Incredible Machu Picchu

Arrival in Lima, Peru where we'll be met at the airport and transferred to the hotel. Relax and prepare for the journey. Dinner is on our own.

Board flights to Cusco. Upon arrival, we will be met and taken to our hotel in Cusco. In the afternoon, we rest and adjust to the altitude or do some shopping. Our guide will help us choose great places for lunch* and dinner. (B) *lunch may be in Lima before flying to Cusco depending on flight times.

Our morning begins with a buffet breakfast and sacrament meeting with a local ward. We then have some free time on our own or, you can accompany our guide in exploring the San Pedro Market so he can answer your specific questions about the local foods and products. After lunch on our own, we begin our Cusco City Tour: the Main Square, the Cathedral, the Church of Santo Domingo/Koricancha Temple as well as the surrounding archaeological sites of Sacsayhuaman, Q’engo, Puca Pucara and Tambomachay. This evening we experience the Don Antonio buffet and dinner show as a group before retiring for the evening. (B, D)

After our buffet breakfast, we check out of our hotel and begin a full-day tour of the Sacred Valley of the Incas: The village of Pisac, its archaeological site and marketplace. Our trip takes us through the valley with awesome landscapes and Inca buildings and agricultural terraces until reaching the ancient Ollantaytambo village with its amazing archaeological site. Along the way, we enjoy a buffet lunch at a countryside restaurant. From Ollantaytambo, we board the Inca Rail train to Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Village). We arrive early in the evening and check into the hotel. Our guides will recommend places for dinner. (B, L)

We begin our day very early with breakfast at the hotel and then head up to Machu Picchu where we enjoy a guided tour in small groups of 10-12 before exploring on our own. We can enjoy lunch at the Sanctuary Lodge at our leisure. In the late afternoon, we board the train again to return to Ollantaytambo and then drive back to the Sacred Valley where we check into our hotel for the evening and enjoy dinner together. (B, L, D)

Our day begins with a half-day tour of Maras and Moray which are terraced agricultural areas and a salt mine. Lunch will be together at Para de Moray. In the afternoon, we drive back to Cusco and check in to our hotel and spend free time on our own that evening. (B, L)

We have another buffet breakfast to start our day before heading out early to board the bus for our journey to Puno and Lake Titicaca. Along the way, we will tour the Chapel at Andahuaylillas and visit the Raqchi Temple. We also will have a wonderful buffet lunch at Sicuani. When we arrive in Puno, we will relax at our nice hotel and have an independent dinner. (B, L)

After breakfast, we will enjoy a full-day tour of Lake Titicaca and Uros. Uros is a group of floating small islands made completely from reeds. The people who live on them are Aymara Uros peoples. Among them is Nielson’s island. He is a member of the church. We ride on the small boats also made entirely of reeds as we travel from island to island. We also enjoy a motorized boat ride on the beautiful lake. After the tour, we can either transfer from the dock to the city center and enjoy dinner on our own downtown or be transferred back to the hotel and enjoy dinner on our own there instead. (B, L)

Our last day begins with breakfast and then we are transferred to the airport for our flights to Lima. Upon arrival in Lima, we load our luggage on the bus and then have a short stop for lunch* before beginning a city tour of Lima including a photo stop at the La Molina Temple. In the evening, we enjoy dinner together at a fun restaurant before heading to the airport for our late night/early morning flights. (B, D) * Lunch may be in Puno depending on our flight times. At this point in the trip, you'll board a flight home or continue on to the optional 5-day Amazon River Tour add-on.

For those not going on the Iquitos, Ceiba Tops extension, you will arrive home on the 14th.

After breakfast at the hotel, we will head to the airport and board a morning flight to Iquitos. We will be met at the airport and taken to our hotel in Iquitos. In the afternoon, we will have lunch as a group at the hotel and then enjoy a 4-hour city tour. This is the largest city in the world that does not have any roads leading to or from the city. It can only be accessed by air or boat. We are on our own for dinner but our guides will advise us on the best choices. (B, L)

Our morning begins with a buffet. We then transfer to the docks to board our boat for our 25-mile journey down the Amazon River. Our destination is Ceiba Tops, an all-inclusive resort and our home for the next 3 nights. From here we will explore this fascinating area of the world. After lunch, we take an afternoon hike in the beautiful primary rain forest reserve surrounding the lodge which includes many huge trees festooned with epiphytes (harmless plants which grow on the trees). After dinner, there may be local flute or guitar music or we can be entertained by the guides as they relate some of the many legends of the Amazon forest. (B, L, D)

In the morning, we head out on the river to try to spot dolphins and to visit a small village of Yagua Indians where our guide explains the local Yagua Indian culture and how it was affected by the arrival of Europeans and the passing of time. There will also be an opportunity to see some of the local crafts and for a demonstration of the blowgun which some of the Yagua elders still use for hunting. In the afternoon, we have a short walking excursion to the neighboring town of Indiana. Originally a Franciscan mission, Indiana has grown into a large river community with its own market, high school and small hospital (B, L, D)

Today we leave very early by boat to the narrow car bridge connecting the Amazon and Napo Rivers and then continue by boat to ExplorNapo Lodge for breakfast. The highlight of the day is the hike to and across the spectacular Canopy Walkway spanning over 500 meters (one-third of a mile). The walkway is connected by tree platforms and reaches a height of over 34 meters (115 feet) but, it is accessible without any type of climbing skill or equipment. After lunch, we visit the “ReNuPeRu” Ethnobotanical Garden where over 240 medicinal plants are cultivated by a local shaman who will explain the nature of Amazonian natural healing and the uses of some of the plants. We return to Ceiba Tops in time to enjoy the pool or hammocks before dinner. (B, L, D)

After breakfast, we have a choice of a walking or boating excursion to further enjoy the rain forest and Amazon River. We then take the boat back up the river to Iquitos and are transferred to the airport for our flights back to Lima. You will catch your flight home from the Lima airport. (B) Please wait to book your flights until we have sent flight booking instructions.