Chile, Bolivia and Peru - Private Tour

The order of events and sightseeing may vary according to local conditions or for operational purposes. The schedules of the domestic airlines in country are subject to frequent changes. For this reason, we have indicated approximate times only. Your local guide will inform you of any schedule changes as they are informed of them. The driving times listed are point to point and do not include the duration of excursions or stops en route. Some road construction and/or weather conditions may lengthen the driving times. Our intention is to adhere to the day-to-day itinerary as printed; however, order of events and sightseeing may vary according to local conditions.

If booking more than 12 weeks before departure a deposit of £295.00pp will need to be paid at the time of booking with the full amount payable at 12 weeks prior to departure. The deposit applies to adults and children. If you are within 12 weeks of travel then the full balance of the holiday will be payable.

British passport holders are not required to obtain a visa in order to travel to Chile.

British passport holders are not required to obtain a visa in order to travel to Bolivia. As a tourist, you get 90 days of visa-free travel in a one-year period.

British passport holders are not required to obtain a visa in order to travel to Peru.

Your passport must have an ‘expiry date’ at least 6 months after the date you arrive.

Further advice should be sought from the applicable tourist authority for other nationalities and for general queries. We strongly advise you to check your destinations' Tourist Board or Embassy for the most up to date guidelines regarding passport validity.

We require Advance Passenger Information (API - passport details), to meet local regulations. Some of your visited national parks and guided activities rely on government permits, safety‑tracking systems, and mandatory visitor registration. Providing this information in advance allows our resort teams to secure necessary permits and meet legal obligations set by authorities. This includes tickets for Machu Picchu. Should we not have your passport information, or for any for any bookings made after 120 Days prior to departure, we cannot guarantee you will explore Machu Pichu with the group, and this may be done separately with a guide.

Please submit all passport information as early as possible, and no later than four months before departure.

We strongly recommend that you and all members of your party are suitably insured as soon as you book your holiday. It is a condition of booking that you must have suitable travel insurance. It is important that you purchase travel insurance that suitably covers your participation in whatever activities you may undertake at the time that you make your booking. To assist you with this, we have arranged travel insurance in partnership with Holiday Extras, including up to a 20% discount, which is given to all Mercury Holidays customers. To arrange your insurance with Holiday Extras, please visit https://www.mercuryholidays.co.uk/info/insurance for more details. Please ensure you provide us with the name of your insurer, policy number and their 24 hour emergency contact number as soon as possible. Mercury Holidays will not be liable for any costs incurred by you due to your failure to take out suitable travel insurance from the date of booking.

It is your responsibility to check any health and vaccination requirements applicable to your booked arrangements. We can only provide general information about this. Health and hygiene facilities and disease risks vary from country to country. You should take health advice about your own needs as early as possible and in good time before your departure. Sources of information include; www.fco.gov.uk, http://travelhealthpro.org.uk/, www.hpa.org.uk, your General Practitioner or a specialist clinic.

Altitude sickness is a common condition that can occur when you ascend to a high altitude (generally higher than 2,500 metres above sea level) quickly. The decrease in atmospheric pressure can make breathing more difficult as the body is not able to take in as much oxygen. Most cases are mild with symptoms that can include: a headache, nausea, dizziness and exhaustion. Several of the places in Peru are located at high altitude (over 2,500 metres above sea level) including Puno, Lake Titicaca and Cusco. Therefore, you may find you experience some symptoms at this altitude. It is advised that at these high altitudes, you keep hydrated and avoid alcohol. If you do experience symptoms of altitude sickness during your tour, ensure you tell your guide immediately who will be able to advise the best thing for you to do. You can contact your GP before you travel for advice on medication for altitude sickness.

This tour is accessible to most people with a good level of fitness and mobility. It involves full days of sightseeing, often on foot and includes some climbing of stairs and getting on and off coaches and boats. This tour is not suitable for anyone with walking difficulties.

Each of the three countries visited on this tour have their own currency: Chile = Chilean Peso (Ch$), Bolivia = Boliviano (Bs), Peru = Nuevo Sol (S/). US Dollars are widely accepted in large hotels and restaurants but local currency will be needed for payment in smaller establishments. Therefore, it is recommended that you either take a mixture of currencies or take US dollars and change this into the local currency as and when you need to. Cash machines are available in the major cities to withdraw money in the local currency of the country. We recommend that you exchange your currency before you leave the UK. It is important that you budget carefully and ensure you have the right form of currency before you arrive in the country. Cash machines will also be available throughout the tour in order to withdraw money in your local currency.

As normal practice you may be asked for your credit card details on check-in at the hotel in order to cover any extras incurred during your stay. If you do not have a credit card, you may be asked for a cash deposit. MasterCard and Visa are widely accepted in hotels as well as American Express.

You will need to take some extra money with you to cover any personal purchases, such as souvenirs, laundry and extra drinks and snacks. Approximately £400 will be sufficient for the duration of the tour, depending on how much of a bargain-hunter you are!

It is at your customary to tip both your driver and guide. We would recommend to tip approximately USD$2-$4per person per day. This is a total of USD$30-$60 per person to budget for tips on your trip. Tips will be collected at the end of your tour. Tips are accepted in US dollars.

This is a fully escorted tour, meaning that you will be with a local guide in each of the main destinations on the trip. In addition to the local guides, a national guide will meet you in Calama and remain with the group until Cusco. In Santiago and Lima, you will be accompanied by a local guide only.

For groups of 7 people or less you will have an English speaking Driver Guide or a Driver and Local/Monument Guides in each city.

Your accommodation is selected for convenience, location, comfort or character, and can range from business hotels to leisure hotels. Hotel accommodation is generally rated as local three to four-star standard, but please note there is no international classification system for hotels, and differences in facilities and quality do exist compared to what you might expect in the UK. All group tours hotels have private bathroom facilities and most hotels will have air-conditioning but not all. Rest assured that all accommodation used by Mercury Holidays is regularly inspected by our staff and partners to ensure that standards meet your needs. Triple Rooms are available, but please note that these are on a request basis and the 3rd bed is a “rollaway” bed and may reduce the overall floorspace of the room. Where an international flight arrives during early morning, we will endeavour to provide an Early Check In to your hotel, this is subject to availability. The usual hotel check in time is from 2pm onwards.

Breakfast is always western style and served in the hotel each morning. Dinner (when included) will be taken in local restaurants or at the hotel. A variety of restaurants are visited giving you the chance to experience a range of dishes and flavours.

Please contact Customer Experience for questions about other dietary requirements or allergy information.

It is important to note that drinking the tap water, even in developed counties, may contain unfamiliar elements that can cause upset stomachs. In less developed countries water is not filtered in the same way as the UK.

On arrival in Chile you will be met by a representative from our local agent, Pure Chile, holding a sign displaying: “Mercury Holidays”. The Mercury Holidays/Pure Chile representative will show you to your transfer vehicle. If you cannot see your representative they will be at Exit Gate 4. There are many illegal taxis operating around Santiago Airport and they have been known to steal from tourists. Official taxis are dark blue in colour. Your guide will be on hand 24 hours a day should you have any queries.

If you need to contact Pure Chile during your stay the details are: Pure Chile Nueva Providencia 2214, office 186 Tel: 0056 9 5681 6943 E-mail: Sales1@pure-chile.com or info@pure-chile.com

Emergency contact information: The arrangements in Chile, Bolivia and Peru are handled by our representatives ‘Pure Chile’ and ‘Pure Peru’. If you need to contact them during your stay you can find the 24-hour emergency contact details below: Pure Chile: 24hr Telephone Number: 0056 9 5681 6943 24hr Email Address: Sales1@pure-chile.com Pure Peru: 0051 998 754 080

• Clothing It is advisable to bring clothes for a range of temperatures and wear layers - due to the high altitude, even in summer months, temperatures can be very low in the morning and evenings but quickly get hot when the sun rises
• Rain wear for rainy season
• Long-sleeved shirts and long trousers
• Insect repellent
• Personal toiletries
• High factor sunscreen – this is particularly important due to the high altitude where there will be less atmospheric protection from the sun
• Suncream and a hat with a big brim for sunny days
• Comfortable walking shoes such as trainers
• A pair of light boots
• A torch with batteries and binoculars
• Sunglasses and plastic bags
• Towel and swimsuit
• Ruck sack or light bag
• Antibacterial hand gel
• Personal first aid kit containing travel pills, rehydration powder, plasters, stomach settlers, antiseptic creams, aspirin etc
• An electric plug converter - three different plug sockets are used, so it is best to bring a multi adapter