Classic Peru

Day 1: On arrival we will be greeted at the airport by our local representative and transferred to our hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.

Day 2: In the morning enjoy a city tour of Lima including a visit to the Inquisition Museum followed by lunch at La Rosa Nautica. Peru’s capital is a rich kaleidoscope of colonial architectural jewels, revered pre- Columbian sites, charming residential areas, and vibrant shopping districts perched over the blue Pacific. Explore these many facets, including the 16th century Plaza Mayor (Main Square) – still graced by the Government Palace, City Hall and Cathedral.

We’ll visit the San Francisco Convent, built in the 17th century, and its “Catacombs” ancient underground cemetery of Lima. Afterwards visit to the Inquisition Museum (ecclesiastical tribunal for suppression of heresy). During the visit you can see the room where the trials took place, the place occupied by the archives and the torture room where they represent the methods used by the Inquisition to obtain the confessions of the accused. Also you will visit their prison cells, made as underground galleries.

All this to see in one of the most historical houses in the centre of Lima. Your tour continues along the city’s lovely Pacific coastline through the enchanting neighborhoods of San Isidro, Miraflores and Larco Mar. Lunch at La Rosa Nautica restaurant In the afternoon, we visit the Larco Herrera Museum, allowing you to have a clear and entertained approach to the evolution of the cultures of Ancient Peru.

Walking through the exhibition halls of the Larco Museum – the largest private collection of pre-Columbian art of the World - with our Curator, makes the visit an inspiring experience that gives you first-hand information about the collection and the peoples that made the beautiful archaeological objects.

This special visit not only maintains but increases the interest, making you finish your tour with great enthusiasm and eager to continue learning about this amazing country. At night dinner we’ll enjoy dinner at La Huaca Pucllana restaurant.

Day 3: Today you will be transferred to the airport to take your flight to Cusco. Flight Lima – Cusco

CUSCO- Upon arrival you will be greeted and transferred to the Sacred Valley.

En-route you will visit Pisac, a picturesque town located 19.8 miles or 32 Km Northeast of Cusco. Its colorful fairs also take place in Cusco every day. Here merchants offer for sale all sorts of handicrafts, the most important of which are the textiles and ceramic goods such as ceremonial goblets called "Q'eros", plates, ashtrays, necklace and replicas of pre-Hispanic pottery. Lunch will be served in the Sacred Valley.

Rest of your day is at leisure.

Day 4: This morning you will visit the remarkable fortress of Ollantaytambo, built by the Incas. A very steep stone staircase leads into the fortress. Across an esplanade there is a temple with 10 niches, and beside it a block of partially unworked stones. Beyond this another esplanade with six huge rectangular monoliths (estimated weight: 50 tons) form the Temple of the Sun. Vestiges of rooms are seen on top, and on the other side of the hill a four storey building can be seen which is thought to have been either a military school or prison.

Lunch will be served at Wayra. This afternoon take a private transfer to Ollantaytambo train station to take the vista dome train that departs at 15.37 to Aguas Calientes 17.02 arrival to Aguas Calientes and walk to your hotel. We’ll have dinner at the hotel.  Please note that the local guide will return to Cusco and you will take the train journey alone.

Day 5: The day starts early with a short walk to the bus station where the buses will wait to transfer you to the top of the ruins (30 minutes). A full day guided tour of the ruins gives you some idea of what the city must have looked like. Lunch is included. Machu Picchu was never discovered by the Spaniards.

For centuries it was buried in the jungle until Hiram Bingham found it in 1911. The Holy City of Machu Picchu was built in stone among the flanks of two hills belonging to the eastern mountain range of the Andes, descending into the Amazonian upper sylvan.

There is no doubt that Machu Picchu represents an extraordinary example of architecture and engineering. Lunch is included. In the afternoon, the train will take you back to Cusco. Upon arrival at the station, you will be transferred to your hotel. The rest of the day is at your leisure.

Day 6: Today, we explore Cusco, the Archaeological Capital of the Americas, existing in the present and the past at the same time, being a living example of the meeting of two different age of culture. Visit to the Koricancha or Temple of the Sun, the Cathedral from the early 17th century, it is a fine example of colonial baroque art.

Continue the excursion with the visit to the fortress of Sacsayhuaman. Finally visit the San Pedro market located across from San Pedro train station a few block southwest of the Plaza de Armas, is one-stop shopping for the traveller with both a grocery list and limited needs in the souvenir department. Though the Mercado Central is largely dedicated to sales of fruits, vegetables, meats and bread, there are a few vendors hawking artisanal goods to tourists who wander through the aisles.

The Mercado Central has plenty of cheap and typical local eats for the traveler with a sense of adventure. This afternoon is at leisure to explore Cusco followed by your evening dinner at MAP restaurant (transfers included).

Day 7: This morning we transfer you to the airport to take your internal flight to Puerto. First we visit the Inkaterra Butterfly House, and then begin to experience the enchantment of the rainforest, as you take a 45-minute boat ride along the Madre de Dios River to arrive at Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica lodge.

After a short briefing, settle into your beautiful cabaña and enjoy your lunch in the dining room. Take a siesta after lunch and then share a refreshing beverage before we depart for the afternoon excursion. After gathering with your Inkaterra Interpreter, choose from the 14 different excursions available at the Inkaterra lodge. On your first day, we recommend a guided walk along the Trail system, into the Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica natural area, where you will discover the Amazon Basin.

This trail offers an excellent introduction to the forest environment, winding past impressive trees such as the Shihuahuaco, and the strangely beautiful strangler fig, offering excellent opportunities for bird watching and observing exotic insects. We also recommend on the first night our Twilight River excursion — a guided afternoon boat rides on the Madre de Dios River. Witness the transformation from a diurnal to a nocturnal world: animals and birds of the daytime give way to species specially adapted to the night.

As you enjoy their paradise, you will learn about their habits, while you search for nightjars, owls, capybaras and big caimans. We will gather at The Eco Center and present all available excursions. Enjoy the dinner, served in the main dining room from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. After dinner, you may retire early to your own cabaña, or join us to talk about the experience of life in the rainforest, as you listen to the intriguing sounds of the jungle at night.

Day 8: Rest in bed or rise early — the choice is yours. Breakfast is served from 5:30 a.m., for those who want to avoid the heat and enjoy nature to its fullest. A full buffet breakfast is served from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. This morning you may visit the Lake Sandoval excursion into the Tambopata National Reserve. Glide in a wooden canoe, across a beautiful, mirror-like oxbow lake that is home to the endangered giant river otter, as well as red howler monkeys, red-bellied macaws, anacondas, side-neck turtles and black caimans.

Return to the Inkaterra lodge for lunch. After lunch, consider visit the remarkable Inkaterra Canopy Walkway and Anaconda Walk. Ascending the first tower, 29 meters above the forest ground, you begin your encounter with the treetop realm. For more than a quarter of a mile, you will literally walk through the rainforest canopy on a suspension bridge network linking eight observation platforms.

During this hour-and-a-half expedition, be on the lookout for bright toucans, woodpeckers, trogons, monkeys and the three-toed sloth. If you wish you may extend your excursion and appreciate the sunset from one of the towers. After your descent from the Canopy, experience the Anaconda Walk for about 30 minutes along the 200-meter wooden bridge over the Aguajales swamps. In this lush eco system, you may observe the various species of amphibians, birds, mammals, abundant flora, trees and there is a possibility to see serpents of this flooded marshland.

The walk finishes by returning to the lodge. Once at the lodge, enjoy the daily nature presentation in the Eco Center.

Day 9: Enjoy a full breakfast before departure. A 45-minute return trip by boat on the Madre de Dios River takes you to Puerto Maldonado, where you may visit Inkaterra Butterfly House. Peru boasts the greatest variety of butterflies in the world, with 3,700 known species. Many of these can be seen at the Butterfly House, a showcase for the variety, beauty and adaptability of these fascinating insects.

Transfer to Puerto Maldonado Airport [PEM] where we will catch our onward flight back to the UK.