8-Day Essential Machu Picchu to Amazon Adventure

Want to see the best of Cusco and the Sacred Valley but avoid the crowds? This is how to do it. We swapped the order around so that you visit places when they are at their quietest.

First, we visit the huge megalithic walls of Sacsayhuaman, featuring some of the largest monoliths in the area, and holding mysteries that experts still can’t solve.

After you will journey 30 minutes down into the valley, into the small market town of Pisac. Barter with local artisans for handicrafts, munch on an empanada fresh from the town oven and take in the colorfully dressed locals before heading up to the extensive ruin site of Pisac.

Once you have filled your camera with photos, your brain with information, and your lungs with fresh mountain air drive back down to the valley and check into your hotel for the night.

Overnight in The Sacred Valley

Includes: Breakfast, lunch, snacks, water, entrance fees, hotel

Drive high above the Sacred Valley through patchwork farmlands to the gleaming white, pre-Inca Maras salt-pans. The next stop is the concentric ruins of Moray, where you can speculate with your guide their exact use.

Following a dirt road only used by locals, continue on to the old Inca town of Ollantaytambo where you enjoy a special Pachamanca lunch on an organic farm. A Pachamanca is a traditional way of preparing food in the Andes. In the absence of a stove and oven is built out of stones, the stones are heated with a wood fire and once brought to a very high temperature. The meat and vegetables are then carefully covered with the rocks. Herbs are then added and the whole mound is covered by wet sheets and finally a mound of earth.

While the meal is cooking, you will be shown around this farm, working on sustainable methods to provide food for their onsite Café. After 45 minutes the meal is ready and we have the pleasure of digging our delicious potatoes, yams, corn, fava beans, lamb, pork, alpaca, and chicken straight from the earth. Followed by our signature digestif Matacuy, made from their on-site distillery, where you can learn about the liquor Caña Alta.

Finally, it’s time to board your train ride for the ninety-minute journey, along the river to the town of Machu Picchu where you will sleep for the night.

Overnight in Machu Picchu town

Includes: Breakfast, lunch, snacks, water, entrance fees, hotel

For many, Machu Picchu is the very reason you come to Peru. So we thought hard how to make it extra special.

We board a morning bus for the twenty-minute ride to the entrance to Machu Picchu. From here your guide will take you around the ancient ruins explaining their history and functionality.

Sit down for a nice lunch at the Belmond Sanctuary Lodge hotel where you can sample a selection of classic Peruvian dishes.

Finally, you ride the bus down the mountain to take one of the great train journeys of the world the train back along the river Urubamba, followed by a private transfer back to your Cusco hotel.

Overnight in Cusco hotel

Includes: Breakfast, lunch, snacks, water, AM Machu Picchu Entrance, hotel

Optional: For those wanting extra time exploring the site, upon request, we can add an additional afternoon entrance and tour.

In the morning you will be picked up and at the appropriate hour, privately transferred to the Cusco airport for your 40-minute flight to Puerto Maldonado, a small city in the Amazon basin.

As your flight lands, look at the canopy below…you can almost see it breathing and fully understand why they call The Amazon “the earth’s lungs”.

Upon arrival, you will be picked up by a representative of your lodge, where a short drive will take you to their check-in area before continuing your journey. Following a 1-hour drive by bus and a 2.5-hour boat ride in a motorized canoe, you will arrive to your lodge.

This afternoon you can join a three to five-kilometer hike that leads to sweeping views of the Tambopata winding its way into the lowlands. The forest on this trail, regenerating on the old bamboo forest, is good for spotting various species of monkeys such as the Howler Monkey and Dusky Titi Monkey. In the evening, you will have the option to take a night hike, when most of the mammals are active and can be seen with the help of your guide.

Overnight in Jungle Lodge

Includes:  Land and river transport, small group jungle tours with English speaking guide, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, water, and lodging.

The jungle tours will be arranged depending on the weather. On clear mornings, we recommend starting with one of the largest Macaw clay licks are known (as featured in National Geographic). Followed by a 5 Km monkey hike, and a trip to an island upriver to become acquainted with the local birds.

The day ends, with a night lecture, for an in-depth look at the biology of Macaws, their feed habits, theories for clay licks used in their feeding and feeding ecology.

Overnight in Jungle Lodge

Includes: All land and river transport, small group jungle tours with English speaking guide, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, water, and lodging.

Stepping carefully over the winding “highways” of peaceful leaf-cutter ants, the Rainforest Master Hike will leave you with unforgettable memories and a profound sense of accomplishment. Due to their years of local experience, our Tambopata Research Center guides know everything about the forest. They’ll spot the tiniest bird hiding in the canopy, the most elusive monkey, and the most spectacular plant life.

Twilight descends early in the jungle. Under the thick tree cover of the rainforest, darkness falls quickly, when the light cannot slip through the foliage any longer. Now, as the afternoon slips into the evening, you’re about to see one of the world’s most spectacular sunsets. The Sunset Cruise floats down the wide river, countless oranges and pinks reflecting off the water in lovely patterns.

Overnight in Jungle Lodge

Includes:  All land and river transport, small group jungle tours with English speaking guide, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, water, and lodging.

In the morning you will take a 2.5-hour canoe ride back to the river port, where you will catch a 1-hour bus ride back to the airport of Puerto Maldonado, to check-in for your flight back to Lima. Upon arrival to Lima, your services can either continue upon request or you can check-in for your international flight back home.

Optional: Upon request, we can include additional tours in Lima, Lake Titicaca, or Colca Canyon.

Includes: Breakfast, all transfers back to Puerto Maldonado airport