Amazon & Machu Picchu Tours Highlights:

Our Amazon & Machu Picchu tours can be enjoyed at 3, 4 or 5-star level with everything tailor-made to suit you. You choose your lodges, hotels & visits.

  • Lima city tour, explore the “City of Kings”
  • Lima Pisco and Gastronomy experience
  • Two visits to the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu
  • Amazon Rainforest experience in a jungle lodge
  • Enjoy Imperial Cusco and the Sacred Valley of the Incas
  • Wide choice of hotel levels, train services, and tour options
  • Flexible dates, go and come back any day you like
  • Amazon & Machu Picchu – 10 days from US$ 2369 per person

The links below are examples of other destinations within Peru or around South America that can easily be added, feel free to ask us about combining more spectacular places.

Day 1 | Arrival in Lima “City of Kings”

Our Amazon and Machu Picchu tours start upon arrival at Lima airport where we welcome you to the chaotic but historic capital of Peru, one of the best culinary cities on the planet. We will transfer you in a private vehicle with a guide to your hotel in the Miraflores, Barranco or San Isidro areas of the “City of Kings”.

Depending on your arrival time we may be able to fit some visits in today but if not just enjoy the rest of the day as free time to wander the parks and browse the shops, and enjoy the world-renowned Peruvian food.

Day 2 | Lima City Tour | History & Gastronomy

Today you will be collected from your hotel for a tour of colonial and modern Lima. You will see Lima Cathedral and the convent of San Francisco, among other places of interest around the Plaza de Armas square. After lunch, (which we can arrange for you if you wish) you have a large number of options and could choose to visit a museum, such as the excellent Larco Herrera for example, the Gold Museum or the National Museum.

Peruvian Gastronomy Option: Many of our clients are enjoying adding this to their day in Lima, click the link to see all the details. If you book this within our package it will cost you less and we can fit it around the other visits you are enjoying today.

Days 3 & 4 | Activities in the Amazon Jungle

In the morning, we will transfer you to Lima airport for your flight to Puerto Maldonado, a flight of around two hours, which includes a quick set-down in Cuzco, where you do not get off the plane. You do get off in Cusco on the way back from the jungle!

Depending on your budget, we will advise you which Amazon Jungle lodge is best for you. We are very fond of the three lodges operated by Rainforest Expeditions; Posadas & Refugio Amazonas are “relatively” accessible and Tambopata Research Center (TRC) is found 7 hours upstream and deep in the jungle, and is an amazing travel experience.

The video shows the Master Suite room level at TRC – ideal for families

The Amazon is a unique environment and over the 3 days (or maybe 4 or even 5 days if you would like?) you will enjoy many excursions and educational activities. You will see the Amazon and some of its creatures up close and personal and enjoy being among primary rainforest, just walking among these ancient trees is a spiritual experience we feel.

Day 5 | Rainforest to Cusco, free time afternoon

After leaving the lodge in the early morning, we will transport you back down the river to Puerto Maldonado airport for your half-hour flight to Cuzco. The journey is an adventure in itself, with the sun coming up over the Amazon and animals and birds stirring.

Upon arrival in Cusco, we will meet you at the airport and transfer you in a private vehicle to your hotel with a guide to answer any questions. Whether you choose 3, 4 or 5-star hotels all of them are central, clean and comfortable with private bathrooms of course. Cusco is a lovely city to wander around, and you should take time to do this with what you have left of your day today.

Day 6 | Enjoy Cusco, Half-day City Tour

Cusco is the jewel in the crown of Peru and your time spent here will never be forgotten. In the morning (or perhaps the afternoon depending on your schedule) you will enjoy a Cusco city tour visiting the Inca fortress of Sacsayhuaman plus the three other smaller Inca ruins nearby; Cusco cathedral in the main square; and the most important temple of the Inca Empire, the Coricancha, the Inca temple of the sun.

Cusco is a lovely city to wander around and you should take time to do this when not being guided. Make sure to ask your guide for recommendations and in any case please walk around the San Blas district as it is lovely.

Video of Saqsaywaman Fortress + Perfect Inca Wall

Day 7 | Sacred Valley of the Incas

Our Machu Picchu tours include a Sacred Valley route that visits Chinchero, an ancient village where much of the original character and traditions have been maintained. We will often use this route on shared tours to avoid many of the crowds in the Pisaq area (Pisaq can be visited of course, but we use a different itinerary). Also, your tour to the Sacred Valley of the Incas includes a buffet lunch so you can recharge your batteries along the way.

Today’s first destination is Chinchero, a quaint little town that houses an important Inca archaeological center, built at the end of the 1400s, as well as a lovely and very traditional church. You will visit “Urpi” a famous textile center where the townsfolk have preserved the traditional Andean spinning and weaving techniques, they will also show you how they get the vivid natural colors for their fabrics.  On our way to Ollantaytambo, we will stop at the lookout point of Racchi, where we will have the chance to have some of the best views of the Sacred Valley, after that, lunch will be served in a local restaurant.

Afterward, we will visit Ollantaytambo, one of the most monumental architectural complexes of the ancient Inca Empire, one of the few places where the Spanish conquistadors lost a major battle.  Very well known for its “Andenes” (terraces dug into the slopes of mountains for agricultural purposes), Ollantaytambo was a highly effective fortress that also served as a temple. Then, we will continue to the adjacent town of Ollantaytambo, “the unique living Inca town”: the best surviving example of Inca city planning, with narrow cobblestone streets that have been continuously inhabited since the 13th century.

After your day out you will be dropped off at your Sacred Valley hotel.

Day 8 | Machu Picchu Tour | First Visit

You may have an early start to catch your chosen train to Machu Picchu which will be one of the services described in the link below. The advantage you have is that you have stayed in the valley overnight and therefore do not have to get up as early as you would in Cusco to catch the train and you have more time to play with later in the day.

A transfer will pick you up from your hotel and take you to the station. After the 90-minute train ride, you will be met in Aguas Calientes by your guide, you drop off your overnight bags at your hotel before taking the bus transfer up to the citadel to start one of our Machu Picchu tours. Here you will enjoy a tour of one of the most spectacular places on Earth with a local guide.

In the late afternoon, you will return to your chosen hotel in Aguas Calientes, the town that nestles in the valley below Machu Picchu.

Note: The option exists to return to Cusco the same day, but if you have the time, it is well worth staying over the see this incredible place the next day. If you prefer to stay right at the gate of Machu Picchu, and your budget will stand it, you could choose the Sanctuary Lodge, as its location cannot be beaten.

Day 9 | 2nd Day | Machu Picchu Tours

Today you will be able to re-visit Machu Picchu and enjoy this fabulous site at your leisure, without being guided. You may choose to climb Huayna Picchu, the peak that overlooks Machu Picchu (400 people per day and by prior appointment only), which affords fantastic views and photo opportunities. 

You may choose to grab something to eat near the site or down in the village below. Then in the late afternoon, you will board the train for your trip back to Cusco. You will leave the train at Ollantaytambo where you boarded, as you know this is a station before Cusco in the Sacred Valley, to then have a faster transfer by road back to your hotel in Cusco.

Day 10 | Depart Cusco, home or onward?

Sadly it is time to bid Peru farewell, or is it? We will transfer you to Cusco airport, where you will fly to Lima to connect with your international flight home, but perhaps you will want to continue exploring in Lake Titicaca or adding a Galapagos tour.

Included:

Hotels: We work with a wide range of hotels and lodges from 3-star, mid-range, through 4 stars, to high-end 5 star, luxury establishments. You choose and we quote, we custom design each tour to your budget. We deal with all transport from when you enter Latin America to when you leave. Transfers, trains, planes (unless specified in the “Not Included” section), buses, etc. Our “from” website prices are based on 3-star, twin share arrangements, and in the lowest season. Single supplements will vary by tour and season.

Guided Tours: You can choose private tours for just you and your traveling companions or take a tour with other people you don’t know. You can, of course, mix tour styles up during the same tour to suit your wishes, some private and some group.

Support & Backup: You will have 24 / 7 backup while on tour with us. We provide you with all the information and contacts you need and you will feel safe and very well taken care of.

Meals: This very much depends on the type of tour you choose, some places such as the Amazon jungle or Galapagos cruises are nearly always full board. Breakfasts are generally included, plus some lunches and evening meals in accordance with your specific schedule. More often than not we like to leave people to choose where to eat in the evenings as there is a wide range of great places to try.

Entrance Fees & Tickets: Where a particular tour is included in your itinerary the necessary entrance tickets or fees will also be included (unless local conditions dictate otherwise). Such tickets will be held by your local guide and presented to you at the correct time.

Not Included

Flights: We quote most domestic and international flights according to your specific program as prices vary greatly according to seasonal demand. We may be able to get special prices/discounts at some times and can pass these savings on to you. Your travel consultant will advise you and provide the flight costs with your tour program.

Many clients use miles to buy their flights and we just work those into the schedule, online booking engines like Kayak are also a great option.

Travel Insurance & Expenses: Personal expenses are not included and we advise that clients bring some cash and a credit/debit card to take funds from ATMs / pay directly. Travel insurance is considered mandatory under our terms and conditions, please ask your travel consultant for details.

Tips: Ask us for our advice regarding tipping as it varies by country and service.