In the Footsteps of the Incas
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Experience Overview
From the cloud forests of the Andes to the birthplace of the sun at Lake Titicaca, this journey through Peru's altiplanos and the famous floating Uros Islands traces the ancient past of the Incas. You'll visit with local weaver and corn farmers, filling your days with authentic connections and captivating culture.
Highlights
Dining Summary
- 3 Dinner (D)
- 10 Breakfast (B)
- 4 Lunch (L)
Must-see Highlights
- Explore Cusco, receive a special welcome from a Shaman in the Sacred Valley, learn to play the "cajón" in Lima
- Visit Ollantaytambo, Machu Picchu, Sacsayhuaman ruins, the Uros Islands, Cusco Cathedral, Qorikancha
- Scenic Cruise Cruise on Lake Titicaca, Drive through the Sacred Valley, Scenic Train Ride to Machu Picchu
- Scenic Drive through the Sacred Valley
- Scenic Train Ride to Machu Picchu aboard the Vistadome train
How You'll Travel
- Selected hotel dinners plus a locally hosted meal
- Standard regional accommodation
Iconic Experience
- Lima: Take in the highlights of Lima, the 'City of the Kings,' including a panoramic view of the ancient districts. Join a local specialist for a visit to the UNESCO-listed Historic Center. Learn how before it was destroyed by earthquakes in the mid-18th century, observing how the historic buildings display a collaboration between local craftspeople and others from the Old World. Then drive along the coastline as you learn more about the fascinating history of Peru's capital city.
- Lima: Dive into the rich history of Casona San Marcos, an ancient building in Lima now part of the property of a university. Learn to play the “cajón” (meaning “box” or drawer”) box-shaped percussion instrument played by slapping the faces with the hands, fingers, or sometimes implements. Continue your musical discovery trying the basic steps of “musica negra”, a dance that originated in Chincha (near Paracas) that is popular during over the Christmas season. Over your lesson, try a snack from a “pregonero”, a vendor who specializes in selling a typical snack through boisterous advertising in the city streets.
- Sacred Valley: We'll Dive into Culture and meet a Quechua Shaman who will perform a ceremony welcoming you to Peru.
- Machu Picchu: Discover how Peru’s most famous cocktail, the Pisco Sour, is prepared with a Local Specialist. You’ll explore the ingredients, techniques and secrets behind the drink, as well as its cultural importance in Peru.
- Cusco: Visit the mystical Incan stronghold of Ollantaytambo. These famous ruins are a massive Inca fortress made of large stone terraces stretching out across a hillside. Walk among the stone platforms, the sun temple of six monoliths and the Princess Baths fountain ― the Baño de la Nusta at the base of the ruins flowing from carved stone into a pool. Over your exploration, learn how the old town is an Inca-era grid of cobblestoned streets and adobe buildings.
- Machu Picchu: Soak in every moment of your Machu Picchu tour in style as you descend to the Lost City in the clouds aboard the Vistadome train. Traveling the Inca Trail, you’ll traverse dramatic landscapes with a panoramic view of the soaring peaks, river, and ruins. Sit back and relax as you enjoy this multi-sensory journey complete with background music, an informative audio commentary highlighting interesting sites, and an included light snack.
- Machu Picchu: Take a shuttle to the top of the mountain where you’ll meet your local specialist for a guided hike of Machu Picchu. You’ll learn about Machu Picchu’s history and the use of each section of including ceremonial, storage, agriculture, temples, astronomical, and observatory as well as the possible reasons why the Incas left Machu Picchu.
- Machu Picchu: The ruins of Machu Picchu beckon yet again and we enjoy one final opportunity to reconnect with its story. Journey to take in the ruins at sunrise spending some time on your own to explore the hill-top fortress. Soak in every moment at this iconic site, making stops at points of interest while your guide shares their insights on the archaeological sites.
- Cusco: Join your Local Specialist for a guided walk through Cusco's colonial center, including the nearby 13th-century Incan settlement of Koricancha. Here in Cusco’s Golden Temple of the Sun dedicated to the Sun God Inti, view the trapezoidal and irregular shapes and rounded edges. Note how the stones fit together and were built simply by placing them on top of each other without using any mortar. This staggered placement also enables them to withstand earthquakes.
- Cusco: Begin your day at the ruins of the UNESCO-listed Sacsayhuamán fortress overlooking Cusco. With zig zagging walls and ruins of giant stones, see how the shape and harmony of the landscape is similar to Machu Picchu. Stroll through this Incan architecture of sacred buildings such as residential buildings, towers, shrines, warehouses, roads and aqueducts. And while you may not be able to take in the grand scale, the complex design is based on the shape of the head of a puma, a sacred animal in Inca spirituality.
- Puno: Bring Peru’s culture to life as you decorate your own torito de Pucará – a colorful ceramic bull steeped in Andean tradition. Found on rooftops across the region, these painted icons symbolize protection and prosperity, offering a hands-on way to connect with local heritage through creativity.
- Lake Titicaca: Cruise the deep blue waters of Lake Titicaca with a Local Specialist, discovering its floating islands constructed from reeds by the Uros Indians.
Trafalgar Difference
- Sacred Valley: Admire your idyllic setting within the Sacred Valley and take in the 18th-century colonial-style features of Sonesta Posadas del Inca Yucay, a former monastery complete with plazas and cobbled streets.
Be My Guest
- Sacred Valley: Connect with Locals over a Be My Guest experience lunch, learn about the culture surrounding the production of Giant White Corn. Our hosts will demonstrate the differences between traditional farming techniques and the newer technologies used today.
MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®
- Lake Titicaca: Cruise across Lake Titicaca to Taquile Island, where you’ll meet Indigenous locals and explore their UNESCO-listed textile traditions. You’ll share a home-cooked lunch and see how the community’s weaving and knitting reflect cultural identity and status. Your visit directly supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities.
Trip Details
Product Code: 34590
Tour Type: Group Tour
Accommodation: Deluxe
Transport: Private
Guide Language: English
Travel Styles:
Explorer, Budget
Tour Operator:
Trafalgar (CA)
Supplier Code: 743.728B
Starts: Lima, Peru
Finishes: Lima, Peru
Duration: 11 days
Departures: Not Guaranteed
Physical Rating:
Easy
Includes
Whats Included
- An expert Travel Director and professional Driver
- Cherry-picked hotels, all tried and trusted
- All porterage and restaurant gratuities
- All hotel tips, charges and local taxes
- Breakfast daily and up to half of your evening meals
- Must-see sightseeing and surprise extras
- Audio headsets for flexible sightseeing
- Luxury air-conditioned coach with Wi-Fi in most countries or alternative transportation (such as rail journeys)
- Tickets for a ride aboard the Vistadome train to Machu Picchu
- A Trafalgar bonus all Intra-Air Flights: Lima to Cusco, Cusco to Juliaca and Juliaca to Lima, including porter service at all airports.
- Optional Experiences and free time
- On occasion, hotels of similar standard and location may be utilized.
- Amazon Rainforest: Discover the Amazon�s otherworldly realm of aguajales rainforest swampland during your MAKE TRAVEL MATTER� Experience and learn how vegetation has adapted to the exotic species that are drawn here.
Price
Price per person: (Double Occupancy) CAD $6573 ($598 /day)
Itinerary
The Capital of the New World extends a warm welcome on your epic voyage through the iconic and unexpected highlights of Peru. Meet your local host on arrival and transfer to your hotel in the upscale shopping district of Miraflores. This evening, you’ll join your Travel Director and fellow travelers for dinner.
Accommodation: SOUMA Lima, Vignette Collection
Meals: Dinner
Start your city tour taking in the highlights of Lima. Visit Casona San Marcos, where you’ll enjoy a snack from a local vendor and learn more about the fascinating history of this ancient building from Local Specialists. During a workshop, learn to play the “cajón” percussion instrument and get an introduction to the basic steps of “musica negra”, a dance that originated in Chincha (near Paracas). Continue to the Main Square of Lima for more views and history. You might like to spend some time exploring Miraflores on your own, perhaps heading towards Kennedy Park or dining at one of the restaurants in Pasaje de Ramón. Alternatively, join an Optional Experience walking tour with a Local Specialist to discover the area’s highlights, including the popular Larcomar shopping center.
Accommodation: SOUMA Lima, Vignette Collection
Meals: Breakfast
Board a morning flight to Cusco, the gateway to Peru's treasured Sacred Valley, where you'll enjoy a Peruvian lunch with sweeping views of the Sacred Valley. Then Dive into Culture and meet a Shaman who will perform a special ceremony welcoming you to Peru.
Accommodation: Sonesta Posadas del Inca Yucay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Enjoy a Be My Guest experience as you meet farmers who grow Peru’s iconic Giant White Corn. You’ll learn how their cultivation methods blend ancestral knowledge with modern innovation. Then watch a performance of the Marinera, a graceful couple’s dance that celebrates Peru’s Spanish, Indigenous and African heritage. With swirling handkerchiefs and elegant footwork, this is coastal culture in motion. Round out the day by rolling up your sleeves in a hands-on cooking class. Round out the day by learning how to shake up the perfect Pisco Sour with a Local Specialist.
Accommodation: Sonesta Posadas del Inca Yucay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Visit the mystical Incan stronghold of Ollantaytambo, en route to Machu Picchu, a village in the Sacred Valley, set on the Urubamba River amid majestic mountains. It's known for the Ollantaytambo ruins, a massive Inca fortress with large stone terraces on a hillside. Then, ascend to the Lost City in the Clouds aboard the Vistadome train (light snack included) traveling along the Inca Trail, where you can view hikers and porters along the way. Here you will delve into the mysteries of this once-great civilization, joining your Local Specialist for an exploration of the temples, palaces and terraces whose construction defy imagination.
Accommodation: El MaPi
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
The ruins of Machu Picchu beckon yet again and we enjoy one final opportunity to reconnect with its story, spending some time on our own to explore the hill-top fortress. Next, you’ll journey back to the Sacred Valley by train, stopping en route to Cusco learn about the natural dyeing techniques used by native weavers.
Accommodation: Sonqori Boutique Hotel
Meals: Breakfast
Begin your day in Cusco with your Local Specialist at the remarkable UNESCO-listed Incan fortress of Sacsayhuamán, then continue on a guided city tour. Visit Korikancha, once the most important temple in the Incan Empire. The afternoon is free to explore as you wish or to join one of several Optional Experiences — visit the Choco Museum, explore the Maras Salt Mines and Moray terraces, take a walking tour of Cusco after dark or enjoy a Peruvian cooking class to master classic local recipes.
Accommodation: Sonqori Boutique Hotel
Meals: Breakfast
Leave Cusco behind as you journey towards Puno, crossing the La Raya Pass where the Andes divide the Cusco and Puno regions. Along the way, explore the archaeological site of Raqchi, once a key settlement along the Inca road network. Enjoy a warm welcome into a local family home, where you’ll share lunch and stories. Then Dive into Culture with a traditional art form as you paint your own torito de Pucará: a colorful ceramic bull said to bring good fortune and protection. These iconic bulls are a symbol of strength in this part of Peru, often seen perched on rooftops in pairs, watching over homes and families.
Accommodation: Sonesta Posadas del Inca Puno
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Connect With Locals as you cruise the deep blue waters of Lake Titicaca, passing floating islands constructed by the Uros people. Next, in the midst of South America’s largest lake lies Taquile Island, where you’ll MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® and embark on a private tour to gain insights into the tradition of knitting and weaving for which the local villagers - men and women - are renowned. Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" by UNESCO. This experience aligns with UN's Global goal 10, reduced inequalities. Tonight, enjoy an evening at leisure.
Accommodation: Sonesta Posadas del Inca Puno
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
This morning, return to Lima, enjoying an afternoon at leisure after your flight. Enjoy time on your own to explore the capital of Peru, settled on the country's arid Pacific coast.
Accommodation: SOUMA Lima, Vignette Collection
Meals: Breakfast
For now it’s time to say a fond hasta luego to Lima and transfer to the airport for your flight home, or consider extending your stay in Lima.
Meals: Breakfast
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Tour Operator
Trafalgar (CA)
Family owned and run since 1920, The Travel Corporation (TTC) is the world leader in immersive travel experiences across an extensive range of travel categories. Each year TTC's 40 award winning hospitality and travel brands connect over 1 million happy travellers to the world. We give you access to the 12 DMC’s behind these brands, so you can build your business by capitalizing on the extensive experience, local expertise, and financial assurance of TTC. LOCAL EXPERTISE The world leaders in travel for over 100 years, we offer unparalleled local expertise with a global footprint. Our 12 DMCs, led by experienced in-destination teams, deliver experience rich travel solutions in more than 80 countries. Additionally, our market based teams are on hand to support across our 40 offices worldwide
In Business Since 1931
Reviews
Anonymous - Traveled, May 2025
to start our TD *Personal information removed by Feefo* was excellent, we have been on 9 such escorted trips before and he was as good at his job as another TD maybe even better our complaints are directed at Trafalagar itself in the way the tour was set up with too many early wake ups, two which were at 4am.with out a early hotel in the afternoon to catch up and relax it just got to the point where many other travelers made it quite clear they were worn out and may just need a vacation to get over this vacation this was our 4th Trafalagar tour and the only one that was a disappointment.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 06/07/2025
Shubha Shirali - Traveled, April 2025
It was awesome to see the iconic sights of Machu Picchu in Peru. But equally wonderful, was learning about the various indigenous people and their lifestyles in the present day, like the Quechua on Tequile Island and the Aymara people of the Uros floating islands in Lake Titicaca. It is amazing that there are so many World Heritage sites located in Peru. The high altitude and several early morning starts due to internal flights did make it difficult to keep up with the activities. It would be helpful to add an additional night in Sacred Valley and/or Puno and allow for a little more down time between activities to get used to the altitude. Overall, it was a great trip. The Travel Director, *Personal information removed by Feefo*, was excellent. She was very organized and detail-oriented, but very friendly and warm, which made for a very wonderful trip. It was awesome to see the iconic sights of Machu Picchu in Peru. But equally wonderful, was learning about the various indigenous people and their lifestyles in the present day, like the Quechua on Tequile Island and the Aymara people of the Uros floating islands in Lake Titicaca. It is amazing that there are so many World Heritage sites located in Peru. The high altitude and several early morning starts due to internal flights did make it difficult to keep up with the activities. It would be helpful to add an additional night in Sacred Valley and/or Puno and allow for a little more down time between activities to get used to the altitude. Overall, it was a great trip. The Travel Director, *Personal information removed by Feefo*, was excellent. She was very organized and detail-oriented, but very friendly and warm, which made for a very wonderful trip.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 05/06/2025
Cynthia Massmann - Traveled, March 2025
Very fast-paced and busy trip, but *Personal information removed by Feefo* (tour guide) made everything run smoothly. It was an amazing trip!
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 04/03/2025
Anonymous - Traveled, May 2024
Very interesting trip. Lots of unique facts. *Personal information removed by Feefo* was a great tour director. Main downside was not as "active" as we would have liked.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 06/17/2024
Christine Ishii - Traveled, June 2025
*Personal information removed by Feefo* is a magnificnt Tour Guide. We were "on the move" everyday and *Personal information removed by Feefo* was on top of every detail. His communication of the logistics of our trip as well as his commentary on the history and cullture of Peru, were excellent.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 06/26/2025
Anonymous - Traveled, May 2025
The flight from Cusco to juliaca was not as expected in the itinerary. Where is looked like a short flight (short travel day) it turned out being a longer than expected trip through Lima with a layover. Other than that, the tour was great and the tour director was even better. I can't praise*Personal information removed by Feefo* enough.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 06/10/2025
Tania - Traveled, August 2024
Everything about my trip was great. Our tour guide *Personal information removed by Feefo*was Excellent. He handled every detail superbly, he was extremely knowledgeable, and he genuinely cared and made sure everyone in the group was having a great trip. He is an Asset to Trafalgar. This was my first solo trip and I had a wonderful time. Thank you. Everything about my trip was great. Our tour guide *Personal information removed by Feefo* was Excellent. He handled every detail superbly, he was extremely knowledgeable, and he genuinely cared and made sure everyone in the group was having a great trip. He is an Asset to Trafalgar. This was my first solo trip and I had a wonderful time. Thank you.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/20/2024
Ming Wei Lee - Traveled, August 2024
The service was excellent. Our travel director, Luis, was amazing. He made it such as relaxing holiday by handling all the details. We had lovely drivers and local specialists, especially in Puno. The itinerary is jam packed with amazing sights and activities. The highlights were Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca, but everything else in between was also great. There are not too many optionals on this tour compared to other Trafalgar tours we have done, but it still feels like you have experienced a lot of Peru.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/17/2024
Anonymous - Traveled, October 2024
Very trustworthy. Airport transfers on time. They make sure you get to your destinations and won't leave without you. Quality hotels and great locations. The tour guides always walk you through the itinerary step by step, with a written copy. No worries vacation. Enough time at each location. Food extraordinary. People very friendly and they speak English fluently. Tour guides very helpful. When travelling from Cusco to Lima to Juliaca, must have both boarding passes handy. Also cannot enter Lima airport without a boarding pass.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 11/18/2024
Anonymous - Traveled, October 2024
Trafalgar offers the best experience with their included and optional tours. Covered the must see attractions of Peru. 2 days in Machu Picchu gave us enough time to explore the ruins and learn about it's history.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 11/04/2024
