Chile & Peru

Group Departure: 9 September 2019

Prices from £4368 per person based on 15 people
Including tips

ITINERARY

Day 1: London - Santiago

Day 2: Santiago (L/D)

Arrival to the international airport Arturo Merino Benítez of Santiago city.
Upon arrival, after the clearance at the immigration, we will be transferred to the hotel to deliver the luggage in custody, before going to a local restaurant for lunch.
In the evening, we will start the city tour in Santiago. On this excursion, we will explore the historical and modern sights of Santiago de Chile. We will start our trip at the main avenue Alameda Bernardo O’Higgins by visiting La Moneda, the Government Palace, where we will learn about the historical and current importance of this place. Afterwards, we will visit the famous main square of the city called Plaza de Armas, which is surrounded by the Metropolitan Cathedral and other historical buildings. We will continue visiting the Santa Lucia hill, the mount upon which the Spanish founded Santiago in 1541. It is a long steep rock, with many plants and an antique building rising steeply from the city below. Then, we will cross the Mapocho River to get to Bellavista, the cultural and artistic neighborhood of Santiago. Bellavista lies at the foot of the San Cristóbal Hill, the highest in town, in the middle of the Metropolitan Park. We will go up the hill to explore the surroundings while enjoying beautiful panoramic views of the city. Finally, we will visit Providencia with its top restaurants, elegant shops, and modern high-rise buildings. After this amazing tour, we will call it a day and return to the hotel. Dinner in the hotel and overnight.

Day 3: Santiago – Calama – San Pedro de Atacama (B/L/D)

Breakfast at the hotel.
Morning time at leisure.
Transfer to Santiago airport to take the flight to Calama. Upon arrival, late lunch in a local restaurant in Calama and a transfer will take us to San Pedro. Then, we have our tour. For this breathtaking excursion, we will be picked up at the hotel to enjoy a spectacular evening exploring the Death Valley and watch the sunsunset the Moon Valley. Along the way from San Pedro towards Calama, we will stop to take some great pictures of the Andean Mountain range, the huge Atacama Salt Lake, the active Lascar Volcano and the impressive Licancabur Volcano. Our first destination will be the Death Valley home to bizarre rock agglomerations. There we have time to discover this barren land formed by erosion over thousands of years. Afterwards, we will continue towards the Moon Valley, a silent moonscape with strange formations that nature has carved of salt and clay. We will visit the “Tres Marías” rock formation and salt caverns before watching the sun fade away into the night. Dinner in the hotel and overnight.

Day 4: San Pedro de Atacama (B/L/D)

Before dawn breaks we will depart from San Pedro and head north to the famous El Tatio Geysers; a geothermal field flanked by soaring peaks. Box Breakfast at El Tatio. El Tatio is situated at 4,300 m / 14,108 ft. above sea level on the Altiplano. It is the highest geothermal field in the world and boasts spectacular scenery. We will need to make sure to bring warm clothes as temperatures at this altitude are considerably low this early in the morning. At dawn, we will observe powerful spurts of steam that shoot out from various geyser blowholes and steaming ponds that are encrusted with brilliant salt crystals reflecting the metal-blue sky. After this nice visit to El Tatio, we will be transported to the village of Machuca known as the resting place for llama caravans that traveled the Inca Highway.
*Due to high altitude and early departure the recommendation is to have a light dinner the night before and no alcohol. The lowest temperature could go down to -15ºC/5ºF bring warm clothing, sun cream, and sun glasses, swim suit and towel.
Lunch in local restaurant.
In the afternoon, we will visit the picturesque Toconao, a small town nestled 30 km from San Pedro de Atacama where you will be able to appreciate the amazing architecture of the town church and its bell tower. Besides, in this very same place, we can find beautiful typical handmade crafts. We will also have the chance to hike around the beautiful fruit gardens boasted in this little town. After this, we will visit the largest salt flat in Chile: Salar de Atacama, where we will find Los Flamencos National Reserve. Afterwards, we will continue to Chaxa Lagoon and we will be able to observe the 3-different species of flamingos and other animals inhabiting the salt deposit lagoons. Finally, we will enjoy the sunset at the salt flat with a delicious cocktail while being amazed by the impressive ever-changing colors of the landscape that surround us. Dinner at hotel and overnight.

Day 5: San Pedro de Atacama – Calama – Santiago (B/BL/D)

Breakfast.
Morning at Leisure.
Transfer to the Calama airport (the trip takes 1:30 h) to board our flight to Santiago including a box lunch en route. Upon arrival, we will be transferred to the hotel.
Dinner will be at a local restaurant and we can also enjoy a folkloric show.
Return to hotel. Overnight at hotel.

Day 6: Santiago – Punta Arenas – Puerto Natales (BL/D)

We will be transferred to the airport to take the early flight to Punta Arenas. Arrival to Punta Arenas, and we will be transferred to Puerto Natales located 254km far (3:15 h).
Arrival to Puerto Natales. Lunch menu in the hotel and check in at our hotel.
Dinner in a local restaurant and overnight at the hotel.
Optional: On the way, visit the colony of penguins in the Otway Sound, located.
65km far to the northeast of Punta Arenas. During October and March, each year, they get almost 7000 couples of Magellan penguins gather here to procreate. A box lunch will be included en route instead of lunch at the hotel.

Note: Visit the Penguins at Otway Sound is only possible in the second half of October and the end of March. Between April and first half of October, there are no penguins.

Day 7: Puerto Natales (B/L/D)

Breakfast in the hotel.
Today we will be picked up from the hotel in Puerto Natales and start our tour visiting the Mylodón Cave, located about 30 minutes away from the town. This cave was discovered by a German explorer in 1895. He found a skin piece of a prehistoric animal called “Mylodón” of 10.000 years old. After visiting this natural monument, we will continue toward the Village of Cerro Castillo, the heart of the sheep farming business in the area. As we continue on the road we will spot the mountains of the Paine Massif (if the weather is favorable) including the famous Torres del Paine and the spectacular Cuernos del Paine. Before reaching the entrance of the park we will be able to see the Sarmiento Lake and the Amarga Lagoon. This is also the best place to observe the wildlife of the park in big numbers and close to the road. Later, we will move on to the central area of the park to enjoy views of the Nördenskjold and Pehoe lakes. In this area, we will also be able to enjoy magnificent views of the Salto Grande waterfall. Afterwards, we will take a break and have lunch before hiking for about an hour to reach the Grey Lake. Here we will witness many icebergs that come from the Grey Glacier, evidence of the last ice age here in Patagonia. Lunch in a local restaurant. After visiting this area, we will drive back to the town and return to the hotel.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Day 8: Puerto Natales – Punta Arenas – Santiago (B/L)

Breakfast.
In the morning, we will be transferred to Punta Arenas by crossing the Magellan Pampa. Lunch in a local restaurant. In the afternoon, visit of Punta Arenas... departure to visit the Mirador (which has a splendid view over the city and the Straits of Magellan) and the main neighborhoods and avenues. At the Regional Museum** you will see the interesting ethnographic and anthropologic samples of the area, as well as a good display of the local flora and fauna.
Transfer to the airport of Punta Arenas to take the flight to Santiago. On arrival, guide assistance at the airport (the hotel is located in the airport – transfer is not required).
(Dinner - not included)
Overnight at the airport hotel.

Day 9: Santiago – Lima (B/)

At the established time, we will proceed on our own to Santiago airport. After check-in, we return to the hotel to have breakfast. Then, come back to the airport to take the flight to Lima.
Upon our arrival in Lima, a transportation service will transfer us from the airport to our hotel. Early check-in.
Lunch in the hotel.
In the afternoon, visit Lima's Downtown, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO where you will know the Cathedral of Lima, located in the Main Square, the most important church in Peru built between 1542 and 1622, and one of the several beautiful colonial buildings, which constitutes an important part of the identity of the city. Continue our tour by visiting the Museum of the Church of San Francisco, built in the late seventeenth century and very famous for its Catacombs. Then we will be transferred to the districts of San Isidro and Miraflores for a panoramic view, and make a brief stop at the Love Park before moving on to our hotel. In the evening, transportation service will pick us up from our hotel and will transfer us to the restaurant and will bring us back at the established time. We will enjoy a most relaxing sea view and discover the culinary creativity of Mangos Larcomar which offers a varied Peruvian and international buffet that will satisfy the most demanding palate.

Day 10: LIMA - AREQUIPA (B/L/D)

A transportation service will pick us up from our hotel at the established time and will transfer us to the airport of Lima to take the flight to Arequipa.
Upon our arrival to Arequipa, we will be transferred to our hotel. Early check-in. Around noon, we will be transferred to Restaurant Sol de Mayo which is undoubtedly one of the best restaurants in Arequipa, backed by more than 100 years of culinary tradition. Excellent food in a colonial atmosphere and exclusive service to delight you with typical Arequipa specialties as well as a variety of Creole and international dishes.
After lunch, we will start our tour to the Main Square, one of the most beautiful squares in Peru because it is built of the pillar (a white volcanic rock) and has carved arches. It is next to the impressive Arequipa Cathedral, built in the 17th century and fully rebuilt after several earthquakes. We will then visit the Church of the Society of Jesus (1590), considered a classic example of the local baroque architecture, which houses an exceptional collection of paintings and murals. We will then visit the Carmen Alto Scenic Viewpoint, located in front of the Chili River, from where you will have a scenic view of the city before passing by the Yanahuara Scenic Viewpoint. We will continue the tour at the Monastery of Santa Catalina, built in 1579, which is an authentic medieval cloister and a small religious citadel used to date.
Our next point will be the Museum of Andean Sanctuaries where we will visit the Juanita Mummy, a 14-year-old daughter of an Inca dignitary mummified by the cold. She was found at the snow-capped Ampato Mount in 1995 and was exhibited at the National Geographic Society in Washington. After the tour, you will be transferred to the hotel.
In the evening, transportation (with a guide) will pick us up to take you to Zig Zag restaurant where we will enjoy a delicious dinner. The White City offers interesting options to enjoy its flavors. In Zig Zag you can try 'Alpin dinos' dishes. Located in a cozy house in Arequipa, in front of the beautiful square of San Francisco, this restaurant offers diners an attractive fusion, product of the creativity and the experience of its creator, Michel Hediger.

Day 11: AREQUIPA - CUSCO (B/L/D)

Breakfast in the hotel.
We will be picked up from our hotel at the agreed time and taken to the Arequipa airport accompanied by a guide. Help will be provided with our check-in.
Flight to Cusco.
Upon our arrival to Cusco, a guide will be waiting for us to start the tour. We will start our tour at the Coricancha, also known as the "Temple of the Sun", the construction of which was ordered by Inca Pachacútec (1438-1471) and was used as a base for the construction of the Santo Domingo Convent upon the arrival of the Spaniards. We will then go to the Cathedral, one of the most splendid Spanish colonial churches in America, which is shaped as a Latin Cross and houses about 400 colonial paintings from the Cusco art school, and impressive goldsmith, silversmith and precious stones works. Its construction lasted almost a century, it started in 1560 and ended in 1654. The Ecclesiastical Chapter ordered to extract and transport hundreds of stones from the Sacsayhuamán fortress for this purpose with the hard work of thousands of Indians. We will continue our tour at Sacsayhuamán, one of the emblematic Inca constructions (located a few minutes away from the built-up area), built by Inca Pachacútec in the 15th century. Then we will arrive in Qenqo, located four kilometers from Cusco City. Etymologically speaking, Qenqo means "Labyrinth", and it is an archaeological complex mainly used for religious purposes, and it is believed that agricultural rituals took place there. We will finally visit the vestiges of Puka Pukara, which means "red fortress" and was an architectural complex presumably used for military purposes; it has many rooms, squares, bathrooms, aqueducts, walls, and towers, and it is believed that the Inca's entourage used it while he rested at Tambomachay. After enjoying our snack, we will visit the Ollantaytambo town, a typical example of the urban planning of the Incas, whose residents still live in accordance with their old traditions. We will find a large archaeological complex which, although it is called a fortress it was actually a Tambo, a leisure city used to accommodate the delegations that traveled long distances. During the tour, we will make a stop to have lunch at a local restaurant.
In the evening, transportation will transfer us to Tunupa restaurant where you will enjoy the best panoramic view of the marvelous Main Square of Cusco and the ancestral music and folk dances, together with Novo-Andine buffet and international cuisine.

Day 12: CUSCO – SACRED VALLEY (B/L/D)

We will start our tour in the village of Chinchero, which was one of the most important populations of the Inca Empire. However, as much of its annexes, it was also a victim of the "extirpation of idolatries" action that replaced the traditional deities by Catholic ones, in order to transform popular beliefs. Then visit the archaeological remains of Maras. Maras is a surreal sight, an impressive complex of salt mining. They are large deposits of salt used for exchange for other products with other regions of the empire. Enjoy lunch at local restaurant and then visit Ollantaytambo, a typical example of urban planning of the Incas still inhabited like in the past. We will find here a great archaeological complex called "fortress" although it was a "Tambo", a resting and lodging place for long distance travelers. After the visit, we will be transferred to our hotel in Sacred Valley Cusco. Dinner at Hotel.
**In the rainy season (from December to April) Maras visit is replaced by a tour of the archaeological site of Moray, which consists of mysterious concentric circular terraces that for some investigators would be an agricultural research center.

Day 13: SACRED VALLEY – MACHU PICCHU - CUSCO (B/L/D)

A transportation service with a guide will pick us up from our hotel in Urubamba at the established time and will drive us to the Ollantaytambo train station. The guide will assist us at the station. Our tour to Machu Picchu begins with a train ride to Aguas Calientes in approximately two hours. This town is also known as "Machu Picchu Pueblo" and is the last stop before the entrance to the remains of the most important archaeological site in Peru. In Aguas Calientes, we will find the railway station, a crafts market, restaurants and accommodation of different categories for those who prefer to spend the night at the foot of the mountain and climb it early. Finally, after a short transfer, we will reach Machu Picchu, a masterpiece of engineering and architecture that is believed served as a sanctuary and retreat for the Inca Pachacutec (1438 - 1572). Machu Picchu, which means "Old Mountain", is considered a World Heritage by UNESCO and one of the new seven wonders of the world. Once in the Citadel, We may optionally also visit the Intipunku (Sun Gate), the Wayna Picchu (subject to space availability) and the Inca Bridge. In the afternoon return by train. Enjoy a delicious lunch at Belmond Sanctuary Lodge.
In the afternoon, we will take the train back to Ollantaytambo train station. Upon the arrival to the station, a transfer will take us back to Cusco.
Dinner at Novotel.

Day 14: CUSCO - LIMA (B/L/D)

Breakfast in the hotel.
Then, transportation service will pick us up from the hotel and will transfer you to Cusco Airport.
FLIGHT TO LIMA Flight time 09:50-11:15
Upon arrival to Lima airport, we will be picked up and transferred to a local restaurant to have lunch. Then, we will be transferred to our hotel.
We will have the free afternoon to explore the city and in the evening we will be picked up for dinner to La Rosa Naútica Restaurant, an elegant Victorian style restaurant that offers an eager public a complete selection of Peruvian and international cuisine, as well as the most sophisticated bar to be found on the Pacific shores. All of this combined with an incomparable view and the peace which can only be found where infinity begins.

Day 15: LIMA – INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURE (B/L/D)

Breakfast in the hotel. Late check out. Rest of day at leisure. A transportation service will pick us up from the hotel and will transfer us to Lima Airport to take our flight back to London.

*End of the services*

Costs

Prices From per person based on 2-4-6-8 Persons traveling together Extra Seasonal supplements may apply during National Holiday periods and will be advised at time of inquiry.

Price Details
TOUR PRICE (FROM) PER PERSON IN £ STERLING

No of people 10 people15 people
Price per person Fr. £4776.00 Fr. £4368.00
Single Supplement £710.00 £710.00

QUOTE INCLUDES:

- Escorting Tour manager from the UK
- Transfers and excursions are in private service with local English speaking guide assistance
- All entrance fees on tours
- Lodging in standard rooms or as indicated in the quotation, with breakfast included.
- Meals duly specified in the quotation as follows:
B= Breakfast L= Lunch or Lunchbox D= Dinner
- Tips to porters at airports and hotels, except on days 8 and 9 (transfer are not required)
- Early check-in & late check out in Perú.

QUOTE DOES NOT INCLUDE:

- Early check-in/Late check out in Chile
- Drinks, except when specifically mentioned
- Extra meals, transfers, and excursions not mentioned in the program

HOTELS

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