The New Inca Routes
ID: GYG540583-934747
Category:
Country: Peru
Country: Peru
Duration: 14 days
Description
Peru is recognized worldwide for its mountains and its unique archaeological heritage. Certain sites are obviously unmissable, in the forefront of which stands Machu Picchu.
Day 1 Arrival in Lima
Upon your arrival at Lima International Airport, you will be greeted by a member of our local team to accompany you to your hotel for the first Peruvian night.
It’s included
English-speaking tour guide
Private vehicle
Hotel in Lima
Day 2 Flight Lima – Cusco (3350m)
Unaccompanied flight to Cusco (this flight can be postponed depending on availability at the time of your reservation – the group can be split in two, in this case, the transfer to the airport and the reception on arrival are provided by our cares).
Depending on the arrival time, possibility to visit the historic capital of Peru. Today's Cusco, built on the foundations of the former capital of the Inca Empire, testifies to the know-how of the men of the past in terms of architecture and urban planning. After the Spanish conquest, Cusco was remodeled by settlers who wanted to hide the city's Inca past under majestic buildings with European scents. We walk through the city center, in a maze of narrow streets lined with Inca walls: the Plaza de Armas, the Cathedral, the Santo Domingo Convent, built on the remains of the Koricancha, the Ancient Temple of the Sun. During our walk, superb colonial houses with Inca foundations appear at the bend of an alley and pass before our eyes.
It’s included
Airport assistance
English-speaking guide
Planned entries
Private vehicle
Flights Lima - Cusco
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 3 Cusco (3350m)
Free day to deepen the discovery of Cusco at our own pace and perfect the acclimatization to the altitude.
It’s included
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 4 Cusco – Moray – Salt mines of Maras – Ollantaytambo – Patacancha
We leave today for the Sacred Valley of the Incas. We first arrive at Moray, a former Inca agricultural laboratory which was already used 500 years ago to test the resistance of certain plants to altitude. We then descend on foot to the salt pans of Maras. Dating from pre-Inca times, they continue to be exploited as before by the inhabitants of the village. The water, which comes from a salt spring, is channeled into a series of basins where it gradually evaporates. A thin layer of salt is collected there. We find our minibus to reach Ollantaytambo where we visit the Inca citadel before taking the road to the valley of the Patacancha river towards the village of the same name. Welcome by our hosts and evening in their company.
It’s included
Planned entries
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 5 Patacancha – Pumamarca – Aguas Calientes
This morning we attend a ceremony dedicated to this essential camelid in Peru: The Lama. We discover how the inhabitants live with these animals and how their wool is sheared, which is then used for weaving.
After this ceremony, we have the opportunity to immerse ourselves a little more in the local culture by discovering a typical dish: La Pachamanca. This traditional and rich dish consists of cooking many foods smothered in the earth using hot stones. It includes potatoes, corn, different local meats and vegetables.
After lunch, we take local transport to Pumamarca. We visit this ancient Inca village and its magnificent Inca terraces, then continue our descent to Ollantaytambo following an old irrigation canal.
It is then by train that we will travel a mythical railway line winding through the Sacred Valley. Dominated by the immaculate summit of Veronica (5820m). The train enters the magnificent Urubamba canyon to descend to Aguas Calientes at 2000m.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Planned entries
local vehicle
Train to Aguas Calientes
Hotel in Aguas Calientes
Breakfast – lunch
Day 6 Machu Picchu – Ollantaytambo
At first dawn and in order to enjoy Machu Picchu outside of the crowds, you take the shuttle or the collective bus which will take us to the entrance of the site for the complete visit of the lost city of the Incas with its agricultural sectors, its urban areas and its incredible constructions on the mountainside.
Return in the afternoon to Aguas Calientes to take the train to Ollantaytambo.
* Additional activities to do on site: (not included in the package and booked in advance)
Possibility of adding the ascent of Huaynapicchu or Machupicchu depending on availability. (These mountains are part of the Machupicchu Citadel landscape and have different times and entrances, as they take longer to climb and visit).
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Train to Ollantaytambo
Planned entries
Breakfast, lunch
Hotel in Ollantaytambo
Day 7 Ollantaytambo – Pisac – Cusco
We hit the road again, descending into the Sacred Valley towards the impressive Inca site of Pisaq. This site is unique in Peru for its majestic and vertiginous building which dominates the Sacred Valley and from where the Incas controlled and dominated the Sacred Valley. Pisaq surprises with the richness of its terraces, fountains, districts, observatories and its cemetery which is the largest in the region (nearly 10,000 people buried). Return to Cusco and free evening in the Inca capital.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 8 Cusco – Palcoyo Colorful Mountain – Queswachaca Inca Bridge (3800m)
Morning departure towards the southern valley of Cusco, less touristy but containing many treasures, both from the Inca and pre-Inca eras. After an hour's drive, we leave the asphalt road for a track leading us to the colorful mountain range of Palcoyo. We stop at the Palcoyo pass located at 4900m and go for a walk to admire the games of color that can be seen in this massif. The strong presence of iron oxide in the rock causes colorations ranging from bright red to sky blue. This cordillera still little visited and easy to access allows us to appreciate a completely different landscape as well as rock formations called "bosque de Piedras" (stone forest). After the walk, we go back down in altitude and take the road towards the Inca bridge of Queswachaca. This bridge, considered the last Inca bridge, is classified as a UNESCO heritage site for the know-how of this construction. We spend the afternoon in the company of our hosts, to discover precisely how the weaving work is carried out, allowing the renovation of the Queswachaca bridge each year. This work is a collaborative project carried out by the surrounding communities in a traditional way. Rich in this teaching, we cross this bridge. Return to our hosts for a typical dinner and taste the different foods produced in the region.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 9 Queswachaca – Waqra Pukara (4140m)
After breakfast, we thank our hosts and hit the road again through the region known as the 4 lagoons. At the end of the morning, we reach the village of Campi on the heights of the Apurimac valley. This village is the starting point for our trek to the Waqra Pukara site. We need about 3h30 of walking to reach the site, but the route is enchanting. Without difficulty, we reach this site by a path that offers us many views of the canyon below. This one surprises by its size but also by the many forms of rock chiselled by erosion. We reach the site of Wakra Pukara in the middle of the afternoon, a site still very little known, undiscovered by the Spaniards: Wakra Pukara, meaning the fortress in the shape of horns, in Quechua. This archaeological complex dating from the pre-Inca era would have been used by the Incas as a sanctuary with very important political and religious powers. Still shrouded in mystery, this site allows us to appreciate the canyon and the surrounding mountains. In the evening, we set up our camp on the agricultural terraces facing the site and the majestic canyon.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
tents
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 10 Wakra Pukara – Raqchi (3500m)
This morning we can enjoy the sunrise before having breakfast and then starting the way back. Before reaching Campi, we branch off to descend to the village of Huayqui where we find our vehicle. We take the road towards Raqchi. Depending on the weather, visit the archaeological site of the temple of Viracocha, the Inca creator god. Rashi is a unique Inca site. It has several dwellings, terraces, temples, "phaqchas" springs, "Qolqas" food depots... An Inca path, protected by walls, leads to Qollasuyo (Puno). Installation with our hosts and evening in their company.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 11 Racchi – Tinajani Canyon – Puno (3820m)
Departure towards Lake Titicaca which means “Stone Puma”. Passage of the Raya pass 4338m then descent towards the region of Puno. On the way, a short getaway to discover the Tinajani canyon whose vast and beautiful landscapes extend over 250 hectares. The Canyon is formed by a collection of anthropomorphic stone figures, with long ravines and small rivers throughout the area. The area also contains tombs of ancient pre-Inca cultures. Arrival at the end of the day in Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Installation at the hotel and free evening.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Hotel in Puno
Breakfast, lunch
Day 12 Puno – Uros Islands Titino – Luquina
Departure by boat from the port of Puno towards Luquina. Along the way, we stop on the floating islands of Uros Titino (less frequented than the classic Uros islands) where the Aymaras build their homes on gigantic reed boats (totoras) moored to stakes to avoid drifting. They live from fishing, crafts and hunting.
Your navigation on Lake Titicaca continues to the peninsula of Chucuito and the surroundings of Luquina Chico, a community nestled on the edge of the lake. Meeting with our hosts for the night. After lunch, departure for a kayak excursion on the highest lake in the world which offers us an exceptional panorama, with the Bolivian Cordillera Real in the background. On our return, our hosts prepare us a small demonstration of agricultural work that can be done at more than 3800m altitude. We discover the type of plantation as well as the traditional tools still used today to work the land. Dinner followed by a musical evening with your hosts.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private boat
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 13 Luquina – Taquile – Puno
Early in the morning, we leave our hosts to sail towards Taquile, an island largely exploited thanks to the system of terraced cultivation, where the inhabitants have preserved a community organization inherited from the Inca era. If the property is private, the labor is collective: the 300 or so inhabitants of the island work one day for themselves, one day for the community. Taquile lives in relative autarky according to the Inca principle of "not stealing, not lying, not weakening", respected for centuries. From the heights of the village, our efforts are rewarded with a superb view of the lake, the bay of Puno and Bolivia (Cordillera Real) in the mists of the Altiplano. At the end of the day, we take the boat back and return to Puno.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private boat
Planned entries
Hotel in Puno
Breakfast, lunch
Day 14 Puno – Lima – international flight
After breakfast we leave for Juliaca airport and take an unaccompanied flight to Lima and then return flight.
It’s included
Private vehicle
Flight Juliaca – Lima
Breakfast
Day 1 Arrival in Lima
Upon your arrival at Lima International Airport, you will be greeted by a member of our local team to accompany you to your hotel for the first Peruvian night.
It’s included
English-speaking tour guide
Private vehicle
Hotel in Lima
Day 2 Flight Lima – Cusco (3350m)
Unaccompanied flight to Cusco (this flight can be postponed depending on availability at the time of your reservation – the group can be split in two, in this case, the transfer to the airport and the reception on arrival are provided by our cares).
Depending on the arrival time, possibility to visit the historic capital of Peru. Today's Cusco, built on the foundations of the former capital of the Inca Empire, testifies to the know-how of the men of the past in terms of architecture and urban planning. After the Spanish conquest, Cusco was remodeled by settlers who wanted to hide the city's Inca past under majestic buildings with European scents. We walk through the city center, in a maze of narrow streets lined with Inca walls: the Plaza de Armas, the Cathedral, the Santo Domingo Convent, built on the remains of the Koricancha, the Ancient Temple of the Sun. During our walk, superb colonial houses with Inca foundations appear at the bend of an alley and pass before our eyes.
It’s included
Airport assistance
English-speaking guide
Planned entries
Private vehicle
Flights Lima - Cusco
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 3 Cusco (3350m)
Free day to deepen the discovery of Cusco at our own pace and perfect the acclimatization to the altitude.
It’s included
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 4 Cusco – Moray – Salt mines of Maras – Ollantaytambo – Patacancha
We leave today for the Sacred Valley of the Incas. We first arrive at Moray, a former Inca agricultural laboratory which was already used 500 years ago to test the resistance of certain plants to altitude. We then descend on foot to the salt pans of Maras. Dating from pre-Inca times, they continue to be exploited as before by the inhabitants of the village. The water, which comes from a salt spring, is channeled into a series of basins where it gradually evaporates. A thin layer of salt is collected there. We find our minibus to reach Ollantaytambo where we visit the Inca citadel before taking the road to the valley of the Patacancha river towards the village of the same name. Welcome by our hosts and evening in their company.
It’s included
Planned entries
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 5 Patacancha – Pumamarca – Aguas Calientes
This morning we attend a ceremony dedicated to this essential camelid in Peru: The Lama. We discover how the inhabitants live with these animals and how their wool is sheared, which is then used for weaving.
After this ceremony, we have the opportunity to immerse ourselves a little more in the local culture by discovering a typical dish: La Pachamanca. This traditional and rich dish consists of cooking many foods smothered in the earth using hot stones. It includes potatoes, corn, different local meats and vegetables.
After lunch, we take local transport to Pumamarca. We visit this ancient Inca village and its magnificent Inca terraces, then continue our descent to Ollantaytambo following an old irrigation canal.
It is then by train that we will travel a mythical railway line winding through the Sacred Valley. Dominated by the immaculate summit of Veronica (5820m). The train enters the magnificent Urubamba canyon to descend to Aguas Calientes at 2000m.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Planned entries
local vehicle
Train to Aguas Calientes
Hotel in Aguas Calientes
Breakfast – lunch
Day 6 Machu Picchu – Ollantaytambo
At first dawn and in order to enjoy Machu Picchu outside of the crowds, you take the shuttle or the collective bus which will take us to the entrance of the site for the complete visit of the lost city of the Incas with its agricultural sectors, its urban areas and its incredible constructions on the mountainside.
Return in the afternoon to Aguas Calientes to take the train to Ollantaytambo.
* Additional activities to do on site: (not included in the package and booked in advance)
Possibility of adding the ascent of Huaynapicchu or Machupicchu depending on availability. (These mountains are part of the Machupicchu Citadel landscape and have different times and entrances, as they take longer to climb and visit).
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Train to Ollantaytambo
Planned entries
Breakfast, lunch
Hotel in Ollantaytambo
Day 7 Ollantaytambo – Pisac – Cusco
We hit the road again, descending into the Sacred Valley towards the impressive Inca site of Pisaq. This site is unique in Peru for its majestic and vertiginous building which dominates the Sacred Valley and from where the Incas controlled and dominated the Sacred Valley. Pisaq surprises with the richness of its terraces, fountains, districts, observatories and its cemetery which is the largest in the region (nearly 10,000 people buried). Return to Cusco and free evening in the Inca capital.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Hotel in Cusco
Breakfast
Day 8 Cusco – Palcoyo Colorful Mountain – Queswachaca Inca Bridge (3800m)
Morning departure towards the southern valley of Cusco, less touristy but containing many treasures, both from the Inca and pre-Inca eras. After an hour's drive, we leave the asphalt road for a track leading us to the colorful mountain range of Palcoyo. We stop at the Palcoyo pass located at 4900m and go for a walk to admire the games of color that can be seen in this massif. The strong presence of iron oxide in the rock causes colorations ranging from bright red to sky blue. This cordillera still little visited and easy to access allows us to appreciate a completely different landscape as well as rock formations called "bosque de Piedras" (stone forest). After the walk, we go back down in altitude and take the road towards the Inca bridge of Queswachaca. This bridge, considered the last Inca bridge, is classified as a UNESCO heritage site for the know-how of this construction. We spend the afternoon in the company of our hosts, to discover precisely how the weaving work is carried out, allowing the renovation of the Queswachaca bridge each year. This work is a collaborative project carried out by the surrounding communities in a traditional way. Rich in this teaching, we cross this bridge. Return to our hosts for a typical dinner and taste the different foods produced in the region.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 9 Queswachaca – Waqra Pukara (4140m)
After breakfast, we thank our hosts and hit the road again through the region known as the 4 lagoons. At the end of the morning, we reach the village of Campi on the heights of the Apurimac valley. This village is the starting point for our trek to the Waqra Pukara site. We need about 3h30 of walking to reach the site, but the route is enchanting. Without difficulty, we reach this site by a path that offers us many views of the canyon below. This one surprises by its size but also by the many forms of rock chiselled by erosion. We reach the site of Wakra Pukara in the middle of the afternoon, a site still very little known, undiscovered by the Spaniards: Wakra Pukara, meaning the fortress in the shape of horns, in Quechua. This archaeological complex dating from the pre-Inca era would have been used by the Incas as a sanctuary with very important political and religious powers. Still shrouded in mystery, this site allows us to appreciate the canyon and the surrounding mountains. In the evening, we set up our camp on the agricultural terraces facing the site and the majestic canyon.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
tents
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 10 Wakra Pukara – Raqchi (3500m)
This morning we can enjoy the sunrise before having breakfast and then starting the way back. Before reaching Campi, we branch off to descend to the village of Huayqui where we find our vehicle. We take the road towards Raqchi. Depending on the weather, visit the archaeological site of the temple of Viracocha, the Inca creator god. Rashi is a unique Inca site. It has several dwellings, terraces, temples, "phaqchas" springs, "Qolqas" food depots... An Inca path, protected by walls, leads to Qollasuyo (Puno). Installation with our hosts and evening in their company.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 11 Racchi – Tinajani Canyon – Puno (3820m)
Departure towards Lake Titicaca which means “Stone Puma”. Passage of the Raya pass 4338m then descent towards the region of Puno. On the way, a short getaway to discover the Tinajani canyon whose vast and beautiful landscapes extend over 250 hectares. The Canyon is formed by a collection of anthropomorphic stone figures, with long ravines and small rivers throughout the area. The area also contains tombs of ancient pre-Inca cultures. Arrival at the end of the day in Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Installation at the hotel and free evening.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private vehicle
Planned entries
Hotel in Puno
Breakfast, lunch
Day 12 Puno – Uros Islands Titino – Luquina
Departure by boat from the port of Puno towards Luquina. Along the way, we stop on the floating islands of Uros Titino (less frequented than the classic Uros islands) where the Aymaras build their homes on gigantic reed boats (totoras) moored to stakes to avoid drifting. They live from fishing, crafts and hunting.
Your navigation on Lake Titicaca continues to the peninsula of Chucuito and the surroundings of Luquina Chico, a community nestled on the edge of the lake. Meeting with our hosts for the night. After lunch, departure for a kayak excursion on the highest lake in the world which offers us an exceptional panorama, with the Bolivian Cordillera Real in the background. On our return, our hosts prepare us a small demonstration of agricultural work that can be done at more than 3800m altitude. We discover the type of plantation as well as the traditional tools still used today to work the land. Dinner followed by a musical evening with your hosts.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private boat
Planned entries
Night at the inhabitant
Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 13 Luquina – Taquile – Puno
Early in the morning, we leave our hosts to sail towards Taquile, an island largely exploited thanks to the system of terraced cultivation, where the inhabitants have preserved a community organization inherited from the Inca era. If the property is private, the labor is collective: the 300 or so inhabitants of the island work one day for themselves, one day for the community. Taquile lives in relative autarky according to the Inca principle of "not stealing, not lying, not weakening", respected for centuries. From the heights of the village, our efforts are rewarded with a superb view of the lake, the bay of Puno and Bolivia (Cordillera Real) in the mists of the Altiplano. At the end of the day, we take the boat back and return to Puno.
It’s included
English-speaking guide
Private boat
Planned entries
Hotel in Puno
Breakfast, lunch
Day 14 Puno – Lima – international flight
After breakfast we leave for Juliaca airport and take an unaccompanied flight to Lima and then return flight.
It’s included
Private vehicle
Flight Juliaca – Lima
Breakfast
Highlights
- The meeting with different Peruvian families by going to sleep with the locals
- The still unknown Wakra Pukara site
- The Colored Cordillera of Palcoyo
- The Last Inca Bridge at Queswachaca
Guiding languages
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
INCLUDED
NOT INCLUDED
When should I book?
To guarantee availability book as soon as possible. Early booking is worth consideration especially if you planning the trip during high season like public holidays or weekends.
Cancellations
Cancellation is not possible. If you cancel it anyway or not show up on the excursion you will still be charged the full price of the activity and the money you paid will not be refunded.