Image Credit: Pedro Szekely / Flickr / CC-BY-SA 2.0
Image Credit: McKay Savage / Flickr / CC-BY 2.0
Lima, Cuzco
Arrival at the Peruvian capital. Welcome at the airport and transfer to Hotel. Overnight at Hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning transfer to the airport and flight to Cusco. Arrival and transfer to hotel. Morning at leisure.
City tour in the afternoon: you will visit the main square, the cathedral, the 'Templo del Sol' or Coricancha, an important worship spot, the twelve-angle stone and the colorful district of San Blas. You will also see the Sacsayhuaman fortress and its cyclopean wall, the Tambomachay, Quenco, Puca Pucara and Lanlacuyoc worship spots and the 'Templo de la Luna', where some Andean religious practices are still held today. Overnight at hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. Early in the morning, transfer to the railway station in order to take the train leading to Machu Picchu (a two-hour trip, Vistadome service). Arrival to the Aguas Calientes railway station, where you will take a bus towards Machu Picchu (2,350 meters high). You will visit the great archaeological ruins discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham. Lunch at local restaurant.
In the afternoon, return to Cusco by train (vistadome service). Overnight at hotel.
Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport to take the flight to Lima. Arrival and transfer to the hotel.
City tour in the afternoon: you will visit the main square, the Government Palace, the City Hall of Lima and the Cathedral, where you will see the tomb of Francisco Pizarro (conqueror of Peru). Then you will visit the San Francisco convent and next you will go to Miraflores and San Isidro, the modern districts of the Peruvian capital and finally the gold museum. Overnight at Hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport for international flight.
Lima, Arequipa, Puno, Cuzco
Arrival at the Peruvian capital. Welcome at the airport and transfer to Hotel. Overnight at Hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. City tour in the morning: you will visit the main square, the Government Palace, the City Hall of Lima and the Cathedral, where you will see the tomb of Francisco Pizarro (conqueror of Peru). Then you will visit the San Francisco convent and next you will go to Miraflores and San Isidro, the modern districts of the Peruvian capital. Return to the hotel. Overnight at Hotel.
Breakfast at hotel. Transfer to the airport to take the flight to Arequipa. Arrival and transfer to hotel. In the afternoon, guided tour of the city. You will visit the main square, the Cathedral, the convent of the Santa Catalina (finally open to visitors after more than 400 years of claustral life) and the Huasacache palace, which is also known as La Mansión del Fundador. Lunch in La Cantarilla restaurant. Overnight at hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, transfer to the aiport in order to take the flight to Juliaca. Approximate flight duration: half an hour. Arrival at Juliaca and transfer to Puno (3,800 meters), the folk capital of Peru. Accommodation in the hotel. In the afternoon, you will visit the chullpas of Sillustani, archeological site pre-inca with immense cylindrical tombs. Overnight. Overnight at hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. On lake Titicaca, the highest lake in the world, you will visit the floating islands of local Uros. This is a group of 40 floating islands made up of totora reeds. Its inhabitants are part of one of the oldest cultures on the American continent. They live the way their ancestors did, keeping their customs and idiosyncrasy. Then you will visit the Taquile Island: the local people are farmers and have developed an original form of communal tourism. They receive visitors and share their food, housing, customs and traditions. Lunch. Transfer to Puno and overnight.
Breakfast at the hotel. Private bus trip to Cusco. At km 125, you will visit the town of Raqchi, a complex town of multiple constructions. The most important building inside the complex is the 'Wiracocha temple' that, according to some old chroniclers, was built by Inca Wiracocha in honour to the Superior God. Next you will visit Andahuaylillas and its XVIth century church. It's a beautiful construction that can be considered as 'The Sixtine Chapel of Peru'. Arrival at Cusco and overnight at Hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning City tour of Cusco you will visit the main square, the cathedral, the 'Templo del Sol' or Coricancha, an important worship spot, the twelve-angle stone and the colorful district of San Blas. You will also see the Sacsayhuaman fortress and its cyclopean wall, the Tambomachay, Quenco, Puca Pucara and Lanlacuyoc worship spots and the 'Templo de la Luna', where some Andean religious practices are still held today. Overnight at hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. Early in the morning,transfer to the railroad station to take the train to Macchu Picchu, arrival and you will take a bus towards Machu Picchu (2,350 meters high). You will visit the great archaeological ruins discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham. In the afternoon, return to Cusco by train (vistadome service). Overnight at hotel in Cusco.
Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, transfer to the airport in order to take the flight to Lima (approximate flight duration: one hour). Arrival at Lima and transfer to hotel.
Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, transfer to the airport in order to take the flight to India.
Image Credit: Colegota / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA 2.5
Lima, Arequipa, Colca Canyon, Puno, Cuzco, Yucay
Arrival at the airport in Lima and welcome by your English speaking guide. Transfer to the hotel and Check-in.
Today you will explore the city on a sightseeing tour through Lima. The Plaza de Armas with the beautiful buildings of the government Palace, the town hall, the Palace of the archbishop and the cathedral are still the most important places in town. After that you will visit the beautiful San Francisco monastery. Proceed through the modern districts of San Isidro and Miraflores and to the Coastline enjoying the view over the beaches of Lima and the Pacific Ocean. (City tour : 4 hours)
After check-in at the hotel in Arequipa you will be picked in a private transportation to start the city tour through Arequipa, the so called "White City", departing towards Carmen Alto district, where we will appreciate beautiful landscapes of the place, as well as of the city, the volcanoes and pre-Incan terraces.
Then we will visit the old neighbourhoods of San Lázaro and Yanahuara, this last with its viewing point and church. Continue our visit towards Arequipa's Cathedral and "Plaza de Armas" with its three portals. After that we will continue towards the complex of the Company of Jesus exponent of the baroque-half caste and baroque over decorated Spanish art of the XVII century together with its Chapel San Ignacio, also called "The Sixtina of America". Visit the Santa Catalina Convent, a beautiful and romantic city of the XVI. Century with the pure style of different Spanish cities. The afternoon is at leisure.(City tour : 4 hours)
Today you start your 2-day excursion to the Colca Canyon.
This canyon has a length of more than 100km and its deepest point is 3.400m. The best lookout is to be found at 3.800m above sea level. Start your trip in the early morning from Arequipa and drive up to Chivay at an altitude of 3.600m. The road leads along the volcanoes Misti, Chachani, Ampatao and the still active Sabancaya. On the tour you will visit the Observatory of the Cordillera Occidental. Box lunch on route. After the arrival in Chivay you check in at your hotel. Afterwards you will continue your trip to the surroundings - passing by the village of Coporaque, visiting the Amphitheatre of Ocolle and the hot springs of La Calera. In the evening you return to your hotel and enjoy your dinner.
After an early breakfast start your trip to the lookouts Cruz del Condor, located at the deepest point of the canyon. The view is just fantastic and condors can be seen. Afterwards full day bus transfer to Puno at Lake Titicaca.
Full day excursion on Lake Titicaca to visit the Uros floating islands. The Aymara Indians build their houses over floating artificial islands that elaborate themselves on the waters of the Titicaca in which they inhabit in organizations and with ancestral customs. Continue to Taquile Island where you find numerous pre-Inca and Inca ruins and Inca terracing. The island is narrow, only about 1km wide, but 6-7km long. The people here still wear their traditional clothes and there is a co-operative shop on the Plaza where one can buy woollen goods of very fine quality. (Uros & Taquile tour : approx. 10 hours)
A full day bus tour from Puno to Cuzco leads through the Peruvian highland along snow-covered peaks of the Andes, small villages and reaches its highest point in La Raya at 4.300 m above sea level. On route you will visit the town of Andahuaylillas, the ruins of Racchi and the small town of Pucara. Lunch in a typical restaurant en route is included. Upon arrival in Cuzco transfer to your hotel.
Remark: The Andean Explorer train from Puno to Cuzco including lunch can be booked upon request and against a surcharge (instead of the public bus ride, to be requested only in advance and depending on availability!)
Today you will start for a half day city tour. It will be shown the exact centre of the Incan Empire, the Plaza de Armas. There one can find the cathedral built on the ruins of the ancient Inca Palace. The cathedral borders on other churches on both sides. Next stop will be the old town with its magnificent renovated colonial buildings; some of them are being used as hotels. Proceed to Sacsayhuaman; a ruin site located approx. 3 km above Cuzco. Sacsayhuaman also offers a fabulous view over the city. Stops at the sites of Tambo Machay, the bath of the Inca, Kenko, the giant rock with niches and gaps carved in a mysterious way, and Puca Pucara, the ruin of a small fort.
The day is free at leisure to explore the city of Cuzco or book some optional tours on the spot.
Today enjoy a half day tour to the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Visit of the Pisac Indian market in the town of Pisac. Here a very special and traditional market is performed every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. A large handicraft fair is organized by the Pisac and Cuzco craftsmen who exhibit and sell wide variety of fine crafts such as woven goods, Alpaca rugs, tapestry, sculpture, jewellery. Afterwards continue to the hotel in Yucay located in the Urubamba valley.
The rest of the day is at leisure for own activities.
Transfer by bus to the train station Ollanta where the tour starts by train that goes through the fertile plain of the Urubamba valley and on to Aguas Calientes. From there, small busses drive up the steep mountain to the ruin town Machu Picchu. Called the Lost City of the Incas, this cultural heritage of mankind is a beautifully located impressive stone city constructed with a technique incredible for its era and even for present times. Stone upon stone, fitted together perfectly without any cement, with impressive delicacy, exquisite detail and discrimination worthy of the world's greatest palaces. There are many theories about Machu Picchu, but one thing is for sure - it is one of the most impressive sites in the world. Extensive guided visit of the ruins and return by bus and train to the Sacred Valley.
Transfer to the airport of Cuzco for return flight to Lima.