Peru and Galapagos

$5,300

Peru and Galapagos

FROM

$5,300

USD

A wonderful landbased tour to Peru and the Galapagos Islands. Enjoy the ancient fantastic history of Peru together with adventures and the world famous wildlife of Galapagos. You will visit Lima – Arequipa – Colca Canyon – Lake Titicaca – Cusco – Machu Picchu – Galapagos Islands.

16 Days / 15 Nights
8 Destinations
Starts/Ends:
Lima/Galapagos Islands
Combined Countries

Overview

Route & Map

Itinerary

Inclusions

Packing List

Destinations: Lima, Arequipa, Colca Canyon, Lake Titicaca, Cusco, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, and the Galapagos Islands

A wonderful landbased tour to Peru and the Galapagos Islands. Enjoy the ancient fantastic history of Peru together with adventures and the world famous wildlife of Galapagos. You will visit Lima – Arequipa – Colca Canyon – Lake Titicaca – Cusco – Machu Picchu – Galapagos Islands.

15 Nights

26 Meals

Transport

Specified

English Speaking

Private Guides

Route & Map

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Itinerary

Day 1: Lima

You are met by our staff at the airport and transferred to your hotel in Miraflores, where we will give you information about Peru and your tour and also answer any question you may have. Miraflores is a safe area by the coast where the best hotels and restaurants are situated.

Hotel - Miraflores

Airport Pick up & Transfer

Day 2: Lima

After breakfast you are picked up for a guided tour of the colonial and modern Lima which includes the cathedral built in 1654 where the remains of the Spanish conqueror of the Inca Empire, Francisco Pizarro, rest, the Main Square with a bronze fountain from 1650 and some unique wooden colonial balconies around the main square (Plaza de Armas), the San Francisco monastery with the famous catacombs and the modern areas of Miraflores and San Isidro. Lima is also known as “The city of the kings”, and was founded 1535 by Francisco Pizarro and 1991 it was declared a world heritage by UNESCO.

Breakfast

Hotel - Miraflores

Day 3: Lima - Arequipa

Transfer to the airport for a flight to Arequipa (The white city), maybe the most beautiful city in Peru, where we will meet you at the airport for a transfer to your hotel. Rest and relax in the morning to get used to the altitude. In the afternoon we pick you up for a city tour of Arequipa where you will visit the Chilina valley and the old San Lorenzo district. You will get a nice view of the city and you will visit the Main Square and the Cathedral as well as the extraordinary Santa Catalina Monastery which is built of volcanic lava and dated back to the 16th century. You will end the day with a visit to Juanita, the best preserved mummy in the whole Americas, which was found in 1995 during an expedition high up in the mountains.
(In Arequipa you may also enjoy yourself with river rafting, mountain biking, trekking, and other adventure activities. Let us know if you want to add a day or two).

Breakfast

Hotel - Arequipa

Airport Pick up & Transfer

Day 4: Arequipa - Colcadalen

In the morning we will pick you up at the hotel for a two days Colca Canyon tour. You travel towards the hot springs of Yura, passing the volcano Chachani and then further up to the natural reserve of Pampa de Cañahuas, where you will see groups of llamas and alpacas. In the wetlands of Tocra, you can see lots of various migratory birds, including flamingos. We pass the crater of an extinct volcano (Cuchura), and make a stop at the highest point of the trip, Patapampa, (4,910 m), where you will have spectacular views of the Andean mountains. Then starts the descent to the Colca Valley where you will arrive in Chivay, the main village in the Valley. You are accommodated in your hotel and are then having a free afternoon to discover the Colca Valley district and maybe visit the hot springs for a nice bath. In the evening you may enjoy a delicious dinner in a restaurant with a folkloric show and local dances.

Breakfast

Hotel - Chivay

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

English speaking tour guide

Day 5: Colca - Puno

We start the trek and have lunch in Totora. We then continue for three more hours until we reach our campsite in Collpa. Here it will be possible to buy soft drinks, batteries, and other products.

After an early breakfast, we head further into the Valley towards the deep ravine, Cruz del Condor, where the condors mostly are seen. The view from this place is amazing and you’ll also stop by several times during the journey to admire the Colca Canyon. The condors can have a wingspan of over three meters and in the morning they take advantage of the warm upwind from the gap to be able to sail out from the cliffs in search of food. After a walking tour along Colca Canyon, it is time to return to Chivay. On the way, we stop in the picturesque villages of Pinchollo, Maca, and Yanque, with beautiful colonial churches and at the viewpoints of Choquetico and Antahuilque, where you will experience beautiful views over terraces in the valley as well as Inca and pre-Inca graves. On return to Chivay, you will then travel by bus to Puno (approximately 6 hours with breaks for sight-seeing). We will meet you at the bus terminal for transfer to your hotel.

Breakfast

Hotel - Puno

Scenic Bus ride to Puno

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Day 6: Lake Titicaca

After breakfast, you are picked up for your guided tour of Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world. On the first stop, you will visit the floating reed islands of Uros. The inhabitants will show you how the islands are built and you may go for a short trip in one of their reed boats. Then you go to Taquile, a truly beautiful island where the locals live as they have been doing during centuries with their small scale agriculture and animals. You walk around on the island with the guide and after lunch, it is time to go back to Puno where you will arrive late afternoon and get transferred to your hotel.
(It is possible to stay overnight on the island in a family´s home. This is a very nice and special experience which we really recommend, keep in mind that the houses are very rustic though).

Breakfast, Lunch

Hotel - Puno

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Day 7: Puno - Cusco

Early transfer to the bus station for your tour with a comfortable tourist bus to Cusco. You travel across the Andean highlands in a very beautiful landscape and make several stops on the way to visit museums, ancient Inca ruins, markets, and small villages. A stop for lunch is also made at La Raya, 4310 m above sea level. The journey takes about 9 hours, but it never becomes tedious thanks to all the interesting stops along the way. Late in the afternoon, you arrive in Cusco, the Inca Empire’s old capital. We meet you at the bus terminal for transfer to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

Hotel - Cusco

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

English Speaking Tour Guide

Day 8: Cusco

Enjoy a morning to sleep a little longer or explore Cusco on your own. After lunch you will be picked up for a guided tour in Cusco and its surroundings, with visits to the four famous Inca ruins which lies in the outskirts of Cusco; the water temple of Tambo Machay, the Puca Pucara fortress, the oracle place Quengo and the impressive fortress and temple of Sacsayhuamán. Three enormous boulders, each one weighs 120 tons, are making three perfect zig-zag walls and the view of Cusco from this place is wonderful. You will finish the day with a walking tour in the centre of Cusco with visits to the Cathedral, the Main Square and the Sun Temple of Korikancha.

Breakfast

Hotel - Cusco

Hotel Pick up

Day 9: Sacred Valley - Aguas Calientes/Machu Picchu

Full day excursion to Urubamba, the Sacred Valley of the Incas. You will visit the village of Pisac, which was established during the colonial era and is located at the foot of a terraced mountain, crowned with impressive Inca ruins, and also the market in Pisac on the main square, where Indians sell their products and crafts. After lunch in the valley you will visit Ollantaytambo, the only Inca village the Spaniards never managed to conquer, where you will explore the ruins above the town on a hill. Late in the afternoon, you will take a train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes, at the foot of Machu Picchu. You are met by a guide at the station and escorted to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

Hotel - Aguas Calientes

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Train to Aguas Calientes

Day 10: Machu Picchu - Aguas Calientes - Cusco

This morning you will wake up by the highlight of your tour, the forgotten city of the Incas and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World – Machu Picchu. Your guide will pick you up at the hotel and you will catch an early bus up to Machu Picchu, to be able to enjoy the famous sunrise over the ruins. Then it’s time for your guided tour which takes about two hours. After the tour, you will have plenty of time to explore sight and take photos. A popular option for the adventurous is to climb the mountain Huayna Picchu (about 2 hours), from where you will have a spectacular view over Machu Picchu and the surroundings. In the afternoon you take the bus down from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes, and then the train back to Cusco. On arrival, we will meet you for transfer to your hotel.

Breakfast

Hotel - Cusco

Bus to Machu Picchu & Aguas Calientes

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Day 11: Cusco - Lima - Guayaquil

Transfer to the airport for the flight to Lima and your connecting flight to Guayaquil.
On arrival, you are picked up at the airport and transferred to your hotel in Guayaquil.

Breakfast

Hotel - Guayaquil

Day 12: Guayaquil - Galapagos - Santa Cruz Island

After breakfast, transfer to the airport in order to take your flight to Galapagos. On arrival, you will have a transfer to the port where we will take a speed boat to our next destination which is Santa Cruz Island. The boat trip takes about 2 hours and a half. On the arrival of Santa Cruz, a guide will be waiting to take us to the hotel where we can leave our luggage. We will seize the morning to visit the Manzanillo Ranch in the island’s highlands where we will be able to see Giant Turtles in their natural habitat. Return to Puerto Ayora, lunch and then go to Charles Darwin Station, where we can see the breeding center of the turtles of the other islands. Return to the hotel to have dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel - Santa Cruz Island

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Speed boat ride to Santa Cruz

Day 13: Bartolomé Island - Navigable tour

After breakfast, transfer to Baltra to start our first navigable tour to Bartolome. The main attractions of this island are their incredible landscapes with lunar-like craters, impressive lava formations, and the famous Pinnacle Rock. Lunch on board. Before departure, an opportunity for snorkeling on one of the coral beaches of the island where we can see Galapagos penguins, marine turtles, sea lions, and multi-colored fish. Return to the hotel in the afternoon. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel - Santa Cruz Island

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Day 14: North Seymour Island - Navigable tour

Enjoy a navigable tour to North Seymour, a 1.9 km² island located northbound from Baltra. The main fauna species of this island are Land Iguanas, the Magnificent Frigate bird with their incredible scarlet regular pouch, blue-footed boobies and their particular courtship dance and sea lions surfing across the waves. Lunch on board. Return to the hotel in the afternoon. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel - Santa Cruz Island

Hotel Pick up & Transfer

Day 15: Santa Cruz - Day at leisure

Breakfast. Today you will have a day at leisure to rest, visit the island on your own or buy crafts. Accommodation at the hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel - Santa Cruz Island

Day 16: Santa Cruz - Guayaqil

After breakfast, we will drive approximately 45 minutes up to the highlands of Santa Cruz. The vegetation turns greener and greener as we go higher. Once we get to “El Trapiche”, the Spanish word for sugar mill, we will have the opportunity to see the daily life of the locals by experiencing how they produce sugar cane. A Galapagos family owns this small property and our hosts, father, and son, will invite you to turn the press, a basic sugar cane press. While the cane goes through the press, a light juice spills into a boil. This juice will later transform into brown cubes of sugar. Later on, our host will invite us to taste a delicious local cocktail. The last part of our excursions ends with a brief explanation about the production of the incipient Galapagos Coffee, a new variety that grows on the islands. Before driving back to the lowlands of Santa Cruz we will make a stop in the Bella Vista Lava Tunnels, where you can admire these geological formations of the magma activity once in this island, walk through the tunnels and have a brief explanation of its formation. Transfer to the airport flight back to Guayaquil, from where you will take your international flight back home again. If the time schedule for your international flight does not fit with your arrival in Guayaquil, you will have a transfer to the city and stay the night at a hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Trip the highlands of Santa Cruz

Included

  • Tourist bus Puno – Cusco with several stops for sight-seeing, lunch included
  • City tour in Cusco
  • Full day excursion in the Sacred Valley
  • Excursion to Machu Picchu, including ”Vistadome train” to and from Aguas Calientes, entrance fee and guided tour on Machu Picchu
  • 5 days / 4 nights on the Galapagos Islands with guided tours and all meals included. English speaking guides
  • Inflatable mattress Thermarest
  • Sleeping bag
  • First Aid-kit
  • Electricity (8 d/7A/7 c)
  • Cook and porters
  • Horses to carry equipment for food, tents and things for common use + customers luggage up to 7 kg
  • Stay over at hostel with private bathroom in Aguas Calientes

Excluded

  • Tips
  • Tips

What To Bring

  • Warm Clothing
  • Hat
  • Sun Block
  • Sunglasses
  • Swim Clothes
  • Camera
  • Water Bottle
  • Medicine For Altitude Sickness
  • Insect Repellant
  • Tips

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