Andean Horizons – Peru & Bolivia Adventure

Arrival in Lima. Meeting at the airport with a guide and transfer to the hotel. After check in you will have a half-day city tour in Lima. Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the central coastal part of the country, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The city was founded in 1535 by the Spanish discoverer Francisco Pizarrounder and was named “Ciudad de los Reyes” (City of Kings). The historic center was declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO. It’s a city with great cultural diversity- which has a large number of museums. The guided tour includes visits to the main Colonial attractions such as the Main Square with the Cathedral, San Francisco Convent, and many elegant buildings with their traditional wooden balconies, which had been restored. Afterwards you will visit Lima’s residential areas: San Isidro with its Olive Grove, Country Club and Golf course and Miraflores with its Central Park, City Hall and Main shopping streets such as Larco Avenue. The tour will end with visiting Larco Museum. Return to the hotel.

Breakfast. Transfer to the airport for your departure flight to Cusco. Arrival in Cusco, reception and transfer to the Hotel. In the afternoon we will get away from the crowds to visit Sacsayhuaman, an impressive citadel full of colossal constructions surrounded by beautiful landscapes in complete communion with nature. We will then continue to the Inca shrine of Qenqo, with its awesome altar for sacrifices embedded in the side of the rock. We will finally reach the Puca Pucara watchtower and Tambomachay, a monument of noticeable architectural excellence, considered one of the pillars of the Andean view of the world. Climb to the Archaeological park of Sacsayhuaman, in the higher part of Cusco. Our first stop will be Tambomachay, a source of spring water that it is believed was once worshipped. Next we will visit the remains of Qenqo, a stone made labyrinth with a sacrificial altar in its center. At the Fortress of Sacsayhuaman we will enjoy a wonderful view of Cusco while admiring the massive stones that make up the fortress. Our last stop will be to see the Tower of Pucca Pucara before transferring back to the city and your hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer from your hotel to the train station. After arrival at the small town of Aguas Calientes, and finally a 30-minute bus ride up to Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu, an Inca city with a maze of fine stone temples, houses and fountains, is spectacularly situated on a ridge between two peaks. It was hidden by dense vegetation when Hiram Bingham discovered it in 1911. We include a guided tour. In the afternoon lunch and return to Cusco by train. (Lunch is included) Return to the hotel.

his day we will visit the most outstanding sites of the Sacred Valley of the Incas. We will leave for the town of Chinchero, the most typical and picturesque of the Sacred Valley. This town is also famous for its women weavers, we will make a brief stop in a textile center to appreciate its beautiful fabrics and where they will teach us the ancient Inca techniques for dyeing and spinning with Alpaca wool. In the town of Chinchero we will visit its Inca archaeological complex and its beautiful colonial church enjoying the impressive natural images that surround the town. We will continue to Moray, a beautiful and curious Inca archaeological complex composed of colossal concentric terraces simulating a large amphitheater. In Incas times, it served as an agricultural laboratory where diverse microclimates were recreated. Lunch at one of the restaurants in the area. Finally, we end our tour visiting the fabulous archaeological complex of Ollantaytambo important for the Incas as a military, religious and agricultural center. We will visit the Temple of the ten windows, the bathrooms of the ñusta, the Temple of the Sun among other places of interest. The postcards from the heights of Ollantaytambo will close this magical day in the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Stay at the Sacred Valley. 

Breakfast. You have a transfer to the bus station, where we board a bus from Cusco to Puno. The route is scenically stunning, and there are stops at cultural sites such as Pikillaqta, the baroque church at Andahuaylillas, and the Temple to Viracocha at Racqchi. Lunch at Sicuani. The bus climbs to the high pass of La Raya, at 4,200 meters, from here the scenery changes dramatically. Arrival in Puno, reception, and transfer to the hotel. Puno is a port city at an altitude of over 3,800 msnm, on the shores of Lake Titicaca on the Altiplano of Peru. Despite its picturesque hillside setting, the city itself is a ramshackle collection of mostly unfinished modern buildings – its biggest attraction is as a departure point for the famous floating islands on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca.

In the morning, we take a short boat ride to visit the Uros Islands, the famous floating reed islands of Lake Titicaca. A unique feature of this part of the lake is the traditional settlement of Uros people on floating islands made entirely of reeds-the same material they use to build their canoes. The islanders also use totora reeds to make boats, and even as food. Although fishing is still an important activity, nowadays the inhabitants earn their living mainly through selling handicrafts to tourists. After the excursion you will take a Tourist bus from Puno to Copacabana and continue the trip towards La Paz. In La Paz, your driver picks you up to bring you to your hotel.

This day you will have the City Tour by the heights – Charming La Paz. Pick up from the hotel to visit the embroiderers' street, known for its traditional costumes, where colorful folk dresses are displayed. Excursion to the historical center of the city of La Paz, visit to the Witches Market (mystical articles of the Andean region), Church of San Francisco, Murillo main square, Executive Palace, Legislative Palace, Metropolitan Cathedral, and Killi Killi View Point. Transfer by cable car to enjoy a beautiful panorama of La Paz city in one of the most picturesque and longest urban cable car systems in the world. Unmissable visit to the impressive Moon Valley located 10 km from La Paz city center, these curious geological formations were created by the erosion of the winds and the heavy rains, forming an attractive lunar landscape.

Breakfast and End of the tour