Meet our guides

“Sofia was everything we could hope for and more. She was pleasant, informative, respectful of our time. We loved that she could hike with us. She had a great sense of humour. We could not have asked for a better experience with her.” Jodie and Steven Fishman, Los Angeles, California USA, May 2007 “If you don't speak Spanish, or in Brazil, Portuguese, you'll need a guide. Logistically South America requires as much unraveling as China…” Sophy Roberts, Departures Magazine, October 2006 “We loved our guides and we even changed a day around with no problems. We loved everyone we came in contact with; there was never a moment when everything didn't work perfectly.” Lindy Reilly, Chicago, USA,   April 2007 “The Amazon rain forests and rivers are the richest of all environments - full of amazing plants, animals and insects, and also very beautiful.   But someone entering a tropical forest for the first time is amazed by how quiet and lifeless it seems.  This is because most of the action is far above our heads in the canopy, or it is nocturnal, or animals move very fast through the dense vegetation, or they are hidden by brilliant camouflage.  This is why the right guide is essential.  A good guide knows something about botany, zoology, entomology, hydrology, anthropology, history and many other disciplines.  That expert can reveal the secrets, find the wildlife, and tell innumerable stories about the most fascinating (and important) ecosystem on earth.” John Hemming, London, client and author of Amazon Frontier: The Conquest of the Brazilian Indians , Red Gold: The Defeat of the Brazilian Indians and Die if you must: The Brazilian Indians in the 20th Century

Your guide can make or break a trip to South America. It sounds dramatic, but think about it. You come to South America to explore the rich history, the fascinating landscape and the colourful culture, but you will only scrape the surface unless you have an insightful, highly-knowledgeable, dependable, fluent English-speaking gatekeeper to show you the way. Equally, if you go trekking you will be lost (literally) without a highly-competent, reliable, knowledgeable guide on your side. To take it to the other extreme, it is not even worth visiting the Amazon if you are not accompanied by the very best naturalist guides.

Aracari guide, Fernando Silva Photo Credit: David Walker

We think excellent guiding the backbone to your vacation, that's why we profile our guides to ensure that you have a guide who suits your personal tastes and requirements.

And we go a step further. We have connections with leading specialists from the fields of archaeology and history, the arts, architecture and cuisine who can take you on special visits or give you private lectures or discussions on many different topics – from the history of the Inca civilization to the blending of Peruvian fusion cuisine.

Our guide selection procedure

All of our guides are fluent English speakers and educated to degree-level in anthropology, music or education and the like. In fact, they are often working archaeologists or teachers who thoroughly enjoy sharing their detailed knowledge with our discerning clientele. As well as being passionate about their subjects and excellent communicators, they must be qualified in first aid, be respectful, responsible and dependable. As an aside, we also have a habit of selecting guides who are nice people with a good sense of humour.

Our trekking guides are highly experienced, competent experts in the mountains. They are all qualified first aiders and fluent English speakers. Meet our adventure team and our Cuzco Guides.

Why Aracari?
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