watching remains of inca houses that are on the way to Coporaque.

Finally we are arriving to the village of Coporaque or place where the corn is given. Our adventure is going to start here in this place in some minutes more...

This is the church of Coporaque which is one of the oldest chapels in Peru. See the difference between the towers... the duality is present in the inca and in the preinca world...

This church is dedicated to Santiago,one of the disciples of Jesus Christ. Why the spanish conquerors built churches in the power places of the inca or preinca people and they put Santiago just in specific places of Peru?

Next to the church we have this chapel dedicated to San Esteban.

We left the village and we took a path that is going to take us to Yuraq Qhaqha to see the burials of our ancestors.

Views from San Antonio de Chijra from Yuraq Qhaqha area.

Coporaque seen from Yuraq Qhaqha or white rock.

After a walk of some minutes finally we arrived to the area where the burials are located.

We dont´t understand why the local authorities don´t protect this place. You can find bones scattered in the place and there are many skulls that present a notorius craneal deformation. This place should be protected and tour guides should respect this place during their visits.

The cult to the death is still alive in Peru. There are many obscure ancient ceremonials that are still performed in Colca Valley in which the death is involved.

After the tombs of Yuraq Qhaqha we continue with our way and now we will visit the ancient town destroyed by the spanisn cavalry in 1570.

We are at the top of the hill and we are watching wonderful viewes of one of the most important shrines of our ancestors in the area of Coporaque.

Nice view of Coporaque from the top of the hill.

We are in the inca ghost town and we see remains of the old terraces done by our ancestors.

Apu Wayra or Lord Wind is the keeper of these places where according to the old people,the spirit of the ancient ones is still alive there...What kind of rituals are still performed in these places?

Now we can see Yanque village and down there we can see some inca terraces that look like a greek amphiteather...incredible!

Now we are descending in order to go back to Coporaque after a nice walk in the area, trying to understand the way of living of our ancestors...

After a walk in which we talked a lot about history,anthropology,architecture,etc we come back to the square of Coporaque very happy of having learned much about our ancestors.

On the way beck to Chivay we can see this beautiful view of Qotallaulli volcano or purple lake in Aymara language,the language of the Kollawas the original inhabitants of Colca valley area.

The sun is about to be eaten by the Pachamama...it will take the shape of a puma or cougar to travel into the underground world.The next day will come in the east again to give life and heat to all living creatures...

I hope you enjoy watching this pictures. Thank you very much and see you later!

Colca Valley Colca Canyon: The Condors Realm

Colca Valley Colca Canyon: The Condors Realm

Useful Information

Ways of getting to the Colca Valley´

The city of Arequipa is the starting point for the 165 km journey to the Colca Valley. The journey to the Colca may be carried out independently, may be organized by a tourist agency or may be a combination of both.
For the tourists who wish to travel independently, the buses to Chivay and Cabanaconde, the two main towns in the valley,depart from the bus terminal in Arequipa. There is a day bus and a night bus. The journey lasts approximately four hours with one stop at a police control.
In Chivay you can find all the services a visitor might require, while in Cabanaconde, Yanque and Achoma, these services are limited. There are very few tourist services in other towns or villages.
There are local buses which travel between the towns and villages in the valley, but their time schedule is irregular. It is more practical to hire a taxi for a few hours.
The travel agencies usually organize excursions which normally only include a visit to the southern area of the valley, between Chivay and Cabanaconde. Some also offer visits to less well known sites, as long as there is enough demand.
The third way is to combine both methods: first to take an organized tour and then staying a few more days in order to take your time and visit those hidden marvels which the Colca offers. This is an especially interesting option for those who love walking as they can take time to tour all the valley.

Portrait of Arequipa

Arequipa is located in the South of Peru at the foothills of the Andes, 1,020 kilometers from Lima. It is the second largest city of the country and a must for any tourist plans for visiting the Colca Valley.
If you are travelling up from the coast, due to the altitude in the Colca, it is advisable to stay in Arequipa for one or two days to get acclimatized and take advantage of the warm climate and the varied tourist attractions.
Arequipa has possibilities for tours within the city as well as to the surrounding area. Its varied culinary delights are well known throughout the country.
The "White City", as it is called due to the white volcanic rock with which many of its buildings are built, maintains ancient architectural treasures in the way of grand houses and impressive churches and monasteries. Historical tours include the visit to the Plaza de Armas (main square) with its cathedral, the church of the Compañía de Jesus and the Santa Catalina Monastery. On the outskirts the attractions include the Cayma district with a church built in 1730, and Yanahuara which also has a church and an outlook point from where you have a magnificient view of the city and volcanoes which surround it.
As far as excursions to the surrounding area are concerned, there are possibilities for visiting picturesque villages, Mejia lakes, the Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve or the Colca Valley.
Arequipa can be reached by land, along the Panamericana Sur highway, by train from Puno, or by air from various cities in Peru.

Activities and routes

As mentioned before, the journey to the Colca Valley offers a great variety of attractions in the way of ecology, landascape and cultural and historical monuments.
It is possible to visit all of these to a lesser or greater extent, depending on the transport available and the tourist's interests. So if you are an experienced mountain climber who wishes to try the high mountain tops of the area it is possible to find a prepared guide at the Arequipa Mountain Guides Association, who will accompany you to see, for example, the origin of the Amazon River. If you enjoy trekking you may go on excursions to all corners of the valley where you will see not only amazing flora and fauna and landscape, but also wonderful archaeological remains and towns. The local guides enrich the experience with their interesting explanations.
We recommend that your stay in the Colca Valley should last at least three to six days. A stay this long will enable you to have quite a full impression of the cultural and natural wealth of the region. A shorter stay will only enable you to see a part of what the Colca offers.
The following suggested route enables you to see a bit of everything using your own or hired transport and we have called it the "Colca Classic Route". We also suggest some partial routes in the way of very practical excursions which you can use at your choice and depending on the type of holiday you want and the time you have available.
As the Colca is a valley enclosed by the high snow-capped Andes mountains at an average altitude of 3,500 metres above sea level, its climate is typical of a high mountainous region. Temperatures rise and fall greatly from day to night.
In the dry season (mid April to mid November) temperatures usually fall to below zero at night and reach 15 C - 20 C during the daytime.
During the rainy season (end of November to end of March), changes in temperature are less dramatic as the overcast sky impedes the penetration of the sun's rays and the heating of the atmosphere during the day and the frost and cold at night. Temperatures vary between 5 C and 10 C.
As far as clothing is concerned, comfortable footwear for walking, preferably sports shoes or boots; warm clothes; a sun hat and a water bottle or container, are recommended. For the rainy season, it is also best to bring appropriate protection from the rain. For the visit to the spring baths at Chivay and Yanque you should take swim wear and your own towel.
You must never forget to wear sun glasses and high sun factor protection cream when you visit the Colca Valley. A good, night moisturising cream is also recommended.
If you plan to walk along some of the suggested routes you should carry your own camping gear and first aid kit.
You should also have become accustomed to high altitude conditions for a few days first so that the physical exercise is not too demanding and your body does not suffer from lack of oxygen.
Finally, as the Colca Valley nears the Pacific Ocean it narrows and becomes a canyon. The Colca canyon reaches a depth of approximately 3,400 metres. This view cannot be seen on any other of the usual tours. Its access is down river and requires previous preparation as it is a difficult route. The maximum height which the standard tours show is at the Cruz del Condor viewpoint (about a 1,200 meter fall).