From Cusco to the Rainforest and Andes
Lima – Tambopata Rainforest – Cusco – Inca Trail to Machupicchu – Lake Titicaca – Lima
(12 days)

This journey takes us from Peru’s desert coast to the heart of the Amazon rainforest, and then to the colonial and Inca splendor of Cusco, enigmatic short Inca trail to Machu Picchu and spectacular Suasi island in Lake Titicaca.

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrival in Lima

After disembarking from your international flight you will be met by our representative and transferred to the hotel in Lima city.

Day 2: Lima city tour

Today we will tour the capital of Peru, once known as the City of Kings. Lima was founded by Francisco Pizarro in 1535. We will explore some of the outlying districts on our way to the historic center, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We will visit the church and convent of San Francisco, which was built in the 17th century, including the catacombs that were used as a graveyard centuries ago.

(Lunch at a traditional restaurant)

Day 3: Arrival in Puerto Maldonado – transfer to Rainforest Lodge

Upon arrival at the airport you will be met by our representatives and transferred to the offices of the Posada Amazonas Lodge in the city of Puerto Maldonado. You will be asked to leave your baggage at these offices so that you can travel to the lodge with just the items you will need during your stay in the jungle. We will then head for the port, where we will board our launch for the 45-minute boat ride to the Posada Amazonas Lodge.

(Box lunch)

When you arrive at the lodge you will be welcomed by the manager and given a talk about safety and navigating on the rivers in the rainforest.

Later, you will be guided on a 20-minute walk to the canopy walk (a set of steps giving safe access to the platforms in the forest canopy). From the platform you will be able to enjoy spectacular views of the vegetation which is home to the fauna of the Amazon rainforest. From up here the forest appears like a thick green carpet stretching out in all directions and crossed by the meandering Tambopata River. From the platform one can also observe toucans, parrots, macaws and other birds in the tree tops.

(Dinner at the lodge)

In the evening you will be invited to attend an eco-tourism lecture given by the personnel of the lodge.

Day 4: Rainforest experience

Today you will take the motorized boat for just ten minutes along the river, before disembarking for a 30-minute hike along a forest trail to the Tres Chimbadas Oxbow Lake. At the lake you will row a catamaran in search of the resident family of giant river otters (which 60% of the visitors to the lodge manage to see), as well as other species such as caiman, hoatzin and horned screamers. After returning to the lodge we will make a 20-minute river journey to the Parrot Clay Lick, from where, hidden in a blind, you will be able to observe dozens of parrots and parakeets as they descend on the river bank each morning to feed on the minerals in the clay which are essential to their diet.

Species seen at the lick include: Mealy and Yellow-headed Amazon Parrots, Blue-headed Parrots and Dusky-headed Parakeets. The lick is most active just after dawn, in the late morning and in the mid-afternoons.

(Lunch at the lodge)

This afternoon you will take the motor boat for 20 minutes downriver for an ethno-botanical tour in the forest plant nursery of the Centro Ñape, which is a communal organization that produces medicines from forest plants which are administered to the patients treated at the center’s small clinic. We will hike a trail and a guide will explain the forest plants and their many medicinal uses.

(Dinner at the lodge)

At night you can take an optional night walk, which is when most of the forest mammals are active, although they are rarely seen.

Day 5: Puerto Maldonado – Cusco – Sacred Valley of the Incas(Urubamba)

In the morning, depending on the time of your flight, we will leave the lodge and travel along the river in our motorized launch to the Tambopata River port, the city of Puerto Maldonado and the offices of Posada Amazonas.

From the office you will be transferred to the airport for the 30-minute flight to Cusco, where you will be met at the airport by our tour guide and transferred to the hotel located Sacred Valley of the Incas. On the way you will be able to enjoy the Andean countryside of fertile green valleys overlooked by great snow-covered peaks.

(Lunch at the hotel)

You will have the rest of the afternoon at your leisure to acclimatize to the high altitude and relax in the hotel grounds and surroundings.

Day 6: Sacred Valley of the Incas – Chinchero – Ollantaytambo

As we begin to explore the Sacred Valley, today we will drive to Chinchero, which is a charming colonial village with an impressive little church decorated with fascinating murals dating from the early 17th century. We will also visit Chinchero’s Inca ruins and the surrounding agricultural terraces, as well as attending a weaving demonstration at which we will be able to see how textiles are produced and dyed, and even how the wool is spun.

If the weather is fine as we drive through the valley we will be able to observe the patchwork of fields and crops and the snow-capped mountains above the valley.

(Lunch in the Sacred Valley)

In the afternoon there will also be plenty of time to visit the village and Inca archaeological site of Ollantaytambo. Back to hotel.

Day 7: Short Inca Trail to Machupicchu

In the early morning we will head for the Ollantaytambo train station to take the Vistadome train as far as Km 104 of the line, where we will begin our 9-mile hike. Just a few meters from the start of the hike we will come to the Inca ruins of Chachabamba (6930 feet / 2100masl). From here we will hike for five miles to the ruins of Wiñaywayna (8910 feet / 2700 masl), which is the most impressive Inca archaeological site in the area. The site is comprised of an urban sector, water fountains and magnificent agricultural terraces which surround the complex. We will have a box lunch this day. After leaving Wiñaywayna we will walk for about two more hours to Machupicchu (8085 feet / 2450masl). Along the way we will pass the Sun Gate with its fine views of the Inca city far below. On arrival at Machupicchu we will go to the hotel for check in.

Day 8: Machupicchu – Cusco

Today our guide will give a complete tour of the enigmatic citadel of Machu Picchu, after which you will have time to hike up Huayna Picchu, the mountain behind Machu Picchu made famous by the many postcards which feature it. This is highly recommended for those in good physical condition, as the views from the top of the Inca city and surrounding the forested mountains are spectacular. Another less strenuous alternative is the 30 minute hike to the Inca drawbridge.

(Lunch at the Sanctuary Lodge Hotel)

In the afternoon you will take the Vistadome train back to Ollantaytambo train station, where you will be met by our representative and then taken back by road (one and a half hours) to the hotel in Cusco.

Day 9: Exploring Cusco

The city of Cusco boasts a wealth of tourist attractions, and on this day we will have a chance to see the very best that the city has to offer the discerning visitor. First we will visit the Temple of the Sun, also known by its Quechua name of Qorikancha. During Inca times this was the most important temple to the sun in the entire empire, making Cusco a destination for pilgrims. The temple now lies within the Spanish church of Santo Domingo, and its remaining walls are some of the finest Inca masonry to be seen anywhere in Peru. We will then go on to the cathedral, which houses many priceless works of colonial art and overlooks the Main Square, with its ornamental gardens and old fountain. Going up into the hills above the city, we come to the fortress temple of Saqsayhuaman, a monolithic structure built on the hill of the same name which rises above the city’s main plaza. We will also visit the Inca sites of Qenqo – a temple dedicated to fertility rites – and Tambomachay – a center for the worship of water, as well as the Inca fortress of Pucapucara.

Day 10: Cusco – Puno

We will leave Cusco in the early morning for the 389 km journey to the city of Puno, crossing inter-Andean valleys and climbing up onto the highland plains of the Andes. Along the way we will visit a number of important and interesting attractions, including the picturesque village of Andahuaylillas with its church which has been described as the Sistine Chapel of the Americas by virtue of its fine painted murals. We will also stop at the Inca temple of Wiracocha at Raqchi, where the Incas once worshiped their creator god, and the pre-Inca archaeological site of Pucara. In the afternoon, just before arriving in Puno, you will have your first views of the immense and beautiful Lake Titicaca.

(Overnight at Casa Andina Private Collection – Puno)

Day 11: Lake Titicaca – Suasi Island

We will leave the hotel very early for the port and our boat ride across Lake Titicaca to the Island of Suasi (shared boat service unless you book a private boat with us in advance).

On our way across the lake we will visit the artificial floating reed islands of the Uros. The ethnic group which inhabits these islands uses the totora reed in all aspects of their lives – to build there islands and their boats and even as part of their diet. Our next stop will be the fascinating and beautiful island of Taquile, which is inhabited by a weaving community that produces the finest quality textiles and receives tourists on a communal basis so that all the islanders benefit.

When we reach Suasi we will be served with a barbecue lunch, after which we will have the rest of the afternoon free to relax or enjoy some eco-tourism activities, such as observing local fauna and flora, visiting the cultural center, walking on the beaches or kayaking around the island. Suasi is a private island and its management is based on sound ecological principles. At night it is possible to observe the stars of the southern hemisphere with a computerized telescope and afterwards enjoy a moonlight bonfire.

(Overnight at Casa Andina Private Collection – Suasi Island)

Day 12: Suasi – Puno

Today we will leave the island and head back to Juliaca airport overland. We will be served a box lunch en route and if there is time before your flight we will visit the pre-Inca burial site of Sillustani on the shores of the beautiful Lake Umayo. This site is remarkable for the tall stone burial towers known as “chullpas”. After arrival at Lima airport you will be met by one of our representatives and escorted to your hotel where a day room will be provided. You will have the afternoon free before a farewell evening meal. You will then be accompanied to the airport for your return flight home.