Inca Trails of Cusco

Explore the markets and best hiking trails around the Cusco, Machu Picchu and Sacred valley regions of Peru. Hike a portion of the famed Inca Trail into Machu Picchu. This trip stays in local hotels & lodges every night, with an option to add extra days to explore Cusco on your own.

2009 Departure Dates: Every Friday from March through December

2009 Prices:

• $1650 per person based on double occupancy
• Single & triple occupancy rates available on request

Prices based on a minimum of two persons traveling together, staying in moderate 3 star hotels.  Upgrades available to high-end 3 star & 4 star hotels adds $250 per person.  Additional upgrades to deluxe 4 & 5 star hotels can be arranged & priced on request. .

** DUE TO RECENT TRAIL REGULATIONS, TO RESERVE SPACE ON THIS PROGRAM, WE MUST HAVE YOUR FULL PASSPORT NAME, PASSPORT #, BIRTH-DATE AND NATIONALITY ALONG WITH YOUR DEPOSIT TO REQUEST AND CONFIRM SPACE

Note: This tour is a suggested, customized itinerary that is very flexible. We can make changes in hotels, excursions and destinations to suit your travel dates, style and budget.

Itinerary

Day 1/Friday: On arrival to Lima, you will need to clear customs and immigration. As you exit the airport, you are met by our local representative, and assisted to the nearby airport hotel. Costa Sol Ramada.

Day 2/Saturday: Our local representative will meet you at your hotel this morning, and assist you with transfer to the domestic terminal, anc check-in formalities for your your flights to Cusco (cost of flights not included). Usual departure time is 9:30-10:0 AM, and it is an hour and a half flight to Cusco. On arrival, you will be met and transferred to your Cusco hotel. Morning fee to rest ad acclimatize to the 11,600’ elevation. In the afternoon enjoy a group tour of the city of Cusco, and the nearby ruins of Sacsayhuaman, Kenko and Tombomachay. Lunch and dinner on your own. Andenes de Saphi or Marani hotels. Upgraded hotel Casa Andina Plaza. (B)

Day 3/Sunday: Early morning drive of about an hour to Urcos, a colorful Andean market where traditional trading takes place. On the return drive you will visit the colonial church of Anadhuaylillas with its renowned frescoes, and the pre-incan site of Pikillacta. In the afternoon visit the Incan ruins of Tipon, located just below Mt. Pachatusan. This site is characterized by its water-fountains that flow along the terraced hillside. Lunch is included, and you will return to Cusco in the late afternoon. (B, L)

Day 4/Monday: A very early departure to the beginning of our hike either near Chinchero or Ccorao. A slow ascent brings us to the pass at Huchuy Qosqo, with a beautiful view of the peaks of Pitusiray and Sawasiray and the Urubamba Valley below. Descent to Huchuy Qosqo - where one of the few standing three story Inca buildings dominates the complex. Continue downhill until we arrive at the roadhead near the Sacred Valley of the Incas, where a vehicle will pick us up and transfer to our country inn. Hostal Tika Wasi or Albergue de Ollantaytambo. Upgraded Hotel Pakaritampu. (B, L)

Day 5/Tuesday:Visit Maras and Moray in the morning and walk through the salt mines to the river valley. Moray is an Incan construction in the shape of an amphitheater. It is said that the area was used to acclimatize plants and domesticate them. Maras is renowned for its colonial doorways, having been an important trading town for the open pit salt mines nearby. In the afternoon, visit the Incan fortress of Ollantaytambo and the Incan village of the same name. This is one of the few vestiges of Incan urban design that can still be appreciated. Picnic lunch and overnight at the same country inn, dinner on your own. (B, L)

Day 6/Wednesday:Morning transfer from your hotel to the train station at Ollantaytambo. Board the local train that will bring you to KM 104, where you begin your guided hike on the famed Inca Trail. Pass the Chachabamba ruins, and continue on a 3 hour ascent through highland grasses and small valleys to the spectacular ruins of Winay Wayna. From here you follow a winding trail through the cloud forest as it cuts across a ridge, bringing you to the Gate of the Sun, Intipunku. From here you have a magnificent view of your final destination, the citadel of Machu Picchu. Overnight at a local hotel in the town of Aguas Calientes. Hostal Machu Picchu. Upgraded Hotel Machu Picchu Inn. Dinner on your own. (B, L)

Day 7/Thursday:Early this morning you return to Machu Picchu to enjoy the solitude of the site before the tourist train arrives in the late morning. You will have a guided tour today of the ruins, followed by some free time to hike & photograph the area on your own. Return to the train station in Aguas Calientes in the afternoon for the return train/vehicle back to Cusco. Transfer to your hotel, with dinner on your own. (B)

Day 8/Friday:You will be transferred to the Cusco airport this morning for your flight to Lima. On arrival in Lima, you will be met and transferred to the Hotel Grand Faraona, located in the Miraflores district of Lima. Time to explore this up-scale suburb’s shops, museums & restaurants. Depending on your flight schedule, you will either be transferred to the airport late tonight for overnight return flights, or . (B)

Day 9/Saturday: Transfer to the Lima airport for your return flights to the US.

B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner

Note: Optional free day in Cusco on Day 8 (explore the markets, museums, shops & restaurants of this charming colonial city!) extends this trip to a 10 day program operating Friday-Sunday.

Trip Notes:

• Upgrades to high-end 3 star & 4 star hotels adds $250 per person.Additional upgrades to deluxe 4 & 5 star hotels can be arranged & priced on request.
• Includes transportation by vehicle and train, bilingual guides, breakfasts and lunch during full day excursions, lodging on double basis in comfortable country inns, and entrance fess to museums and archaeological sites visited during the journey
• Does not include lunches in the cities, dinners, alcoholic beverages, personal expenses such as tips, laundry, additional tours, telephone calls, insurance and airline tickets.
• Latin American Escapes, Inc. offers special contract airline rates to Latin America from most cities in the US, as well as special air-pass rates for tickets with-in Latin America.  Please ask for a quote based on your trip itinerary.
• This trip begins and ends in Lima, Peru, which can be reach by daily flights on a wide variety of airlines.
• This trip requires an addition of domestic flights Lima-Cusco and Cusco-Lima.Ticket prices average between $360 to $375 round-trip, and will be confirmed once we have your trip deposit.
• Minimum number of passengers required to operate this trip is 2.
• Arrangements can be made to extend your stay in Peru, Bolivia, the Amazon, Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands, or other parts of Latin America either before or after your group program.  Please contact our staff for suggestions and prices. For a short extension, we recommend a trip to Puno on Lake Titicaca, and a day of sea kayaking along the shore. A great cultural and scenic experience!

Extend your stay in Peru with our 4 day Taste of the Amazon package, or a more extensive or 6 day program to the Tambopata Research Center or the Manu Wildlife Center.

Prices start at just $450 per person-- Contact us for details-- 800-510-5999

To confirm reservations:

A deposit of $300 per person is required to confirm reservations. In addition, the following payment procedures apply:

Payment for airline tickets is due at the time tickets are issued, but no later than time of final payment.

Last Minute Bookings: Last minute reservations (less than 30 days before departure) will be accepted, subject to availability, if payment has been received, and documents can be delivered. Any special communication costs and delivery charges will be at the client's expense.

Revision Fee: Revision fees will apply once the initial deposit has been received. Charges will vary based on itinerary, and extent of changes, with a minimum charge of $50. Changes requested after documents have been issued (generally with-in 30 days) will incur a minimum $100 change fee, plus additional services requested.

International bookings: We gladly accept bookings from passengers outside the US. However, an additional surcharge of $50 per booking is applied to cover additional shipping charges.

CANCELLATIONS & REFUNDS--At the time we receive written notification that you must cancel your trip, money will be returned less the following cancellation fees:

Note Special restrictions apply to Peru departures:

Trip Documents: Trip documents will be forwarded approximately 3 weeks prior to travel, and once all payments and completed application forms have been received.

Risk and Responsibility

In arranging these trips, Latin American Escapes, Inc. acts only as the agents for the owners, contractors and suppliers actually providing tour services for these trips with whom Latin American Escapes, Inc. has no legal connection or joint ownership. These local tour operators attempt to conduct these trips as described in the preceding itineraries. However, it is possible that due to transportation schedule changes, weather, delays and unforeseeable acts of God, humans or nature, itineraries may vary from what is described. Participants are responsible for extra costs due to travel delay or itinerary changes for reasons beyond our control and assume all risks, whether identified in advance or unforeseen, as described under Limitation of Liability, and Trip Member Responsibility, located in our Terms and Conditions, which all travelers agree to sign. Traveler's insurance is not included, but is offered, and is strongly recommended. CST # 2023695-40.