Hike your way through the Andes and Amazon
Day 1 – Arrive in Cusco and travel to Pisac, the beginning of the Sacred Valley.
Arrive Cusco airport 3500m/11480ft. Depending on whether you’re flying in this morning or the night before, we’ll collect you from the airport or our joining hotel in Cusco. We’ll have lunch before travelling over the Ccorao Pass to Pisac, making some scenic stops along the way. This will be a rest and acclimatisation day as we will be doing a fair amount of activity at high altitude over the next few days. Pisac is lower than Cusco (around 2800m/9182f) so we’ll take an easy walk around this gorgeous town in the Sacred Valley and explore the local craft market.
Day 2 – Explore Parque de la Papa and Pisac.
This morning we wake up in Pisac and enjoy breakfast in our hotel before taking a scenic drive up to Parque de la Papa, (the Potato Park) home to some of Peru’s almost 3500 varieties of potatoes. We’ll begin our first hike for today at Azulqocha (4100m) and loop back down to Kinsaqocha. This great acclimatisation track will take us around 2 hours. We’ll have a picnic lunch here with local villagers before heading back down to explore the Pisac Inca Ruins. Here we’ll begin to learn about the fascinating Inca culture walking through the ruins and back to our hotel.
Total hiking distance: Approx 9km
All meals included
Day 3 – Hike Huchuy Qosqo ( Little Cusco.)
This morning we set off early for our hike to Huchuy Qosqo which means ‘Little Cusco’. We take a short drive from Pisac then begin our hike at 3800m. The trail takes us up over a pass of 4200m and across to the plateau of this incredible archaeological site. Taking in the spectacular views overlooking the Sacred Valley and the Vilcabamba mountain range we will have a picnic lunch and then explore this unique heritage site before returning the way we came.
We’ll stay tonight in Urubamba at our hotel nestled in amongst an acre of incredibly peaceful greenspace and continue to sample culinary delights from the region.
Total hiking distance: approx 10km
All meals included
Day 4 – Visit Chinchero and homestay Misminay.
Today we have a short visit at the Ceramica Seminario. This beautiful studio is home to some incredible artwork by Pablo and Marilu Seminario.
We’ll then drive a short way to Chinchero to visit this historic archaeological site. From here we head to our homestay in Misminay. We arrive in time for lunch and are welcomed by our hosts with a spiritual ceremony followed by a traditional pachamanca feast (a Peruvian meal cooked on hot stones in an earth oven.)
There will be time this afternoon to soak up the peacefulness of the majestic mountains that surround us. We spend tonight under a thousand stars, camping the night at Misminay.
All meals included
Day 5 – Visit Moray Ruins, Maras and the Salineras de Maras.
This morning we will say goodbye to our wonderful hosts and walk down to visit another famous archaeological site, Moray. It is thought that this site was used as an agricultural experiment to acclimatise seeds at high altitudes which could enable the Incas to grow crops such as watermelon at high altitude.
From Moray we head to Maras for a local lunch and begin our afternoon hike from the town of Maras to the Salineras de Maras (Maras Salt mines) the largest pre-Hispanic Salt mines in Peru. For those keen we can continue our hike all the way down through to Pinchingoto before heading to Ollantaytambo, an impressive town on the banks of the Urubamba River, where we’ll spend the night.
Total hiking 8km approx
All meals included
Day 6 – Visit Ollantaytambo ruins and explore town. Train to Aguas Calientes.
Today we rise early to visit the last archaeological site that the Spanish Conquistadors discovered and destroyed (they never found Machu Picchu) Las Ruinas de Ollantaytambo. After visiting these ruins, we have time to explore more of Ollantaytambo. This charming town, the last living Inca city, features beautifully preserved Inca architecture and cobblestone streets.
After lunch, we board the famous train following in Hiram Bingham’s footsteps to Aguas Calientes. This quaint little tourist town is situated right at the bottom of Machu Picchu and is our base for the night. We’ll rest our heads here before our much anticipated visit to Machu Picchu tomorrow.
All meals included
Day 7 Visit Machu Picchu, stay Cusco.
An early start this morning will see us catching the bus up to this famous World Heritage Site. We will spend the morning exploring the beauty of the Inca king’s holiday home! This fascinating place will have us in awe of the incredible energy and location. There is an option to hike Huayna Picchu, be ready for great heights! It’s very steep but an amazing view at the top looking down over the archaeological site. On a clear day we may be able to catch a glimpse of the surrounding mountains and the fourth highest mountain in the Andes – Ausangate mountain. If you’re keen for this option, we will need to be advised at the time of booking and is on a request basis only.
We’ll return by train to Ollantaytambo before heading back to Cusco for a relaxing day off tomorrow.
All meals included.
Optional add on for Huayna Picchu permit is subject to availability.
Day 8 - Cusco free day.
Today is a free day to explore the incredibly bustling city of Cusco.
Breakfast included.
Day 9 – Visit the San Pedro market and explore Sacsayhuaman and other local ruins.
We’ll visit the famous San Pedro market this morning for a delicious freshly made juice from the traditional caseras! From here we’ll drive a short way above the city to the ruins of Tambomachay and slowly make our way back by foot exploring the local archaeological sites such as Puca Pucara, Qenko, and Sacsayhuaman.
We’ll spend our last night in Cusco eating another sumptuous meal in this incredible city.
Total hiking distance: 7-8km approx
All meals included
Day 10 Fly to Puerto Maldonado and stay jungle eco lodge.
Just as the mighty Amazon starts as a tiny stream high up in the Andes, we too will make our way towards the jungle. We take a morning flight to Puerto Maldonado, a town right in the heart of the Amazon Basin and travel up the Tambopata river – one of the main tributaries of the Amazon River to a beautiful jungle eco lodge. This afternoon we will settle into our bungalows and later we’ll go for another short boat ride in search of caiman and to see how the jungle comes to life at night.
All meals included
Day 11 Jungle eco lodge.
This morning we wake up early and take a short boat ride and early morning forest walk to visit a local lake in search of the “lobos del Rio” the giant river otters. We’ll also try our hand at piraña fishing and be on the lookout for other wildlife.
We head back to the lodge for lunch and a short rest and later, get kitted up for our kayak adventure. Gliding silently down river will give us another chance to look for turtles, birds and capybara – the worlds largest rodent!
All meals included
Day 12 Return to Puerto Maldonado and farewell.
Another early morning start, we’ll head out before dawn to see parrots gathering at the clay lick for their morning minerals. We’ll return to the lodge for breakfast and then it’s nos vemos la selva (see you later jungle) we will head back to Puerto Maldonado, in time for our departing flights.
Breakfast included