Inca Peru by Oasis Travel

    21 Day Example Itinerary

Arequipa Colca Canyon Tinajani Sacred valley Machu Picchu Cusco Waqrapukara

At Oasis Travel, we love remote destinations, unique experiences and beautiful boutique accommodation. So, with over 20 years of selling, researching, visiting and “living” Peru, here is our Oasis Travel Peru escape – the expert’s choice! Of course, the itinerary covers many of the key destinations such as Cusco, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and the Colca Canyon, but includes hotels, experiences and activities that brings the country to life and keeps the Oasis Travel bug burning brightly!

Itinerary Highlights

  • Luxuriate in beautiful boutique hotels & unique tented camps
  • Discover the beating heart of the Colca Canyon: condors, burial tombs & pre-Incan fortresses
  • Venture into the weird & wonderful landscapes of Tinajani
  • Follow the lost trails of Cusco, the Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu away from the crowds
  • Trek to the extraordinary Incan site of Waqrapukara

What’s included

  • Private tours for most included activities
  • Meet & greet airport service
  • Luxury or boutique accommodation at your chosen level
  • Expert guides in each destination
  • Travel by luxuy train

flexibility

This is an example itinerary. It is fully flexible; you can add or detract days and include hotels at your chosen budget. It departs daily.

20

Nights

Price Guide

$POA

Our quotes are bespoke for your customised trip. The prices displayed are indicative only, read more

Day 1

Arrive in lima

plan line
Days 2-3

lima – Markets, museums & Maido!

Lima will never be the highlight of your trip – unless you are a true foodie – but it offers an ever improving menu of museums, galleries and ancient sites to help you recover from your jetlag. Stay in Barranco at the Hotel B or Villa Barranco and spend a day pottering, enjoying a drink at a rooftop bar overlooking the ocean or a visit to one of the local museums such as the Pedro de Osma Museum or Museum of Contemporary Art. For your second day, forget the colonial centre and the interminable traffic and focus on ancient Peru such as the site of Huaca Pucllana (perhaps on a scenic bike tour) and the excellent Larco Herrera Museum or even the outstanding Enrico Poli Museum if you can get an appointment. Either way, no visit to Lima is complete without treating yourself to a food tour or a table at one of South America’s finest restaurants – Central or Maido would be our pick!

Days 4-5

Arequipa: juanita & Peru’s white Petra!

Fly to Arequipa and stay at either the Casa Natalia or Cirqa, 2 beautiful new boutique hotels within the charming historic centre. Arequipa is best explored on foot and highlights include the cathedral, the fascinating Santa Catalina Convent and the Andean Sanctuary Museum which holds the mummified remains of the ice maiden “Juanita” left as a sacrificial offering to the gods on nearby Mount Ampato. A second day in the city helps you acclimatise to the altitude and allows you to visit the unique landscapes of the Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve or take tour of the “Ruta del Sillar” quarries and workshops that provided (and shaped) Arequipa’s eye-catching volcanic architecture.

Days 6-8

Into the wilds of the Colca Canyon

Head into the Colca Canyon and stay at the wonderful Puqio, set amidst lush gardens overlooking the river just outside the small town of Yanque. Puqio is the first of its kind in the Colca Canyon, a deluxe all-inclusive safari-style tented camp that combines delicious farm-to-table Andean cuisine with unique excursions that reveal the history and traditions of the region. For walkers, hike from Coporaque to the pre-Inca site of Uyo Uyo via the extraordinary cliff-tombs of Yuraq QaQa or visit the stunning fortress of Chimpa. No visit is complete without Condor-spotting at the Cruz del Condor overlooking the dizzying rim of the canyon itself.

Day 9-11

Peru’s lost world – tinajani

Just south of Lake Titicaca, the Tinajani Canyon is Peru’s newest and most exciting destination, a vast area of towering sandstones monoliths and ancient landscapes sculptured over the millennia by wind and water erosion. Wild, remote and well off the beaten track yet at its heart you find the spectacular all-inclusive tented camp Tinajani, sister property to Puqio in the Colca Canyon. Here, based in safari-style lodgings surrounded by terracotta canyons and weird and wonderful rock formations, you can explore this wild region. Hike or bike past winding streams and ancient burial sites, enjoy spectacular vehicle safaris through the rugged highlands or visit lonely hamlets and workshops that maintain their traditional heritage. At the end of your stay, spend a night at Lake Titicaca in preparation for your onward journey.

Day 12-14

Off the beaten track in The Sacred Valley

Enjoy one of South America’s most scenic rail journeys as you cross the highlands to reach the Inca capital Cusco. Time and budget-allowing, you may like to treat yourself with Belmond’s Andean Explorer Sleeper Service. On arrival, continue into the Sacred Valley, bread-basket of the Inca and a picturesque area of markets, ruins and white-washed colonial towns at the foot of the magnificent Vilcabamba Mountains. A firm Oasis Travel favourite destination, the Sacred Valley has enough to keep you occupied for days or weeks if you are an Inca fanatic! If you are active, hike the wonderful Inca Trail from Chinchero to Urquillos or follow the breathtaking terraces from Pumamarca ruins through to Ollantaytambo town and fortress – both easy, downhill, half day walks. For foodies, treat yourself to a table at Mil Centro or Hacienda Sarapampa or enjoy a scenic e-bike ride alongside the Urubamba River. Or do nothing at all and enjoy some well-deserved R&R at the Rio Sagrado.

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Day 15

The lost incan city of Machu Picchu

Unmissable! Take the train through the glorious Vilcabamba mountains to reach Aguas Calientes and continue by bus up to the magical site of Machu Picchu for a guided tour. To recreate the golden age of travel, why not spoil yourself with the Hiram Bingham? Or better still in our eyes, challenge yourself with the stunning 1 Day Inca Trail, a hike that takes you high into the mountains to reach Machu Picchu via the famous sun-gate and the magnificent site of Wiñay Wayna. This would certainly be our pick!

Day 16-18

The hidden treasures of cusco

Enjoy a second visit to Machu Picchu and perhaps walk up to the Inca shrines of Machu Picchu Mountain or Huchuy Picchu or even the dizzying heights of Huayna Picchu for sweeping panoramic views of the Andes. Back on the train, return to Cusco and explore Peru’s most enigmatic city. As ever Cusco is brimming with inca ruins, galleries, markets, bars and restaurants. Visit the market, lose yourself amidst the narrow Inca alleys, browse the workshops of San Blas and head up to tour the mighty fortress of Sacsayhuaman. To escape the crowds, walk the lonely Inca pathway to Inkiltambo or the Temple of the Moon via the Balcon del Diablo. No visit is complete without a culinary tour and a chance to taste some of Peru’s finest dishes!

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Day 19-20

Waqrapukara – the horned incan fortress

The highlight – not Machu Picchu but Waqrapukara!!! Yes, really!!! If you could do one trek in Peru you might consider the Inca Trail or Salkantay or even Choqueiquirao. But as shorter treks go, this is no better route to explore Peru’s extraordinary history, beauty and vast landscapes. Wild, remote and staggeringly beautiful, the “horned” Inca temple of Waqrapukara stands watch over the vast Apurimac Canyon framed by jaw-dropping panoramic views. Accompanied by muleteers and expert guides, the hike itself is straight-forward as you follow an ancient Inca trail past aquamarine lakes, tumbling waterfalls and sweeping views of the Ausangate range to reach your camp high above the Apurimac right next to Waqrapukara itself. After a night under canvas, you visit the site as the sun rises and ignites the landscapes – simply mesmerising! But this is only the start. As you hike out, the trail sweeps across the shoulder of the mountains past ancient rock art and burial tombs. And just when you think the views couldn’t get any more magnificent, you turn another corner! A final night in Cusco after a hot shower and a celebratory meal gives you a chance to reflect on your trip and the best night sleep of the whole trip!

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Day 21

Return transfer to cusco airport for onward connections

A note on price

The prices outlined above are a rough guide to give you an idea of costs and enable you to budget for your trip.

Guide prices are generally for private arrangements based on twin share, in well located, good quality accommodation (excluding international flights).

Please note costs are indicative and may vary due to a number of factors such as; travel date, hotel choice, room category, number of people travelling and prevailing exchange rates.

Price Guide $POA

When to travel

jan feb mar apr may jun jul aug sep oct nov dec

The best time to visit Peru is during the dry season from April to November when there are bright sunny days and an average temperature of around 20° though dropping to just above zero at night due to the altitude. The Amazon is hot and sticky all year round though marginally more oppressive and wet between the months December and March.

Add on’s

For the complete Peru experience, head into the Amazon Rainforest and stay at the Tambopata Research Centre, the pick of the wildlife lodges in our eyes. In fact, stay a night on route at the Posada Amazonas and you can add Giant River Otters to your long wildlife list. Or embark on a unique overland Biotrip and you drop from the height of the Andes into the rainforest through countless microclimates and habitats.

Looking north, there are flights up to Chachapoyas, heartland of another of Peru’s lost civilisations where you can visit the vast site of Kuelap alongside burial tombs, towering waterfalls and giant sarcophogi.

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