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Departures:
Weekly. Itineraries are flexible.
Day 1 Wednesday
– Arrival in Lima
Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you
in transferring to the hotel and help you in registering.
Day
2 Thursday – Lima / Iquitos
Breakfast at your hotel. In the afternoon City Tour of Lima
and Larco Museum - This half day tour visits both the colonial
and modern sections of this "City of Kings." Colonial sites include
the lovely Plaza de Armas with its cathedral and palace, and the
exquisite Torre Tagle Palace modern day seat of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs. In modern Lima, drive along the exclusive residential
areas of Miraflores and San Isidro. Continue to the Larco Museum,
founded in 1926, it showcases remarkable chronological galleries
providing an excellent overview on 3000 years of development of
Peruvian pre-Columbian history. Located in a unique vice-royal
mansion of the 18th century built over a 7th century pre-Columbian
pyramid, is surrounded by beautiful gardens. Features the finest
gold and silver collection from Ancient Peru and the famous erotic
archaeological collection, one of the most visited Peruvian tourist
attractions. Transfer to the airport for your flight to Iquitos.
Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you in
transferring to the hotel and help you in registering. (B)
Day
3 Friday – Iquitos / Explorama Lodge
Breakfast at your hotel. Brief
city orientation and transfer to the Explorama dock. Fifty mile
journey down the Amazon River to Yanamono Stream where Explorama
Lodge is located. Afternoon hike along the "Lake Trail" through
lowland rainforest which is seasonally flooded. During the high
water season, this excursion is done by open boat! Night walk
or open boat ride to enjoy the sounds of the rainforest and stars
of the Southern sky. Overnight Explorama Lodge.
(B,L,D)
Day
4 Saturday – Explorama Lodge
Breakfast at your hotel. Morning
walk along the "Bushmaster Trail", where scientific studies by
the Missouri Botanical Gardens have found the world's highest
biodiversity of trees per square hectare. Your guide will point
out many plants used in medicine today and many that we may use
in the future. Afternoon open boat trip along the Amazon in search
of either of the two species of freshwater dolphin found in the
river and a chance for an afternoon swim.Overnight Explorama Lodge.
(B,L,D)
Day
5 Sunday – Explorama Lodge / Iquitos / Lima
Breakfast at your hotel. Morning
walk along a local river trail with stops along the way to visit
the "ribereños" or river people, visit a river school, see the
local sugar cane rum "factory" or visit our resident American
medical doctor in her clinic sponsored by the Rotary Club. Transfer
back to Iquitos for your departure flight to Lima.
Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you in
transferring to the hotel and help you in registering. (B)
Day
6 Monday – Lima
Breakfast at your hotel. Early departure for your drive along
the Pan-American Highway with its views across the beautiful pacific
beaches which will take you back to a different era. Travel to
the pre-Inca ruins of Pachacamac and its Temple of the Sun and
the Palace of the Virgins! (B)
Day
7 Tuesday – Lima / Arequipa
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to the airport for your
flight to Arequipa. Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet
and assist you in transferring to the hotel and help you in registering.
Arequipa City Tour and Santa Catalina Convent - Your half day
sightseeing of this beautiful city, placed on the World Cultural
Heritage list by UNESCO, features Mixed Baroque churches and mansions
from the Colonial Period like the Monastery of Santa Catalina,
called "a city within a city", a Spanish city in miniature with
stone streets, beautiful patios, and plaza. It is a masterpiece
of colonial architecture, and houses some of the finest examples
of Spanish American religious art. Since 1970 visitors have been
able to stroll through the streets and cloisters that during colonial
times were the refuge of female nobility who had decided to shut
themselves away from the world and dedicate entirely to prayer.
(B)
Day
8 Wednesday – Arequipa / Colca Canyon
Breakfast at your hotel. Early departure towards the highlands
passing through Yura-Pampa Cañahuas and La Pulpera with good possibility
of observing groups of wild vicuñas and fighting cattle. Stop
en route to see petrogliphs in the Caves of Mollepunco and in
the town of Callali to see natural hill formations with the appearance
of enchanted castles. Continue to La Calera to enjoy the thermal
baths under the stars. (B,L,D)
Day
9 Thursday – Colca Canyon / Puno
Breakfast at your hotel. To maximize your probability of seeing
condors we depart very early towards the "Cross of the Condor"
at about an altitude of 15,000 feet, which grants visitors spectacular
views of condors wheeling across the Colca Canyon, the world's
deepest. Drive a little further in to the canyon to see some pre-Inca
ruins, pre-Inca burial grounds, to watch the way of life in this
remote land and to admire the impressive irrigation system and
the fertile mountains terraced for farming of the Colca valley.
The afternoon ride to Puno features unique natural scenery of
the Peruvian Highlands. (B,L)
Day
10 Friday – Puno
Breakfast at your hotel. Visit to the Uros Indian and Taquile
Island at Lake Titikaka - This full day excursion will take you
to the highest navigable lake in the world, to visit the floating
islands of the Uros Indians, considered themselves Lords of the
Lake, and they were convinced they had black blood because they
did not feel the cold of the lake and the winter. Continuing to
Taquile where a native community of about 400 families still lives
with the traditions of the XIV century that respect the principals
of an Incan way life. Taquile is a very important site on Lake
Titikaka for its a archeological remains, the sacred and ceremonial
sites, the festive activities, their rituals and for the daily
life of the inhabitants which is dedicated to farming, textile
production and fishing. (B,L)
Day
11 Saturday – Puno / Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Bus journey through the Peruvian Andes
from Puno - Today one of South America's most extraordinary overland
trips takes you by bus to Cusco passing through striking highland
scenery and picturesque Andean villages. Upon your arrival in
Cusco, the former capital of the Inca Empire, a host will meet
and assist you in transferring to the hotel and help you to register.
(B,L)
Day
12 Sunday – Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Tour of Cusco and its Ruins - This afternoon's
tour of the oldest continuously inhabited city in the western
hemisphere includes important landmarks of enchanting Cusco and
also the nearby ruins of Kenko, Puca-pucara, Tambomachay as well
as the Sacsayhuaman fortress. Once the center of the Inca civilization,
modern Cusco is a delightful combination of Inca and colonial
architecture. During the tour, you will visit Cusco's Cathedral,
Santo Domingo Church and the Plaza de Armas. (B)
Day
13 Monday – Cusco / Sacred Valley
Breakfast at your hotel. Salt Pools and Quechua Village. Morning
excursion to the impressive salt pools formed by water emerging
from a lake inside a mountain in the Urubamba Valley. Continue
your excursion and visit an authentic Quechua Village to feel
the way of life of the Inca's ancestors. The Inca himself was
a noble Quechua. They live off the land and are always wearing
their colorful ponchos, see Quechua children scamper about while
woman are weaving their family's clothes. A meaningful experience!
(B,L).
Day
14 Tuesday – Sacred Valley
Breakfast at your hotel. Full Day Excursion to the Pisac Indian
Market and the Ollantaytambo Fortress (Daily) -Morning departure
for a drive through the fertile countryside to the colonial village
of Pisac. During your visit to the bustling marketplace you will
have the opportunity to bargain with the natives for many different
types of Peruvian handicrafts and jewelry. After lunch the tour
continues to the village of Ollantaytambo for a visit to its impressive
Inca fortress.(BL)
Day
15 Wednesday – Sacred Valley / Machu Picchu
Breakfast at your hotel. Excursion to Machu Picchu with overnight
stay - Early wake up for a train ride through the sacred valley
of Urubamba to the "Lost City of the Incas," Machu Picchu. Perched
8,200 feet above the valley, it was hidden by mountains and semi-tropical
jungles for 400 years until discovered by Hiram Bingham of Yale
University in 1911. Archaeologists believe that the Inca "Virgins
of the Sun" took refuge from the Spanish Conquistadors here. Guided
tour of the ruins and lunch are included. (B,L).
Day
16 Thursday – Machu Picchu / Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Free morning to enjoy one of the most
incredible sights on earth, the ruins of Machu Picchu. Take as
much time as you need to study the mysterious ruins, hike Huayna
Picchu, stroll to the Inca Bridge or walk toward the Inca Trail
to find the legendary Sun Gate. Afternoon shuttle bus to the train
station for your return trip to Cusco. Upon arrival transfer from
rail station to hotel. (B)
Day 17 Friday – Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Free day in Cusco for independent activities
- Wandering through this lovely city, exploring the astonishing
narrow streets of this tile roof colonial town will be your unforgettable
experience. Great buys are the traditional Peruvian handicrafts,
alpaca-wool sweaters and rugs, ponchos, pottery, gold and silver
jewelry, leather goods, etc. Because there is such a variety of
products, we strongly suggest that when you like any particular
item, you should buy it - you may not find the same item in other
store. (B)
Day
18 Saturday – Cusco / Lima / Chiclayo
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to the airport for your flight
to Lima and then take your connecting flight to Chiclayo. Upon
arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you in transferring
to the hotel and help you in registering. (B)
Day
19 Sunday – Chiclayo
Breakfast at your hotel. Visit the complex of Huaja Rajada which
comprises two huge pyramids mad of adobe mud in front of which
there is a platform which is to have contained the royal mausoleum.
The intact remains of an important Mochica ruler known as the
Lord of Sipan were discovered here in 1987. Then continue to the
Royal Tombs of Sipan Museum, a museum inaugurated in November
2002. Rated as one of the most outstanding archaeological museums
in South America, the building is modeled after an ancient pyramid
of the region. Here you can find a reconstruction of the tomb
of Sipan, dubbed the "Tutankhamen of the Americas" because of
the golden splendor of his tomb : hundreds of pieces of pottery
and exquisite gold jewelry. (B)
Day
20 Monday – Chiclayo / Trujillo
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer in bus to Trujillo. Upon arrival
a host will meet and assist you in transferring to the hotel and
help you in registering. In the afternoon visit the city of Trujillo,
known as "the City of the Eternal Spring", where you will visit
the Main Square, the Cathedral and the beautiful residential and
commercial areas which contain grandiose colonial houses and well
preserved porches, balconies and churches such as the Colonial
Mansions of "Casa Iturregui" and "Casa Bracamonte". Transfer to
the National University of Trujillo Museum, that contains cultural
expressions of Peru´s diverse Pre-hispanic epochs such as: ceramics,
weavings, metal, etc. (B)
Day
21 Thursday – Trujillo / Lima / Home
Breakfast at your hotel. Visit to Chan Chan, the former capital
of Chimu Empire. This Empire reached its apogee in the 15th century,
not long before falling to the Incas. The planning of this huge
city, the largest in pre-Columbian America, reflects a strict
political and social strategy, marked by the city's division into
nine 'citadels' or 'palaces' forming autonomous units. This pre-Columbian
adobe city is famous for its archaeological site in South America!.
From Chan Chan you will visit the seashore village of Huanchaco,
known for its totora seahorses - a typical small reed boat used
for fishing. Then visit one of the most important centers of the
ancient Moche. This pre-Inca civilization, a warrior culture,
once dominated the valleys of the northern coast of Peru. Experience
the amazing adobe engineering of the Temple of the Sun (sol),
the tallest pyramid in the Americas at a height of 48 meters,
which is estimated to have involved over 200,000 workers in its
construction and over 140 million adobe bricks. Steps away is
the temple of the Moon (Luna), the Moche political center where
recently uncovered friezes of mystical images are believed to
belong to a divinity of sacrifices. Transfer to the airport for
your flight to Lima and then take your connecting flight to home.
(B)
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Departures:
Weekly. Itineraries are flexible.
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Hotels to use: Please
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