Adventures with Purpose: Peru
Suggested Itinerary
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Overview
A popular South American destination, Peru receives thousands of visitors a year for good reason, but how much do the locals benefit? Our Adventures with Purpose: Peru itinerary seeks to make your epic trip mutually beneficial by exploring its famous sites through local eyes.
Arriving to Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire, head straight to the beautiful hills of the Sacred Valley to meet the families that have been here for centuries. For an authentic feel of everyday life ...
A popular South American destination, Peru receives thousands of visitors a year for good reason, but how much do the locals benefit? Our Adventures with Purpose: Peru itinerary seeks to make your epic trip mutually beneficial by exploring its famous sites through local eyes.
Arriving to Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire, head straight to the beautiful hills of the Sacred Valley to meet the families that have been here for centuries. For an authentic feel of everyday life in these sacred lands, visits to all the big names are combined with opportunities to meet people off the tourist trail. Take a lazy afternoon stroll to Ollantaytambo ruins from your boutique hotel; hike past rural farms between twin-hitters Maras and Moray; and spend the morning with a weaving community up the road from buzzing Pisac market. Of course, a day will also be set aside to admire iconic Machu Picchu. Down in Cusco, you’ll stay at Hotel Los Niños, founded to support orphans in the area, while exploring the UNESCO city without a carbon footprint, taking an e-bike and walking tour of its ruins and colonial buildings.
There’ll also be the chance to visit some amazing community projects, enjoying lunch at a local school for girls and a ceramics workshop seeking to preserve artistic traditions. Taking the incredibly scenic Orient Express train over the Andes, the tour then winds down with an indigenous homestay experience on Lake Titicaca’s peaceful shores, before flying to the capital.
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
Suggested Itinerary
This is a suggested itinerary. Our experts have all travelled widely in the region and will be happy to tailor any of our itineraries to suit your tastes, or build a trip from scratch.
Day 1 Arrive Cusco: Ollantaytambo & The Sacred Valley
Day 1 Arrive Cusco: Ollantaytambo & The Sacred Valley
Upon your morning arrival to Cusco, your private guide will be waiting to meet and greet you at the airport ready to take you straight out of the city and to the Sacred Valley, where you’ll spend a few days acclimatising in its lower altitude and stunning surroundings. After checking into your boutique hotel, set in renovated colonial house, you’ll have time to rest and enjoy some lunch. Later in the afternoon, once day-trippers have left, you’ll stroll from the hotel to up to the striking Incan fortress of Ollantaytambo overlooking the quaint town (and your hotel) for a leisurely tour before dinner.
Day 2 The Sacred Valley: Moray & Maras Hike
Day 2 The Sacred Valley: Moray & Maras Hike
A day exploring the Sacred Valley further begins with a short drive to the Incan archaeological site of Moray, thought to have been experimental agricultural terraces of the Incas. After a tour of the ruins, and whilst other tourists jump back into their cars, you’ll begin down an old mule trail by foot. The 11km-hike takes you across quieter plains to the interesting town of Maras, taking in spectacular views of the snow-capped Cordillera Vilcanota and the finest examples of Andean farming along the way, with occasional possibilities to speak with some of the rural farmers. There will also be a scenic stop for a picnic lunch overlooking the mountains of the Sacred Valley. Timed during its less busy period, you’ll eventually descend into the striking Salinas, a series of salt pans set across a mountainside within a steep valley, which have been worked since Inca times. After exploring the incredible site, continue down to the Urubamba River to meet with your return vehicle to your hotel for a welcome rest.
Day 3 The Sacred Valley: Machu Picchu Ruins
Day 3 The Sacred Valley: Machu Picchu Ruins
After breakfast this morning, head out of the hotel and onto the station platform to catch the scenic train to Aguas Calientes. Winding alongside the Urubamba River, the views from the window are spectacular as the journey takes you from the Andes into the humid cloud forests around Machu Picchu. Upon arrival, you’ll hop straight on a shuttle bus to the entry of the famous ruins, known as the ‘Lost City of the Incas’. With insight from your guide, you’ll learn about the epochal Inca Empire following one of three set routes around the ruins various sites such the Main Square, the Royal Quarters, the Temple of the Three Windows and the Sun Dial. After a half day exploring the legendary World Heritage Site, and some time for lunch in the entry town of Aguas Calientes, you’ll catch the train back down to your hotel in the Sacred Valley.
Day 4 Sacred Valley – Cusco: Weaving Community Lunch & Pisac Market
Day 4 Sacred Valley – Cusco: Weaving Community Lunch & Pisac Market
Following breakfast, you’ll head to a quiet weaving community to spend the morning in their shoes. Only recently opening their doors to tourists, some of the community members will be ready to greet you with a welcome ceremony before introducing you to the world of indigenous weaving, an ancient heritage and their bread and butter. Start by collecting plants to be used as natural dyes before watching their colourful textiles form through demonstrations of shearing, wool spinning, dyeing and hand knitting. A fascinating element of the experience is learning of the history, meaning and importance of the iconography used within their textile patterns. After sitting down to a traditional lunch at a family home, there will be some time to shop the beautiful products produced by this community and others at the expansive nearby Pisac market before leaving the Sacred Valley for Cusco.
Day 5 Cusco: Colonial Buildings & Inca Ruins
Day 5 Cusco: Colonial Buildings & Inca Ruins
Your hotel in Cusco is a real gem, admirably set up to help fund and support disadvantaged children around the area. Though perfectly comfortable with warm service, breakfast isn’t included, so after a chance to sample some Peruvian coffee in one of the plethora of boutique cafés nearby, you’ll mount your easy-to-use electronic-assist bicycles for a fun and eco-friendly tour. Making the journey to Cusco’s outskirts a breeze, once up at the Sacsayhuaman, you’ll park up the bikes for a private-guided tour of the impressive ruins before descending back down to the city centre, via a route with rarely seen views over the city, for a walking tour of its colonial buildings and architectural highlights. Breaking for lunch, you’ll then have a free afternoon in the UNESCO-protected city.
Day 6 Cusco: Local Initiatives & Art Workshop
Day 6 Cusco: Local Initiatives & Art Workshop
Today affords the opportunity to engage with some of the amazing community projects thriving in Cusco. You’ll be introduced to a selection of fantastic experiences that brilliantly utilise Peru’s panache for tourism to give back and support local causes. Unleash your artistic side at a female-owned café with a coffee cocktail and art workshop run by the Cusco School of Art that sees you painting and learning about the traditional Pucara bulls that adorn many homes in the region. The workshop seeks to preserve this local tradition and artistic practices, finishing with a talk from the café about the importance of female representation in the world of business, a take-home bag of coffee and your very own ceramic Pucara bull.
Day 7 Cusco – Lake Titicaca: Train Across the Andes
Day 7 Cusco – Lake Titicaca: Train Across the Andes
Aboard restored Orient Express train, this morning you’ll begin the full day’s journey across the Andes to Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world. Enjoying exceptional service and a gourmet, three-course lunch along the way, this journey is considered one of the ‘Great Train Journeys of the World’ as you pass through epic landscapes, slowly edging towards the lakeside town of Puno. On arrival, you will be met and transferred to your lakeside hotel.
Day 8 Lake Titicaca: Floating Uros Islands & Indigenous Community Homestay
Day 8 Lake Titicaca: Floating Uros Islands & Indigenous Community Homestay
Board a private speedboat this morning, traversing the lake via the famous floating Uros islands made from reeds from the lake. Though most of the communities here now live on the mainland, the opportunity provides into the construction of the reed buildings and boats and the social structures of these unique communities. After, continue on to your simple homestay in one of the lake’s indigenous communities in time for a local lunch. The rest of the afternoon is left to explore the island, perhaps attempting to climb the hill for a particularly beautiful sunset over Lake Titicaca, before heading back down for dinner with the family.
Day 9 Lake Titicaca – Lima: Taquile Island Lunch & Hiking
Day 9 Lake Titicaca – Lima: Taquile Island Lunch & Hiking
This morning, cross the sapphire waters to the Taquile community in different part of the lake famous for its weaving. Taquile Island also has a number of pretty walks that you can try before lunch in a typical island restaurant. Then, navigate once more back to the mainland where a transfer will be waiting to take you to the airport in time for your evening flight to Lima. Upon arrival in the capital, make your way over to the airport hotel for your final night.
Day 10 Depart Lima
Day 10 Depart Lima
Depending on the time of your international flight back home, there may be the opportunity to head into the city for a tour of the capital, or you may wish to extend your time in the country. Once you’re ready, you can head back over to the terminal in time for your onward flight, where your Peruvian adventure with a purpose concludes.
SUGGESTED ACCOMMODATION
Casa Andina Premium Puno, Puno
This is the premium brand from the well-known and well-loved Peruvian Casa Andina hotels. Their Lake Titicaca hotel sits on the outskirts of the small town of Puno, around 10 minutes from the centre, on the banks of the lake itself. The hotel has just 46 rooms and suites each with a small balcony and differing views. Like most hotel options in Puno, rooms are quite plainly decorated with just a few photographs on the walls of the region. However, being out of town, they offer a bit more space and come complete with all international standard amenities. A draw of the lakeside hotel is its restaurant and a terrace, set away from the main building, which benefits from great views of the lake which guests can enjoy over a meal or a drink from the bar. The bar, just off the main lobby, also serves tapas most evenings. Casa Andina Premium in Puno is a homegrown Peruvian hotel option that benefits from a quiet and attractive location set on the lake, away from the main town.
El Albergue, Sacred Valley
Widely considered one of the best places to stay in town, the boutique El Albergue Hotel is something of an institution in Ollantaytambo, right in the heart of the Sacred Valley. Fixed on the train station platform on the edge of town, it is perfectly located to welcome and see off adventurers travelling up to Machu Picchu. The converted colonial building houses a few rooms and a family casita set around quaint gardens. Rooms are simple and offer a rustic yet comfortable stay. Standard rooms face the train station platform whilst Superior Balcony rooms offer scenic views of the back garden and the surrounding Andean mountains. Also regarded as one of the best places to eat in town, the French manager has refined the dining experience here, serving impeccable Peruvian and international dishes at the hotel’s ever-popular restaurant.
Holiday Inn Lima Airport, Lima
The Holiday Inn Lima Airport allows easy access when flying in or out of the city, due to its location in front of the international airport and free airport shuttle. The fairly large building has 179 rooms spread over eight floors, all with soundproofing to ensure a good night’s sleep. As you would expect, the hotel has the usual facilities of an international airport hotel including a restaurant and bar, a fitness centre and a small, indoor jacuzzi. A solid, affordable choice either just before or after a long journey.
Hotel Rating
Hotel Rating
Hotel Rating
Accommodation listed here is intended as a guide only, to give you a taste of what we can do. Our experts can tailor any aspect of this itinerary and accommodation to suit your budget and tastes.
GUIDELINE PRICE & WHAT'S INCLUDED
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WILD MILES
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Wild Miles Club
When you book a trip with Wild Frontiers you are awarded points, which are based on the return distance from London to the arrival city of your trip. Points are awarded for all our holidays, including both our escorted group tours and tailor-made trips. When you accrue points, you will qualify for the following discounts on all future bookings:
| Blue | More than 10,000 points | 2.5% discount |
| Bronze | More than 30,000 points | 5% discount |
| Silver | More than 45,000 points | 7.5% discount |
| Gold | More than 60,000 points | 10% discount |
This itinerary is aimed to give you an idea of what we can offer. The price shown above is per person, based on two people travelling outside of peak periods. As this itinerary is only a suggestion and can be tailor-made to suit your interests and budget, your final price may differ.
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