We will pick you up from the airport and take tou to your hotel, In the morning you will have some free time to have a first look around Cusco At around 1:30pm we will pick you up at your hotel At around 2:00pm you will start your guided tour through Cusco, the capital of the Incas, with a local tour guide. You walk through some of Cusco’s oldest Inca streets to the “Qoricancha” temple, also called the temple of the sun. This extraordinary building is one of the most important examples for the clash between Inca and Colonial culture, as the Spanish built their Catholic monastery upon the remains of the ancient Inca temple. After visiting the temple, you will hop on a small bus that will take you the archaeological zone in the upper part of Cusco. Here, you can find one of the most important Inca ruins of Peru: Sacsayhuaman, an extended archaeological complex with huge stone walls and a lot of mysteries. You also visit the ceremonial center of Qenqo, the small ruins of Puka Pukara and the water temple Tambomachay. You’ll return to the city center in at 6:30 pm aproxx
The Sacred Valley is a beautiful valley with picturesque landscapes and small charming villages located between Cusco and Machu Picchu. We will pick you up at around 8:00am in the morning and travel to the valley, our first stop being the village of Pisac. Here, we will visit one of the most extended archaeological complex of Peru located on the top of the hill. Then we’ll stop in the city center for a visit of the colorful market where people from the valley sell their handmade textiles, pottery, paintings, jewelry and food. After a little shopping tour we continue our journey through the valley to the town Urubamba where a delicious lunch buffet is waiting for you. On a full stomach we continue approx. 1 hour to Ollantaytambo, a beautiful traditional village that hosts other Inca ruins worth visiting. Finishing the tour, you have to walk approx. 10 minutes to the train station of Ollantaytambo to catch the train leaving to Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu town). Arriving in Aguas Calientes (the journey by train takes approx. 1,5 hours), we will pick you up at the train station and take you to your hotel where you’ll have another short briefing about your Machu Picchu tour the next day.
Excited?! Today you will visit Machu Picchu, one of the Seven Wonders of the World! Early in the morning you start your little hike up to the main entrance of Machu Picchu. We recommend taking the first tour at 6:00am, which implies starting your walk up at around 4:30am. Optional, you can take the first bus leaving at 5:30am (however, you will have to line at around 4:30am as well in order to catch the very first bus). If you don’t want to get up that early, you can chose one of the later tours (you will coordinate that at the briefing the night before). With your local guide you will explore the massive Inca city built on top of the mountain in the middle of the jungle. You will visit its terraces, temples, houses and palaces and learn about Machu Picchu’s history, the life of the Incas living here, the discovery of this magic place and much more. After the tour which takes about 2 – 2,5 hours you will have time for your own explorations and can basically stay the whole day at Machu Picchu (we recommend taking snacks with you and enjoy your lunch inside of the complex). In the afternoon, you walk down or take the bus (optional) back to Aguas Calientes where you have some more time to pick up your luggage at the hotel, grab some food and then take your train back to Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley. In Ollantaytambo you’ll be picked up and travel back to Cusco in a small tourist van arriving at night.
Today, you will continue your journey through the Andes along the “Sun Route”: in a comfortable tourist bus you will travel to Puno – a nice ride through picturesque landscapes. Along the way you will stop at different points of interest: you will visitthe “Sixtine Chapel of the Americas” due to its impressive art and stop for some amazing photos at the “La Raya” pass on 4300m. You’ll enjoy a delicious typical lunch in Sicuany and continue to the Inca ruins of Raqchi to Your last stop before arriving to Puno, PukaraYou will arrive in Puno around 5:00pm in the afternoon.
We’ll pick you up at the bus station and take you to your hotel Your VIVA PERU travel advisor will be waiting there to welcome you so you will finally personally get to know each other.
We pick you up in the morning and take you to the harbor of Puno. Here, you will get on a boat and start your tour on the Lake Titicaca. During the journey you can enjoy the amazing view of the deep blue, huge lake from the panoramic deck of the boat. Your first stop will be the floating islands of the Uros, a group of small islands that are entirely made off reed. The inhabitants of the islands, the community of the Uros, have preserved their traditional lifestyle since hounded of years. You will have some time to visit one of the islands, learn about the culture of the Uros and (depending on which island you stop, the Uros have an established rotation system for the visit) take a ride in a traditional reed boat (optional). After visiting the Uros, you will continue your journey to Amantani where you will soend the night and share the afternoon with local people, you will see how they people lived and they give you a warm welcome in their houses dinner here is accompanied by local music and dances. Overnight in Amantani Island.
After the delicious breakfast we continue by boat to visit the remote island Taquile, a beautiful island with ancient Inca terraces. Again, the inhabitants still live a very traditional lifestyle and visitors are asked to respect the rules and norms while visiting the island. That’s why your guide will explain to you some rules (such as not taking photos without asking and not giving sweets to the children) before entering the island. On the island you will make a little walk to the main square where the locals will receive you and take you to their houses for lunch and you will enjoy a nice typical meal such as trout with rice and potatoes and a delicious soup. During or after lunch your guide will show and explain you more about the culture of the Taquile and show you the traditional clothes they wear which actually show the marital status of each inhabitant. After that you will have some more time on the island before returning to Puno arriving at 5:00 pm.
Cusco:
Puno: