South America Vacations

Peru Vacation Package 2

4 Days Cusco & Machu Picchu in depth Tour Package

Duration: 4 Days / 3 Nights
Priced From: $710 pp dbl. occ.
Dates: Contact Travelwizard

 

 

Day 1. After your arrival into Cusco airport you will be met and transferred to your hotel of choice. From your hotel we venture into and onto the cobbled streets of Cusco toexplore this ancient Spanish and Incan City.

Many of the "modern" buildings you see are built on and around the Inca stonework that once stood in the city.

The city today is a strange mixture of Inca architecture and the Spanish-Moorish colonial style. The Spanish destroyed unfortunately most of the temples in Cusco for building catholic churches. Inside the Santa Domingo you can still visit the temples built in name of the natural elements as lightning, rain, Moon (Quilla), Sun (Inti), wind, etc. Most of the enormous palaces every new Sapa Inca (the emperor) built to performance his duty do still exist and some of them are turned into museums.

The legend tells us that the first Sapa Inca Manco Capac and his royal wife Mama Occllo received the assignment of the God of the Sun the Inti itself. They established the capital city of a new empire where the golden staff sunk in the ground and improved life of the people living in this part of the world. The Spanish arrived in Cusco late 1533 and were astonished by the beauty of the capital city.

Eyewitnesses described the place as a city of gold and light. Streets were quiet, the Incas had no horses and the biggest domestic animal was the llama which can't be used to pull any kind of cart. Street life was quiet because only the inhabitants on sandals walked there. Every street was clean and had two canals: one as sewerage and on the other side of the street a canal with fresh and clean river water.

After the conquistadors took all the gold and other valuables, they burned Cusco totally. Only the foundations, made by the Incas to overcome earthquakes and time, survived the disaster. Cusco is today most probably the most beautiful city in Latin America. Be careful on your first day in Cusco, you will be at 3.400 meters above sea level and breathing may be difficult if you come from the lowlands, walk slowly.

Day 2. Today we head down the Urubamba Valley visiting the famous town of Pisac and Ollyantaytambo.

The village of Pisac is best known for its Sunday market, which draws hundreds of tourists each week. In spite of its popularity the market retains much of its local charm, at least in the part where villagers from miles around gather to barter and sell their produce. In the tourist section of the market you can buy a wide variety of handicrafts - mostly the same things you see in Cusco. Pisac is a good place to buy local ceramics including a huge and varied collection of hand-painted multi-colored beads. There are smaller markets in Pisac on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

A vital Inca road once snaked its way up the canyon that enters the Urubamba Valley at Pisac. The citadel, at the entrance to this gorge, now in ruins, controlled a route which connected the Inca Empire with Paucartambo, on the border of the eastern jungles. Set high above a valley floor patchworked by patterned fields and rimmed by vast terracing, the stonework and panoramas at Pisac's Inca citadel are magnificent. Terraces, water ducts and steps have been cut out of solid rock, and in the upper sector of the ruins, the main Sun Temple is equal of anything at Machu Picchu. Above the temple lie still more ruins, mostly unexcavated, and among the higher crevices and rocky overhangs several ancient burial sites are hidden.

Ollantaytambo is an attractive little town located at the western end of the Sacred Valley. The town has been built on top of original Inca foundations and is the best surviving example of Inca town planning. The town is divided in canchas (blocks) which are almost entirely intact. Each cancha has only one entrance (usually a huge stone doorway) which leads into a central courtyard. The houses surround the courtyard. Good examples of this construction can be found behind the main plaza.

The town is located at the foot of some spectacular Inca ruins which protected the strategic entrance to the lower Urubamba Valley. The temple area is at the top of steep terracing which helped to provide excellent defenses. Stone used for these buildings was brought from a quarry high up on the opposite side of the Urubamba river - an incredible feat involving the efforts of thousands of workers. The complex was still under construction at the time of the conquest and was never completed.

After Manco Inca was defeated by the Spanish at Sacsayhuaman following the unsuccessful siege of Cusco (1536) he retreated to Ollantaytambo. Francisco Pizarro's younger brother Hernando led a force of 70 cavalry, 30 foot soldiers and a large contingent of natives to capture Manco Inca. The Inca's forces, joined by neighboring jungle tribes, rained down showers of arrows, spears and rocks upon the unfortunate Spanish troops. In an intelligent move the Inca's flooded the plains below their stronghold making it difficult for the horses to maneuver. Hernando, uncharacteristically, ordered a hasty retreat. Ollantaytambo became the only place ever to have resisted attacks from the Spanish.

However, their victory was short-lived when the Spanish returned with four times their previous force. Manco Inca retreated to his jungle stronghold in Vilcabamba and Ollantaytambo fell into the hands of the Spanish.

After immersing ourself in ancient Incan culture we return to Cusco for dinner.

Day 3. On board the Vistadome train (This train has glass ceilings enabling the traveler to vie the magnificent Andes mountain range) we return to the Urubamba valley and journey on to Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu is the most important place that the Spanish never discovered. Officially the American professor Hiram Bingham found this magical place in 1911. The sacred city and the Incas became very famous since then, the Taj Majal of Latin America and probably one of the most impressive places in the world.

Very little information stood the test of time about Machu Picchu. Archeologists found out that the city was a religious place of pilgrimage, constructed in the 15th and the first half of the 16th century and probably never finished. It could be that their work was interrupted by the Spanish invasion or the civil war just before the conquest between Atahualpa and Huascar.

The city is divided in two halves, a religious and a residential area with a relative big square in the middle. Approximately 1200 men could live in Machu Picchu and six men were enough to guard the city. Built on a steep mountain and surrounded by sub-tropical rainforest gives every visitor the feeling of being safe and untouchable.

Next to the Machu Picchu (old mountain) is the Huayna Picchu (young mountain) and it can be visited. A climb of at least 30 minutes brings you on top of this very steep mountain. You need good physical condition and watch your steps. From this place Machu Picchu can be seen in the shape of a huge condor flying to the West.

On top of the Huayna Picchu, temples and terraces were constructed and halfway on the other side of the mountain you can visit the Temple of the Moon, known as the only Inca Temple still intact. Earthquakes did unfortunately destroy most of the other temples on Huayna Picchu.

We enjoy lunch at the Sanctuary Lodge as well as a tour of these amazing ruins before returning to Cusco in the early evening.

Day 4. Today you are transferred back to Cusco airport to connect with your onward journey.

Additional nights are available on request.

• Arrival and Departure transfers
• Meet and greet bilingual A.I. transfer representative, bilingual licensed tour guide
• 3 Nights accommodation with breakfast (based on selected hotel - see NOTES below)
• All entrance fees, all bus, boat and train tickets needed to operate the tours
• Cusco City Tour
• Sacred Valley Tour
• Pisac Market tour
• Ollyantaytambo Tour
• Train in Vistadome class to and from Machu Picchu
• Machu Picchu entrance
• Bus to and from Machu Picchu from Aguas Calientes
• Baggage handling at airports and at hotels
• Passenger welcome kit with map, suggested restaurants, gift and pick-up time

• Visa fees (if required)
• Passport & Visa Costs
• Vaccination Costs
• Personal Spending Money
• Meals where not listed
• Drinks
• International Flights
• Domestic Flight or transport to and from start and finish point
• Travel Insurance
• Airport departure taxes
• Border taxes or fees

• Mountain Biking
• Horse Riding
• Amazon Jungle Adventures
• Lake Titicaca Adventures
• Colca Canyon Tour
• Home Stays
• Spanish Lessons
• Paragliding

• Pricing based on 2 people sharing a room, SIB (Seat in Bus service)
• Rates for private service available on request
• Single and triple rates for SIB and private services are available on request.
• Tours are guided in one language only
• Vans Pick up travelers from no more than three hotels, except in Cusco where vans pick travelers from four or five hotels
• Tours are for eight persons or less, except in Cusco where average group size is 12 persons.
• The tour to Machu Picchu operates with an average group size of 8 persons with a guide based in Aguas Calientes
• We operate deluxe vans in Lima, Ica, Nazca, Arequipa and in Cusco, and best available in Trujillo, Chiclayo and Puno

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