Day 1
Overnight flight to Lima.
Day 2
Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel. Afternoon tour of the Bay of Lima by bike, discovering the best spots of the city. We will show you amazing sights around the bay, starting with Barranco, the old and bohemian neighborhood of the city, and its mansions, bars and parks. We will also visit the neighborhood of Chorrillos with its old fishing pier, beaches, and promenade and the historic Morro Solar hill. Finally, we bike through the vibrant district of Miraflores with its amazing cliff edge sidewalks and parks overlooking the ocean. We will have a snack in a traditional old bar or cafe of the area. This tour also gives you the chance to have a glance of many old houses, colonial mansions and some of the best restaurants of this city, well known of its cuisine.
Note: check-in is normally after 2 pm. Early check-in may be granted subject to availability (not confirmed).
Day 3
Early morning transfer to the airport to take the flight to Cuzco. Upon arrival in Cuzco, transfer to your hotel. In the late morning, Private Cuzco Tour. We begin with a short walking tour of Cuzco, visiting the Korikancha temple or Temple of the Sun, the Cathedral and its Art Museum and the artisan's quarter of San Blas. Visit Tambomachay, Puca Pucara, and Sacsahuaman Fortress, depart to the nearby water shrine of Tambomachay (the Inca Fountains), Puca Pucara (the Red Fortress), amphitheater of Kenko and finally the Sacsahuaman Fortress. After the tour of Sacsahuaman Fortress we will go horseback riding nearby. Return to your hotel.
Day 4
At 9am we leave for the Urubamba River in the Sacred Valley of the Incas (north of Cuzco), where our guide will give us an a introductory chat on safety and equipment for our trip running the Urubamba. We will raft for around 2 ˝ hours in rapids class II, III, IV+ and V, depending on which route we select. We could be in Ollantaytambo Class III (runs from May to December), Quiquijana Class III (December to May) and Chuquicahuana Class III, IV and V (December to May). For this last one, which is the hardest, we always have a safety guide in a kayak along with us. More information is available regarding rapid class.
Day 5
Beginning at 9:00 am, we will head towards Chincheros where we will have a briefing, then we will begin our adventure by bike, passing by Huaypo lagoon, and the archaeological site of Moray and the salt mines of Salineras. Finishing the trip in Urubamba, we will have lunch. Afternoon at leisure.
Day 6
Morning transfer to the train station. The train takes us through the Sacred Valley of the Incas up to the town of Aguas Calientes. From here, we will board a bus to the mountain-top citadel of Machu Picchu. We will then have a guided tour of the ruins. Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas, was a flourishing ceremonial and agricultural site, probably the gateway to the jungle marshes of the Inca empire. The central buildings were erected with the polished stone works of the Cuzco imperial style, though the site was probably occupied well before the Incas started their expansion. It was associated with the earth cult revolving around the coca leaf, which was a privilege of the Inca royal family and priests. You will have time to enjoy a light lunch or snack and return to your hotel at your leisure. In the evening, we will enjoy a wonderful dinner at the hotel or in the village of Aguas Calientes.
Day 7
Our resident guide will pick you up at your hotel in the morning for a second visit to the Machu Picchu ruins. We will go on an early morning hike through the ruins up to the Inti Punku or Sun gate to see a magnificent view of the citadel and watch the wonderful sunrise. Those who are most adventurous may want to do a hike to Wayna Picchu (which means Young Mountain). This hike is quite steep and sometimes exposed. The Incas trail up the side of the Wuayna Picchu and built temples and terraces on its top. It is said that the top of the mountain was the residence for the high priest and the local virgins. The trail itself forks to several points of interest. In the afternoon we will catch the train to Cuzco.
Day 8
Transfer to the airport to take the flight to Puerto Maldonado. Upon arrival, transfer to the Tambopata River port. After boarding motorized canoes, we travel downriver to the mighty Madre de Dios, which we follow for approximately five hours to the Heath River. We then travel up this wild and intimate river, which forms the wilderness border between Peru and Bolivia, and arrive at the Heath River Wildlife Center. Note that the Lodge is located on the Bolivian side of the Heath River so passports are required to clear Bolivian passport control.
After dinner we will explore the forest by flashlight, including a visit to a small mammal clay lick if it is active.
Day 9
We will rise early in the morning to board a motorized canoe for the 10-minute journey up the Heath River to the macaw and parrot clay lick. Brightly-colored parrots and macaws fly in by the hundreds to feed on the clay that detoxifies certain seeds and nuts they eat. Marvel at the cacophony of sound and color as red-and-green macaws vie for the best clay-eating position. A specially-designed floating blind allows for proximity and complete concealment, so you can even have breakfast and coffee while the birds are performing their morning ritual.
When we return to the lodge, the guide lead us on an ethnic-botanical walk through the forest, pointing out flora used in the daily lives of rain forest people. The guide explains how certain plants are used for medicinal or healing purposes, which ones can be made into the best bows and arrows, and how to select trees and leaves for home construction.
After lunch and a short rest, we hike through the rain forest to the Pampas del Heath, the largest remaining undisturbed savanna in the Amazon. The contrast is striking as we emerge from the mature rain forest onto the grassland plain of the Pampas.
Day 10
We will eat breakfast in the floating blind at the macaw and parrot clay lick for a last round of looks and photos. We return to the lodge to pack, and then it's back on the Madre de Dios River, box lunch in hand, for the trip to Sandoval Lake Lodge, located on the banks of one of the most beautiful lake in Amazonian Peru.
During the river trip back downstream, families of capybaras are often spotted on the banks of the river. Weighing up to 120 pounds (55 kilograms), this giant, three-toed relative of the guinea pig is the largest rodent in the world.
On the journey to Sandoval Lake Lodge, we will also visit the Ese' Eja native community of Sonene, where there will be an opportunity to interact with the community and purchase local handicrafts.
We embark at the trail head to Sandoval Lake Lodge and walk for 45 minutes on a wide, flat trail through the forest, stopping to look at birds, butterflies and towering trees. At the end of the trail, we board dugout canoes or catamarans, and paddle across the lake in the golden afternoon light. We drift through as they roost in treetops for the night. We arrive at the lodge around nightfall, and walk up the torch-lit path to dinner in the dining hall.
Day 11
After an early breakfast, explore the western end of the lake in the catamaran or canoe. We might see giant otters that live on the lake, or encounter a black cayman lazily crossing the water, or see the huge splash of the Paichi, a 10 foot-long Amazonian fish, as it rises to the surface of the water to gulp down bubbles of air.
Later that morning, your naturalist guide will lead a hike through the forest, pointing out plants with medicinal uses, interesting insects and colorful birds and butterflies.
Following lunch and a short siesta, in the late afternoon we once again board the catamaran or canoe and set off to explore the eastern end of the lake. Cappuccino, squirrel and titi monkeys often forage along the lake's edge, and energetic guests can take another hike through the forest on the other side of the lake.
After dinner, we go out on the lake to search again for the black cayman since they are most abundant on the lake at night when they forage. Floating in the middle of the lake, the brilliant stars light up the sky as the night sounds of the rain forest surround you.
Day 12
After a dawn breakfast, we paddle across the lake, perhaps encountering a family of macaws leaving their roost to forage or a troupe of monkeys greeting the day. We hike back out to the river and return to Puerto Maldonado for the flight back to Lima. Upon arrival in Lima, transfer to your hotel.
Day 13
We will be doing para-gliding tandem flights with an experienced instructor with you all the time. Do not miss the opportunity of flying like a bird in between buildings and taking the best pictures of Lima ever.
Day 14
Transfer to the airport to take the flight back home, or overlap with the add-on of your choice.
Sandoval Lake
MountainBiking
Horseback Riding
