Whether it’s exploring geoglyphs in the desert escorted by Johny Isla, director of the Palpa – Nazca project, walking through the less known areas of Machu Picchu with Oscar Montufar, or going on a birdwatching expedition with Fernando Angulo, our network of specialist play a key role to connect our guests with the soul of our country.
These specialists don’t have tourism as their primary occupation. They are archaeologists, historians, biologists, photographers, chefs, birdwatchers, and master artisans who are always happy to share their deep knowledge on a particular field. For travelers willing to really get immersed in a specific topic, we can organize exclusive experiences with these and many other specialists all over the country.
Regulo Franco
Archaeologist & Lady of Cao Discoverer
Regulo Franco, Director of El Brujo Complex and the Museo de Cao, is an archaeologist who dedicated the last 35 years to studying the Moche culture. In 2006, Regulo and a team of archaeologists discovered one of the most important findings of the last centuries, a woman ruler: The Lady of Cao. Regulo was also involved for more than 10 years in the studies of the old Temple of Pachacamac, one of the most important pre-Inca sites on the Peruvian coast. Exploring El Brujo with Franco is not just the perfect master class about the Moche society but an inspiring way to travel through history and better understand the ancient Peruvian civilizations.
Primitivo Evanan
Tablas de Sarhua Master Artisan
Considered as the father of the Tablas de Sarhua, Primitivo, is a “Persona Meritoria de la Cultura”, an award is only given to those who have had an outstanding career protecting, preserving, and promoting our country’s national heritage. Primitivo was born in the small town of Sarhua in the Central Andes of Peru. At the age of eight, he started painting Tablas de Sarhua. These large painted wooden logs are offered as a gift when a couple gets married. Primitivo played an essential role in promoting this art beyond his town until it was declared as the Cultural heritage of the Nation. For Peruvian Soul, it’s always an honor to be the link between travelers and him.
Oscar Montufar Latorre
Qhapac Ñan Expert
Having worked more than 18 years in the Ministry of Culture as head of Sacsayhuaman, Ollantaytambo, Moray, and other archaeological parks, makes Oscar one of the most influential archaeologists of Cusco. Besides this, Oscar has been a resident archaeologist for more than 8 years in the Qhapac Ñan Project, the Inca road network leading to the Sanctuary of Machu Picchu. No one better than Oscar to better understand the complex 35,000 km of the Qhapac Ñan. Oscar is the Head of the Peruvian Service for Natural Protected Areas at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary. He has the challenge to manage tourism while assuring the protection of the area’s natural biodiversity.
Fernando Angulo
Expert Birdwatcher
Fernando is one of the most recognized Peruvian ornithologists and principal researchers at Centro de Ornitología y Biodiversidad (CORBIDI) in Lima. Fernando’s passion for birdwatching started at a very young age. It made him dedicate his life working on scientific research to better understand the bird species, its distribution, habitat, population, and behavior. The extensive work and contributions of Fernando earned him the Carlos Ponce Award. This award recognizes professional work aimed at safeguarding biological diversity. It’s always an honor to count on Fernando as a birdwatching guru for our travelers.
Johny Isla
Director of the Nazca – Palpa Project
Johny Isla is a Peruvian archaeologist who dedicated most of his life to research the early cultural development on the southern coast of Peru, especially in the Palpa and Nazca valleys. Since 2015 Johny has been working in the Ministry of Culture as Director of the Palpa – Nazca project. His work has led him to the discovery of about 50 figures in the hills of Palpa. One of the last ones was at the end of 2019 when they were looking for a natural viewpoint and accidentally discovered a 37-meter long figure of a feline at the slopes of a hill. This discovery was featured all around the world in specialized magazines such as National Geographic.