|
At Jorge Chavez international airport, our representatives will meet you on arrival and take you to your hotel. Depending on the time of arrival, you may not need to leave the airport as flights to Arequipa depart between 4:00 and 19:00 hours.
Overnight at hotel in Lima
In Arequipa, our representatives will meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel. You will be given some basic clear information about downtown Arequipa until your first excursion starts early in the afternoon. Our first stop is one of the most remarkable buildings of Arequipa, the Santa Catalina of Siena monastery, wonderful and mysterious city-inside-the-city that has housed the nuns of Arequipa since year 1580. Then, we will drive around the main square of Arequipa and visit the cathedral and see its collections of colonial art. Then, we will visit one of the largest alpaca workshops of the city, where we will see alpacas, llamas, guanacos and vicuñas. Vicuñas have one of the finest fibers in the world. Finally we will drive to the district of Yanahuara where we will visit the famous Mirador of Yanahuara, a lookout point from where we will see the city of Arequipa and the volcanoes Misti, Chachani and Pichu Pichu in the background.
Breakfast at hotel in Lima
Lunch on your own in Arequipa
Overnight at hotel in Arequipa
After breakfast, we will pick you up from your hotel to start our trip to the Colca Canyon, one of the deepest in the world. We take the highway from Yura and continue bordering the snow-covered Chachani mountain towards Cañahuas and Aguada Blanca National Park, where we stop for a coca leaf tea. Aguada Blanca is the natural habitat of the beautiful vicuñas, alpacas, waris and llamas. By the lake of Tocra, we will be able to see a variety of migratory birds, like flamingos. We will then pass by the crater of an extinct volcano, the Chucura, and stop at a panoramic viewpoint, at 4.800 meters above sea level. From here we will see a great part of the western Andes range, and an extraordinary example of Inca Andean terraces, the andenes, at a huge scale.
The road then zigzags down to Chivay, the biggest of about 14 villages in the area, where we will stop for lunch. In the afternoon the car will take us to the colorful town or "pueblito" of Coporaque, from where we will start a 2-hour walk and enjoy the beautiful landscape. A pre-Inca cemetery, located in the skirts of a mountain, is an interesting stop. On return from the walk you will have the opportunity to enjoy the thermal baths at Calera hot Springs.
Breakfast at hotel in Arequipa
Lunch & dinner in Chivay
Overnight at hotel in Chivay
The magic experience of seeing condors fly above you head at barely some meters of distance is what awaits you at Cruz del Cóndor, the view point 1.5 hours drive from Chivay. The view of the Colca Canyon is spectacular, and the pre-Inca tombs in the cliffs add to the mystery of this ancient point of observation. As we return, we walk through a San Pedro cactus area and take the transport towards the towns of Pinchollo, Maca and Yanque. At Choquetinco and Antahuuilque we will see pre-Inca scale models of the andenes, the farming platforms. Then, we will return to Arequipa in the evening.
Breakfast at hotel in Chivay
Box lunch in Yanque
Dinner in Arequipa
Ovenrnight in Arequipa
Early in the morning, you will be taken to the airport in Arequipa for your flight to Cusco. Our staff will meet you at the airport and take you on a private transport to your hotel in Cusco. Basic information regarding the altitude, and practical issues such as money exchange, communications, contact numbers, etc. will be given to you by our representative. We will help you check in at the hotel and let you some time to rest and get adapted to the altitude. For lunch, you will be taken to a local restaurant and your program will be quickly reviewed.
After lunch, we will start our visit to two of the most important monuments in Cusco: the Qoricancha Temple and the Cathedral. The Qoricancha Temple was originally the Inca temple of the Sun. At the arrival of the Spanish, it became the convent of the Dominicans, the first Catholic congregation to arrive to the New World. The monument now is a successful combination of colonial and Inca architecture. The XV Century Cathedral hosts one of the most complete collections of the Cusco School of colonial painting. Then, the Inca Culture will start to capture our interest as we visit the amazing Sacsayhuaman fortress-temple-administrative centre. With is massive 300 tons rocks, Sacsayhuaman is the first impressive example of the Inca monumental architecture. Q’enqo, and Tambomachay will complete our visit. Dances and songs will accompany dinner at a tourist restaurant in downtown Cusco.
Breakfast at hotel in Arequipa
Lunch at local restaurant
Dinner show
Overnight at Cusco hotel
After breakfast, transport will pick you up at the hotel to start our full day Sacred Valley of the Incas visit. Our fist stop is Pisac, with its beautiful and fine architecture, as only it is found in Machu Picchu. Built over the top of a high mountain, it overlooks a section of the valley, the roads to the jungle, and the road to Cusco. At the foot of the mountain, a tourist market has originated in the local Sunday market that congregated the Andean communities for the exchange of agricultural products, animals and crafts.
Lunch will be waiting for us at one of the beautiful restaurants of Urubamba and Yucay. International and Peruvian cuisine, as well as other options (vegetarian, vegan, etc) are available.
The impressive fortress of Ollantaytambo will be our last visit of the day. After lunch, we will walk the last original Inca streets in the Valley, before we start the ascent of the fortress named after a legendary general, Ollantay, who rebelled against mighty Pachacutec for the love of Cusi Coyllor, the great Inca’s daughter.
Breakfast at the hotel in Cusco
Lunch at restaurant in the Sacred Valley of the Incas
Dinner at restaurant in Ollantaytambo
Overnight at hotel in Ollantaytambo
Machu Picchu is the greatest of the Inca cities and it was hidden from the conquerors and remained covered by the jungle for more than three hundred years. It is the most beautiful example of the classic Inca style, and it has been built on the top of a mountain. To this day, it is the consensus that it was built by the great Pachacutec, and that it was used as a resting place for the Inca. To Machu Picchu we go on a train that runs along the Urubamba river, in a 90 minutes amazing ride. Once in Aguas Calientes, we take a bus up the ruins. Two hours of a guided visit put us at the centre of the Andean part of our journey. Then, we continue the visit on our own.
We take a bus back to Aguas Calientes for lunch. After lunch, we will enjoy the comfort of our hotel. The hot springs are an option as well as a visit the hotel orchid garden.
Breakfast at the hotel in Ollantaytambo
Lunch and dinner at restaurants in Aguas Calientes
Overnight at hotel in Aguas Calientes
Early in the morning we will take one of the first buses to the ruins to visit Machu Picchu before the trains take the tourists of the day from Cusco. The Sun Gate is at the end of the 4-days Inca Trail and is of easy access. The Wayna Picchu mountain is the background mountain in all the classic photographs of Machu Picchu. Ascending the Wayna Picchu takes a couple of hours and we have to register at the entrance. The view is spectacular and we can see the bends of the Urubamba river, the ruins from an unusual perspective, and the mountains around.
After lunch in Aguas Calientes, we take the bus back to Ollantaytambo. Our bus takes us to Chinchero for a demonstration of ancient weaving techniques with local weavers. As we return to Cusco, the view of the Cordillera and its snowed peaked mountains is the perfect end for the Andean part of our trip
Breakfast at the hotel in Aguas Calientes
Lunch at restaurant in Aguas Calientes
Dinner at restaurant in Cusco
Overnight at hotel in Cusco
Early in the morning, a private transport picks you up at your hotel to start this exciting journey. As we ascend the Andes, we find Ninamarca, a small complex of circular tombs of still unclear and mysterious origin scattered on the top of a hill, overlooking the snowed capped mountains around them. Then, we arrive to the town of Paucartambo, at the center of ancient trading routes of the Incas, where we will have a short explanation on traditional dances and celebrations. We will stop for coffee, and a chat at a small local restaurant will give us time to learn about ancestral biodiversity uses by Andean communities. We will continue our way towards one of the highest points of the day at Acjanaco (3,500 m), a Park Rangers Station and the entrance to Manu National Park. If the weather conditions permit, we will have the first spectacular view of the one of the largest National Parks of Peru. Amidst the clouds, we will start our descent until we reach San Pedro, where we will have lunch. As we observe the dramatic changes of the landscape, we will reach our Cloud Forest lodge where we will have dinner and spend this first night.
Coffee and snacks in Paucartambo
Box lunch at San Pedro
Dinner at Cloud Forest lodge
Overnight at Cloud Forest lodge
The Cock of The Rock is the national bird of Peru, and it is a main attraction in the Cloud Forest. Males dance to attract the females, and we observe its activity at the lek, early in the morning, at incredible short distance. The ten-minute walk that takes us back to the lodge for breakfast gives us great chances to see a band of monkeys looking for breakfast themselves among the trees, by the road. Then, our journey continues down the Cloud Forest through the trees and water falls of the narrow ravine, home to one of the richest varieties of birds and to the spectacled bear. As we approach Pillcopata, coca plantations become visible and we will stop to visit one of them, to learn about the uses of the coca leaves and their medicinal properties. After a short stop at Pillcopata, we head for the port-town of Atalaya, where we will board a motorized canoe. A one hour ride to the Manu Learning Centre gives us the first impression of a meandering Amazonian river, the Alto Madre de Dios, one of the most southern tributaries of the legendary Amazonas river. Once at the Centre, lunch and a warm welcome from our friendly staff will be waiting for us. A basic introduction will be provided to us to make or stay more comfortable and enjoyable. Then, we will have a first short walk on the nearby trails.
Breakfast at Cloud Forest lodge
Lunch and dinner at the Manu Learning Centre
Overnight at the Manu Learning Centre
One of the most interesting activities at the Manu Learning Centre is the monitoring of the clay lick or collpa where, among others, the Blue Headed Macaw is observed and studied as it is an endangered species. At 5:00 a.m. in the morning, we join the scientists and researchers on the boat and head for the hide, five minutes up river, to observe the activity of macaws, parrots, and parakeets. As the day breaks and the rays of the sun paint the walls of the clay lick with magic colors, the birds display their dances, come and go in pairs, in flocks, until they leave to continue their day, deeper in the jungle. Then, we go back to the centre for breakfast.
After breakfast, we will take the opportunity to visit the MLC orchid garden, home to more than 120 species of orchids, some of which have not been identified yet and are waiting for a researcher (or a visitor!) to identify one as a new species and give it a name! A visit to the bio-garden will give us a better understanding of how the Centre’s projects are a bet for a sustainable future for the jungle and its human inhabitants. Then, we will start our second visit to the trails, towards the outlook, from which it is possible to see the distant mountains of the Andes and the misty slopes of the Cloud Forest; and towards the Mascoitania ravine and its lovely creek-ponds. We will be back in the Centre for lunch.
In the afternoon, a short speech will help us put in context the work we do at CREES on sustainability and conservation, and a new visit to the trails will take us to some of the transects where the research work is carried out, as we try to spot monkeys, mammal tracks and birds.
In the evening, depending on the weather conditions, we will observe the sky, identifying southern hemisphere constellations while we are told about Andean and Jungle Cosmovisions, and stories of the jungle are told to us afterwards, in the dark, in the comfort of the living room.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner at the Manu Learning Centre
Overnight at the Manu Learning Centre
After an early breakfast, our boat will take us on a two-hour trip to the hot springs of Aguas Calientes, in the land of the native community of Shintuya. Among the trees, we will have a great time enjoying the hot ponds and the cool waters of the creek. A picnic lunch by the river may include catfish fished by ourselves. Then, we will cross to the other side of the river for a visit to Shintuya. We will have some time for an exchange with the members of the community and to see, and eventually purchase, hand-made arrows, spears and crafts. In the afternoon, we will return to the Manu Learning Centre.
Breakfast at the Manu Learning Centre
Picnic lunch by the river
Dinner at the Manu Learning Centre
Overnight at the Manu Learning Centre
After breakfast, we prepare for departure and take the boat back to Atalaya port-town, where we will board our transport back to Cusco. The landscape will change again before our eyes as we climb the Cloud Forest towards the Andes and then down to Cusco. The car will leave you at your hotel to complete this extraordinary journey.
Breakfast at the Manu Learning Centre
Box Lunch
Overnight at hotel in Cusco
The Andean and Jungle experience coming to an end, we will fly to Lima and see what the coast and the capital of Peru represent to the rich history of Peru. Transport will take you to the airport in Cusco and our representatives in Lima will pick you up at the airport and drive you to your hotel. After accommodation, we will start our visit to Huaca Pucllana, a pre-Inca religious construction, and we will continue with colonial Lima, including Casa Aliaga, inhabited by the same family since 1553; and we will complete the visit with modern Lima, the residential neighborhoods and the beaches. We will have lunch at a beautiful restaurant. In the afternoon, a summary of Peruvian history will be on display at the amazing Poli museum, an incredible collection of original pieces of pre-Inca, Inca and colonial art, one of the best of its kind in the world. In the evening, a dinner at a restaurant by the sea will complete our experience.
Breakfast at hotel in Cusco
Lunch and dinner in Lima
Overnight at hotel in LIma
Our representative in Lima will pick you up at the hotel and take you to the airport for your international flight back home.
Breakfast at restaurant in Lima
End of our services
|
|
