Amazon & Machu Picchu Tour 9 Days: Rainforest, Inca Trail & Rainbow Mountain

Day 1: Arrival in Lima – Welcome to Peru

Our representative meets you at Jorge Chávez International Airport and drives you to your hotel in Miraflores, one of Lima’s safest and most pleasant neighborhoods, built on cliffs above the Pacific Ocean.

If you arrive early, Lima is a wonderful first taste of Peru:

• Malecón of Miraflores: a long clifftop walkway with ocean views, perfect at sunset.
• Peruvian food: Lima is famous worldwide for its cuisine, so try a fresh ceviche or a pisco sour.

Good to know: Lima is at sea level, so today is an easy, relaxed day. Rest well, because tomorrow starts early. Accommodation:

• Hotel casa Miraflores lima
• Meals: none

Day 2: Lima – Puerto Maldonado – Into the Tambopata Rainforest

After breakfast we take you to the airport for your flight to Puerto Maldonado, the gateway to the southern Peruvian Amazon. As you step off the plane, you will feel the warm, humid air of the rainforest.

Your naturalist guide welcomes you at the airport. You leave your main luggage in secure storage and take only a small bag for the jungle. Then a short drive brings you to the river port, where a motorized canoe carries you up the Tambopata River. During the boat ride, keep your eyes open for capybaras (the world’s largest rodent), turtles resting on logs, herons, kingfishers and, with luck, a caiman on the riverbank.

At the lodge you receive a welcome drink and settle into your room. In the afternoon you take your first walk into the forest, where your guide introduces you to:

• Giant Brazil nut trees, some of them hundreds of years old.
• Medicinal plants used by local and native families.
• Monkeys, colorful birds and leafcutter ants at work on the forest floor.

After dinner, put on your boots and grab a flashlight for a night walk. Many rainforest animals come out only after dark, including tarantulas, tree frogs, stick insects and night birds. Accommodation:

• Tambota inn lodge
• Meals: lunch, dinner · Altitude: approx. 200 m

Day 3: Amazon Wildlife Day – Macaw Clay Lick

Today is the best day to see wildlife, so the day starts early, when the forest is most alive.

• Clay lick: dozens of parrots and macaws (red, green, blue and yellow) gather on a riverbank cliff to eat clay. Scientists believe the clay gives them sodium and helps them digest toxic seeds. The noise and colors are unforgettable.

You return to the lodge for lunch and a rest during the hottest hours. In the afternoon you explore another trail with your guide, learning how the rainforest works: how trees compete for light, how animals hide, and why this region is one of the most biodiverse places on Earth.

In the evening you go out by boat with flashlights to look for caimans, whose eyes shine red in the dark.

Good to know: wear long sleeves, long pants and insect repellent. Binoculars make a big difference today. Accommodation:

• Tambopata inn lodge
• Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner

Day 4: Rainforest Sunrise – Flight to Cusco – Down to the Sacred Valley

Wake up to the sound of howler monkeys, one of the loudest animals on the planet. If time allows before your flight, you can enjoy a short early-morning walk or birdwatching from the lodge, when the animals are most active.

You then travel back by boat and van to Puerto Maldonado, collect your luggage and fly to Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire.

Here is our key difference: we don’t keep you in Cusco (3,400 m). We drive you straight down to the Sacred Valley, which is lower and warmer, and better for your first nights at altitude. On the way, you get your first views of the Andes, Inca terraces and small farming villages.

You arrive in Ollantaytambo, our hometown. It is one of the few towns in Peru where people still live in houses built on original Inca foundations, with stone water channels running through the streets.

Good to know: drink plenty of water, eat light and rest. Coca tea is offered everywhere and helps with the altitude. Accommodation:

Hotel Ollantaytambo, Meals: breakfast · Altitude: 2,800 m

Day 5: Sacred Valley – Chinchero, Moray, Maras & Ollantaytambo

Today you explore the heart of the Sacred Valley with our local guide.

Chinchero A traditional Andean town where weavers show you how they clean alpaca wool, dye it with natural plants and minerals, and weave patterns that have passed from mothers to daughters for centuries. You also see the colonial church built on Inca walls.

Moray Giant circular terraces carved into the earth. Each level has a different temperature, and many experts believe the Incas used Moray as an agricultural laboratory to adapt crops to different climates.

Maras Salt Mines Thousands of salt pans cover the side of a mountain, fed by a natural salty spring. These pans have been worked since before the Incas, and today they still belong to local families. You can buy salt directly from them.

Ollantaytambo Archaeological Park We finish at home. You climb the great terraces to the Temple of the Sun and its huge pink stone monoliths, brought from quarries on the other side of the river. We tell you the story of 1537, when Manco Inca’s army won one of the few battles against the Spanish conquerors right here. You also visit the ceremonial water fountains and look up at the storehouses of Pinkuylluna on the opposite mountain.

Our local tip: after the tour, walk through the old Inca quarter (Qosqo Ayllu) at sunset, when the tour buses are gone and the town belongs to its people again. Accommodation:

Hotel Ollantaytambo, Meals: breakfast

Day 6: Short Inca Trail – KM 104 – Wiñay Wayna – Sun Gate – Machu Picchu

Because you are already in Ollantaytambo, you don’t need a 4 am drive. It is just a short walk to the train station.

The train follows the Urubamba River through a narrowing canyon, and you get off at Kilometer 104, a stop used only by hikers. After the official checkpoint (bring your original passport), you cross a suspension bridge and begin your walk on the real Inca road.

Trail highlights:

• Chachabamba: a ceremonial site with ritual water fountains, your first Inca stop on the trail.
• Cloud forest climb: about 3 hours of steady uphill walking among orchids, bromeliads, hummingbirds and waterfalls, with wide views over the Urubamba Valley.
• Wiñay Wayna (“Forever Young”): for many people, the most beautiful site on the whole Inca Trail. Its terraces and temples hang on a steep mountainside. You stop here for your picnic lunch.
• Sun Gate (Inti Punku): after a final set of stone steps, you reach the ancient entrance to Machu Picchu, and the whole citadel appears below you. This is the same view Inca travelers had 500 years ago.

From the Sun Gate, you walk down toward Machu Picchu for photos, then take the bus to Aguas Calientes for a well-deserved dinner and hot shower.

Good to know: carry 2 liters of water, sunscreen, a rain jacket and snacks. Your overnight bag can travel separately to your hotel in Aguas Calientes. Distance: 12 km (6–7 hours) · Max altitude: 2,700 m

Accommodation:

• Hotel Aguas Calientes Pukara Machu Pichu
• Meals: Box lunch, dinner

Day 7: Machu Picchu Guided Tour – Return to Cusco

After an early breakfast, you take one of the first buses up the zig-zag road to the citadel, when the morning mist is often still lifting from the mountains.

Your guide leads a 2.5-hour tour on Circuit 3. Machu Picchu was built in the 15th century, during the time of Inca Pachacutec, and remained hidden from the outside world until it became internationally known in 1911. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

During the visit you learn:

• How the Incas built without mortar, cutting stones to fit perfectly.
• How the site was divided into agricultural, urban and religious sectors.
• How the Incas solved drainage and earthquakes on a mountaintop.
• How the mountains around the citadel were considered sacred (apus).

After the tour you have free time in Aguas Calientes for lunch, shopping or the local market. In the afternoon you take the train back to Ollantaytambo, and our van drives you to your hotel in Cusco.

Optional: Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain must be booked in advance and are subject to availability. Accommodation:

• Hotel Cusco Mataq Wasin
• Meals: breakfast

Day 8: Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca) – The Grand Finale

We pick you up very early for a scenic drive (about 3 hours) south of Cusco. You pass through traditional villages and high Andean landscapes, and have a hot breakfast near the trailhead.

The hike goes up a wide path through the puna, the high grassland where llamas and alpacas graze and local families still live as herders. Ahead of you rises Ausangate (6,384 m), the sacred snow-capped mountain of Cusco.

After about 1.5–2 hours you reach the top of Vinicunca (approx. 5,020 m). Its stripes of red, yellow, green and purple come from minerals in the earth, such as iron oxide and sulfur, which were hidden under ice and snow for a long time. You get time for photos and to enjoy the views of the valleys and glaciers.

On the way down, you can add an optional visit to the Red Valley (weather permitting). Then a warm lunch is waiting before the drive back to Cusco, where you arrive in the late afternoon.

Why last? After a week moving gradually up from the Amazon, your body is ready for this altitude. That makes the hike much more enjoyable.

Good to know: wear warm layers, gloves, a hat and sunglasses. Horses are available from the local community if you get tired. Max altitude: 5,020 m

Accommodation:

Hotel Cusco Maytaq Wasin

Meals: breakfast, lunch

Day 9: Departure from Cusco

Enjoy a final breakfast. If your flight is in the afternoon, take a last walk around the Plaza de Armas or the San Pedro Market. At the agreed time, we take you to Cusco airport for your flight home or to your next destination.

Tupananchiskama! (Until we meet again, in Quechua.) Meals: breakfas