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| Day 1: Arrival in Lima. Accommodation in Lima |
daily program |
| Upon arrival in Lima, you will be greeted by your local tour conductor, who will guide you to the modern area of Miraflores and will help you check into your hotel. |
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| Day 2: Journey to Paracas. Accommodation in Paracas |
daily program |
| Today your journey by bus takes you South on the Panamerican Highway. You will drive through a desert landscape interjected by surprisingly fertile valleys. In about 3.5 hours you reach the Paracas Peninsula. The Paracas culture was an important pre-Inca society famous for its textiles (some of the finest ever produced by Pre-Columbian Andean societies) and treasures found in graves. |
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| Day 3: Ballestas-islands, journey to Nasca, Overnight bus to Arequipa |
daily program |
In the morning you will depart on a motorboat excursion to the Ballestas-islands. They are also known as “Little Galapagos”, because they provide shelter for thousands of sea lions, penguins, pelicans, cormorants and many other sea birds. This little archipelago had a large impact on the Peruvian economy from the 1850’s until the 1890’s. Guano, or bird droppings, were collected on the islands and exported to Europe, where they were used as fertilizer or raw material for explosives.
After the boat trip, the journey goes on to Nasca, where you’ll have a chance to fly over the mysterious Nasca-lines. These enormous, geometrical figures can best be observed from high above. There is an observation tower, but to experience this wonder in all its glory, you have to go up into the air.
Overnight bus to Arequipa.
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| Day 4: Arrival in Arequipa. Beginning of the basic itinerary. |
daily program |
| In the mornig you will reach Arequipa. Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your local tour conductor who will transfer you to the hotel. Your breakfast will be served and the tour goes on with day two of the basic itinerary. |
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| B: Colca Canyon (Itinerary before the start of the basic itinerary) |
| Day 1: Arrival in Lima. Accommodation in Lima |
daily program |
| Upon arrival in Lima, you will be greeted by your local tour conductor, who will guide you to the modern area of Miraflores and will help you check into your hotel. |
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| Day 2: Flight to Arequipa, City Tour in Arequipa. Accommodation in Arequipa |
daily program |
Today, your destination is Arequipa. The country´s second city is nicknamed “the White city”, because of its precious colonial architecture, almost entirely built in white tuff or volcanic stone. The city is embedded in a beautiful landscape between the coast and the highlands, surrounded by the picturesque volcanoes Misti, Chachani and Picchu Picchu.
City tour in the afternoon. Arequipa is said to have the best preserved Spanish-influenced architecture. The cathedral and the Jesuit Church La Compañía are excellent examples, as well as the Santa Catalina monastery, a sixteenth century colonial jewel. The monastery is like a city within a city, with small alleys and several patios in Andalusia style. The guided tour of the monastery will help you to understand the austere religious life and habits of the sixteenth century. |
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| Day 3: Journey to the Colca Valley. Accommodation in a village in the Colca Valley |
daily program |
| Early in the morning, your journey will take you to the Colca Valley. The trip will take about five hours, but you will drive through a magnificent pampa grass landscape, where vicuñas, a rare member of the llama family, are often spotted. There are four different members in this family. Llamas and alpacas were tamed by men about 6300 years ago, but vicuñas and guanaco’s remained wild. In the Inca Empire, the fine, soft wool of the vicuñas was reserved for the King only. Anyone else caught clad in this wool would pay with his life. Don’t forget to pack binoculars! Your journey will take you through a rustic landscape that reminds one of the earth’s origins. Upon arrival, you will have the chance to indulge in a bath in the local hotsprings. |
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| Day 4: The Condor cross-journey to Arequipa. Accommodation in Arequipa |
daily program |
| Early in the morning, the coach will drive you to the Condor Cross, from where you can gaze into the enormous canyon, considered the deepest in the world. Here, you’ll want to take plenty of photos of the majestic flight of the condors. They often fly out of the crevices in the early hours, when the wind starts to warm up, and slowly circle higher and higher until they reach a height of several thousand meters. It’s just nice to enjoy the vast landscape of this place. We will stop at several lookouts on the way the Arequipa. The landscape is characterized by widespread cultivation terraces, that existed long before the Inca, (Collaguas and Cabanas-cultures) and are still used by farmers today. Along the way, you’ll also see some typical villages. We will drive into Arequipa in the late afternoon. The tour goes on with day two of the basic itinerary. |
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| C: Amazonas Tambopata (Itinerary from day 10 of the basic itinerary) |
| Day 10: Flight to Puerto Maldonado, boat trip to the lodge, excursions. Accommodation in jungle lodge |
daily program |
Today you will fly to Puerto Maldonado from Cusco or Lima. Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your local tour conductor. Your heavy luggage is safe in our local office. This way you can travel to the jungle ‘light’. The boat trip on the Madre de Dios takes about forty minutes. After lunch, you will have to make yourself at home in your bungalow. Then it will be time for our first jungle expedition, a three hour walk. You’ll marvel at the variety of tropical trees, medicinal plants, birds, insects and butterflies. At night, we depart on a Cayman safari, since alligators can best be observed after dark. After dinner, you’ll enjoy the sounds of the jungle. Try out a new nature game: find the Southern cross and other constellations of the Southern hemisphere.
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| Day 11: Excursions on foot and on a boat. Accommodation in jungle lodge |
daily program |
Today you’ll wake up bright and early (we’ll set the alarm clock!), so you won’t miss the parrots’ “breakfast”. Different parrot species eat mineral clay at the salt lick nearby our lodge. It will take us about 20 minutes to walk there. After this morning hike, your breakfast will be served. You then go on to visit Monkey Island. After a short boat journey, we will continue on foot. After about 5 km- hike through the Tambopata Candamo National Park, we’ll reach the shores of the Sandoval Lake, truly a little piece of heaven. Here, many different species live together; birds (hoatzins, kingfishers, cormorants) and monkeys (squirrel monkeys, howler monkeys, capuchins). If you’re lucky, you’ll also spot giant otters or anacondas. At the end of this fun day, dinner and a relaxing night await you at the lodge.
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| Day 12: Journey to Puerto Maldonado, Flight to Lima). Accommodation in Lima |
daily program |
| After breakfast, we will transfer you to the airport for your flight to Lima. Upon arrival, you will be greeted and accompanied to your hotel. You have the afternoon at your free disposal. |
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| Day 13: City Tour Lima, PM transfer to the airport |
daily program |
| AM: Flight from Cusco to Lima. Upon arrival, you will be greeted at the airport and depart on a city tour. The tour will take you to the colonial old town, and the modern area Miraflores. The colonial heart of the city lies in the Plaza Mayor, surrounded by the mighty cathedral, the Archbishop’s Palace and the Palace of Government. In the old town, many of the wooden balconies have been there since the time of the colonies. In the Cathedral, one can visit Francisco Pizarro`s tomb, conqueror and founder of Lima. The San Francisco Monastery is famous for its colonial library and catacombs. The underground catacombs are the site of thousands of bones and skeletons. After the city tour, you will be transferred to the airport for departure on your international flight. |
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