Amazon & Machu Picchu

Highlights

Amazon Rainforest & Jungle, Amazon Wildlife, Sacred Valley of the Incas, Machu Picchu

Itinerary 

Day 1: ARRIVE LIMA

Transfer to your hotel and settle in. If you arrive early, we can arrange optional museum visits or tours of the city and surrounding sites.

Day 2: LIMA - CUSCO – SACRED VALLEY

In the morning, you will fly to Cusco, center of the Inca Empire. Southern Explorations guides will be waiting at the Cusco airport to take you on a day-long guided excursion through snowcapped mountains to the Incas’ legendary Sacred Valley. Along the way, you'll pass Inca terracing on steep valley walls and see the ruined temples of Pisac with panoramic views of jagged peaks before stopping in the town of Pisac to visit one of the Andes’ best textile markets. After lunch, you will travel to Ollantaytambo (9,185 ft.), a small town with a remarkable Inca fortress and spend the night at an Ollantaytambo hotel. (B,L)

Day 3: MORAY AND MARAS

Today you pass small farms above beautiful Urubamba Valley to reach Moray. Here three circular terraces, thought to have been used by the Incas as an open-air crop experimentation station, are located. You continue past the living village and pre-Inca settlement of Maras. At this photogenic spot, a geo-thermally heated stream feeds hundreds of small salt terraces which create a bizarre white-on-brown landscape that has been used for salt mining since well before the Incas. Return to your Ollantaytambo hotel in the late afternoon. (B,L)

Day 4: OLLANTAYTAMBO - MACHU PICCHU

After breakfast at the hotel, you will take a refreshing walking tour of the Ollantaytambo ruins and surrounding town before heading to the Ollantaytambo train station for today's unforgettable trip. The train follows the Urubamba River into a cloud forest before arriving at the Aguas Calientes station. You’ll enjoy a traditional lunch and then board a bus to travel to Machu Picchu where you’ll spend the afternoon exploring the famous ruins. After returning to Aguas Calientes, you'll have time for a soothing soak in natural hot springs before a tasty dinner and early bedtime. (B,D) 

Day 5: MACHU PICCHU – CHINCHERO ARTISAN MARKET - CUSCO

Today, you’ll have the rare opportunity to experience Machu Picchu at sunrise in advance of the crowds, spending the rest of the day among the numerous ruins including, if you wish, a climb to the sacred peak of Huayna Picchu or a picturesque walk to the Temple of the Moon. By midday you return to Aguas Calientes for lunch and your early afternoon train back to Ollantaytambo. Your private van will be waiting at the station to deliver you to the Chinchero textile market where members of the local weavers’ collective will explain the traditional weaving methods of the Sacred Valley that produce some of the finest textiles in Peru. Chinchero makes an ideal place for last minute shopping before traveling on to your Cusco hotel for the evening. (B)

Day 6: CUSCO

This morning you take a guided walking tour through Cusco’s colorful markets before visiting the colonial cathedral and Koricancha, the impressive Temple of the Sun. After lunch of regional cuisine, you tour the remaining prominent Inca sights in and around Cusco. These include the fortress of Sacsayhuamán, with its megalithic stone terraces; Kenko, with carved stone surfaces and subterranean altars; Puka Pukara the small fortress that once protected the royal capital; and the water temple, Tambo Machay. In the late afternoon, you return to your hotel to relax or explore the fascinating mix of Cusco cultures on your own. (B) 

Day 7: CUSCO - PTO. MALDONADO – AMAZON JUNGLE LODGE

You will transfer to the airport for the flight to Pto. Maldonado, hub of the easternmost region of the Peru Amazon. From here you board a canoe for your 45-minute trip downriver to reach the lodge. You’ll get settled in your accommodations and then be welcomed with an orientation, before starting your Amazon adventure. (B,L,D)

Day 8: AMAZON JUNGLE LODGE

During your stay, you will select your itinerary from a range of day and evening expeditions, accompanied by bilingual naturalist guides, on land and water, including canopy walks, dugout canoe trips and rainforest hikes. (B,L,D)

Day 9: PTO MALDONADO - LIMA - HOME

Early in the morning, head downriver to Pto. Maldonado where you'll be transferred to the airport for a quick return flight to Lima.  Spend the afternoon exploring the capital on your own, before your return flight home or if you wish, we can arrange tours of Lima and vicinity.  (B)

Trip Dates

Weekly departures available