Uros Islands Travel Packages: Reviews, Ratings & Comparison of Popular Offerings

It is much easier to understand the differences between each tour package when one has knowledge about the Uros Islands, their location at Lake Titicaca and how tourists travel to there from Puno. It would also be easier for a person to determine whether half-day tour, full day tour or overnight tour would suit his plans.

What Are the Uros Floating Islands?

There are some 120 manmade floating islands, and they are made up largely of totora, a type of reed found around the edges of Lake Titicaca. The people inhabiting them trace their roots back to the Uros tribe, which existed on the lake long before the rise of the Inca Empire. The inhabitants build them by piling up blocks of the totora reed and its root on top of each other, tying the structure to the bottom of the lake with ropes to keep it from moving. They rebuild them from top to bottom every few weeks, as the bottom layer decays, and they use the reed for everything.
Some 2,000 people inhabit the islands today, although most of them divide their time between the islands and the mainland. As tourism, fishing, and technology have changed their lives, it is now less like being in a museum and more like being on somebody’s lawn.

Where Are the Uros Islands Located?

The islands float on Lake Titicaca, which is located approximately 3,800 meters above the sea level and is the highest navigable lake in the world. The islands are a stone’s throw away from the town of Puno, which is located in southern Peru. The town of Puno borders the country of Bolivia, and the islands float in the Bay of Puno which is a part of the Lake Titicaca National Reserve in Peru. As the islands are located very near to the mainland, one can get to them by boat from Puno’s port in less than an hour.

How to Visit the Uros Islands from Puno

The city of Puno is the departure point for basically all Uros Islands visits. This can be achieved through traveling by train or bus from the city of Cusco, flying into the nearby Juliaca airport and then traveling onwards to the islands, or traveling overland from the Bolivian side of the lake via Copacabana.

In terms of the way in which visitors get around the Uros Islands, travelers tend to have two options. They can take a tour organized by a local travel agency, which includes the boat transport and the guided visit, or use the public ferry service from the harbor. The former option is more structured and slightly more expensive, while the latter is cheaper and more flexible.

All Uros Islands travel packages begin with the same thing, namely a boat trip from Puno Harbor to Lake Titicaca, which includes a halt at any one of the reed islands, where an explanation about their construction is offered by the native families or leaders. The differences lie in what happens afterward, such as the inclusion of Taquile or Amantani Island, the amount of leisure time provided, and the availability of lunch.

Typical Itinerary Structure

The routine followed is more or less the same everywhere. The pickup is scheduled for around 6:30 to 7:30 a.m. from the hotel, and the boat gets to the first Uros island in 30 to 45 minutes with the tourists spending about two hours there. In the course of that, a local would demonstrate how the totora reeds were used to make the foundation of the island, guide the visitors around the model house and provide a brief ride in a reed boat for 10 soles extra per person.

Afterward, full-day tours continue onto Taquile Island and stay there for three hours having lunch while hiking around the terraced paths of the island known for the hand-woven textiles of UNESCO significance. If the tourist chooses multi-day packages, the destination is Amantani for an overnight stay followed by the next day visit to Taquile.

Package Types: Half-Day, Full-Day, and Overnight

When travelers search for Lake Titicaca tour comparison information, there are usually three main types from which to choose based on the amount of time you have and the level of culture immersion you are seeking. A brief overview of the top three reveals just how different they can be.

• Half-Day Uros Tour. Duration of 3 to 4 hours with the cost varying between $10 to $25, it is a fast boat tour from the port of Puno to one or two islands of reeds. This trip caters to people who have less time to spend, although feedbacks have mentioned that it is a bit commercialized than the other options.
• Full-Day Uros & Taquile Island Tour: The 7 to 10 hour format at $37 to $70 includes a morning tour of the Uros reed islands before making the journey by boat to Taquile island where the rest of the day will consist of a mountain trek and a traditional meal. This is undoubtedly the most well-received format due to its variety.
• 2-Day Uros, Amantani & Taquile Tour: The tour takes two days and one night, and is priced between $59 and $140. This route includes stops at Uros, spending the night at a local family’s house on Amantani Island, and Taquile. It is consistently rated the most culturally authentic of the three routes.

Time alone is not the only factor that makes the two different. In addition, private rates, inclusions, admissions, and how long one spends on the islands also make a big difference in the overall tour package. This table compares the key aspects.

Private rates will definitely be higher due to the reason that you pay for the entire cost of the boat and guide instead of sharing it among a number of 15-20 passengers, but in return you have more freedom of scheduling.

A trend is formed after reading the Uros Islands reviews on various websites such as TripAdvisor and Viator. These tour ratings is concentrated between 4.0 and 4.7 out of 5, based on the Uros package tours. The range is caused by only a few reasons and not because of the destination itself, which people find interesting.

What Reviewers Praise Most

The common traits seen in high quality experience reviews can be identified with three main aspects. The most common trait seen in five-star package reviews is that of guides speaking well and offering authentic cultural information, rather than scripted and canned information. The other common aspect seen in reviews is that of the sense that the visit helped the Uros people in some way.

The ingenuity of the reed structures themselves is not overlooked by travelers, as they note the ability to construct and maintain whole islands, houses, and watchtowers from just one plant species, as well as the warmth of the local guides who explain the process. Comfort also plays a role here, as experiences that involve a faster boat transfer are rated higher than the slower trips in wooden boats, since less time is spent traveling and more time is spent on the islands.

Common Complaints and Concerns

On the other side, the most common complaint does not relate to the islands themselves at all. Those travelers who had to rush through the tour or were forced to purchase crafts almost everywhere received some of the lowest scores. Some travelers complained about the number of people in the groups making it difficult to hear the guide, and a few pointed out agencies which modified the schedule or hotel without proper notice.

Another frequent complaint that pops up in lower quality reviews is the feeling of being at a tourist trap for the islands near Puno, with demonstrations and shopping taking over from the experience itself. This is less prevalent for people whose itineraries include Taquile or Amantani, as these islands bring the experience back into everyday island life.

It should be noted that access to the Uros Islands is controlled within the Lake Titicaca National Reserve, and reputable companies incorporate this cost into their pricing instead of surprising visitors with an additional charge once at the destination.

Three agencies that appear often when travelers look up information about floating island tours are Quechuas Expeditions, Valencia Travel, and Uros Expeditions. A comparative look at their travel agency ratings and what is included in their tours can help you understand what you are paying for.

Quechuas Expeditions

Quechuas Expeditions provides a one-day excursion of Uros & Taquile at the same group rate of approximately $70 per head. The package includes tourist bus and boat transportation along with one lunch. The Quechuas expeditions also offers Lake Titicaca tours as a part of the overland package, which covers both Puno and Inca trail, as well as the Sacred Valley, which is suitable for travelers who want to cover a single package of multiple regions, rather than visiting Titicaca alone.

Valencia Travel

The Valencia Travel company has both a single day itinerary to Uros and Taquile Islands as well as a two days trip that involves Amantani Islands. There is also the less common travel itinerary to the Luquina Peninsula for people looking for an escape from the popular island trips. Their services include listing lunch at Taquile and bilingual guides as part of their package but recommend having medical evacuations and trip cancellations insurance as options to consider. This tour company is famous for its high-end multi-day trips in Peru, which usually include Titicaca as part of the journey.

Uros Expeditions

The Uros Expeditions offers specialized Puno Tours that go from half day trips to the Uros islands all the way to a three-day, two-night Route of the Sun tour that combines visits to both the Uros and Amantani islands. The package includes hotel accommodations in Puno as well as the necessary entrance fees to all islands that will be visited during the trip as well as transport via boats. Meals are detailed by day. As an operator from Cusco with cultural tours being its main specialty, Uros Expeditions usually caters to tourists who prefer to have the Titicaca portion of the trip organized just like the other parts of their trip in Cusco and the Sacred Valley.

Side-by-Side Comparison Table

Comparison of all three operators based on these criteria clearly reveals the differences. Price, trip length, departure times, meals included, and availability of homestay are some of those aspects that make up the difference.

Pricing and inclusions tend to differ by season, thus it would be wise to verify the prices from each agency individually before making any reservations, especially with the multiday packages and homestay packages which will have a more diverse list of accommodations. The travel agency scores given above are an average from several sources, therefore you might want to do further research yourself.

The choice really depends on the amount of time that one is going to spend in Puno, rather than the attractiveness of the website of the travel agency. An overnight visitor of Puno will certainly require a different set of things to be included in the itinerary as compared to those spending three days in Lake Titicaca.

Group Tours vs. Private Tours

The advantage of group tours is that they are relatively inexpensive and have set departures every day, which will be convenient for you if your time is flexible and you are okay with being surrounded by 15-20 people on the same boat. Private tours will be more expensive, twice or even thrice the price of a group tour, but will allow you to go at your own pace.

Budget Considerations

After paying for the basic package, there are several recurring charges that will apply to nearly all trips taken to the Uros Islands. They are not expensive by themselves, but together they can be significant; knowledge of these charges helps ensure that one does not get any surprises on the boat. These numbers have been compiled from customer reviews of the services.

Individuals seeking information on insurance in the area would be well advised to take note of the fact that although many companies recommend these services, they rarely include them in their plans.

A little planning ahead will go a long way in ensuring that you have five-star experiences that are portrayed by the most positive reviews as opposed to those from negative ones.

Best Time to Go

The dry season from May to October provides the best visibility and boat weather, but the high elevation of the lake ensures chilly mornings throughout the year. An early start ensures fewer people on the first island because group tours arrive later in bunches by midmorning.

Etiquette and Cultural Respect

The islands of the Uros people are their home, not a place where everything is put up for display; thus, taking into account the fact that your visit takes place at someone’s home is important. It is advisable to ask for permission to take a photo of the locals, to bring some small bills of soles because cards are not accepted here, and to remember that buying something from the artisans directly benefits them a lot more than tips do.