SPECTACULAR PERU
Day 1 - ARRIVAL IN LIMA
Depending on the arriving hour, reception at the international airport of Lima and transfer to your hotel and overnight.
Day 2 - FLIGHT LIMA-AREQUIPA + CITY TOUR
Early morning transfer to the airport to board the flight to Arequipa.
Reception and transfer to the hotel to let the luggage.
Afterwards we will visit the most important tourist attractions of Arequipa:
the Santa Catalina Monastery — a wonderful and mysterious place that housed the nuns of Arequipa for over four centuries.
Later on we will drive around the main square of Arequipa, a nice spot surrounded by colonial arches.
We will visit the magnificent Cathedral of Arequipa and we will drive to the district of Yanahuara, where we will visit the famous Mirador of Yanahuara, a great lookout point from where it is possible to see the city of Arequipa with the volcanoes Misti, Chachani and Pichu Picchu.
Overnight.
Day 3 - AREQUIPA-PUNO (LAKE TITCACA)
Early in the morning transfer to Puno.
Afternoon excursion to Uros Islands.
After a 2 hour motorboat ride you will arrive at the Uros Islands. Fishermen and hunters inhabit the floating islands of the Uros. The residents of the Uros use the cattail, a type of rush, which grows in the lake, to create the conditions that ensure the islands stay afloat. The dense roots that the plants develop support the island. The roofs are waterproof and the houses are extremely humid because of the surrounding water.
At present, the inhabitants speak Quechua and Aymara languages.
Lunch in Uros Islands is included.
Overnight in a hotel in Puno.
Day 4 - PUNO-CUSCO
A.M. Transfer to Cusco, visiting in route the Pukara museum, La Raya – the highest pass on the route between Puno and Cusco (4335 meters above sea level), beautiful landscapes await you, as well as the animals that are symbolic of the Andes:
llamas, alpacas.
Raqchi, monumental Inca temple of the God Wiracocha; Andahuaylillas: Referred as the Andean Sistine Chapel because of its magnificent frescoes, the church is one example of the mestizo baroque architecture.
Lunch in a restaurant is included.
Transfer to the hotel and overnight.
Day 5 - CUSCO
In the morning City Tour of colonial Cusco.
We will visit the Main Square, the Cathedral and the Temple of the Sun or Korikancha.
Then, we will tour the 04 nearby ruins:
- Sacsayhuaman,
- the Qenqo amphitheatre and ceremonial cave,
- the Puca Pucara outpost,
- the Tambomachay fountains.
Afternoon free and overnight in hotel.
Day 6 - CUSCO-OLLANTAYTAMBO
Excursion to the Sacred Valley of the Incas;
we will visit Pisac Ruins and Pisac Market where you can do shopping;
Lunch in Urubamba.
Visit of Ollantaytambo, an attractive little town located at the western end of the Sacred Valley (about two and a half hours by bus from Cusco).
The town has been built on top of original Inca foundations and is the best surviving example of Inca town planning.
The town is divided in canchas (blocks) which are almost entirely intact. Each cancha has only one entrance (usually a huge stone doorway) which leads into a central courtyard. The houses surround the courtyard. Good examples of this construction can be found behind the main square.
Hotel in Ollantaytambo and overnight.
Day 7 - OLLANTAYTAMBO-AGUAS CALIENTES - MACHU PICCHU
Early in the morning assistance to the Train station of Ollantaytambo for board the train to Aguas Calientes.
The train ride to Machu Picchu is one of the most beautiful journeys that visitors can experience in this beautiful country.
After passing the village of Ollantaytambo, the train will start to descend more and more, riding along the edge of the Urubamba River, till finally reach the cloud forest.
After approximately one and a half hour we will have arrived in Aguas Calientes, where our representative will welcome you and then we will be escorted to the local bus station to catch the bus that goes up to the ruins of Machu Picchu.
The bus ride to the sanctuary of Machu Picchu lasts around 25 minutes and it follows a steep winding path, offering spectacular views of the surrounding mountains.
Lunch in the Restaurant in Machu Picchu.
Upon our arrival, we will get into the archaeological zone of Machu Picchu and our guide will show us the most important sectors of this great Inca City, such as the great Intiwatana (solar clock), the Sun Temple, the urban sector, the agricultural sector among others.
Machu Picchu was long thought to be legendary.
Then in 1911, the explorer Hiram Bingham stumbled upon its remains.
Machu Picchu stands 2,430 m above sea-level, in the middle of a tropical mountain forest, in an extraordinarily beautiful setting. It was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height; its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments.
The natural setting, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna.
The guided tour in Machu Picchu will last about two and a half hour, and afterwards we will take the bus down to Aguas Calientes, where we will check in at our hotel.
Dinner included. Overnight
Day 8 - AGUAS CALIENTES - CUSCO
After breakfast, we will take the train returning to Ollantaytambo, and then we will enjoy a private guided trip to Maras Salt Mines and the circular terraces of Moray.
On the way you will see some of the most scenic spots in the Sacred Valley.
The ancient salt mines are near the village of Maras, where salty springs emerge from the hillside and the Incas built terraces to capture the flows and harvest salt. Continue the excursion to Moray, where huge circular agricultural terraces were built by the Incas on limestone sinks served to plant various crops. It is said to have a cosmological significance, however, the Incas used the terraces as an agricultural laboratory to determine the optimum conditions for each species in varying altitudes.
Afternoon free in Cusco.
Dinner Show and overnight in the hotel.
Day 9 - CUSCO - LIMA
Early morning transfer to the airport and board a flight to Lima.
Reception and transfer to the center of the city for a comprehensive city tour.
This excursion offers the best combination of the different attractions in Lima and its three historical periods: Pre-hispanic, colonial and contemporary. Lima was a part of the Inca Empire until the Spaniard Francisco Pizarro founded the city on the 18th of January, 1535.
During our guided tour we will visit the Gold Museum, where you will appreciate a dazzling collection of gold artifacts from various pre-Colombian civilizations, some more than 3,000 years old.
Metal pieces and jewellery of incalculable value in gold, silver and precious stones used by the Incas—the children of the Sun God and monarchs of the vast Inca Empire—are shown in this collection.
Five hundred years ago, the gold of Peru attracted many European adventurers who conquered the Inca and founded the Vice-Royalty of Peru under the Spanish Crown. Peru’s Gold Museum also houses a valuable collection of old and modern weapons that ranks among the best in the world. The halls in this section show the Arms of the World Collection of armor, uniforms and various ancient war artifacts and weapons from various time periods from around the world, some dating back to as long ago as 1300 B.C.
Day 10 - LIMA - DEPARTURE
Depending on the flight departure times, transfer to the airport to board your flight back to the US, or leave on the optional tour to Paracas and Ballestas Islands.