LIMA
13 Days / 12 Nights
AREQUIPA
COLCA
PUNO
CUSCO
SORAYPAMPA
CHAULLAY
AGUAS CALIENTES
AM Bohemian bike tour: On this tour we give to our ride a different spin. We bike around the two main cultural areas of Lima: Miraflores and Barranco. The idea is trying to make the perfect combination between art, history, architecture and nice vibe. We ride among beautiful houses that once were occupied by renowned writers, painters and musicians. We pass by cultural centers, parks, shops, art galleries, ateliers, cozy local cafes and classic bars. We pay special attention to street art work, graffiti, street food, and to the cultural manifestations of two of the most important areas of Lima where locals usually express themselves and have fun more frequently. Along the tour we also stop to share anecdotes, love stories and classic urban legends of the local folklore of this cool part of the city. The tour includes a snack in a traditional old bar or cafe of the area. We also see at a glance, many old houses & colonial mansions of great architecture, as well as some of the best restaurants of the culinary capital of Latin America. (4 Hrs aprox.)
Full day to visit Uros and Taquile Island. Visit to one of the native Uros communities located on a man-made floating island in the lake. The Uros people live totally interwoven with the "Totora" reed, which grows abundantly in the shallows of the lake. This way of life began over 500 years ago when the Uros built the islands in an effort to isolate themselves from the Coyas and the Incas. Afterwards, we will visit Taquile. The community here lives in perfect harmony with the environment. "Taquileños" wear colorful traditional clothes which they make themselves and maintain a strong air of group individuality. Lunch included (shared speedboat – private basis).
En route visit archaeological places, like Andahualillas also known as the Sistine Chapel of America, then continue to Racqui or “Temple of Wiracocha” ,Lunch included , La Raya pass – highs point and then Pukara museum
We start the day by picking you up at your hotel at 05:00 AM. We will drive for around 4 hours, crossing Anta and Mollepata and ending up at Challancha. Through the windows of the bus you can clearly see the white, snowcapped mountains of Apus Salkantay and Huamantay: two colossal gods of the Incas. After the first two hours of driving, we will stop quickly in Mollepata to take advantage of the toilet facilities, souvenir shops, and an optional, short breakfast. We will then continue to Challacancha, the starting point for our trek. We will meet our support staff, and they will organize all of the equipment and cargo mules. Around 09:30 AM, we will begin trekking to Soraypampa (3850 MASL – 12631 FASL). We will travel 7 km (4.35 miles) in 3 hours to Soraypampa where we will have our lunch at the base camp of Salkantay. After lunch and a short rest, we hike up to the unforgettable Humantay Lake (4200 MASL – 13779 ft). This is a 5 km (3.1miles) round-trip which we will walk in a total of 3 hours
After an early wake-up with the first daylight at 05:30 AM and a quick but energizing breakfast, we will start trekking up to the highest point of the trail: the Salkantay Pass (4650 MASL – 15255 FASL). The distance is a 7 km (4.34 miles) of difficult ascent in 3 hours between the rocky valley base and the magnificent Salkantay Mountain (6271 MASL– 20574 FASL). When we reach the top of the pass, we will appreciate the spectacular views of the surrounding valleys and the imposing snowy peaks of Salkantay, Humantay, Tucarhuay and Pumasillo mountains. Salkantay Mountain is the second highest mountain in the Cusco region and one of the Inca gods called “Apu”. Continuing from this climax of today’s trek, there is a 5 km (3.1 mile) downhill walk to the site for lunch. The walk downwards is on a serpent-shaped, rocky, gravel path which leads to the Huayracmachay lunch campsite. To rest on the way down, there is a perfect valley outlook that is absolutely stunning! In the afternoon after our meal, we will enter the upper part of the Amazon jungle, which is also called “the cloud forest”. This is a 10 km (6.2 mile) hike completed in 3 hours on a wide trail in the thick and magical tropical forest.
At 06:00 AM, we will start our trek to the small town of La Playa through the Santa Teresa valley. If we are lucky, we will even be able to see the beautiful bird called “The Cock of the Rocks,” the national bird of Peru! a hearty lunch at La Playa, we will take local transportation to the Hidroelectrica train station, we may take the train to Aguas Calientes , this is the same trail used by the American professor Hiram Bingham who rediscovered Machu Picchu after centuries of it being lost to the outside world! Once in Aguas Calientes, you can rest a bit before dinner or walk around this alluring place that has the feel of a California Gold Rush town. There are no cars in Aguas Calientes, so it is an especially peaceful place to be. At 7:00 PM, we will have dinner at a local restaurant. All the expenses in Aguas Calientes are covered by the company, including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the overnight stay at our hotel. In your luxury room, you will have a private bathroom, hot shower, wifi, breakfast in the morning, and luggage storage while you visit Machu Picchu.
Today we arrive at the long-awaited finale of our trek, one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site – Machu Picchu! We will wake up early after a refreshing night at our hotel to beat the crowds to the top of Machu Picchu and enjoy its serenity in the soft morning light. The Machu Picchu entrance check point is open from 06:00 AM until 17:00 PM. We will hike up to Machupicchu and enter the hidden Royal Citadel of the Incas. Here we will have a 2-hour guided tour through this incredible ancient city to visit temples, terraces, palaces, priest’s houses, the sundial, the industrial sector, and the farming fields.