22/05/2026
"If I could go back and start it again tomorrow, I would jump at the chance!"
Trail of the Incas 2026 reached its exciting conclusion last month when our newly minted grouped of "friends for life" arrived back in Santago, Peru following 24 days of exhilaration.
We loved reading this account of the trip from Kathlene:
"We completed our Compass Expeditions "Trail of the Incas" tour two weeks ago. The trip through Chile, Bolivia and Peru was challenging in every way -- physically, psychically, emotionally -- and if I could go back and start it again tomorrow, I would jump at the chance!
"In the way of these things, the tour description (and the disclaimers and releases) are both perfectly accurate and completely inadequate at capturing the beauty, grandeur, excitement, drama, intensity and just plain fun of the tour. I can't imagine a better way to see this part of the world than by motorcycle -- the almost Martian landscapes of northern Chile, the jagged, snowy peaks of the Andes, the colorful fields of quinoa (dotted with colorfully-decorated alpacas), and the sprawling, raucous cities that rolled cinematically past.
"Except for the epic Death Road in Bolivia (two-up on a KLR650), we rode the entire trip two-up on a virtually new BMW R1300GS and it performed impeccably. Our lodgings, ranging from glamorous to very simple, were reliably comfortable and welcoming. Food was fresh and plentiful, and included a trout lunch that was still swimming when we arrived at the restaurant, and improbably excellent pizza at 12,000 feet in Uyuni, Bolivia.
We were so fortunate to have the excellent leadership of Carlo di Todaro as our riding guide and Adele Levi managing logistics and navigating the chase vehicle. With the welcome addition of Pete Vorst behind the camera (and occasionally the wheel of the van), the Compass team brought reassuring competence, authentic enthusiasm, and a true sense of adventure to every day of the tour.
"And while Compass can't guarantee this, we also benefited from making the journey with a truly fun, worldly, good hearted and supportive group of riders. Just an incredibly rewarding, deeply moving and wildly enjoyable experience. Ten stars on a scale of 1 to 5." - Kathlene Collins
Trail of the Incas departs again in March 2027: https://compassexpeditions.com/tours/trail-of-the-incas/