Cruise & Travel

Aqua Room

Aqua is the first luxury cruise ever seen sailing through the Amazon. Has 12 finely decorated suites with panoramic windows that offer a wonderful view from the outside. 4 suites are interconnected for greater comfort for passengers traveling with family.

The social areas are in the dining lounge at the interior and exterior, located on the observation deck and the boutique.

Accommodation:
Up to 24 passengers with private facilities
(Additional accommodation for a child in each cabin)

Cabins:
12 suites:
- 4 Master Suites 240 square feet / 22 m2 each
- 8  Suites from 230 square feet / 21 m2 each
- All with panoramic windows and exterior view
- All with air conditioning and seating area where
- 4 interconnecting suites for families

All cabins include: area, internal communication system and hot water 24 hours a day.

Aqua 800

Others:
Electricity: 220 volts
Water Treatment Plant 7000 liters of water
Safety radio communication system with separate battery, satellite phone, life jackets, flare signals, fire extinguishers and smoke detectors in each cabin.
Boats: Three auxiliary aluminum boats equipped with four stroke engines with low emissions, constant radio communication with the boat. Each boat has a capacity of 8 to 10 passengers.
Crew: 16 plus 3 naturalist guides, bilingual (English-Spanish).

The price of this cruise goes from US$ 2100.00 for 3 nights, per person. The cruise travels 3, 4 and 7 nights, the most expensive of US$ 4900.00. These prices are in the basic suite. The ride is incredible and worthwhile if the pocket allows. For more information, visit www.amazonriverexpeditions.com

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu was constructed around 1462, at the height of the Inca Empire. It was abandoned less than 100 years later. It is likely that most of its inhabitants were wiped out by smallpox before the Spanish conquistadores arrived in the area, and there is no record of their having known of the remote city. Hiram Bingham, the credited discoverer of the site, along with several others, originally hypothesized that the citadel was the traditional birthplace of the Inca of the “Virgins of the Suns”.

Another theory maintains that Machu Picchu was an Inca “llacta”, a settlement built to control the economy of these conquered regions. Yet another asserts that it may have been built as a prison for a select few who had committed heinous crimes against Inca society. Research conducted by scholars, such as John Rowe and Richard Burger, has convinced most archaeologists that rather than a defensive retreat, Machu Picchu was an estate of the Inca emperor, Pachacuti. In addition, Johan Reinhard presented evidence that the site was selected because of its position relative to sacred landscape features—such as its mountains, which are purported to be in alignment with key astronomical events that would have been important to the Incas.

Intihuatana Stone

The Intihuatana stone is one of many ritual stones in South America. The Spanish did not find Machu Picchu so the Intihuatana Stone was not destroyed as many other ritual stones in Peru were. These stones are arranged to point directly at the sun during the winter solstice. Intihuatana also is called “The Hitching Point of the Sun” because it was believed to hold the sun in its place along its annual path in the sky. At midday on March 21 and September 21, the equinoxes, the sun stands almost above the pillar—casting no shadow at all. Researchers believe that it was built as an astronomic clock or calendar.

Intihuatana Stone

Tourism

Machu Picchu is a UNESCO World Heritage site. As Peru’s most visited tourist attraction and major revenue generator, it is continually threatened by economic and commercial forces. In the late 1990s, the Peruvian government granted concessions to allow the construction of a cable car and development of a luxury hotel, including a tourist complex with boutiques and restaurants. These plans were met with protests from scientists, academics, and the Peruvian public—all worried that the greater numbers of visitors would pose tremendous physical burdens on the ruins.

Extras: A tour for Cusco and Machu Picchu is about US$ 600.00, not including airfare.  In addition, Machu Picchu was considered one of the seven wonders in the last election few years ago. The experience is unforgettable.