Meet our amazing team
Our Team: The Heart of AB Expeditions
At AB Expeditions, our company is deeply connected to the Andean region we proudly call home. Our team is made up of local guides, office staff, drivers, porters, cooks, and horsemen—all of whom were born and raised in the communities where we operate.
Because our team comes from these areas, they know the land, the culture, and the traditions in a very personal way. Traveling with us is not just about visiting Peru—it’s about sharing daily life, stories, and experiences with the people who truly belong to this place.
When you hike with AB Expeditions, you are guided by locals who understand the mountains, respect nature, and take pride in showing their heritage in an authentic and meaningful way. Every journey supports local families and helps keep traditional knowledge alive.
Below, you will meet each member of our team and learn more about the people who make your adventure possible.
Abel was born in the town of Ch´usso, which is located within the countryside of Cusco. He grew up speaking the Quechua language, where he went to school and high school in his local village. After finishing high school, he then began working as a porter for one year – where he was often mistreated given there was not enough food for porters, and often had to carry over 40 kg of supplies.
After saving up enough money, Abel then applied to a local institute called Tupac Amaru where he studied for 3 years to become a licensed tour guide. He then worked in Cusco as a tour guide for different travel companies for around 7 years. There he witnessed first-hand how various travel agencies were abusing their employees, such as the cooks, porters and guides. They were reckless with the health and safety of their workers, and showed total disregard towards their own wellbeing. This included paying them low wages (which were rarely on-time) and not being treated fairly. Abel himself was cheated a couple of times for his services as a tour guide, where he never received payments.
That was when he decided to leave and start AB Expeditions – a licensed tour company which not only leads incredible tours, but also provides a better service for all local workers whilst improving industry standards.
Elsa was born in the village of Pampacancha, which is located close to Ausangate Mountain (the 5th highest mountain in all Peru). She studied both at school and high school in her village, and then worked as a porter on the Inca Trail like her father had done before her. She found it difficult given the excessive weight that had to be carried, so instead became a cook on the Inca Trail and many other alternative treks that ended in Machu Picchu such as: Salkantay trek, Lares Trek, Ausangate trek. .
Elsa began as an assistant cook helping to carry the equipment, and then worked as a head cook for around 3 years. During this time she also saw how the porters and cooks were often mistreated, paid little and had to carry very heavy loads. Similar to Abel, Elsa wanted to do something to change this and help improve working standards for porters and workers all over the region. She then decided to become a tour guide, where she applied to the Antonio Institute and studied for 4 years. She then led tours for 3 years to throughout the region, before meeting Abel where they together launched AB Expeditions in 2016.
She is in charge of all our cooks, the training for porters, environmental policies as well as our social projects. You will often see Elsa with our group tours when visiting local schools.
Our professional tour guides have vast experience running treks throughout the region. They know the best and safest routes to take, how to deal with local animals and also have inside knowledge of the cultural heritage of the sites that you are visiting…
Being a cook for the Inca Trail or any alternative trek to Machu Picchu is not at all easy. Our cook and porters must carry all the needed ingredients for each day’s meals, set up the kitchen tent, whilst also cooking some of the best meals you will eat when in the Cusco region…
At AB Expeditions, we make sure all of our porters are looked-after properly. Every porter that works with us receives high-quality equipment, uniforms and padded-strap backpacks. Most importantly, we pay a fair wage for their work and continue to do our best to improve the industry standards…
Our office staff are a strong foundation of AB Expeditions, and help to keep everything running optimally. They are always friendly, courteous and are ready to help you in any way that you need. From the moment you come to our office, you will be in safe hands…
We are proud to have some really amazing drivers as part of our crew. All of our drivers have more than 5 years driving experience in the region, and know how to safely navigate the often difficult mountain terrains. This includes when we head into the more remote areas too…
At AB Expeditions, we make sure all of our porters are looked-after properly. Every porter that works with us receives high-quality equipment, uniforms and padded-strap backpacks. Most importantly, we pay a fair wage for their work and continue to do our best to improve the industry standards…