Peru

Hone Your Photography Skills on a Private Jet Tour of Central & South America

Filed under: Gadgets, Luxury Travel & Hotels, Wings

Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Jay Dickman (above) is leading an incredible 16-day private jet tour of Central and South America, part of the National Geographic Expeditions program, set to take place from Mar 26 - Apr 10, 2011. Dickman, a National Geographic Expert who has covered events as diverse as the war in El Salvador to the Olympics for numerous publications including National Geographic magazine, is part of the Olympus Visionary Program, a group of prestigious professional photographers who all use Olympus cameras like the brilliant new PEN E-PL1 for professional and personal assignments. The luxe trip via a custom Boeing 757 takes you through lush rain forests, magnificent mountain ranges, lively cities, and the legacies of mighty civilizations.

Destinations include Guatemala, Peru, Argentina, Brazil, and Costa Rica, from "the soaring pyramid temples of the ancient Mayans to the alluring grace of Argentina's tango, and from the awe-inspiring rush of Iguazú Falls to the serene rain forests of the Amazon", with luxury hotel stays in between. As the excursion is priced at $46,950 per person, you'll obviously want to make sure you get great photos – which Dickman helps ensure, leading photographic expeditions and discussing technical as well as aesthetic issues that make for great photography and photographs. Book your seats now as space is limited.

Tags: Brazil, camera, Costa Rica, digital camera, Jay Dickman, luxury travel, National Geographic, Olympus, Olympus PEN E-PL1, Peru, photographer, photography, private jet, South America

$50,000 Suits Cut From World's Most Expensive Cloth

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Men's Style

Holland & Sherry, the world famous fabric weaver and cloth merchant founded in Scotland in 1836, is offering an extremely limited edition range of bespoke suits cut from the world's most luxurious and expensive cloth. The firm, which has premises on Savile Row, has woven the world's first 100 per cent worsted spun Vicuna fabric, the most expensive in the world at over $4,000 per yard. The material (above) comes from the wool of the elusive wild Vicuna, a relative of the llama that lives high in the Andes mountains of Peru and Bolivia.

The Vicuna can only be shorn every three years and yields an extremely small amount of fine wool. It took Holland & Sherry five years to gather enough of the exclusive yarn, and another year and a half to develop the unique cloth, which is much finer than cashmere. There is only enough of the precious fabric to make 18 suits, each of which will cost about $50,000. Customers will have only three colors to choose from – black, midnight and natural. The King of Morocco is among the first to place an order for one of the gorgeous garments.

Tags: Bespoke, Cashmere, Fabric, Holland Sherry, HollandSherry, Peru, Savile Row, SavileRow, Scotland, Suit, Vicuna

Travelers' Philanthropy, Charity of the Day

by Laura Malesich (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Charity of the Day

Visiting a foreign country, especially one in the third world, often prompts one's philanthropic desires to give back to the places they explore. It's hard to distinguish which causes are worthy of your funds and which giving opportunities truly use your funds for the project intended. Travelers' Philanthropy takes the guess work out of global giving by connecting travelers or simply interested donors to causes that positively impact local communities. Currently this organization is involved with causes in Costa Rica, South America and Africa encouraging travelers to combine their love of the global community with their ability to fund important programs and initiatives. Check out the gallery below for current opportunities and the people they impact.

Gallery: Opportunities through Travelers' Philanthropy

Mara Cheetah Conservation Project in Kenya

Infierno Community Fund, supported by Rainforest Expeditions in Peru

NatureKids, supported by Nature Air in Costa Rica

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Tags: charity, costa rica, CostaRica, dominican republic, DominicanRepublic, giving, global giving, GlobalGiving, kenya, peru, philanthropy, tanzania, travelers philanthropy, TravelersPhilanthropy

Custom Latin America Tours by Yampu

by Paul Rogers (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

As we were reminded during the presidential inauguration, the United States is still a young nation, especially compared with the ancient civilizations of Central and South America. Man-made wonders such as Machu Picchu and Chichen Itza provide fascinating glimpses into the pre-Columbian past, and Yampu Latin America Tours can guide you to these and other historic sites.

The experienced tour operator (formerly known as Kontiki) has mapped out several new itineraries for 2009. Its Three New Wonders of the World trip, a 14-day journey, features explorations of Chichen Itza, the former Mayan capital in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula; the Incan ruins at Machu Picchu (above) in Peru; and the Christ the Redeemer Statue that looms over Rio de Janeiro.

For those who travel for gastronomic pleasure, there's Yampu's Culinary Tour of Peru. The nine-day adventure includes visits to a remote potato-growing village in the Andes; the salt pans, or salineras, of Maras; and a private cooking lesson in novoandino, a fusion of Peruvian and international cuisine.

Tags: Chichen Itza, Christ the Redeemer, Machu Picchu, Mexico, Peru, rio de janeiro

First Boutique Luxury Hotel in Peru's Incan Capital

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The first boutique luxury hotel has just opened in Cusco, Southeastern Peru, the historic capital of the Inca Empire. Situated in a meticulously-restored colonial mansion that is probably the first Spanish building ever constructed on the ancient site, La Casona Inkaterra features eleven luxurious suites surrounding a sumptuous courtyard that's nearly 400 years old. The hotel, which is only a short distance from famed Machu Picchu, a UNESCO world heritage site, boasts modern amenities like radiant heated floors and iPod docks that would have shocked the original inhabitants.

[via UrbanDaddy]

Tags: Hotels, Inca Empire, IncaEmpire, Incas, La Casona Inkaterra, LaCasonaInkaterra, Machu Picchu, MachuPicchu, Peru, South America, SouthAmerica

The Amazon's First Luxury Cruise

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Yachts & Sailing

A company called Aqua Expeditions has launched the first luxury cruise on the Amazon, a region previously immune to the charms of 280-thread-count sheets and en-suite air conditioning. Their first ship, the M/V Aqua, resembles a floating boutique hotel with a dining room, indoor and outdoor lounges, an observation deck and boutique.

Accommodation-wise, there are eight suites and four master suites with giant picture windows affording 180-degree views of the river scenery. The trips, which are organized around the Flooded Season (June-November) and Dry Season (December-May), run for three, four and seven nights. They begin in Iquitos, Peru (an hour and 40 minutes from Lima), and center on a visit to the five million acre Pacaya Samiria Reserve, a remote sanctuary for all kinds of exotic wildlife including monkeys, jaguars and pink dolphins. Rates start at $1950 per person.

[via UrbanDaddy]

Gallery: Aqua Expeditions Amazon Cruise

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Tags: amazon, cruises, peru

Pisco 7.9 Liquor Not Such A Good Idea After All

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

This man is holding what, if you could get your hands on it, is a pretty rare bottle of liquor. Earlier this week Peru's Minister of Production, Rafael Rey, announced a limited edition bottle of Pisco, a popular Peruvian liquor, that would be given as a token of the Peruvian Government's appreciation to those who helped Peru in the wake of the huge earthquake that hit on August 15. There were to be 1,000 bottles of Pisco made with a label denoting it as Pisco 7.9 (the quake was originally thought to be a 7.9 on the Richter scale, it's now been moved up to an 8). The label also thanked the foreigners for their help in Peru's time of need. The government has since retracted the name, decided that it was not appropriate. Production of the liquor will continue but under a new name which has not yet been revealed.

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Tags: earthquake, liquor, peru, pisco