From the Andes to the Caribbean: Peru and Colombia

This once in a lifetime trip takes you on a journey through varied and colorful Peru and Colombia, where you will encounter an epic fantasyland, with forgotten temples and imperial tombs entangled in jungle vines with ancient bejeweled treasures beyond reckoning and a beautiful and warm Caribbean country where the only risk is wanting to stay.

PERU

For 7 days you will explore this heroic land, concentrating on the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu, one of the new seven wonders of the world, and the Sacred Valley. Our local guides speak perfect English and will enchant you with stories of our legends as you become fully immersed in this long-lost great culture.

COLOMBIA

This tour will give you the opportunity to have an intimate encounter with Bogota, Colombia’s capital city and the spectacular city of Cartagena. After a city tour of Bogota, visiting some of the most important museums in the historic area and taking a cooking class, you will travel to the famous city of Cartagena, a place where every street, every colonial house and every brick of its centuries-old wall, tell a story of battles with pirates and corsairs, but also a tale of romance and passion by the Caribbean Sea.

From the Andes to the Caribbean, Cultural, Nature, Bogotá, Cartagena, Peru, Colombia, Ollantaytambo, Pisac, Rosario Islands, Sacred Valley, Sacsayhuaman, Sacred City of Machu Picchu, Machupicchu, Machu Picchu, Matchupitchu, Inca city, inka city, Aguas Calientes, Cusco, Cuzco, Qusco, Qosco, Qozco, Cosco, Macchu Picchu, Inca Empire, Inka Empire. Sacred Valley, Botero Museum, Zipaquira Salt Cathedral, Cartagena de Indias, Salsa, Incan architecture, Inca architecture, Moray, Maras, Maras Salt Mines, Chinchero, Chincheros, Huayna Picchu Mountain, Huayna Picchu, Cerro de Monserrate, Gold Museum, Castillo San Felipe, Islas del Rosario, Rosario islands, Salsa Class.

 


TOUR CATEGORY
  • Archaeological
  • Cultural
  • Nature

LOCATION
  • Bogotá
  • Cartagena
  • Colombia
  • Cusco
  • Machu Picchu
  • Ollantaytambo
  • Pisac
  • Rosario Islands
  • Sacred Valley
  • Sacsayhuaman

ACTIVITY LEVEL
  • Easy

DURATION
  • 13 days

WHEN TO GO
  • Year round

CUSCO

  • Wander the capital of the Inca Empire with your guide.
  • Take a horseback ride around archeological sites.
  • Learn how to cook some of the finest cuisine in the world with local chefs.

SACRED VALLEY

  • Enjoy the vibrant and colorful markets full of beautiful hand crafted clothing or souvenirs.
  • Walk through ancient salt pans and meet native weavers as they create beautiful rugs or traditional clothing.

MACCHU PICCHU

  • Enjoy a leisurely train ride to Machu Picchu and visit “The Lost City of the Incas”.
  • Climb Huayna Picchu or walk to the Sun Gate to sample breathtaking views of Machu Picchu and the surrounding area.

BOGOTÁ

  • Tour to some of the most iconic places in Bogota’s historic center.
  • Learn first-hand about Colombian cuisine having a personal cooking experience.
  • Admire the world’s largest collection of pre-Hispanic gold at the Gold Museum.
  • Visit the Botero Museum, Colombia’s most famous painter and sculptor.
  • Surprise yourself with the Zipaquira Salt Cathedral, unlike any other in the world

CARTAGENA

  • Fall in love with Cartagena de Indias, one of the most fascinating, romantic and beautiful colonial cities in Latin America.
  • Enjoy a day in the Islas del Rosario archipelago surrounded by coral reefs.
  • Have your first approach with one of the sexiest Latin dance, the Salsa!.

DAY 01 ARRIVE LIMA

After arriving Lima and clearing customs, walk across the sky bridge to the comfortable Wyndham Costa del Sol Hotel to check in for the evening.

DAY 02 FLY TO CUSCO - WALKING CITY TOUR

Breakfast

After the short flight to Cusco, take some time to relax and adjust to the altitude. Next, it’s time to take a private guided walking tour to see and experience Cusco first hand. Your perfect English-speaking guide will help you explore and discover the Inca capital. Wander through this city of terra-cotta roofs, cobblestone streets, and colorful markets and visit the stunning bohemian area of San Blas, meeting the locals and taking in some of the key sites in Cusco as well as some off the beaten track.

 

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DAY 03 CUSCO SURROUNDINGS

Breakfast

In a private guided visit, you will get to enjoy one of the best and most renowned examples of Incan architecture, Sacsahyuaman. For those looking for an active itinerary, horseback riding, mountain biking or even whitewater rafting can be arranged. The rest of the evening is free for you to relax, explore and shop with your private guide in this incredible cosmopolitan Inca capital also named as Navel of the World. Explore the nightlife in Cusco´s varied and exciting pubs where there is plenty of live folk music and good food to enjoy in a lively atmosphere.

MAKE IT DIFFERENT (OPTIONAL)

Love to Cook? Peruvian Cuisine is widely regarded one of the most delicious and diverse in the world. Our rustic kitchen set in the countryside of Cusco provides the perfect setting for your hands-on cooking lessons and demonstrations with our talented Peruvian chefs. Our products are bought from the local markets and providers, whom you will get to know during our market tour. You can also hand-pick some of your own ingredients from our very own on-site garden and greenhouse.

ASK OUR EXPERTS TO UPGRADE YOUR EXPERIENCE.

 

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DAY 04 SACRED VALLEY OF THE INCAS

Breakfast

This full day tour will take you through all the most famous and popular parts of the Sacred Valley. Its “Sacred” character (for which it was named) has survived the passage of time and that magic continues to amaze visitors today. Few places in the Inca Empire could compete against the beauty and wealth of this valley.

This private guided tour will become one of the highlights of your trip. Stopping in the famous and vibrant market of Pisac, take in the sights and sounds of this unique experience, test your bargaining skills and don’t forget to stock up on affordable souvenirs for friends and family!   You may also hike the amazing Pisac ruins located on a nearby mountaintop from where you will enjoy a breathtaking view of the valley including hundreds of famous Inca agricultural terraces.

There are a number of additional sites worth exploring on this day trip, including the unique terraced crop fields of Moray, the seldom visited town of Maras, the Maras Salt Mines which were extremely important to the Incas as their supply of salt and still provides salt today that you can buy for a few soles. As well as their historical importance, the Maras salt mines are also a beautiful sight to see. You may also enjoy a colorful textile demonstration based on ancient Inca techniques, visit the living Inca town of Chincheros with its unique colonial church that was built on the top of an Incan palace by the Spaniards, or stop at Awanakancha or Textile Palace, where you can meet native weavers and see South American camelid species, including llamas, alpacas, guanacos and vicuñas. You will stay overnight in one of the principal villages of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, Ollantaytambo or Ollanta (as the locals call it); a spectacularly beautiful place along the Urubamba River with a gorge lined by agricultural terraces and snowcapped peaks rising in the distance.

MAKE IT DIFFERENT (OPTIONAL)

We highly recommend having an extra day in the Sacred Valley. Many visitors without a lot of time on their hands almost race through the valley’s highlights and markets on a daylong guided tour. Seeing it this way is certainly a worthwhile experience, but it really doesn’t compare to experiencing everything the valley has to offer at a more leisurely pace that allows you an overnight stay or two in the valley and the chance to soak up the area’s immense history, relaxed character, stunning scenery, and in the dry season, gorgeous spring weather.

ASK OUR EXPERTS TO UPGRADE YOUR EXPERIENCE.

 

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DAY 05 OLLANTAYTAMBO RUINS AND TRAIN TO MACCHU PICCHU

Breakfast

The huge, steep terraces that guard Ollantaytambo’s spectacular Inca ruins mark one of the few places where the Spanish conquistadors lost a major battle. Early in the morning you will visit this formidable temple-fortress. A finely worked ceremonial center sits at the top of the terracing. Stone quarried from the mountainside 6km away, high above the opposite bank of the Río Urubamba was used to build surrounding walls at the time of the conquest, which were never completed. Transporting the huge stone blocks to the site was a stupendous feat. The Incas employed an ingenious technique to move massive blocks across the river by moving the blocks to the riverside and then diverting the entire river channel around them.

After this visit you will hop on board of one of the prettiest train rides in South America destined for Machu Picchu which sits majestically among the massive Andes, swathed in clouds. It was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height. Its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments.  The natural setting on the eastern slopes of the Andes encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna.

The “Lost City of the Incas” is one of the most spectacular sites on earth and a place that retains its mystery, allure and mystical appeal, despite its enormous popularity. Exploring the site remains a thrilling experience, especially at sunrise, when dramatic rays of light creep over the mountaintops. After a private guided tour, we then take a late afternoon bus to the town of Machu Picchu where you spend the night. Hit the bars along the railroad tracks to share stories with some of the backpackers who’ve survived the Inca Trail, or end your fantastic day soothing your muscles in the hot springs.

IMPORTANT TIP

If you do want to see the beautiful scenery and ancient buildings of Machu Picchu, book your trip early. The Peruvian government has placed a limit on the number of people allowed to hike the trails to the city per day. Be sure to book your tickets well in advance. The high season tends to book up quickly!

MAKE IT DIFFERENT (OPTIONAL)

Take the option of a full day Inca Trail or the 4 days trekking Inca Trail.

ASK OUR EXPERTS TO UPGRADE YOUR EXPERIENCE.

 

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DAY 06 MACCHU PICCHU FREE DAY TO EXPLORE AND BACK TO CUSCO

Breakast

Without doubt the best time to view Machu Picchu is at dawn before the crowds arrive on the train. You will be driven up to the ruins in time for the opening and savor the views and the atmosphere as the light changes as the sun rises. You have the rest of the morning to explore the ruins at your own pace and perhaps walk up the famous Inca Trail to the ‘Gateway of The Sun’ (Inti Punku) or hike the Huayna Picchu Mountain for the best view of Machu Picchu. During the afternoon you descend from the archeological site to the railway station, and embark on the afternoon train, which slowly winds its way through the Andean countryside to Ollantaytambo where you will be transferred to the vehicle for the drive back to your hotel in Cusco.

 

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DAY 07 FLY CUSCO - LIMA - BOGOTÁ

Breakfast

Transfer to the airport for your flight Cusco/Lima/Bogotá.

After arriving to Bogotá, we will transfer you to your hotel, where you can rest for the night and prepare for this wonderful Colombian adventure.

DAY 08 HISTORIC CITY TOUR OF BOGOTÁ

Breakfast and Lunch

Today you will have a day tour to some of the most iconic places in Bogota’s historic center. You will have the chance to admire the world’s largest collection of pre-Hispanic gold at the Gold Museum, and check the artistic work of Fernando Botero, Colombia’s most famous painter and sculptor at the Botero Museum. You will glimpse the diversity of architectural styles on display at the historic neighborhood of La Candelaria and you will capture spectacular panoramic views of the city from the top of Cerro de Monserrate.

Note: Gold Museum is closed on Mondays and Botero Museum is closed on Tuesdays.

DAY 09 COOKING CLASS AND VISIT TO SALT CATHEDRAL OF ZIPAQUIRA

Breakfast and Lunch

In the morning, you will have a cooking experience which will offer you the opportunity to learn first-hand about Colombian cuisine. First, you will shop for lunch at Plaza de Paloquemao, one of the largest and most popular markets in Bogota and will be amazed by the variety of fresh fruits and vegetables found there. Then, you will go to a famous cooking school to attend a class and learn to prepare a delicious Colombian dish.

After having a great lunch cooked by yourself, you will visit the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquira. The Cathedral is located 50km north of Bogota and was built within the tunnels of a salt mine. The cathedral is situated 180 meters underground and has three sections representing the birth, life and death of Jesus Christ. It is an amazing work of architecture and engineering.

DAY 10 FLIGHT BOGOTÁ / CARTAGENA - CITY TOUR

Breakfast

In the morning, you will be transferred to the airport for your flight to Cartagena. Upon arrival in Cartagena, transfer to your the hotel.

In the afternoon, you will have the opportunity to visit the old city and the iconic Castillo San Felipe, the largest and strongest fortress ever built by the Spaniards in any of their colonies. The Castle was built on top of the San Lazaro hill and defended the city from many attacks including a British siege in 1741. You will finish the tour at the famous Café del Mar to enjoy the sunset over the Caribbean Sea while having a refreshing cocktail.

DAY 11 DAY TRIP TO ISLAS DEL ROSARIO

Breakfast and lunch

Today, you will travel to Islas del Rosario where will be able to spend the day enjoying the beautiful sandy beaches and the crystalline turquoise waters. You will have time to relax at the beach or practice some aquatic sports like snorkelling or scuba diving.

DAY 12 DAY AT LEISURE - EVENING SALSA CLASS AND DINNER

Breakfast and dinner

You will have the day at leisure to carry on exploring the city own your own.

In the evening, you will go to a Salsa Class to have a good time learning one of the most popular rhythms in Colombia. After the Salsa class, your tour guide will take you to the place where you will be having dinner, then you will have the rest of the night on your own to return to the hotel or say goodbye to the magical city of Cartagena from the terrace of a bar or just strolling through its cobbled streets.

(*) Note: In case you prefer to do something different, you can do a romantic tour in a horse ride carriage instead.

DAY 13 FLIGHT CARTAGENA / BOGOTÁ AND INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT

Breakfast

At the time requested, we will transfer you to the airport for the flight Cartagena/Bogotá and connect with your international flight.

MAKE IT DIFFERENT (OPTIONAL)

Ask our experts about an extension to beautiful Lake Titicaca, the great Amazon, the mysterious Nazca lines in Peru or to Colombia’s Coffee region.

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