Best of Peru: Machu Picchu and Amazon

Day 1: Lima

Arrive in Lima. You will be met upon arrival, and transferred to your hotel just a short 2-minute walk outside customs.

Day 2: Cusco

Assistance with early morning check-in for one hour flight to Cusco. Airport reception and transfer to your hotel. Afternoon half-day guided orientation of ancient Inca temples, Spanish churches and the surrounding ruins of Sacsayhuaman. Our guide will also direct you to shops, museums, markets and restaurants where you can shop, dine and explore on your own.

Accommodations: Casa Andina Private Collection Cusco, Hotel Monasterio

Meals Included: Breakfast

Day 3: Urubamba Valley

On our full day guided adventure through the Sacred Valley of the Incas you visit the village of Pisac and the Inca fortress of Ollantaytambo. Depending on the season and your interests we stop to chat with farmers, artisans and visit Quechua villages where highland Indians tend their fields and sell handcrafts in outdoor markets.

Accommodations: Hotel Sol y Luna

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 4: Patacancha Village

Enjoy a beautiful, easy downhill day hike on local foot trails through the Andes amongst the native Quechua Indian villages of Hullioc and Patacancha (12,500 elevation) where crops are sown and textiles woven with simple hand tools and traditional methods. This day is flexible depending the interests and abilities of participants; we have a vehicle for those who may not walk as far, but for many we hike from the ancient ruins of Pumamarca down the hillsides into the back door of the village of Ollantaytambo.

Note: You may combine the Patacancha village day visit (with less hiking) with a mountain bike trip from Moray past Maras and into the Urubamba Valley for $30 extra.

Accommodations: Hotel Sol y Luna

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 5: Machu Picchu

Transfer to catch the morning train to Machu Picchu. After assisting with your hotel check in, our guide accompanies us on a private tour throughout the principal temples and important sectors of Machu Picchu leaving you free to photograph and explore on your own time. Includes first-class reserved train tickets, bus tickets up and down the mountain, lunch and one-time entrance fee. Overnight near the ruins of Machu Picchu in the Pueblo Hotel in Aguas Calientes or in the Orient Express Sanctuary Lodge, adjacent to the ruins.

Note: Opt to trek the one-day Inca Trail Express hike in lieu of the train. Permits required in advance. Cost is $160 per person additional to switch to this option.

Accommodations: Hotel Machu Picchu Pueblo, Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Return to Cusco

Be among the first to arrive at Machu Picchu on the early shuttle bus. Enjoy contemplating, exploring and photographing the most impressive archaeological monument in South America on your own time wandering through the mysterious maze of streets and stone buildings in this magnificent citadel. Hike up the towering Wayna Picchu peak (permits cost $15 per person and must be reserved in advance), or up the Inca Trail to the Intipunku, Gate of the Sun entrance. Late-afternoon return on the Pullman train to a station in the Urubamba Valley where we transfer to a private vehicle back to Cusco arriving by evening to our hotel.

Accommodations: Casa Andina Private Collection Cusco, Hotel Monasterio

Meals Included: Breakfast

Day 7: Tambopata

Transfer to Cusco airport for flight to Puerto Maldonado. Upon arrival, you’ll be met by a representative from Inkaterra and transfer by large safari-vehicle to a comfortable waiting pavilion. Time permitting; explore the butterfly garden while you await your group transfer to the river. Board a large, motorized dugout canoe for the 45-minute trip down the Madre de Dios River, to Reserva Amazonica or Hacienda Concepcion. There will be many opportunities throughout your stay to visit the Canopy Walkway, a complex set of hanging bridges, towers and platforms that will allow you to view and photograph the flora and fauna of the rainforest. Welcome reception and time to settle in to your room upon arrival. Enjoy a tasty lunch in the spacious dining room and then join your guide for a walk along the lodge’s trail system where you can see Brown Capuchin monkey and the Common Squirrel monkey. View a nature presentation this evening and then an authentic dinner is served followed by, weather permitting, an evening walk through the forest to experience the sounds and sights of the night. Overnight in a Cabana at Hacienda Concepcion (standard) or at Reserva Amazonica in a Superior Rio cabana (deluxe.)

Excursions offered at each lodge vary slightly but both present guests ample opportunity to hike forest trails, canoe on oxbow lakes, explore the canopy via hanging bridges and observe jungle wildlife and birds.

Accommodations: Reserva Amazonica, Hacienda Concepcion

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Days 8 - 9: Tambopata Wildlife Observation

There are several guided excursions to choose from and your personal coordinator at the lodge will work with you to design a schedule that meets your interests. Take a boat trip along the Madre de Dios River and a 1-hour trek to Lake Sandoval for a rowboat excursion around the lake to a see a family of otters, macaws and other wildlife (Highly recommended!). Board the motorboat to the Gamitana Creek to observe birds, monkeys, tortoises and alligators. Try your hand at piranha fishing using local techniques. Enjoy lunch on one of the creek beaches tasting Amazonian fish. A buffet-style tropical breakfast is served in the dining room, after which you may visit the wetlands flooded ecosystem. Tasty lunches are often served while on excursions and fabulous dinners await you at the lodge each night. Evening boat trips along the river give the chance of observing caimans and nocturnal birds along the way. Complimentary afternoon and evening nature presentations are offered frequently and vary in topic.

Accommodations: Reserva Amazonica

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 10: Lima

After an early breakfast, transfer by boat to Puerto Maldonado for your return flight to Lima. Transfer to your hotel in Miraflores.

Accommodations: Second Home Peru

Meals Included: Breakfast

Day 11: City Tour & Departure

Today your guide will lead you on a half-day tour Lima. Observe the blend of cultures in one of South America's oldest capital cities on a tour of the old colonial center of downtown Lima, the church and catacombs of San Francisco and the cathedral of Lima. The most comprehensive museums in Lima that feature Peru’s archaeological heritage are the Gold Museum and the Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology. Tickets have not been included but you are free to explore these and other museums on your own time. Late check-out is available today along with a transfer to the airport for your evening flight home.

Meals Included: Breakfast