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SOUTH AMERICA / Perú Machu Picchu

Trip Code: PP16
Price per person in US $2,300.00
Number of days: 16 days

Description

Tour the best Peru has to offer on this 16 day holiday traveling along the desert coast, up to the altiplano and down to jungle clad ruins. From your first sip of a Pisco Sour to your last cup of corn chicha, you're sure to be charmed by the smiles, laughter and generosity of this Andean country. This tour of Peru includes the countries greatest highlights -- the Nazca Lines, Colca Canyon, the islands of Lake Titicaca, and the Lost City of the Incas--Machu Picchu. Complete your journey with a few nights in our rainforest lodge!

Itinerary :
Click to see each night's lodging
Day 1 Arrive Lima

Day 2 Pisco
Pisco »
This morning is free to wander around Miraflores and explore Colonial Lima. In the afternoon we catch a bus to the small town of Pisco, famous for the local drink Pisco Sour. An evening on the town for our first taste of Peruvian food and a chance to Salsa dance with the locals!

Day 3 Islas Ballestas and Paracas National Reserve
Referred to as a Little Galapagos, this morning we depart by boat to the Ballestas Islands. Sea lion colonies lounge on the rocks and thousands of sea birds (such as Guanay ormorants and Peruvian Boobies) circle overhead and strut along the rocky shoreline. After our island visit, it's off to the giant sand dunes of Paracas National Reserve for a bit of hiking. In the afternoon, bus to Nazca.

Day 4 Nazca Lines/ Arequipa
Since their discovery 70 years ago, these puzzling drawings in the earth have intrigued visitors and scientists. To get a birds-eye view of the Nazca lines, take a short flight this morning. Afterwards, it's off to Chauchilla cemetery where thousand year old mummies lie in the open and ancient bones and pottery shards litter the ground - an archeologists playground! This evening, a long bus ride to Arequipa, arriving around dawn.

Day 5 Free Day Arequipa
Located 7750 feet above sea level and surrounded by snowy peaks, Arequipa delights visitors with its colonial charm and friendly inhabitants. Visit the Santa Catalina Monastery (a 4.5 acre maze of gardens, plazas, and churches in the town center), people watch in the main plaza or just relax in our colonial hotel.

Day 6-7 Colca Canyon
As rich in history as the Cusco area, Colca's pre-Inca terraces rise straight up the canyon and ancient tombs can be found perched on vertical canyon walls. We leave Arequipa early this morning for the deepest canyon in the world. The drive takes us back in time, past herds of llamas and alpacas and through 400-year old colonial towns where residents raise potatoes and tend sheep according to the rising and setting of the sun. During our two nights in the canyon, relax in hot springs and enjoy a local peña (folkloric show)! One morning we head to the Cruz del Condor where we have our best chance to see the Andean condor. In the afternoon we walk along the canyon edge to the pueblo of Cabanaconde for a taste of village life in the Colca.

Day 8-10 Puno/ Lake Titicaca (1B,1D)
We take a bus to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca where we visit the floating islands of the Uros people and stop for the night on Amantaní Island with local families. Share in the hospitality of the Quechua Indians and experience a short day in their lives.

Day 11 Journey to Cusco
A spectacular bus ride to Cusco crosses the 14,403 feet La Raya pass. Our final
destination is the Navel of the World--Cusco, Peru!

Day 12 Journey through the Sacred Valley
This morning we visit the ruins of Sacsayhuamán and Pisac. On our way to Ollantaytambo, we visit the colorful Pisac market and then head into the campo on a two-hour walk past the tiny village of Moray and nearby Inca salt mines. Tonight, relax in front of the fire in the shadow of one of the great Inca citadels.

Day 13 Train to Machu Picchu
Ancient canals still bring water from the high mountains to the baths used by Inca priests, and as visitors we're welcome to respectfully dip our hands in the cool water. After our tour of Machu Picchu, we return to Aguas Calientes to soak in the hot springs.

Day 14 Free Day at Machu Picchu
Today is our chance to watch the sunrise at Machu Picchu, and to listen to thespirits of the city's past inhabitants before the hikers from the Inca Trail arrive. The day is yours to enjoy these magnificent ruins. In the late afternoon we return to Cusco.

Day 15 Cusco Free Day
Andean history comes alive in Cusco, and the day is yours to wander its narrow streets, tour nearby ruins and visit Qoricancha (the Inca's Temple of the Sun). For the energetic, Cusco offers mountain biking, rafting and horseback riding! This evening enjoy a folkloric show at one of Cusco's typical restaurants.

Day 16 Fly Lima and Return Home OR

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