THE AMAZON, MACHU PICCHU & LAKE TITICACA

Day 1: Arrive at your hotel in Lima after your international flight from your home country!

Lima is a metropolitan city known for its colonial architecture and mouthwatering seafood and ceviche!

When your international flight arrives in Lima, look for your Saga host holding a sign with your name on it! We know you’ll most likely be a little tired after your long flight, so we’ll save you the stress of trying to navigate and bring you straight to your hotel adjacent to the airport where you can shake off that icky flight feeling with a shower and a sleep. Relax into the evening and enjoy a good night’s rest before your flight to Puerto Maldonado early in the morning!

Day 2: Fly to Puerto Maldonado and onto your Amazon Jungle Adventure!

The Tambopata jungle is home to a plethora of unique animals and great variety of plant life!

Your Saga host will take you to the airport early in the morning for your flight to Puerto Maldonado. Once you touch down there, you’ll be transported by boat to the Refugio Amazónas lodge in Tambopata for an Amazon luxury travel experience. Lunch will be served en route. After dinner as the sun sets, embark on a guided walk as the rainforest transforms itself into deep darkness. Armed with flashlights and headlamps, you will enter a world inhabited with animals, amphibians, reptiles, and insects that have adapted to life in the darkness. Tonight, fall asleep to a symphony of jungle sounds!

Day 3: A day enjoying jungle excursions, river otters, and canopy views!

The Oxbow Lake is home to a resident family of endangered Giant River Otters as well as other jungle creatures!

Early this morning, you and your guide will trek through the jungle past the hanging nests of Oropendola birds and fruit bats until you reach a tranquil jungle of waterways, the Oxbow Lake. What belies Oxbow Lake’s calm water and beautiful landscapes are wild creatures lurking just below the surface. Then hop on a traditional wooden canoe with your guide to spot for wildlife.  You will have a chance of seeing the Hoatzin, a bizarre, dinosaur-looking bird, along with troops of Squirrel Monkeys, rare Giant Otters, huge Caiman, and majestic Macaws flying overhead.

Bid “goodbye” to the otters and start hiking through the winding jungle trails as you marvel at the huge trunks of the rainforest before reaching the Canopy Observation Tower.  Here you and your guide will hike up the 25 meter Canopy Tower. Once on top, you will have a bird’s-eye view of the majestic forest stretching in every direction. You will also have a chance to spot for monkeys, Toucans, macaws, and other exotic jungle animals.

Day 4: A day enjoying jungle excursions: parrot and mammal clay licks!

So many jungle species flock to these clay licks for much needed nutrients in addition to some socializing.

At dawn this morning, you will have the opportunity to spot amazing tropical birds, while learning about a strange jungle diet. We will either take a 15-minute boat ride or a 60-minute walk through the jungle to a clay lick used by parrots and parakeets. Your guide will take you inside to a well-hidden viewing platform built from clay and thatch where you will have the opportunity to get a super close look at the 7 to 10 species of these birds as they descend to munch on nutrient-rich clay.  Researchers at the Macaw Project have studied these larger birds as they eat clay around the region and they believe that these animals eat the clay to supplement salt in their diet as they live far away from any ocean. Come and observe these tropical birds and decide for yourself.

In the afternoon, we will be talking a short walk to a small clay cliff that attracts dozens of species, especially mammals who come to eat on the salty clay. The most well-known of these mammals are the White-Lipped Peccaries. These are wild rainforest pigs that show up in herds of 5 to 25 individuals to eat clay in the late morning. Chances of spotting them are around 15%, but a well worth the short hike. Other wildlife also shows up including deer, guan and parakeets.

Return to the lodge for one final night in the Amazonian Jungle.

Day 5: Fly to Cusco, visit a wonderful local project that promotes sustainable weaving practices, and relax into the breathtaking Andean countryside

The Sacred Valley, lower in altitude than Cusco, offers gorgeous landscapes and a serene atmosphere.

After breakfast, we will bid goodbye to the Amazon jungle as the Refugio Amazonas team will escort you back to Puerto Maldonado, retracing your boat journey through the Amazon. They’ll bring you to the Puerto Maldonado airport for your flight to Cusco.  From Cusco, a guide will accompany you to the stunning Sacred Valley, whose bucolic farming and weaving towns – a few thousand feet lower in elevation than Cusco – are ideal for acclimatizing. On the way out there, stop at Awanakancha Living Museum. At this “living museum,” you’ll come face-to-face with some of South America’s most endearing inhabitants, including alpacas, llamas, vicuñas and guanacos, as well as learning about traditional weaving.

Day 6: Visit to Ollantaytambo’s iconic ruins and Pisac market

Ollantaytambo and Pisac are lovely Incan towns known for their awe-inspiring ruins, and artisanal wares.

Today, valley explorations begin. We’ll start in the ancient town of Ollantaytambo, where the centuries-old influence of the Incas is still very much visible: water from the mountains trickles down to the Inca-built street canals, while original Inca walls and trapezoidal doors are still found here.

With your guide by your side, ascend beyond the stepped, slope-side terraces to the ruins of a centuries-old fortress above town, where the Incas secured an important victory over the Spanish conquistadors. Inspect the intricately hewn stone constructions and have your guide show you the distant quarries from where the Incas sourced these huge stone blocks. This site also afford fabulous views of the valley and the Urubamba River that meanders through it.

From there, your exclusive tour of Peru will take you to another valley town – Pisac – where you’ll have the chance to rub shoulders with locals as you survey the artisan offerings of the market. Vegetables, textiles and silver jewelry are just some of the items that are sold here.

End the day with one more archaeological site visit, this time to the abandoned mountainside ruins of the original Inca Pisac village (Spanish conquerors built their village further down the hillside). From here, you’ll be able to see the verdant farmland where the Incas once cultivated their crops and where modern-day Quechua people continue to farm. Later, return to the hotel of your choice.

Day 7: Take a morning train through the cloud forest and visit the Machu Picchu Citadel!

Machu Picchu will take your breath away with its enigmatic and historical atmosphere.

Prepare for a climactic day! In the morning, we will board the train in Ollantaytambo for our journey to Machu Picchu. Watch the cloud jungle pass by through the large glass windows! Upon arrival to Aguas Calientes, we’ll tuck in to an early lunch in order to refuel before ascending to Peru’s lost citadel.

After a bus ride to the gates of this wonder of the world, you will pass through the main gates with your private guide to finally emerge at the top of the world – Machu Picchu. The incredible Inca stone construction will be spread below, alternately hidden and revealed by clouds. Your expert guide will give you a private tour of the ancient city.

Upon conclusion of your tour, return for an evening in Aguas Calientes. Enjoy an excellent dinner on-site at your hotel and fall into bed, lulled to sleep by the sound of the cloud forest around you.

Day 8: Hike one of the coveted, limited-entry hikes, Huayna Picchu!

Huayna Picchu, a not to miss experience while exploring Machu Picchu!

Today you have the option to hike two different trails – Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain, so it’s completely up to you on how you would like to culminate your Machu Picchu luxury tour. Feeling adventurous? Consider hiking the steep slope of neighboring Huayna Picchu, which offers unrivalled views over Machu Picchu. Please note that only a limited amount of hikers are allowed to climb Huayna Picchu each day and tickets will need to be purchased in advance along with your Machu Picchu entrance.

In the afternoon, reconvene in Aguas Calientes and board the return train to Ollantaytambo. Your Saga host will meet you at the station and bring you to your hotel for a well-deserved good night’s rest.

Day 9: Explore the inviting cobblestone streets of historical Cusco on a private city tour!

Tucked into the Andes Mountains, the city of Cusco lies at 11,150ft (3,300m) above sea level!

It’s time to get acquainted with Cusco, a gorgeous city that wins the heart of most every traveler that passes through it. Get to know the real Cusco during a private tour. After breakfast, meet your guide and wander among the archaeological remains of Sacsayhuaman, where the Incas staged a great battle against the conquistadors. Return to the city and roam the atmospheric streets of the bohemian neighborhood of San Blas, which is known for its free-spirited scene. Explore Qoricancha and the Santo Domingo monastery (a colonial structure built on top of the ancient Inca temple of the sun); see where the locals make their grocery runs at the open-air San Pedro market and pass the famous 12-angled stone, whose image appears on the bottle of the local Cusqueña beer.

At the end of the tour, your guide will suggest places to visit for lunch!

Day 10: Fly from Cusco to Juliaca to visit the famous Chullpas of Sillustani on your way to Puno

Puno is on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca and home to expert weavers, farmers, and as local folklore dictates, sirenas (mermaids).

This morning we will bring you to the Cusco airport for your flight to Juliaca, the jumping-off point for Lake Titicaca. From Juliaca airport, your guide will be meeting you as we begin our drive to the high plains of Peru. Your first stop will be the Lagoon of Umayo, where you will see ancient family tombs from the Colla Civilization called Chullpas of Sillustani. Finally, as we descend the hills into Puno, Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, will appear before you, filling the landscape to the horizon.

Day 11: Explore life on Lake Titicaca with your private guide

The name Titicaca comes from the indigenous language Aymara, and is the name for an ash-colored puma that used to inhabit this region and drink from its water.

Today, you’ll enjoy a guided private tour around Lake Titicaca. Travel by boat to the floating islands of Uros, home to an ancient community whose ancestral lineage stretched back to pre-Inca times. Thanks to their self-made reed islands, which require continual renovation, the Uros people have managed to preserve their unique way of life and survive not just the Incas and the Spanish, but also the threat of encroaching modernity.

Next, sail out to Taquile Island, whose residents are honored by UNESCO for their weaving skills. Eat a lunch prepared by the hospitable islanders, before returning to Puno for transfer to your hotel of choice.

Day 12: Tour the inspired streets of bohemian Barranco and bid farewell to Peru!

The Limeñan district of Barranco is home to Peru’s most influential artists, musicians, and cultural commentators.

Going home is the worst part of any private Peru vacation, but at Saga, we’ll do our best to make it as smooth and hassle-free as possible. First, we’ll bring you to Juliaca airport for your return flight to Lima. In Lima, a Saga host will meet you and take you to the seaside bohemian district of Barranco. See the streets of Barranco come alive as you visit a number of local art galleries and shops that support local artisans. Finally, enjoy a first-class gourmet meal featuring world-renowned Peruvian flavors in a restaurant of your choosing before returning to the airport for your journey home! Buen viaje!

Like the sound of this Amazon, Machu Picchu, and Lake Titicaca private tour? Get in touch with Saga and we’ll start crafting your very own customized private travel experience to Peru!

Notes: There are many other activities that can be added to the Amazon, Machu Picchu, and Lake Titicaca private tour, as our tours are entirely customized to your interests, hobbies, and expectations! Please note that Huayna Picchu has a limited entry quota per day and needs to be booked months in advance.

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An exemplary way for any adventure seeking traveler to experience the best of the region! This sample itinerary is just the way for you to get inspired.

Accommodations

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