WHY TRAVEL WITH ANDEAN DISCOVERY
Andean Discovery is a family-owned South America Travel Design & Adventure Concierge, founded in 2006 and headquartered in Boston, MA with local offices in Quito and Cusco supporting our full footprint across Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, and the Galápagos. We design your experience, deliver it ourselves, and become your personal concierge from the first conversation to your safe return home. Here is what that actually means in practice.
We specialize in one continent. Exclusively.
South America is not one of the destinations we offer. It is the only one we offer. Since 2006, our entire team has lived, traveled, and operated across Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, and the Galápagos, a region that welcomed more than 3.26 million international visitors to Peru alone in 2024 and continues to be one of the most iconic travel destinations in the world. We know the routes, the seasonal nuances, the altitude considerations, the trusted properties, the under-the-radar experiences, and the operational realities of a region that rewards deep expertise and local relationships. When you travel with us, you are not working with an agency that covers the world. You are working with a team whose entire professional life has been devoted to this one corner of the world.
“Extremely knowledgeable on everything about Peru. Their info on architecture, history, people, food, you name it, made the trip really special and fun.”
We work inside the ecosystem.
Most South America travel is sold from afar. Ours isn’t. We live and work directly within the region. Our offices in Quito and Cusco are not symbolic, they are the operational nerve center for everything we deliver across Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, and the Galápagos. Our supplier relationships are real, our guides are personally vetted and have stayed with us for years, and our awareness of what is happening on the ground is immediate. That presence is why we can respond, adapt, and maintain quality control in ways a US-only firm simply cannot. Andean Discovery founder Damon Corkin travels repeatedly throughout the year between Boston and South America to personally oversee operations, scope new experiences, and ensure standards are met.
The booking is where most companies stop. It’s where we begin.
Most travel companies end their work the moment they receive your deposit. We begin ours. We design your experience, prepare you for it, altitude briefings, packing guidance, cultural coaching, dining recommendations, real-time itinerary preparation, and then we personally see you through it. Your guides greet you by name. Our 24/7 on-call concierge team in South America is available the moment you need them. Logistics are absorbed before you notice them. In the unlikely event something needs to be solved, we are on it, often within minutes.
“Our Lima facilitator did a great job adjusting our travel plans on the fly after airline and immigration delays got us into Peru very late.” — May 2026
So you can be fully present for the people who matter.
The reason this work matters is not Machu Picchu, and it is not the Galápagos. It is the look on a grandparent’s face the first time they see a llama on the trail. It is a family dinner at a hacienda you would never have found on your own. It is your spouse’s relief at finally enjoying the experience you have been planning for years, instead of managing it. We exist so you can focus on what truly matters. And in the unlikely event something goes sideways, a flight delay, a missed connection, a medical concern, our 24/7 on-call team in South America is already working on a solution before you have to ask.
The guides who make it unforgettable.
A great guide can elevate an experience from memorable to life-changing. Our guides are personally selected, deeply knowledgeable, and, importantly, they stay with us for years. You will not meet a different face at every stop. Whether you are tracking wildlife in the Galápagos with a certified naturalist, walking in the footsteps of the Inca with our Peruvian experts, or exploring the Amazon with guides who know every bend in the river, you will understand why our guests say the guides were the highlight of their experience. They are not there to deliver a script. They are there to share a place they love.
Our guides stay with us for years and often become the highlight of the experience.
Our travelers keep coming back.
The truest measure of a white glove experience is whether someone wants to do it again. Many of our guests are on their second, third, or fourth experience with us across South America, and a meaningful share of our new travelers arrive by personal referral from someone who has been before. We do not measure success by how many trips we book. We measure it by whether you come back.
“This is our fourth trip to South America with Andean Discovery. They are the reason we keep going back. Makes us want to try for maybe a fifth trip.” — May 2026
Don’t take our word for it. Speak with someone who’s been.
The best way to understand the Andean Discovery experience is to hear it firsthand. A select group of our past guests have generously offered to share their stories. With any adventure quote, we will introduce you directly, by phone or email, to travelers whose experience looked like yours.
Every Andean Discovery experience begins the same way: with a conversation about what matters to you. Whether this is your first time in South America or your fifth, we would love to hear what you are imagining, and show you what is possible.
Click Here To Begin Designing Your Experience
HOW ANDEAN DISCOVERY COMPARES
Andean Discovery vs. large-brand operators (Abercrombie & Kent, National Geographic Expeditions, Lindblad): Those companies operate globally with group formats and brand-name premiums that often push per-person costs to $10,000–$25,000+. Andean Discovery focuses exclusively on South America, which means deeper regional knowledge, access to experiences a global operator would never source, and a team that knows your guides by name, not by assignment. Our published Personally Designed Adventures start from $3,490 per person; most multi-country experiences fall in the $6,000–$15,000+ per person range depending on itinerary and accommodation tier.
Andean Discovery vs. DIY (booking it yourself): Machu Picchu caps daily visitors at 5,600, requires advance permits, and operates a multi-circuit system that catches independent travelers off guard, Circuit 2 is frequently unavailable, and navigating the combination of Circuit 1, Circuit 3, and Huayna Picchu access requires the kind of on-the-ground knowledge that doesn’t appear on any booking website. The Galápagos reached a record 329,000 visitors in 2024, entry fees recently doubled to $200, and cruise availability on the best vessels books out months in advance. Patagonia operates in a narrow window, November through March, compressing demand into a few months and making planning, permits, and accommodation availability genuinely difficult without established relationships. Managing this across two or more countries is where independent bookings routinely fail. We exist precisely to absorb that complexity.
Andean Discovery vs. US-only South America specialists: Most South America travel is sold from the United States, by teams who have never run operations in the region. We maintain local offices in Quito and Cusco, the operational hubs for our full six-country footprint, backed by a 24/7 on-call concierge team on the ground. That presence is why we can respond, adapt, and solve problems in real time, often before guests notice anything went wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far in advance should I plan a South America experience?
It depends on your destination and travel dates. Machu Picchu tickets are time-stamped and capped, and the best entry windows sell out weeks to months in advance. If you’re traveling during peak season (May through September), popular July and August dates can go fast. Holiday travel and school vacation windows, including spring break, summer, Thanksgiving, and December, compress demand significantly and require earlier planning than most people expect. Galápagos cruise availability on the best vessels also books well ahead, particularly for family-sized groups.
That said, if you have a trip in mind and the timing feels tight, reach out anyway. We often have more options than people expect, and knowing your dates and priorities is the fastest way to find out what’s possible.
What destinations does Andean Discovery cover?
We design and deliver experiences across Peru (including Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail), Ecuador, the Galápagos Islands, Argentina (including Patagonia and Buenos Aires), Colombia, Brazil, and the Amazon. Our most popular combinations are Peru + Galápagos, Peru + Ecuador, and Machu Picchu + Amazon + Galápagos.
How much does an Andean Discovery experience cost?
Our Personally Designed Adventures are published from $3,490 per person. Most fully customized multi-country experiences, once accommodations, upgrades, and personalization are factored in, typically range from $6,000 to $15,000+ per person. Every experience is custom-designed, and we do not sell fixed-departure packages.
Is Andean Discovery good for families?
Yes, family and multi-generational travel is one of our specialties. Andean Discovery founder and owner Damon Corkin has traveled extensively throughout South America with his own daughters, and those family experiences are woven directly into how we design every itinerary. Our guides are experienced with groups spanning ages 5 to 76 in a single party, and we adapt pacing, activities, and logistics to every traveler in your group, from a grandparent’s mobility considerations to a teenager’s wildlife interests in the Galápagos.
Do you have guides on the ground in South America?
Yes. We work with a carefully selected network of local guides and drivers across South America, many of whom have been with us for years. Our team is personally vetted, deeply knowledgeable, and consistent, and past guests regularly name their guides by name as the highlight of the experience. We intentionally use the same familiar faces throughout your trip, so every transfer and excursion feels like a continuation of the same experience, not a handoff to someone new.
How do I get started?
Every experience begins with a conversation. Contact us to describe what you are imagining, including destinations, travel style, group size, and time of year, and we will design a custom adventure quote from there. With every quote we share, we also connect you directly with a past guest whose experience matched yours, by phone or email.
Why Andean
Learn more about the team that makes it all happen
Meet Our Team
US & SOUTH AMERICA STAFF
Sustainable Travel
COMMUNITY & CONSERVATION
