Wonders of Peru and Inca Trail to Machu Picchu 12 Days

When you arrive in Lima, we’ll pick you up and bring you to your hotel. The rest of the day will be a free day to do what you want. Overnight in hotel.

On the second day in Lima, we’ll go on a guided City Tour of Lima where we’ll visit some of the most popular sites. We’ll start by picking you up from your hotel and walking to the city center to see the beautiful buildings around the main square, or Plaza Mayor, like the Government Palace, the Lima Cathedral, the Archbishop’s Palace, and the Municipal Palace. Most buildings here are from the colonial era. We’ll then visit the San Francisco Convent which is also famous for its catacombs. We’ll also visit the modern part of Lima "El Olivar" in San Isidro Miraflores residential area and the Larco Mar shopping center, which offers a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean and contains souvenir shops where you can buy good quality fabrics made from vicuña and alpaca wool. Overnight in hotel.

Today we’ll leave Lima. According to your flight schedule, we’ll pick you up from your hotel and bring you to the airport in Lima. Here you’ll board a flight to Cusco. When you land in Cusco we’ll be waiting there to bring you to your hotel. You’ll have the rest of the day for yourself and some time to acclimatize to the altitude of Cusco. Overnight in hotel.

Today we’ll have a half day tour of the city of Cusco, lasting about 5 hours. We’ll start by visiting Koricancha / Santo Domingo Monastery. Koricancha was believed to be the main temple where the Incas worshiped the Sun God. When the Spanish conquistadores took the city, they removed all of the gold believed to have covered Koricancha and the golden statues, as well as destroying much of the building. There is still a large part which you can see under the construction of the Santo Domingo Monastery. From here we’ll go outside of the city to Sacsayhuaman which, although also partially destroyed by the Spanish, is still very impressive with its large blocks of stone, some weighing more than 100 tons. We’ll travel on to Quenqo meaning ‘labyrinth.’ Experts believe this site was used for ceremonial purposes. This is also the beginning of the famous Inti Raymi festival. Next on our list will be Pucapucara which is believed to be a control point where the Incas controlled the entrance into Cusco. Our last stop will be the temple dedicated to the worship of water Tambomachay before going back to Cusco. Overnight in hotel.

Today we’ll take the day to visit the Sacred Valley of the Incas! We’ll start by visiting Pisac which is known for the P’isaq Archaeological Park and Pisac Market. At the Pisac Market, there are many opportunities to buy souvenirs since this market is famous for the variety of handmade jewelry, textiles, and pottery. After visiting Pisac, we’ll travel to Urubamba where we’ll have a buffet lunch. And after lunch, we’ll travel to Ollantaytambo, where we’ll see many examples of Inca architecture throughout the town. After visiting Ollantaytambo we’ll drive to Chinchero which also means ‘Rainbow City’ which has a great view of the area around it. The people living there still hold on to traditions generations old. People also come to see their church with its painted murals and traditional market. From Chinchero, we’ll return to Cusco around 7:00. Overnight in hotel.

Today we’ll start our Inca Trail trek part of our tour! After we pick everyone up from their hotels in Cusco, we’ll leave the city and travel to KM82 which is about 2 ½ hours away. If you didn’t have breakfast in the morning, you’ll have time to eat a snack along the way. When we arrive at KM82 which is also the first Inca Trail checkpoint, the authorities will check for your Inca Trail permit, your passport and if you booked your tour with a student discount, your ISIC (International Student Identity Card). From here we’ll hike to Miskay where we’ll have lunch. After lunch we’ll hike an additional 2 hours to Wayllabamba which will be our camp for the night. We’ll have time in the evening to settle our things in our tents and get to know everyone better over dinner.

Today we’ll be woken up with a hot cup of coca tea! After our tea and breakfast, we’ll continue out Inca Trail trek going uphill to the highest point of our trek, Dead Woman Pass at 4600 meters! The hike will take about 5 hours before reaching the pass. After stopping for a break at the top, taking pictures and celebrating your climb, we’ll go downhill for about 2 hours until we reach our camp in Paccaymayu. We’ll have lunch and the rest of the afternoon to rest at our camp. Tonight will be the coldest part of our Inca Trail trek since our campsite is at 3600 meters.

On day 3 of our Inca Trail trek to Machu Picchu, we’ll have another hot cup of coca tea to help wake us up early in the morning. After tea and breakfast we’ll hike about 1 hour uphill to the Inca ruins of Runkuraqhay before continuing for another hour to the second highest pass with the same name, Runkuraqhay Pass, which is at 4000 meters. We’ll hike an additional 45 minutes to the Sayacmarka ruins. After we visit these ruins, we’ll hike about 25 minutes to get to our lunch site at Chakiccocha. We’ll have lunch and then go on hiking to the Inca ruins of Phuyupatamarka which will also be our last pass at 3600 meters. We’ll hike another 2 hours to reach Wiñayhuayna at around 5:00pm. We’ll have a special ‘good bye’ dinner for the porters tonight since we’ll see them very shortly tomorrow morning before we’re on our way again.

This will be the last day of our Inca Trail trek since we’re visiting Machu Picchu today! We’ll wake up at about 3:30am and have breakfast before we start hiking to the 1st Inca trail control point for today. You will need to show your passport and ISIC (if you booked the trip with a student discount) again and we’ll wait a little at the checkpoint before they let us through. From here we’ll hike to the Sun Gate which will take about an hour and a half. From this point we’ll have our first view of Machu Picchu! We’ll take a short break to take pictures and take in the magical view. We’ll walk for another 30 minutes to the 2nd control point outside of Machu Picchu. Here you can store your large backpack for a fee of 3 Peruvian Nueva Soles. When we are all in Machu Picchu we’ll have a guided tour which should last about 2 hours taking you to some of the most important sacred sites. Afterwards we’ll have time on our own to roam around until we’re ready to head down to Aguas Calientes. We’ll take a bus from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes where we can have lunch (not included) and buy souvenirs. According to your train schedule, you’ll board the Expedition train to Ollantaytambo where we’ll be waiting to pick you up. From Ollantaytambo we’ll bring you to Cusco. Overnight in hotel.

Note: The time table for the trains may change according to the train company’s availability. There will also be changes to your itinerary and price if you decide to change your departure time, or upgrade to the Vistadome Train. If you booked later than most of your group for your Inca Trail Trek to Machu Picchu, you may not be in the same train as the rest of your group.

Today we’ll leave Cusco and take a touristic bus to Puno. A long the way we’ll visit a few interesting archaeological sites like Pukara, Andahuaylillas and Raqchi as well as enjoy the beautiful landscapes. We’ll have a buffet lunch and drinks today. When we arrive in Puno we’ll bring you to your hotel. Overnight in hotel.

Today we’ll go to the Titicaca Lake for a tour of the Floating Islands of Uros and Taquile Island! We’ll start the day by picking you up from your hotel and bringing you to the harbor of Titicaca Lake where we’ll board a boat. We’ll visit the Floating Islands of Uros first, learning about their community’s customs and lifestyle. The people of Uros started building the floating islands made of reeds from the shallow parts of Lake Tititcaca centuries ago to protect themselves from other tribes. After our visit to the Floating Islands of Uros, we’ll board the boat again to travel to Taquile Island, about 2 hours away. Here we’ll notice the community speaks Quechua and hols on to their weaving traditions for which they’re famous. They are well known for their "Chullos", knitted hats earflaps, and "The Calendar Waistband", showing the annual cycles connected to rituals and agricultural activities. You’ll have a great view of Lake Titicaca as you walk around the Island and when we’re at the top we’ll have lunch together. After we have lunch we’ll walk back down to the harbor where we’ll board our boat once again so we can travel back to Puno. From the harbor in Puno we’ll bring you back to your hotel. Overnight in hotel.

Today will be the last day of your trip and, according to your schedule, we’ll pick you up from your hotel and bring you to the airport o bus terminal. This will be the end of our services.