Cusco & Inca Trail holiday, tailormade
| country: | Peru |
| location: | Inca Trail, Machu Picchu |
| trip type: | Strenuous trekking holidays |
| departures: | This trip can be arranged at a time to suit you (except for January to March) |
| price: | From £1500 (9 days) including domestic flights only, as per itinerary, based on 2 travelling. We can arrange flights from the UK. In order to put together a detailed response it would be very helpful if you could provide full details in your enquiry as listed below |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
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introduction to Cusco & Inca Trail holiday, tailormade
Set in high Andean mountains at 3320m, Cusco is an attractive town which draws people from all over the world. Built on the foundations of an Inca city, you can still see intricate Inca masonry and buildings as you walk through the town. The huge cathedral dominates the main square which is also flanked by many shops selling alpaca jumpers, jewellery and many other crafts, textiles and artworks.
It is the favourite city of most visitors to Peru, as the mixture of ancient history, traditional Andean culture and a relaxed atmosphere makes it a charming place to stay for a few days. Take time to visit the important Inca sites of Koricancha, and nearby Sacsayhuaman, Qenko and Tambomachay.
Part of the Urubamba Valley , close to Cusco , was known as the Sacred Valley to the Incas due to its beauty and great fertility. Today the valley not only has a number of important Inca sites like the fortress at Ollantaytambo, but also has some of the best village markets where you can get a glimpse of what life is like nowadays for the Andean villagers.
The Inca Trail is one of the most famous treks in the world, and follows an ancient Inca pathway that originally ran from Cusco to the 'lost city'. Today's trailhead is some distance from Cusco, and the walk takes three to four days at a gentle pace to reach Machu Picchu. It is a moderately challenging trek which reaches an altitude of 4200m at the highest pass, but achievable by anyone of reasonable fitness, given some time to acclimatise to the altitude (we recommend preferably at least 2 days).
During the trek you camp each night in tents, and your camp staff provide you with good meals each day. There will be porters to carry the luggage and camping equipment, and an archaeological guide to explain about the various ruins you pass on the way, and of course Machu Picchu too.
The spectacular scenery is ever-changing as you move from the lower forests to high altitute grasslands and misty cloud forests. You pass several Inca fortresses along the way (Llactapata, Runkurakay, Sayamarca, Phuyupatamarca, and Winay Wayna), and there are often awe-inspiring views across the snow-capped peaks of nearby mountains. Walking the trail can make your arrival at Machu Picchu even more spectacular and gives you a great sense of achievement.
It is the favourite city of most visitors to Peru, as the mixture of ancient history, traditional Andean culture and a relaxed atmosphere makes it a charming place to stay for a few days. Take time to visit the important Inca sites of Koricancha, and nearby Sacsayhuaman, Qenko and Tambomachay.
Part of the Urubamba Valley , close to Cusco , was known as the Sacred Valley to the Incas due to its beauty and great fertility. Today the valley not only has a number of important Inca sites like the fortress at Ollantaytambo, but also has some of the best village markets where you can get a glimpse of what life is like nowadays for the Andean villagers.
The Inca Trail is one of the most famous treks in the world, and follows an ancient Inca pathway that originally ran from Cusco to the 'lost city'. Today's trailhead is some distance from Cusco, and the walk takes three to four days at a gentle pace to reach Machu Picchu. It is a moderately challenging trek which reaches an altitude of 4200m at the highest pass, but achievable by anyone of reasonable fitness, given some time to acclimatise to the altitude (we recommend preferably at least 2 days).
During the trek you camp each night in tents, and your camp staff provide you with good meals each day. There will be porters to carry the luggage and camping equipment, and an archaeological guide to explain about the various ruins you pass on the way, and of course Machu Picchu too.
The spectacular scenery is ever-changing as you move from the lower forests to high altitute grasslands and misty cloud forests. You pass several Inca fortresses along the way (Llactapata, Runkurakay, Sayamarca, Phuyupatamarca, and Winay Wayna), and there are often awe-inspiring views across the snow-capped peaks of nearby mountains. Walking the trail can make your arrival at Machu Picchu even more spectacular and gives you a great sense of achievement.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | (FRI): Fly to Lima . Transfer to hotel. |
| Day 2: | Fly to Cusco. Free day in Cusco to acclimatise. (B) |
| Day 3: | Visit Pisac market then hike from Moray to the Sacred Valley. (B,L) |
| Day 4-6: | Inca Trail. (FB) |
| Day 7: | Reach Machu Picchu. Explore, then return to Cusco by train. (B,L) |
| Day 8: | City and surrounding ruins tour. Afternoon free. (B) |
| Day 9: | Fly to Lima . City & Gold Museum tour. Transfer to airport. (B) |
avoid disappointment - book your Inca Trail holiday in time
In the last few years, the Peruvian government has imposed increasing restrictions on tourism on the Inca Trail in order to protect it from overuse. The aim is to minimise ecological impact and erosion, mainly by having limited access and improving the quality of the operators. There are now only a very limited number of trekking permits available - 500 per day (around 200 for travellers and the rest for staff) - and they are being issued on a first-come-first-served basis. In order to avoid disappointment we recommend booking well in advance (up to a minimum of 3 months in peak season), unless you are extremely flexible over your travel dates.tailor made holidays
This trip can be tailor made to create a unique holiday for your individual requirements by travel experts with intimate knowledge of the destination. It is a more luxurious trip that will suit those who enjoy immersing themselves in new cultures and environments before relaxing in comfort. As this trip can be tailor made it would be helpful if you could you provide the following information: rough budget per person (stating with or without flights), your address and postcode, contact phone number, preferred date of travel, length of trip, number of passengers, preferred countries and areas within those countries, specific interests & type of accommodation.award winner
This tourism business was a winner of our First Choice Responsible Tourism Awards in 2005, and was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards. The Responsible Tourism Awards are the largest of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
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Where possible we use local guides in order to provide you with the best insights into Peruvian cultures, and to help contribute to the local economy and foster a sense of pride in Peruvian heritage. We ensure that the porters and camp staff are treated and paid fairly in accordance with The Peruvian Ecotourism Association guidelines.
Your guides will help you minimise any environmental impacts on fragile trails, make sure that you are aware of any sensitive cultural issues that you may encounter, and suggest locally made crafts that make wonderful gifts and contribute to the local economy. The Inca Trail trek is run in accordance with APTAE (Peruvian ecotourism association) guidelines in terms of the fair treatment and payment of porters and other camp staff. We were voted most responsible tour operator by UK NGO Tourism Concern. On average 75% of the cost of your trip with us - excluding flights - remains in the destination. Flights are automatically carbon offset through The Travel Forest, which plants 10 indigenous trees on your behalf (currently in northern Tanzania). Whilst the primary motivation for planting the trees is to offset carbon emissions, the project also works as a poverty alleviation and environmental improvement scheme. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |
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