Travel to Peru's most vibrant regions: the rich Amazon Jungle and the stunning Andes mountains.
Departures: Daily
Length: 12 days / 11 nights
Destinations: Lima / Tambopata Amazon Jungle / Cusco / Sacred Valley / Machu Picchu
Highlights: Stay in a renowned Amazon lodge during a visit to Peru's Tambopata Amazon jungle region, one of the most biodiverse regions in the world and a fantastic location for jungle excursions and spotting for a variety of wildlife. Wander through Cusco's cobbled Inca streets, tour the Sacred Valley of the Inca and journey to Machu Picchu by train.
Tailor Made: This is a suggested holiday that can be booked exactly as described if you wish or that can be used to help inspire you on the fascinating journeys and destinations in Peru. Like all our holidays this itinerary can be tailored, customised and crafted by our friendly experts to suit your own travel style, personal requirements, wishes, budget and interests. Simply get in touch to discuss, and we would be delighted to create a truly personalised holiday for you.
Holiday Itinerary
We will meet you at Lima airport at the start of your holiday and will escort you to your hotel in the fabulous Lima district of Miraflores. The remainder of the day will be free time for you to explore the local area, admire the view of the Pacific Ocean, and experience your first meal in the culinary capital of the Americas. The 2500 year old pyramid ruin of Huaca Pucllana is a short walk from your hotel.
Meals: None
Overnight: Hotel in Miraflores, Lima
Today you will go on a city tour of Lima, the capital of Peru. The tour includes visits to the UNESCO central heart of old colonial Lima, visiting both the major plazas in the city centre, and with panoramic views of the Presidential Palace and Cathedral amongst others. The highlight is a visit to the San Francisco Monastery, with its collection of religious art and the subterranean catacombs! Later the tour continues to contemporary Lima and the residential districts of San Isidro and Miraflores, passing the astonishing cliff-top Larcomar shopping mall.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Hotel in Miraflores, Lima
Today you will be escorted to Lima airport from where you will take a flight into the Amazon Jungle arriving at the town of Puerto Maldonado the gateway to Tambopata. You will be met at the airport in Tambopata by your jungle guide and will travel by river-boat, passing through the native community of Infierno and beautiful jungle, to your jungle lodge. In the afternoon you will visit a 30m high canopy tower which has outstanding views of rainforest and the canopy horizon stretching towards the Tambopata National Reserve, as well as a good chance of spotting different types of Amazon birds, such as toucans, parrots and macaws.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal
Overnight: Posada Amazonas Lodge
In the morning you will visit “Tres Chimbadas” oxbow lake on a catamaran to search for wildlife such as birds, macaws, hoatzin, caiman, horned screamers and a family of 9 giant river otters. Later in the morning you will visit a parrot clay lick where you will have the opportunity to observe parrots and parakeets descend on this clay-lick to ingest the clay. In the afternoon you will walk along an ethnobotanical trail developed by a medicinal communal organisation, with many types of plants and trees, each of which has a use to the local indigenous people. In the evening you have the option of a jungle night walk, to try to see and listen to the bizarre sounds of the many animals, particularly frogs, which are more active by night.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal
Overnight: Posada Amazonas Lodge
After breakfast you will be transported from the lodge back to Puerto Maldonado airport from where you will take a flight to Cusco, taking you from the Amazon to the Andes. Upon arrival at Cusco you will be met and transported to your hotel where the remainder of the day will be free time for you to relax following your jungle trip, and to allow you time to acclimatise to the altitude.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco
Optional: Contact us to discuss a range of Amazon extension options including additional nights to allow time for more jungle excursions, deeper travel within the Amazon to visit the renowned Tambopata Research Center lodge, or "a la carte" jungle excursion packages where you can plan your own jungle itinerary.
Today you will enjoy a free day in Cusco, the capital of the Inca Empire. This is an outstanding city of archaeological, architectural, religious and historical beauty and is a destination in itself and a highlight of travel in Peru. We like to include free time in Cusco to give you the opportunity to acclimatise, but also to allow you time to visit some of the countless museums, historical sites, plazas, galleries, churches, shops, markets or cafes in and amongst the city that are not included in the remainder of your itinerary.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco
Today you will go on a city tour of Cusco and the surrounding area and visit a selection of the many historic sites found in and around the city, including the Temple of the Sun (Qoricancha) and the Cathedral, Cusco central plaza, plus some of the Inca ruins surrounding the city, including the large and important site of Sacsayhuaman with its megalithic stones, and Tambomachay Inca ruin.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco
Today you will visit the hills and valleys of the Andes surrounding Cusco, passing into the Sacred Valley, the ancient route from Cusco to Machu Picchu. The first stop on the tour is a visit to the traditional Andean village of Chinchero, where you will visit the traditional colonial Church and a traditional artesanal market to see demonstrations of traditional craft techniques that have been employed for centuries by the inhabitants of this village. The tour will continue to the outstanding Incan ruins of Moray, giant circular terraced depressions in the ground that it is believed were used by the Inca as a botanical experiment to enable different crops that grow at different climates to be cultivated together in one area. Next you visit the salt fields of Maras where, over centuries, an entire valley has been formed into a network of salt pans. The view of the salt pans from the edge of the valley is astonishing. The tour finishes in the Inca town of Ollantaytambo, which has a network of Inca streets still as they were in Inca times, and fabulous Inca ruins that overlook the town. You will spend the night in Ollantaytambo, which sits at the end of the Sacred Valley, and is an easy access point to travel further on to Machu Picchu.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight: Hotel in Sacred Valley
You will depart very early in the morning on the scenic train to Machu Picchu. The train experience is the best way to travel to Machu Picchu as the journey offers exceptional views of the landscape passing Andean villages, Inca farmland and snow-capped mountain vistas. Upon arrival at the town of Aguas Calientes you will take a short bus ride to Machu Picchu itself for a full guided tour of the archaeological complex to maximize your enjoyment and education throughout your visit to one of the modern 7 Wonders of the World. You will visit all of the important parts of the site including the Temple of the Sun and Intihuatana Sundial, before having free time to explore or take photos by yourself. After the visit you will return to Aguas Calientes for lunch then take the scenic train back to Cusco.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco
On this day you will once more have a free day in Cusco to spend at your leisure and to relax after your visit to Machu Picchu
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Central hotel in Cusco
After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport at Cusco and will take a flight to Lima. On arrival you will be met by your Lima guide and will transfer to your hotel. You will have the rest of the day free to explore.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Hotel in Miraflores, Lima
At the appropriate time you will be transported to the airport and will be assisted with your check-in for your flight back home.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: N/A
Included
- Three domestic flights within Peru (Lima - Amazon Jungle / Amazon Jungle - Cusco / Cusco - Lima)
- All excursions
- English-speaking guides for all excursions
- Entry fees to all sites included in the itinerary (including Machu Picchu)
- Accommodation
- All meals detailed
- Private transfers to / from airports or hotels
- All transport and travel within Peru
Not Included
- International flights to/from South America. We exclude international flights to give the option to compare flight pricing or use air miles, however we can include and provide international flights as part of your holiday and any international flights booked through us would be ATOL-protected as part of your package with us. Depending on time of year, departure airport and airline preference flight prices start from around £800pp economy. If you would like us to include international flights or provide a quote just let us know your preferred departure airport when you enquire.
Jungle Holidays
Although the itinerary listed here is our standard itinerary for this holiday, in very rare instances the precise jungle activities and excursions may occur in a slightly different order, or may change slightly from those listed here. This could be due to a number of reasons, including the changeable weather in rainforests, or jungle lodge availability.
ATOL PROTECTION
This is a flight-inclusive package holiday. All the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied with an ATOL Certificate. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything you booked (flights, hotels and other services) is listed on it. Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.atol.org.uk/atolcertificate.
Contact us if you want more information or want to book this holiday. One of our Peru holiday specialists will be more than willing to help.
