Inca & Amazon Adventure Family Holiday

Welcome to Cuzco, set high amid the altiplano! As the imperial city of the Incas, it was the centre of a vast empire which, at its peak, stretched from Colombia to Chile. After Spanish conquistadors invaded, they built on top of Inca structures, resulting in unique architecture, a fusion of the Spanish colonial and Inca styles.

Take it easy on arrival in Cuzco and drink plenty of water to help your body adjust to the altitude (11,155ft/3,400m). There is a noticeboard in the hotel reception with details of where and when the group welcome briefing will be held. After, we have a walking orientation tour to preview some of the historic sites in Cuzco. Stay: MamaSara Hotel (or similar).

The next two days have been left free for exploring Cuzco, one of the most beautiful cities in South America. The Plaza de Armas is a fantastic spot for people watching and the Qorikancha Sun Temple, in the Santo Domingo church and monastery, is worth a visit. The Mercado San Pedro is the place to try local produce and there are many handicraft markets to shop for souvenirs, such as alpaca jumpers and scarves. Outside the town are more Inca ruins, notably the fortress of Sacsayhuaman where the Inca armies made their last stand against the Conquistadores.

Cuzco is also the gateway to the Sacred Valley of the Incas and, if you wish to visit the sites, your leader can organise an excursion, which includes Pisac Market (optional). If you would like something more active, there is an array of other optional activities available. These include a cookery lesson, paddleboarding on Lake Piuray, mountain biking in the Sacred Valley between Maras and Moray, or a combination of via ferrata and zip-lining in the Sacred Valley. For some activities, a minimum number of participants is required.

On your last evening in Cuzco, there is a trek briefing. You also need to pack and weigh your kitbag ready for the Inca Trail the following day (the weight limit is 15lb/7kg per person for your kitbag) – remember to keep your passport somewhere accessible. Stay: MamaSara Hotel (or similar) (B).

The classic Inca Trail is a tangential branch part of a 27,960mi (45,000km) road network linking the whole empire to Cuzco. It was built in the 15th century to reach Machu Picchu but was abandoned soon after the Spanish conquest. Early this morning, we transfer (1hr 30min) from Cuzco into the Sacred Valley. Reaching the town of Ollantaytambo, we drive for one hour along the final stretch of road to the start of the Inca Trail at Piscacucho, recognized among adventurers as Km82.

After greeting our trekking crew, we show our passports at the checkpoint and begin the fabled Inca Trail trek. Our route today runs alongside the Vilcanota River, beneath the snow-capped peak of Nevado Veronica, passing through cactus gardens and settlements, until we reach the terraced Inca ruins of Llactapata, where we continue up the Cusichaca Valley to camp near the village of Huayllabamba (9,186ft/2,800m). Walk profile: Approximately 7mi (11km), six to seven hours Stay: Huayllabamba Camp (full-service camping) Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.

The morning begins, as all do on our Inca Trail trek, with a hot drink delivered to your tent. Today's journey is both challenging and rewarding, marking the most demanding and best-known stretch of the trail. A slow and steady climb takes us through a cloud forest to the meadows of Llulluchapampa, then we summit Dead Woman's (Warmihuañusca) Pass, the highest point on the trek at 13,829ft (4,215m).

After a well-deserved round of high fives and photos at the summit, we begin our steep descent on original Inca steps to reach our campsite in the scenic valley of the Pacaymayu River (11,811ft/3,600m). Warm up in the dining tent with a hot, fresh meal followed by a well-deserved sleep under the Andean night sky. Walk profile: Approximately 6mi (10km), six to seven hours Stay: Pacaymayu Camp (full-service camping) Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.

After a hearty breakfast, we start the day with a climb, which takes us past the ruins of Runquracay and over the Runquracay Pass (12,894ft/3,930m), our second and final pass. From here, the Inca Trail becomes a clearly defined rolling path of flat boulders, providing access to sites only available to those on foot. One of the standout archeological sites we visit is Sayacmarca (11,893/3,625m), perched high above the green cloud forest. From here, we enjoy views of Salkantay mountain as we hike to our spectacular campsite on the ridge above the Inca site of Phuyupatamarca (12,073ft/3,680m), where we can enjoy the sunset and sunrise. Walk profile: Approximately 7. 5mi (12km), five to six hours Stay: Phuyupatamarca Camp (full-service camping) Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.

Classic Inca Trail: Walk down Inca steps to Wiñay Wayna and Machu Picchu via the Sun Gate From Phuyupatamarca, we take the famous Inca steps: a 1. 2mi (2km) stone staircase that rapidly descends into an immense panorama, with the peaks of the Vilcabamba range above and the Vilcanota River far below. Reaching Wiñay Wayna, we have plenty of time to explore these beautiful ruins and eat lunch before continuing along a relatively flat section of the trail (by Inca standards, through cloud forest and wild orchids to finally reach Inti Punku (the Sun Gate).

From here, we get our first full sight of Machu Picchu, with the Huayna Picchu mountain rising behind… congratulations, you made it! Inti Punku is traditionally busy with photo-taking trekkers in the morning, so our late afternoon arrival affords us unobstructed views of the magnificent ruins. We also get a chance to snap some classic photos of Machu Picchu before we take the 30-minute bus down to the town of Aguas Calientes for a shower and comfortable bed for the night. We are reunited with those who have been on the Lares Trek or One-Day Inca Trail Option at the hotel this afternoon. Walk profile: Approximately 5. 5mi (9km), six to seven hours Stay: Terraza de Luna (or similar) Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch.

Well-rested and refreshed, we return to Machu Picchu this morning for our guided tour. Machu Picchu is an architectural and engineering marvel, the staggering mountain backdrop making it even more dramatic. The Spaniards never found it, the Incas left no records of it, and so Machu Picchu remained an enigma, a city lost for centuries in the jungle until it was rediscovered in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Your guided tour highlights the history, culture, architecture and mysteries that Machu Picchu still holds today.

This afternoon, we catch the train back to Ollantaytambo (1hr 30min) and continue by private bus to Cuzco (1hr 30min). Stay: MamaSara Hotel (or similar) (B).

Today has been left free to relax after the trek or explore Cuzco further. Your leader can help to arrange optional excursions and activities – please see the Optional Activities section of the Trip Notes for more details. Stay: MamaSara Hotel (or similar) (B).

We leave Cuzco early today as we take a short flight to Puerto Maldonado (due to poor flight availability, on some departures, this flight connects through Lima and is considerably longer), a small town in the rainforest.

On arrival, we transfer to the dock for a boat trip (approximately 45 minutes) to our lodge in the Tambopata Reserve. On the way, we may see river turtles and a wide variety of birdlife. The order of activities in the rainforest may change depending on the weather and other factors. However, there is a briefing upon arrival at the lodge followed by the chance to learn about the traditional use of bow and arrows – and even have a go! After dinner, we travel by boat in search of river alligators, using torches (flashlights) to look for the red reflections of their eyes on the riverbank, as well as looking for other nocturnal animals. Stay: Nape Lodge (or similar) (B/L/D).

The next two days are spent exploring the forest, rivers and lakes surrounding the lodge, on foot and by boat. Although a lot of the wildlife tends to hide in the dense foliage, we can expect to see a wide variety of birds, including herons and egrets, jacanas, macaws and the prehistoric-looking hoatzin, as well as several species of monkey, reptiles and insects, and (with luck) the giant otters that live in the rivers of the Amazon Basin.

We visit Tres Chimbadas Lake, where we hope to see a great variety of wild fauna such as monkeys, macaws, black alligators, flying parrots and, if we are lucky, river otters. We also visit a parrot clay lick where, at dawn, different types of parrots and other bird species meet. We go on a night walk in search of insects, amphibians, tarantulas, bats, nocturnal birds and large nocturnal mammals. Stay: Nape Lodge (or similar) (B/L/D).

A dawn start is required for the boat transfer back to Puerto Maldonado, giving memorable views of sunrise over the river. Look out for the early morning wildlife, which is particularly active at this time. Howler monkeys are frequently heard as they stake out their territories. The adventure ends at Puerto Maldonado airport, where we say goodbye to our leader and take a short flight to Lima. A local representative transfers us to our hotel for the night. Stay: Hotel El Tambo 1 (or similar) (B).

Our adventure ends after breakfast this morning. If you'd like more time to explore, speak to your sales representative about extending your stay (B).