Incas & Amazon 15 days in Peru

Fantastic, value for money, small group adventure to Peru!

Travel with us to Peru for 15 days. You'll be staying at small hotels/guesthouses and using a variety of local transport, from coaches, trains, planes and hiking on foot.

Adventure activities abound (all optional!) including white water rafting, flying over the Nazca Lines, dune buggying and sand boarding in the desert.

In short, this trip will give you a unique opportunity to experience the authentic Latin American lifestyle.

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Itinerary / Highlights

Day 1
The capital of Peru, Lima is a city of contrasts. Here you'll encounter both abundant wealth and grinding poverty, modern skyscrapers next to some of the finest museums and historical monuments in Latin America. You will have a free day to explore its many museums, markets and colonial plazas.

Day 2
Our first stop, south of Lima, on the Peru overland travel adventure is at the Ballestas Islands in the Paracas National Reserve. Here we take a boat trip to view one of the most important marine reserves in the world with the highest concentration of rare and exotic sea birds and sea mammals.

Day 3
An hours drive inland in the heart of the Ica Desert is Peru's main wine centre. Here we visit the Tacama winery, originally a Jesuit run Bodega it now produces export quality wines as well as Peru's national drink, Pisco. After our own tasting session we continue a few kilometres to the nearby Oasis of Huacachina. A palm fringed lake surrounded by impressive sand dunes, you can relax on the beach, go for a swim and then if its an adrenaline rush you're after head out with your Tour Leader on a custom made dune buggy and roar across the desert sands to the top of enormous dunes and then sand board down them - imagine snowboarding but on sand instead! Tonight, after an unforgettable desert sunset, we sit around the campfire while our guides cook up a storm, followed by a night sleeping out under the stars.

Day 4
Travel to Peru is not complete without a trip to one of the world's greatest archaeological mysteries - the Nazca Lines. Only discovered 70 years ago from the air, these huge figures carved into the desert floor are best viewed by light aircraft. Thought to have been made by three different civilisations going back more than 2000 years, there are many contrasting theories about what they signify and why they are there, it is worthwhile asking local opinion - you may well be surprised with the replies, this will undoubtedly be one of the best experiences on your Peru travel adventure! Also memorable is a visit to Chauchilla Cemetery with its well-preserved mummies. Leaving the Atacama Desert we begin to climb into the Andes mountain range towards Arequipa.

Days 5 to 8
Four days are dedicated to exploring this beautiful colonial city and the spectacular surrounding area. Continuing as always with our theme of adventure travel, Peru offers many options to go white water rafting, cycling, trekking, horse riding as well as a visit to the Colca Canyon, which at 900m is not only one of the deepest in the world but also the home of the majestic Condors. Here you can view the condors circling lazily in the thermals rising from the canyon floor.

Days 9 & 10
A short flight over the dramatic Andes Mountains takes us to Cuzco, the outdoors capital of Peru and our base for the next 7 days. A mecca for adventure travel, Peru's famous Inca Trail begins near this city. Although Cuzco is today a colonial city most of its churches and museums are built on top of original Inca stonewalls which are clearly visible. We include a day tour of the beautiful Urubamba or Sacred Valley of the Incas where you'll find temples, terraces, local communities and markets and finally our comforatble campsite at km82, the start of the Inca Trail!

Days 11 to 14
In the Urubamba Valley we begin our 4 day hike along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. This moderate to strenuous hike is a once in a lifetime experience and anyone with a good level of fitness can master it. A stunning combination of awesome views, Inca ruins, magnificent mountains and exotic adventure. There are also the options to undertake either a shorter hike travelling by train part of the way to the ruins, or to take one of three alternative treks, the Salkantay, Lares or Vilcabamba. Our route back to Cuzco for all options is by train.

Day 15
A free day in Cuzco to relax and recover as well as explore more of the city and its museums and churches or look for local crafts from Alpaca woollen jumpers to musical instruments.

Today, those on the 15 days' adventure trip of Peru will board the plane to Lima where the trip ends on arrival. Should you like to stay in Lima an extra night please let us know and we can arrange accommodation for you.

Extend your 15 day trip with a 4 day visit to the lush jungle of the Amazon basin! - see our 19 day Peru Encompassed for details.
Alternatively you can continue to La Paz - see our 21 and 27 day Peru and Bolivia Explorer

Other Details

Accommodation Details

2 & 3 Star hotel accommodation, 1 night desert camping, 3 nights camping on Inca Trail.