Day 1 Australia – LimaDepart Australia today for South America! On arrival you will be transferred to your hotel in Lima. Lima is a modern metropolis full of history, which has approximately ten million inhabi-tants and is going through an exciting process of cultural and economic changes.

Day 2 LimaMeals: BreakfastAfter breakfast, enjoy visiting the Main Square where Lima was first founded as ‘The City of Kings’ in 1535, and then as capital of the Republic of Peru in 1821, when the country be-came independent from the Spanish crown. See nearby the Presidential Palace and Lima Cathedral. Visit the Saint Francis Church, which has an enviable collection of old books and an authentic network of catacombs. Finish with sights of San Isidro streets, modern Miraflores and the Love Park, which shows a spectacular view of bay of Lima.

Day 3 Lima - Paracas – NascaMeals: BreakfastAfter an early breakfast, we have an early departure transfer to Cruz del Sur bus station where we board a bus to Paracas. The bus ride takes approximately 4 hours to Paracas. Upon ar-rival, board a speedboat to the Ballestas Islands. 45 minutes away from the coast of Paracas, the Ballestas Islands attract an impressive quantity of marine animals: chiefly seabirds and penguins, as well as large populations of seals, which swim and jump close to the boat. After we head to the bus station to continue our journey to Nasca (approx. 4 hours). Upon arrive you will be transferred to your hotel.

Day 4 Nasca – ArequipaMeals: BreakfastThis morning is either free time to relax or take an optional sightseeing flight over the famous Nasca Lines!Optional tour at own expense: Enjoy a special flight across the Nasca desert (subject to weather conditions). This area might be unnoticed on the map but it is famous throughout the world for its mysterious lines. A monkey, a spider, a humming bird, all of vast size, can only be seen from a light aircraft. Overfly more than twelve geoglyphs plus those recently discovered at Palpa.

Best of Peru Tour 14 Days

Afterwards we have a long but picturesque bus ride to Arequipa (approx. 9 hours). In 2000 Arequipa central core earned a well-deserved UNESCO World Heritage listing and the sight of the gigantic cathedral, with the ethereal image of 5825m El Misti rising behind it, is worth a visit alone. Upon arrival you will be transfer to the hotel in Arequipa.

Day 5 ArequipaMeals: BreakfastThis morning we start with a tour at Carmen Alto Scenic Viewpoint from where you will have a scenic view of the city. Stroll the exclusive and traditional Yanahuara district, crossed by small streets of cobblestones, which houses one of the most emblematic churches of the Cusco ‘mestizo’ art school, built in 1750. Then, continue to downtown to visit the Main Square, the Cathedral -built in the 17th century and fully rebuilt after several earthquakes- and the Monas-tery of Santa Catalina, which is an authentic medieval cloister built in 1579 and a small reli-gious citadel used to date.

Day 6 Arequipa – ColcaMeals: Breakfast, LunchToday we leave Arequipa via Yura, a district characterized by its rugged scenery, hills and ravines. Enter Pampa Cañahuas Reserve, an extensive plain where you can see vicuñas (the indigenous Andean camelid that is a national symbol). Then to Vizcachani, Pampas de Toccra and on to Mirador de los Andes at Patapampa (4800 masl) where the volcanoes surrounding Arequipa can be seen. Reach Colca by lunch time where we sample the local delicacies over lunch. After lunch, the rest of the afternoon is yours to explore.

Day 7 Colca – PunoMeals: Breakfast, LunchVisit the Cruz del Condor vantage point to see the Colca Valley, the second deepest canyon in the world, more than 4 kilometres at its deepest point! We then head to see a national sym-bol and truly astonishing sight: the great and majestic condor flying only a few meters away. On the way back to Chivay, pass through the villages of Pinchollo, Maca, Achoma and Yan-que. In the afternoon, we continue to Puno by taking the road to Patahuasi. After a brief stop at Lagunillas or Cabanillas, continue the magical tour of the Andean plateau, petrified forests, sky-blue lakes populated by white flamingoes drying their wings in the icy wind at more than 4000m. We stop for lunch along the way before arriving into Puno in the afternoon.

Day 8 PunoMeals: Breakfast, LunchToday we take a boat ride on Lake Titicaca to visit the most interesting and unique floating islands of the Uros. Uros are an ancestral society that inhabits a series of artificial islands built with totora, a reed that grows in the lake. The islands are built by weaving this reed in the places where they grow the thickest and form a natural layer. After a one and a half-hour boat trip we continue to the Taquile Island. Unlike other islands, inhabited by Aymara-speak-ing people, its residents speak Quechua. It was part of the Inca Empire and it is possible to note vestiges of said culture in their buildings. Nevertheless, when the Spaniards arrived, they forced its residents to get rid of their typical clothes and to wear traditional farmer clothes. A local expert will provide an explanation on the island and before we get to view a unique local custom.

Day 9 Puno – CuscoMeals: Breakfast, LunchThis morning we depart the hotel of the for the bus station. This bus ride is set to have a few interesting stops on route. Visit the town of Pucara and the Pucara Lithic Museum. Pucara was the first urban settlement on the highlands, a civilization that populated the area between 100 and 300 B.C. After a brief break at La Raya, the highest pass on our way to Cusco (at 4313m), the bus stops at Sicuani where lunch is enjoyed. We then head on to Raqchi an Inca site built in honor of Wiracocha, a powerful Andean God. The rectangular construction boasted thatched rooftops 20 meters above the ground, which are thought to be the highest in the New World. Later on, visit the Church of Andahuaylillas, known as the ‘Sixtine Chapel of the Americas’ due to the high quality art pieces it shelters. The church was built during the XVI century atop Wari remains and today it boasts a beautifully restored Colonial organ. Upon arrival you will be transferred to your hotel in Cusco.

Day 10 CuscoMeals: BreakfastToday we discover the Coricancha, also known as the ‘Temple of the Sun’. This construc-tion was used as a base for the construction of the Santo Domingo Convent upon the arrival of the Spaniards. This is where the Sun (Inti in Quechua) was worshipped during the Inca Empire. Visit the Cathedral, one of the most splendid Spanish colonial churches in America, which is shaped as a Latin Cross and houses about 400 colonial paintings from the Cusco

art school. Then, continue to Sacsayhuamán fortress. This complex was built with megalithic stone blocks, of which transportation and construction continue to be a mystery.

Day 11 Cusco - Machu Picchu – CuscoMeals: BreakfastToday is the day everyone has been waiting for! Start with a scenic train ride from Poroy sta-tion. It takes approximately three hours and a half to Aguas Calientes, also known as ‘Machu Picchu pueblo’. After a 30-minute bus ride, reach the UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the new seven wonders of the world, Machu Picchu, a masterpiece of engineering and architecture that served as a sanctuary and retreat for Inca Pachacutec. Machu Picchu, which means ‘Old Mountain’, was built in the 15th century and later abandoned, it’s renowned for its sophisticated dry-stone walls that fuse huge blocks without the use of mortar, intriguing build-ings that play on astronomical alignments, and panoramic views.

Day 12 Cusco – AustraliaMeals: BreakfastThis morning you will be transferred to Cusco airport for you onward flight.

Day 13: In flight

Day 14: AustraliaArrive home today.