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Abercrombie & Kent
OFFER ID 1515559
Tailor Made Peru: Machu Picchu & the Amazon
Travel with your private party on this Luxury Tailor Made Journey, departing when you choose and with expert local guides leading the way; you can even customize the itinerary to your interests.
Visit with the Quechua highlanders; take the scenic Vistadome train to mysterious Machu Picchu; and discover Cusco's Sacsayhuaman, ending your wide-ranging independent journey with a fascinating, three-day Amazon River cruise.
10 nights from $14,380 per person
Abercrombie & Kent: Tailor Made Peru: Machu Picchu & the Amazon
Day 1 Lima, Peru
Upon arrival at Lima International Airport, you are met and transferred to your hotel.
This afternoon, explore Peru’s capital, visiting the Plaza Mayor and Cathedral. Spend time exploring the Larco Herrera Museum, one of the city’s best museums for pre-Columbian artifacts.
Fly to Cusco, one-time capital of the Incan Empire, high in the Andes. En route, stop at an elegant local workshop to peruse their top-quality handmade textile goods, such as alpaca sweaters, gloves and hats. Also, view some Andean camelids (llamas, alpacas and vicuñas) up close. Proceed to your accommodations, where you relax and acclimatize to the altitude. Spend your afternoon at leisure, taking time to acclimatize.
Discover the lifestyle of the Quechua highlanders as you participate in their daily activities, and visit their kitchens to experience what’s being cooked upon wood-fired mud-brick stoves. You may also learn about local textile techniques and symbolism during a demonstration. Continue your immersive experience with seasonal activities, be it a village walk to learn about agricultural cycles; a visit to an adobe farmhouse to learn about locally produced supplies; household chores; or the breeding and care of guinea pigs. Visit Moray. Then, enjoy a freshly prepared lunch at the Kuychi Center, a school where underprivileged children of the Sacred Valley are provided education, nutrition, medical care and hope, as part of a project called Niños del Arco Iris (Children of the Rainbow), which is supported by Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy. Afterward, return to your hotel.
Board the Vistadome train bound for Machu Picchu, the crowning achievement of the Incan civilization. Upon arrival, enjoy lunch, and then explore the city's ruins, and feel its pulse as you visualize the lives of the priests, craftsmen and servants who inhabited this remote citadel. Overlooking the raging Urubamba River and discovered in a hidden tangle of vines and trees, the city of Machu Picchu will forever hold the secret of its purpose — the Incas left no written records.
Rise early for a walk through the misty ruins at sunrise, an experience some consider the spiritual highlight of the journey. Later, return to Ollantaytambo via the Vistadome train, and then proceed to your hotel.
Tour the city of Cusco, visiting the cathedral on the Plaza de Armas and the Santo Domingo Temple, built on the foundations of the Koricancha, the Incas’ principal religious structure. Next, travel just outside of Cusco to behold the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, an enduring testament to Incan architectural skills. Examine its colossal stone blocks, cut and fitted together with incredible precision and without a single drop of mortar to hold them in place. Spend your afternoon at leisure.
Fly to Iquitos, and then travel overland, through the Peruvian countryside, to your stylish accommodations. Enjoy lunch before setting off on a skiff excursion to the birthplace of the Amazon. This evening, board the ‘Aria Amazon’ and settle into your generously proportioned suite. Later, meet your naturalist guides, over dinner prepared by an executive chef from one of Lima’s top restaurants.
Head out at sunrise for a birdwatching session along the Amazon River. After breakfast, embark on a skiff excursion from the Amazon to one of its tributaries, Tahuayo. Learn about the region from your expert naturalist guides and go fishing for Amazonia’s notorious piranhas. As the sun sets, head out for an evening excursion in search of wildlife, capped off by a stargazing session.
Discover the magnificent black waters of Clavero Lake and pay a visit to the communities that live on its banks. Go kayaking, canoeing or swimming before returning to your vessel for a sumptuous lunch. This afternoon, head out for a short jungle walk in San Jose de Paranapura forest, to see its famous giant water lilies. Before dinner, meet the incredible crew who’ve been working behind the scenes to ensure your exceptional experience aboard Aqua Nera.
This morning, visit the local fresh market with your guides who can identify the day’s catch as well as the region’s exotic fruits. Afterward, bidding ‘Aqua Nera’ farewell, disembark and visit the Manatee Rescue Center, where rescued Amazonian manatees are rehabilitated and eventually released back into the wild. Next, visit a San Juan craft market en route to the airport for your departing flight.
All fares are quoted in US Dollars.
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