Peru Family Journey: Machu Picchu to the Amazon

Welcome to Lima–your arrival transfer to the hotel is included. Check in and get excited to meet your fellow travelers during a welcome meeting this evening where all families can bond before the Journey ahead.

Included Experiences

• Airport Transfer: Sit back and relax during your included transfer from the airport in Lima to your joining hotel.
• Welcome Moment - Meet Your Expedition Leader and Group: Your opportunity to meet your National Geographic Expedition Leader and fellow travellers, and learn more about your tour. Opt to join the group for a local meal afterwards. Don't forget to see the notice in the lobby (or ask reception) for the official time and place to meet up with the group.

Optional Experiences

• Lima Cooking Class (4hrs): Get a taste of Peruvian cuisine, visit local markets, sample exotic fruit, select fresh ingredients, and try your hand at preparing unique Peruvian dishes influenced by China, Italy, West Africa, and Japan. Please note that if you are travelling with a family there is no age restriction on this activity and the cooking class is acceptable for children.
• Lima City Tour: Discover Lima’s cultural and culinary highlights on this half-day guided tour. Visit the Santo Domingo Monastery, walk around Plaza de Armas, marvel at the Bodega y Quadra Museum, and get to know some of Lima's lovely neighbourhoods. Stop to enjoy some authentic Peruvian tapas and be introduced to Pisco Sours during a demonstration and tasting.

Board an early flight to Cusco, the gateway to Peru's Inca heartland. Take in spectacular Andean scenery as we drive north into Urubamba Valley—also known as the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Arrive at Piuray Lake, an azure oasis framed by snowcapped peaks. Enjoy a lakeside lunch and soak up free time amid the mountain views. Continue to your hotel and settle in before dinner.

Included Experiences

• Plane: Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's... yup, it is a plane, actually.
• Piuray Lake Picnic: Make your first stop in the Andes to have a picnic lunch and take in the snow-capped mountains. Choose to relax after lunch, breathe in the fresh air or opt to go out for a kayak, explore on a stand-up paddleboard, or on a Expedition Leader-led walk to point out local flora and fauna.

Begin the day with a visit to a G Adventures–supported women’s weaving cooperative, where we’ll observe traditional weaving and dying techniques and meet some of the weavers. Next, test your Spanish skills as you bargain with vendors at the famed Pisac Market—a wonderland of colorful Quechua handicrafts. Break for a farm-to-table lunch at the G Adventures–supported Parwa Community Restaurant, tasting Peruvian dishes while learning how this resident-run restaurant helps fund community projects. In the afternoon, opt to relax at our hotel or visit the Inca ruins of Moray and the salt pans of Maras.

Included Experiences

• Ccaccaccollo Community and Women's Weaving Co-op visit: Visit the Ccaccaccollo community centre which G Adventures travellers' donations helped create in 2005, thereby enabling local women to sell traditional textiles to travellers. See local weaving and dyeing techniques used to create garments and souvenirs, and learn how the Planeterra weaving co-operative has impacted the community and those who visit it. This includes the purchase of alpacas to provide a steady supply of wool, looms, and sewing machines as well as several training courses on production, sales and small business management.
• Parwa Community Restaurant the Sacred Valley: Contribute to sustainable tourism in Huchuy Qosqo, a small village of 65 families in the Sacred Valley, by eating at the Parwa Community Restaurant. Learn how the resident-run restaurant was kickstarted by G Adventures and the Multilateral Investment Fund, to become a successful farm-to-table program that boosts the local economy and several spin-off microenterprises.

Optional Experiences

• Moray and Maras Salt Mines Excursion: Tour these unique Inca ruins consisting of circular terraces and a sophisticated irrigation system. Learn about the history of this fascinating site – speculation has it that it was an Inca agriculture experiment station. Visit the impressive Maras Salt Mines, after Moray. See thousands of individual ancient salt pools spilling over a hillside. Learn about the different varieties of salt, and try the renowned pink salt, famous worldwide.

Explore the former Inca stronghold of Ollantaytambo, stepping back in time amid ancient terraces, storehouses, and an enormous temple-fortress. Then hop aboard a train for the journey through the Urubamba Valley to the end of the line: Aguas Calientes, a frontier town nestled beneath Machu Picchu. The afternoon is free for optional excursions, including a visit to a butterfly farm or to the nearby hot springs.

Included Experiences

• Ollantaytambo Ruins Guided Tour: Tour the town and fortress of Ollantaytambo with a local guide. Take a step back in time at this Inca archaeological site; it still shows signs of its former glory, including agricultural terraces, a Temple Hill, and storehouses. Learn how the area, overlooking the Urubamba River Valley, was an important stronghold during warfare between the Spanish and Incas.
• Train: Climb aboard, take a seat, and enjoy the ride.
• Free Time: Enjoy free time to explore Aguas Calientes, opt to visit the hot springs for which the town was named or a nearby waterfall.

Optional Experiences

• Mandor Waterfall Hike: Head out on a nature walk to Mandor Waterfall. See how many different types of butterflies you can spot along the way. Enjoy the waterfall set in lush green jungle before returning to Aguas Calientes.
• Hot Springs Visit: Soak your sore muscles in the local hot springs for which the town, Aguas Calientes, was originally named.

Rise and shine! After a light breakfast, head to Machu Picchu to see the citadel in the early morning light, before the crowds arrive. Spend the morning exploring the ruins with our guides and pondering the mysteries of this “lost” city of the Inca, forgotten at the Spanish conquest and rediscovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham with support from National Geographic. This afternoon, return by train to Ollantaytambo and transfer to Cusco.

Included Experiences

• Local Bus: Climb aboard, grab a seat, and enjoy the ride.
• Machu Picchu Guided Tour: Set off with the local guide to explore Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas. Learn about the history and gain insights into this massive mountaintop citadel while wandering through ancient dwellings, stone temples and along sculpted terraces. Feel the energy of this 15th-century site, now both a UNESCO World Heritage site and voted one of the new Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide internet poll.
• Train: Climb aboard, take a seat, and enjoy the ride.

Set out to explore the beautiful streets and plazas of Cusco, once lavishly adorned with Inca gold that was stolen by the Spanish during the conquest. Visit the sprawling San Pedro Market, where you’ll find everything from pickled snakes to savory tamales, and visit the Machu Picchu Museum to see an array of Inca artifacts that were discovered at Machu Picchu. Later, enjoy a star-filled evening at the Cusco Planetarium, learning about the importance of astronomy to the ancient Inca and peering at the glittering night sky through high-powered telescopes.

Included Experiences

• Cusco City Tour: Set off on foot to explore the Plaza de Armas (main square) and discover the vast history of this Incan city. Take in the sights while learning about the Spanish conquest, archaeology, and other historical facts about Cusco. Finally, wander the food and shop stalls in San Pedro Market where all of your senses will come to life. Pick up some souvenirs, from magnets to Pachamama dolls, and try local street fares like salchipapas (fried sausages and potatoes), or empanadas at this authentically Peruvian market.
• Machu Picchu Museum Visit: Get an in-depth look at Inca history and learn more about Hiram Bingham, the American archaeologist and explorer that discovered Machu Picchu. The museum holds the largest collection of Inca artifacts excavated from Machu Picchu. Your guide will point out items of interest so you walk away feeling like an explorer yourself.
• Free Time: Enjoy free time to explore opt to visit museums, participate in a chocolate workshop, or people watch in a café on the main square.
• Cusco Planetarium: Look to the night sky for a different view of the city. Explore the Cusco Planetarium surrounded by the serene nature of the Llaullipata Ecological Reserve. Enjoy a presentation on the southern sky, contemporary astronomy, and the ancient Incas’ relationship with the cosmos. Check out the on-site museum and use the telescopes to admire the stars (weather-permitting).

Optional Experiences

• Cusco city tour with Sacsaywayman: Head out to the Sacsayhuamán Ruins to explore this fascinating site. As with many ancient sites, while the origin is uncertain, most believe these ruins were an important military or ceremonial site during the time of the Inca.
• Chocolate Making Workshop: Get familiar with cacao, learn how it grows, how it’s harvested, how it gets made into chocolate, and its importance to the Inca. After, make your own chocolates to take home with you and enjoy a delicious souvenir.

Today, we set out to discover a wilder side of Peru! Catch a morning flight to Puerto Maldonado, then continue by motorized canoe along the Tambopata River to our jungle lodge in the Amazon rainforest. Have lunch on board the boat and keep an eye out for wildlife and birds along the way. Upon arrival, settle into your thatched lodging, situated near Tambopata National Reserve—a biodiversity hotspot. In the afternoon, join a naturalist guide to seek out the wildlife of the rainforest—from colorful butterflies to huge spiders—and learn the uses for medicinal and other forest plant resources through traditional techniques. En route, spot bird species typical of the local river and forest edge. The Tambopata Rainforest area holds the world record for the most bird sightings in one area. Local community members make up the majority of lodge staff, including multilingual naturalist guides. Take the opportunity to learn about the area’s rich flora and fauna and locals' extensive use of medicinal plants and other forest plant resources. The lodge itself combines local architectural style and materials with low-impact, eco-friendly technology. Rooms are simple but comfortable, with mosquito netting for individual beds, flush toilets, and showers (with solar-heated hot water). Please bring a small battery powered lantern or flashlight.

Included Experiences

• Plane: Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's... yup, it is a plane, actually.
• Motorized Canoe: Climb in and move swiftly through the water to the next stop.
• Wildlife-spotting Night Walk: Get the lowdown on local flora and fauna, and grab a flashlight to discover what’s living around lodge grounds. Receive help from the talented, expert naturalist guide to locate heaps of hidden creatures! Keep an eye out for snakes, tarantulas, owls, and poison dart frogs, just to name a few.

Grab your binoculars and head out with naturalist guides to explore the rainforest’s complex ecosystems. Search the forest canopy where colorful toucans, boisterous howler monkeys, and sloths may be spotted. Hike to an oxbow lake, and paddle dugout canoes to glimpse river otters, turtles, and, if we’re lucky, an anaconda or two! This evening we’ll venture out in a motorized canoe to spot the jungle’s elusive nocturnal species. If we're lucky we'll spot caimans, the smaller cousins of alligators, hiding along the muddy banks.

Included Experiences

• Jungle Excursions: Enjoy visits to oxbow lakes to learn about the jungle and its inhabitants. Be introduced to the area’s rich flora and fauna by expert naturalist guides, who can teach extensive uses for medicinal and other forest plant resources through traditional techniques. Be prepared to go early morning or evening to avoid the heat of midday. Enjoy a leisurely pace – the trip requires some walking, but nothing too strenuous.
• Free Time: Take time to relax during the mid-day heat or go for a swim in the river.
• Caiman-Spotting Cruise: Head out after dark by motorized canoe to search for caimans on the river banks. Enjoy a lesson on caimans from the expert guide. Take advantage of the keen eyes of the expert naturalist guides – they are truly spectacular at spotting these elusive smaller cousins of alligators hiding on the muddy banks.

Enjoy a final breakfast at our lodge, then board a motorized canoe and return upriver to Puerto Maldonado. Fly to Lima and check in to our hotel. This evening, celebrate our adventure at the farewell dinner.

Included Experiences

• Motorized Canoe: Climb in and move swiftly through the water to the next stop.
• Plane: Take a van from the pier to pick up stored luggage before heading to the Puerto Maldonado airport. A private vehicle will be waiting to take the group to the Lima hotel.

Depart at any time.