The Best of Peru and Bolivia - 16 days

Your holiday begins in the Peruvian capital city of Lima. Arrive at any time and we will meet you on arrival and travel with you in our private transfer vehicles to your hotel in the beautiful modern Lima district of Miraflores. We'll help you check-in to your hotel and during the journey or at the hotel we'll answer any questions you may have and give you any documentation you require for your trip. The rest of the day is free for you to adjust to your new surroundings and relax following your long flight to South America.

Meals: None

Overnight: Hotel in Miraflores, Lima

We will meet you in your hotel for your city tour through the old colonial heart of Lima, an area which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site steeped in a rich colonial-era history. You will see the two main central plazas, the Presidential Palace and Lima Cathedral. The highlight of the tour is the visit to San Francisco Monastery which has a collection of religious art and subterranean catacombs!

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Miraflores, Lima

At the appropriate time we will meet you at your hotel and will escort you to Lima airport where you will take a flight to the city of Cusco, the capital of the Inca Empire (choose from a morning, afternoon or evening flight). In Cusco we will escort you to your central hotel in the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage City. The remainder of the day is free time for you to explore this majestic city and start to acclimatise.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco

Today you will tour the UNESCO World Heritage city of Cusco. In the city centre you will visit the Inca Temple of the Sun (also known as Qoricancha or Korikancha) and Cusco Cathedral with its colonial architecture and beautiful paintings. You will also journey further afield to tour some of the impressive and important places around the outskirts of the city including the impressive Inca ruins Tambomachay and Sacsayhuaman, a domineering Inca fortress that overlooks the city.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco

Today you will embark on an epic full day tour of the Sacred Valley visiting all of the best and most important archaeological sites in this important and beautiful part of Peru. The Sacred Valley stretches between the city of Cusco and Machu Picchu and the valley contains a staggering collection of impressive Inca ruins and fortresses. First you will visit the traditional Andean village of Chinchero which is famous for its traditional craft techniques and clothing, as well as a small Inca ruin and an ancient colonial church with an intricately painted interior that sit within the village. Next visit Moray, an Inca ruin featuring giant circular depressions sunk into the ground, part of an Inca agricultural experiment. Nearby you will visit the salt fields of Maras where an entire valley has been transformed into stunning salt pans creating a bizarre and unique visual spectacle. The tour concludes in the town of Ollantaytambo at the end of the Sacred Valley. Ollantaytambo contains a giant Inca fortress overlooking the town and you will tour the ruin in full. You will spend the night in a hotel in the Sacred Valley, sleeping in the heart of the valley surrounded by the beauty of this Inca landscape.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Overnight: Hotel in Sacred Valley

Today we will meet you very early in the morning to escort you to Ollantaytambo train station from where you will journey on the scenic train towards the world famous ruin of Machu Picchu, one of the Modern 7 Wonders of the World. The train ends at the town of Machu Picchu Pueblo in the valley below Machu Picchu itself and here our Machu Picchu tour guide will meet you and escort you to Machu Picchu itself for your first glimpse of this unforgettable ruin. You will then go on a full guided tour of the entire ruin visiting and learning about all of the major areas of the site, such as the famous sundial, before having some free time to explore the site and take some photos in your own time. After the tour you will then return to Machu Picchu Pueblo by bus where you will have lunch and some time to shop for souvenirs in the local craft market before taking the train back to Cusco and onwards to your hotel in the late afternoon.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco

Today you will enjoy a free day in Cusco. Cusco is a fantastic city and we like to include free time here to allow you time to explore some of the interesting locations within the city from the vast array of museums, galleries, markets, plazas, churches and archaeological sites Cusco has to offer. You may consider visiting the famous 12-sided stone which showcases Inca stone-work at its best and which is only a short walk from the main central plaza.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco

The "Ruta del Sol", which translates as the "Sun Road", is the traditional name for the road between Cusco and Lake Titicaca and today you will embark on a full day tour following the length of this road stopping at the interesting, culturally significant, scenic, and archaeological sites along the way that cannot be visited on any other journey. Places you will visit include the beautiful colonial church at the traditional village of Andahuaylillas, the unique Inca ruin of Raqchi and a stunning scenic viewpoint high above the Peruvian altiplano. When you reach your destination of Puno, on the shore of Lake Titicaca, we will escort you to your hotel for the evening.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Overnight: Hotel in Puno, Lake Titicaca

Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world, at an altitude of 3812 metres, and the polar light at this altitude transforms the waters into beautiful shades of blue and turquoise. Today you will join one of the shared tour-boats on the lake to embark on a tour across this wonderul lake to visit the famous floating Uros Islands, home to the Uru People. This society has been living on these floating man-made islands made of totora reeds since before the time of the Inca Empire. In the afternoon you will go on a tour to the funerary towers of Sillustani. These ancient stone towers are situated in a stunning location over-looking Lake Umayo, and provide a great scenic vista of the altiplano region of Peru.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Puno, Lake Titicaca

Option: Replace your visit to Sillustani with a visit to Isla Taquile on Lake Titicaca.

After an early collection from your hotel you will travel by road along the banks of Lake Titicaca to cross the Peru-Bolivia border passing into Bolivia. Your destination is the beautiful lakeside town of Copacobana and here you will board a catamaran and travel over Lake Titicaca to the island of Isla del Sol, the mythical birthplace of the Inca Sun God. On the island you will visit the Inca garden and Inca steps as well as the Inti Wata complex to learn more about the traditional societies that live in this region of Bolivia. In the afternoon you will return to Copacobana by catamaran and then travel onwards to the city of La Paz where you will spend the evening.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (on catamaran)

Overnight: Central hotel in La Paz

La Paz is a frenetic and fascinating Andean city and is a great place to explore, so today you will set off on a city tour through La Paz to visit the infamous "witches market" where you can observe (or buy if you dare!) some of the many good-luck charms sold to superstitious locals, and the San Francisco colonial church in the heart of the city. The tour continues to Jaen Street, a very traditional colonial street containing some wonderful colonial-era buildings to admire. You will then travel towards the outskirts of the city stopping briefly at a typical residential area just to give you a flavour of typical life in La Paz, before reaching Moon Valley so you can explore this unique visually stunning geological oddity and observe the beautiful natural structures.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Central hotel in La Paz

Early in the morning we will meet you at your hotel to escort you to La Paz airport from where you will take a short flight to Uyuni, the gateway to the stunning Bolivian altiplano and Salar de Uyuni. On arrival in Uyuni you will join your our guide and start your private 4x4 adventure trip through this stunning part of the world. First stop is the ghostly ruins of the train cemetery on the outskirts of Uyuni where ancient trains have been left to rust in a bizarre and unique spectacle. Later you will continue through the "Valley of the Rocks", a valley of bizarre and beautiful wind-eroded shapes, before arriving at your isolated hotel on the Bolivian altiplano. On clear nights the altitude and lack of light pollution mean the Milky Way can be seen as one bright stripe of billions of stars in the sky overhead.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (box lunch), Evening Meal

Overnight: Jardines de Mallku Cueva Hotel, Salar de Uyuni

Your 4x4 adventure continues to first visit Laguna Colorada, a beautiful and unique red/pink-tinged lake on the high altiplano situated in an incredible landscape setting where it is possible to spot flamingos in the waters. From here you will journey further into the altiplano to visit a geyser field complete with active bubbling thermal pools and spouting plumes of steam, and will also visit Polques Hot Springs where you can bathe in the natural thermal hot springs. Your day will finish with a visit to the Laguna Verde, a turquoise/green-tinged lake loctade in the shadow of the awe-inspiring Licancabur volcano.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (box lunch), Evening Meal

Overnight: Palacio de Sal Hotel, Salar de Uyuni

Your 4x4 tour will conclude today with a highlight of the whole trip as you travel across the great Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world, a truly incredible experience. You will have plenty of opportunities as you travel across the flats to stop to take photos, and will also get the opportunity to learn how salt is harvested in this endless barren landscape. Lunch will be eaten in the middle of the salt flat allowing you a few moments to appreciate the silence and isolation of this special place. In the afternoon the tour continues to Isla Incahuasi, an "island" in the middle of the salt flats with a large population of cactus and some beautiful birds. As you journey back towards the town of Uyuni you will stop off to admire some pre-colonial ruins and mummies in the foothills of Thunupa Volcano before watching the sunset from an advantageous spot overlooking the Salar de Uyuni.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (Boxed Lunch), Evening Meal

Overnight: Palacio de Sal Hotel, Salar de Uyuni

Today you will leave the stunning scenery of the Salar de Uyuni behind, and will transfer back to Uyuni airport to take a flight to La Paz. In La Paz we will meet you at the airport and will escort you to your hotel where the remainder of the day will be free for you to explore La Paz and relax after your 4x4 adventure.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Central hotel in La Paz

In the morning we will escort you from your hotel to the airport in La Paz from where you will be able to start your journey home or can continue your onward travel in South America.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: N/A