Peru & Galapagos adventure holiday
| country: | Ecuador, Galapagos Islands, Peru |
| trip type: | Moderate walking holidays |
| departures: | This trip can be booked to depart at a time to suit your requirements from Mar to Nov. Group departures - 2009: 17 Oct. 2010: 25 Apr |
| price: | From £3295 (19 days) excluding flights, depending on standard or boat and season. This trip can also be booked without flights |
| more info: | 2010 group price: £3,895 |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
read 7 travellers reviews
the amazing things you'll be doing
Galapagos Islands - Inca Trail - Machu Picchu - Sacred Valley - Colonial Cusco - hike - sea Kayak - sail boat cruise - wildlife
Combine two once-in-a-lifetime experiences at a balanced pace. Walk the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu over 4 days, avoiding the crowds, and get the most from colonial Cusco, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu with your local guide. Then spend 8 days on a comfortable yacht cruise around the unique Galapagos Islands, maximising your wildlife experience with walks, snorkelling and kayaks. The Inca Trail involves high altitudes but the walking pace is very relaxed with rest days and fully portaged.
Price includes flights from London; all domestic flights; 8 day Galapagos Cruise; twin/double en suite hotel accommodation; meals as per itinerary; transfers. On the Inca Trail camping; porters; entrance fees. Does not include: UK regional flights; Galapagos park entrance fee US $100 and expenses of a personal nature; tips.
Combine two once-in-a-lifetime experiences at a balanced pace. Walk the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu over 4 days, avoiding the crowds, and get the most from colonial Cusco, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu with your local guide. Then spend 8 days on a comfortable yacht cruise around the unique Galapagos Islands, maximising your wildlife experience with walks, snorkelling and kayaks. The Inca Trail involves high altitudes but the walking pace is very relaxed with rest days and fully portaged.
Price includes flights from London; all domestic flights; 8 day Galapagos Cruise; twin/double en suite hotel accommodation; meals as per itinerary; transfers. On the Inca Trail camping; porters; entrance fees. Does not include: UK regional flights; Galapagos park entrance fee US $100 and expenses of a personal nature; tips.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly to Peru |
| Day 2: | Walking tour to acclimatise. Morning flight to Cusco and relax in you first class hotel. Acclimatise to the altitude (3,326m) with a gentle walking tour. (B) |
| Day 3: | Explore Cusco. Complete your acclimatisation. Explore Cusco with your guide today, walk to the fortress of Sacsayhuaman for panoramic views. (B) |
| Day 4: | Walk in Sacred Valley. Start walking the Inca Trail. Porters carry all equipment and set up camp for you. Walk 5km, 2hrs, up 50m. (B,L,D) |
| Day 5: | Walk, culture and flora. Walk at a relaxed pace still at relatively low altitude (3,000m). Learn about the Inca Empire from your expert guide. Walk 10km, 6.5hrs, up 850m. (B,L,D) |
| Day 6: | High trail. A hard day’s walking to the highest point on the trail (4,215m). Walk 12km, 7.5hrs, up 650m, down 850m. (B,L,D) |
| Day 7: | Arrive at Machu Picchu. The final day of the trail to Machu Picchu. Arrive in the quiet of the late afternoon. Sleep in a comfortable hotel tonight. (B,L) |
| Day 8: | Explore Machu Picchu. Refreshed, catch the first bus up in the morning for a guided tour of Machu Picchu. Return to Cusco by train after lunch. (B) |
| Day 9: | Travel to Ecuador. Fly to Quito today. Enjoy your central first class hotel. (B) |
| Day 10: | Explore colonial Quito. Morning walking tour of the colonial city centre in the company of your local guide. (B) |
| Day 11: | North Seymour wildlife. Fly to the Galapagos. Board your yacht for an 8-day live-aboard cruise. Walk close to the fearless wildlife this afternoon. (B,L,D) |
| Day 12: | Santa Cruz wildlife. Walk up to a collapsed volcanic crater to see giant tortoises in the wild. This afternoon, visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. (B,L,D) |
| Day 13: | Seabirds and sea lions. See a spectacular blow-hole and a broad spectrum of birdlife, including the blue-footed boobies and albatross. This afternoon swim with playful sea lions. (B,L,D) |
| Day 14: | Devil’s Crown snorkel. Snorkel in the Devil’s Crown volcanic crater through beautiful coral formations and teeming marine life. (B,L,D) |
| Day 15: | Iguanas and penguins. Walk around marine iguanas warming on the rocks to find the colony of Galapagos penguins. (B,L,D) |
| Day 16: | Walk amongst wildlife. Visit one of the world’s most active volcanoes to walk amongst the flightless cormorants, sea lions and marine iguanas. (B,L,D) |
| Day 17: | Pinnacle Rock views. See Galapagos fur seal basking in pools along the shoreline. (B,L,D) |
| Day 18: | Turtle Bay. Observe the delicate marine life in the sheltered Turtle Cove. Fly home. (B) |
| Day 19: | Departure. |
travellers' tales
Standing at the Sun's Gate looking down on Machu Picchu for the first time was awesome! Sitting on a beach having a young sea lion coming up to me and rub his whiskers against my leg was touching. (more)
how this holiday makes a difference
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We are passionate about the places we visit. To help preserve the integrity of these destinations we keep groups small to minimise environmental impact. We also work directly with local businesses and organisations to directly benefit local economies. We use small, locally owned hotels and restaurants; we know the owners, except in the large cities. We work with local guides so that our holidays are more interesting for clients and more beneficial locally, and we make payment to suppliers before our clients arrive.
In the Galapagos Islands we only use only naturalist guides trained and licensed by the Galapagos Natural Park Service and the Charles Darwin Research Station. We pay for you to become a benefactor of the Galapagos Conservation Trust (www.gct.org) for a full year. In Peru, we strictly adhere to the Porter Protection Policies which govern porters’ work. We also actively support the Peru Dental Project (www.dentalprojectperu.org). We also administer a carbon offset scheme to compensate for the impact of your flights. |
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. |