Piccola Locanda was born in March 2004 as a hostel in Cusco, Peru.

Very quickly, it became involved in community solidarity, becoming the official Peruvian headquarters for the Magie delle Ande (“Magic of the Andes”) Association, based in Vicenza, Italy. It became actively involved in the Huaro Project, a school for differently-abled children, and soon established another invaluable relationship with the Mosoq Runa Children’s Home.

The hostel quickly became a meeting place for people who wanted to actively contribute to these projects, volunteers and travelers alike.

We began to organize tours that included, apart from the main tourist sites, lunch in the Homes, an opportunity to spend a few hours with the children and the people in charge of the projects.

This initiative proved to be a real success; thanks to donations and tour proceeds, the projects grew. One thing led to another; some people stayed on as volunteers, others sent money and materials, and thus we were able to cover the children’s basic needs.

In November 2004, started PeruEtico, registered in the Ministry of Tourism as an official organizer of tours in Peru.

In 2005, we started another invaluable relationship, with Maruja and Daniela of CEPROF (Family Support Center) in Lima.

In 2006, we implemented stricter ethical parameters in choosing the agencies to work with in Peru. We also increased our support of the Hogar de las Estrellas, a Children’s Home in Cusco that houses differently-abled, abandoned children.

In the same year, PeruEtico became a partner of AITR, Italian Association for Responsible Tourism.
In 2007, we became the “Famiglia della Piccola Locanda” (Piccola Locanda Family), an ethical group that includes the agency, the Piccola Locanda hostel and the restaurant/internet point, “Ubuntu”. The three businesses work together to raise money for the projects, who receive a percentage of the proceeds.

In 2008 we started our “Free Trade Trips”, in collaboration with Minka Fair Trade, a group of organizations of rural producers that do business with Italy through the “Botteghe del Mondo” organizations. The other important piece of news is the birth of the PeruEtico Association, whose goal is to promote responsible tourism, fair-trade business and projects that endorse these ideals.

In 2009, we helped start Peru’s first eco-school, “Tikapata,” which focuses on recycling, reforestation and the general relationship between the community and the environment. In addition, in 2009, we opened the first two PeruEtico info points in Italy (Milan and Naples).

That’s PeruEtico: a dynamic organization, with many ideas, lots of enthusiasm, and the firm conviction that traveling Peru isn’t only seeing Machu Picchu, but also experiencing a land full of faces, colors and sounds…