Day 3 Sunday - Lima / Iquitos / Ceiba Tops
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to the airport for your flight to Iquitos. Reception at the airport, brief city orientation and transfer to the Explorama dock. Twenty-five mile journey down the Amazon River to Ceiba Tops, where rooms with air conditioning and private bathrooms provide the comforts of home in the rainforest. Afternoon hike in the beautiful primary rainforest reserve surrounding the lodge which includes many huge trees festooned with epiphytes. After dinner there may be local flute or guitar music at the El Toucan Bar or the guides are always ready to relate some of the many legends of the Amazon forest. Overnight Ceiba Tops. (B,L,D)

Day 4 Monday - Ceiba Tops
Morning boat ride, spotting for dolphins, to visit a small village of Yagua Indians where your guide will explain the local Yagua Indian culture and how it was affected by the arrival of Europeans and the passing of time. There will also be an opportunity to see some of the local crafts and for a demonstration of the blowgun which some of the Yagua elders still use for hunting. Afternoon walking excursion to the neighboring town of Indiana. Originally a Franciscan mission, Indiana has grown into a large river community with its own market, high school and small hospital. Overnight Ceiba Tops. (B,L,D)

Day 5 Tuesday - Ceiba Tops / Iquitos / Lima
Your choice of morning walking or boating excursion to further enjoy the rainforest and Amazon River. Afternoon transfer to Iquitos and to the airport. Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you in transferring to the hotel and help you in registering. (B)

Day 6 Wednesday - Lima / Ica
Breakfast at your hotel. Nazca Lines 2 Day Excursion with Overnight in Ica, Locally Hosted - Today you'll travel by bus (Cruz del Sur) along the Peruvian coast to Ica (a four hour ride). Upon arrival in Ica a local host will transfer you to the airport for a flight over the Nazca Lines. Are they merely huge figures or could they be extraterrestrial landing fields? Lunch is included. After lunch visit the Archaeological Museum of Ica. Dinner is included. (B,L,D)

Day 7 Thursday - Ica / Paracas / Lima
Breakfast at your hotel. Ballestas Islands Excursion - Early morning you'll take a yacht ride to the Ballestas Islands passing the Candelabro. These islands, also known as the Guano Islands, have large concentrations of sea birds and sea lions in their natural environment. Lunch is included. Evening arrival in Lima. (B,L)

Day 8 Friday - Lima / Arequipa
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to the airport for your flight to Arequipa. Upon arrival at the airport a host will meet and assist you in transferring to the hotel and help you in registering. Arequipa City Tour and Santa Catalina Convent - Your half day sightseeing of this beautiful city, placed on the World Cultural Heritage list by UNESCO, features Mixed Baroque churches and mansions from the Colonial Period like the Monastery of Santa Catalina, called "a city within a city", a Spanish city in miniature with stone streets, beautiful patios, and plaza. It is a masterpiece of colonial architecture, and houses some of the finest examples of Spanish American religious art. Since 1970 visitors have been able to stroll through the streets and cloisters that during colonial times were the refuge of female nobility who had decided to shut themselves away from the world and dedicate entirely to prayer. (B)

Day 9 Saturday - Arequipa / Colca Canyon
Breakfast at your hotel. Early departure towards the highlands passing through Yura-Pampa Cañahuas and La Pulpera with good possibility of observing groups of wild vicuñas and fighting cattle. Stop en route to see petrogliphs in the Caves of Mollepunco and in the town of Callali to see natural hill formations with the appearance of enchanted castles. Continue to La Calera to enjoy the thermal baths under the stars. (B,L,D)

Day 10 Sunday - Colca Canyon / Puno
Breakfast at your hotel. To maximize your probability of seeing condors we depart very early towards the "Cross of the Condor" at about an altitude of 15,000 feet, which grants visitors spectacular views of condors wheeling across the Colca Canyon, the world's deepest. Drive a little further in to the canyon to see some pre-Inca ruins, pre-Inca burial grounds, to watch the way of life in this remote land and to admire the impressive irrigation system and the fertile mountains terraced for farming of the Colca valley. The afternoon ride to Puno features unique natural scenery of the Peruvian Highlands. (B,L)

Day 11 Monday - Puno
Breakfast at your hotel. Visit to the Uros Indian and Taquile Island at Lake Titikaka - This full day excursion will take you to the highest navigable lake in the world, to visit the floating islands of the Uros Indians, considered themselves Lords of the Lake, and they were convinced they had black blood because they did not feel the cold of the lake and the winter. Continuing to Taquile where a native community of about 400 families still lives with the traditions of the XIV century that respect the principals of an Incan way life. Taquile is a very important site on Lake Titikaka for its a archeological remains, the sacred and ceremonial sites, the festive activities, their rituals and for the daily life of the inhabitants which is dedicated to farming, textile production and fishing. (B,L)

Day 12 Tuesday - Puno / Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Bus journey through the Peruvian Andes from Puno - Today one of South America's most extraordinary overland trips takes you by bus to Cusco passing through striking highland scenery and picturesque Andean villages. Upon your arrival in Cusco, the former capital of the Inca Empire, a host will meet and assist you in transferring to the hotel and help you to register. (B,L)

Day 13 Wednesday - Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Free morning. Tour of Cusco and its Ruins - This afternoon's tour of the oldest continuously inhabited city in the western hemisphere includes important landmarks of enchanting Cusco and also the nearby ruins of Kenko, Puca-pucara, Tambomachay as well as the Sacsayhuaman fortress. Once the center of the Inca civilization, modern Cusco is a delightful combination of Inca and colonial architecture. During the tour, you will visit Cusco's Cathedral, Santo Domingo Church and the Plaza de Armas. (B)

Day 14 Thursday - Cusco / Sacred Valley / Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Full Day Excursion to the Pisac Indian Market and the Ollantaytambo Fortress (Daily) -Morning departure for a drive through the fertile countryside to the colonial village of Pisac. During your visit to the bustling marketplace you will have the opportunity to bargain with the natives for many different types of Peruvian handicrafts and jewelry. After lunch the tour continues to the village of Ollantaytambo for a visit to its impressive Incan fortress. In the afternoon return to Cusco. (B,L)

Day 15 Friday - Cusco / Machu Picchu / Cusco
Breakfast at your hotel. Full Day Excursion to Machu Picchu - Early wake up for a train ride through the sacred valley of Urubamba to the "Lost City of the Incas," Machu Picchu. Perched 8,200 feet above the valley, it was hidden by mountains and semi-tropical jungles for 400 years until discovered by Hiram Bingham of Yale University in 1911. Archaeologists believe that the Inca "Virgins of the Sun" took refuge from the Spanish Conquistadors here. Guided tour of the ruins upon arrival. All transfers are included. Lunch is at the Orient Express' Sanctuary Lodge located just a few steps from the Inca citadel. Afternoon return to Cusco. (B,L)

Day 16 Saturday - Cusco / Lima / Home
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer from hotel to the airport for your flight to Lima and then take your connecting flight to home. (B)

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