There is nothing that did not meet our expectation. The guide in Machu Piccu is outstanding as his description of the place is interesting and in great details. Unfortunately I didn’t remember his name. Definitely a wonderful knowledgeable young gentlemen. Diago(not sure if I got the name right.) is also an excellent guide. He knows the place very well and brought us to all the wonderful spots and managed to avoid or bit the crowds! A very caring person and likes to joke around which made the tour very interesting.

Dear Carolina,

Thank you for your note. I'm sorry I haven't replied sooner, but it has been a hectic January.
We are very happy about our trip, and very grateful for the planning and support from you, your colleagues at Say Hueke.
Best regards and wishes,
Oleh

We had marvellous holiday and couldn’t have enjoyed ourselves more. Hotel staff at Estancia Cristina and tour guides were very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. In fact, more than helpful.
Will look forward to visiting other Argentinian destinations in the future.
I would also like to pass our thanks on to Karen for arranging the perfect itinary and to Vanessa for greeting and providing us with excellent guidance on arrival.

¡ESTIMADOS AMIGOS NUEVOS DE ARGENTINA Y CHILE!

First of all we would like to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to SAY HUEQUE for making my long-time.dream come true! Our special thanks go to you, VERA, who planned the entire trip – based on our requests. Your suggestions and advices were based on first-hand knowledge, and therefore everything turned out so well. We realize UNE took over some of the preparations, so thank you, Une, for doing a very good job.

Wherever we came, we were met at the airport by someone ready to bring us to our destination and to inform us of the many details in order to make every day run like a smooth piece of machinery. Very impressive! Furthermore, we both noticed that anyone dealing with tourists was very informative and pleasant. We had not expected this, but it certainly was a very lovely surprise. Taxi drivers, waiters, receptionists or guides knew that their income was dependent on maintaining a good relationship with the tourists and their many whims; yet, they all did it in such a way that we genuinely believed that they actually enjoyed having us around (?). Whatever, we found the people to be very friendly and helpful.

Having said all this, we also need to add the level of information and knowledge shared with us on a number of occasions. As a teacher, I keep asking questions, as I always want to learn new stuff. On this trip I got my share!  I learnt such a lot, and I appreciate that!

The last day in Buenos Aires we had half-a-day-tour with Florencia as the guide and Roberto as the driver. The weather was perfect; and the day was full of highlights: San Telmo; The Cemetry at La Recoleta, el Subté, Café Tortoni and finally La Boca with tango couples left, right and centre; mixed with colourful houses, painters and old houses full of forgotten misery and history. The two of them could not have done more to make us feel super happy, sharing not only facts, but also personal feelings about the many places we saw. THANK YOU, Florencia and Roberto!

The incredible Patagonia keeps popping up in our minds; glaciers, snowcapped volcanoes surrounding turquoise lakes; a scenery so beautiful, never to be forgotten. To see Mont Fitz Roy and La Torre raise out of the thick fog one late afternoon, bathed in the afternoon sun or equally fantastic seeing the same peaks at sunrise at crack of dawn was another extraordinary experience! No wonder we had around 2000 shots between us! Vineyards around Mendoza; the mind blowing Acongagua and last, but not least: The amazing waterfalls: Iguazu! The immensity in size as well as in sound is glued onto my mind forever more! For me that was the number one highlight! But what did my husband answer when I asked him about his favourite experience? The answer was: “Why, the fantastic, Argentinian Beef – enjoyed with a bottle of Malbec, of course!” He still gets stars in his eyes when he starts talking about it …

The big cities, Buenos Aires and Santiago, were also very interesting. The beautiful cathedral in Santiago; and the historical areas in both cities, where recent history of tragedies and dictatorship was displayed were significant places to be for me – as a teacher of Spanish (history included) – and as a human being. The visit in the Cafetería de Las Madres the last day left a big impression on me, as well as going to the Eva Perón Museum.

Finally we want to say how impressed we were with the Argentinian and Chilean Tourism Set Up. What a high level of quality! You are really looking after the treasures given you as far as natural resources go. Building “balconies” around glaciers or waterfalls, and setting up such an organized body of guides, eating places, toilets, garbage cans etc., we could not help thinking that many other countries had a lot to learn from you. Having lived and worked in tourism ourselves on the Galapagos Islands for 6 years, we dare say that Ecuador is not in the same league as you two; neither is Spain nor Norway for that matter. So well done, Argentina and Chile! Full marks! 

Needless to say, the trip was a success – thanks to you all. On Thursday the 7th we had 38 degrees + and a 100% humidity. Less than a week later we were back here, shoveling snow in -17 degrees. It went down to -22 degrees, but it was so beautiful and white everywhere with some amazing sunsets. But last week it all changed, so now most of the snow has disappeared. But of course, it may come back .. However, in our hearts and in our minds we are still in Argentina. At times I have heard my husband mumble: “We should have stayed there, you know. May be we should go back …”

Un abrazo fuerte to all of you, particularly to Florencia & Roberto
Love Vigdis & Peter Stapley
Norway, Jan.31, 2016

Hi Carolina,

Back home in Canada. Temperatures are very different than in BA – however not too bad – about -4 today.

We had a great trip which went very smoothly thanks to Say Hueque and its ground people. All the accommodation was great.

Hosteria Las Dunes was clean, friendly. A bit out of the way but the shuttle bus service worked well. Some great restaurants in El Calafate as well. We ate at El Rancho and Kau Kaleschen – both highly recommended.

Hosteria Las Torres was wonderful as well. They are not cheap but give great value. No complaints. The activities certainly kept us exhausted.

Hotel Ilaia in Punta Arenas was very different. Way out of the downtown but walkable. Our only complaint about the arrangements in Punta Arenas was that the operator left us with no information about where we were supposed to find our bus tickets. We ended up having to call the emergency number to discover that they were at the bus station. Some information about that left at the hotel would have been a big help.

The bus was interesting to take once – don’t need to take it again. It was a long ride over dirt roads in Chile.

Loi Suites in Iguazu is a very nice resort but do let people know how far out of town it is. The accommodation was great however a few issues that you should know about. The front desk was rude and appeared uncaring. The restaurant service by the pool was very slow. The waiters seemed to be more interested in talking to each other than taking orders. The food menu was quite limited. We were glad that we had to stay there no more than two days.

I can highly recommend the Duque Hotel and Spa in Palermo. They were amazing – very personable service, good location and good amenities. We would certainly plan to stay there again.

In all, a great trip – thanks in a large part to you at Say Hueque. I’ll be sending some reviews to TripAdvisor next week.

Andrew

My husband and I had a wonderful four week trip to Buenos Aires, Iguazu falls, Patagonia (Glaciers National Park, Torres del Paine, Ushuaia and Tierra del Fuego National Park) with the help of Say Hueque.
It was our first time in Argentina and Chile, we don't speak Spanish, we are in our 70's, and we pefer solo travelling to tour groups.

Lucia and Pia and Agustina helped us put together an itinerary that I could never have done myself. They had lots of good ideas for hotels and tours (especially in Ushuaia) and a marvelous cruise on the Stella Australis from Punta Arenas to Ushuaia. It was great being met at the airports and bus and ship depots by their people or by the very helpful local agents. (I am used to arranging our travel to Europe, but there is much less English spoken in South America, though the people we encountered were always friendly and helpful.)
We loved the Bobo, a boutique hotel in Buenos Aires in a quiet, green part of the city, a easy walk to the Botanical Gardens and Evita Museum and close to Say Hueque office. It is easy to take the subway (Subte) to downtown, but it is another world down there: buskers, beggars, ...

If I could do the trip again:

I'd take more US $. As of December 2015, the ATM's capped withdrawals to small amounts of cash with big fees (this may change with the new government.)
Iguazu Falls: I'd start working on visas for Brazil much earlier (six weeks was not enough for the consulate in San Francisco, so we could not to see the Falls from the Brazilian side).
The Sheraton Hotel was a splurge but it was worth it. El Calafate: The trip to Perito Moreno Glacier was fabulous and we were lucky with beautiful weather. But having a second full day without prebooking another tour left us non-shoppers with not enough to do. At El Chalten, one needs to take advantage of iffy weather because it can be very bad this high in the mountains. Torres Del Paine: The Lago Grey Hotel (which I requested) is in a beautiful place but you'll need to plan ahead to get to other parts of the park; I might stay closer to Lake Pehoe and spend more time on the W hike. Either the boat ride to Perito Moreno, or the boat ride to Grey Glacier, but not both. Also, Much as I love Buenos Aires, if your main destination is TdP, it might be easier to fly by way of Santiago because getting from Argentine to Chile by bus was so slow because of the passport control. New Years Day in Punta Arenas was wasted. It turns out that Fernandez Bus company runs 365 days and we could have spent an extra day in TDP. Ushuaia: the hotel Altos Ushuaia is very comfortable with terrific views, but is a little far from town, about 10 minutes by taxi. You can also continue up the road by taxi to the base of the Glacier Martial ski area and walk up towards the glacier (I did not have time to go all the way.) I would skip the train Fin del Mundo. It is cute, but it was built to take prisoners to a meadow where they cut down the trees. This is not inspiring terrain, especially if you can go elsewhere in Tierra del Fuego NP. Yes, the wifi tended to be slow everywhere (satellite hookups) but the best 4 days were on Stella Australis with no wifi at all.

Hi, Carolina.
Hope you are well. I have been back for two weeks. Thank you sending us the recipes and helping me and Eda for the entire trip. We enjoyed this trip very much.

Here is the answers from me.

Which hotel did you like the most?
I like the eco camp and Australis Cruise the best as it is a very unique compare to the other hotels. I also like Meridiano Sur Petit hotel, the bed is very comfortable and cleaned. They provide tea and water all day. The front desk was very helpful.

What was the best of traveling with us?
The reason we choose your tour operator b'cos you have many tour packages that you can help us to put them together.

Is there anything you think could be improved?
I think the tour package should included the national park fee especially it is part of the itienrary. I have to ask someone where to get the national park entrance ticket when I arrived Rapa Nui. When I went to the office, they were closed at 4pm and I have to go back again the next day.

As for the full day Rano Rakau & Anakena trip, it didn't include lunch and I have to ask the guide if I have to purchase my own lunch. I think in such a long day tour it would be great if the lunch is provided so that I don't have look around for food or wait in a long line.

As for the transportation arrangement, it might be a good idea to communicate with the front desk in advance and let the us know the pick up time when we arrive. There was a few times that we arrived late in the hotel and we still have to figure out the next day pick up time.

Time, communications and transportation arrangement are very important to us as a traveller. We travel from one place to another to these new and unfamiliar places. It is going to take extra time to figure out where to find the location or who to call. It would be very helpful if your tour operator can work on these areas. I am sure it will definitely help our trip goes more smoothly in the future.

P/S: It would be great if your tour operator can give us further discount especially we added so many package in this trip.

Wendy Tan

Tina, Yuna, & Tami, Great trip! All went as expected. Job well done.
Much as gracias,
Charles Kahn