Marisol's Favourite Cuzco, Urubamba Valley&Machu Picchu and Lima This would be my recommended itinerary if you asked me what I truly love, and our favourite products and services! This is a child-friendly itinerary as I love to travel with my son! 11 days

This itinerary can be booked exactly as it is or can be tailored to suit your requirements adding Exclusive Access, Festivals or Adventure activities.

Good time to travel: Year round

Day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11

Day 1
Arrival Lima

Arrival from your International flight into Lima airport. You will be met by your transfer representative and driven to the Hotel Country Club Lima***** , located in the residential and commercial district of San Isidro, across from the exclusive Lima Golf Club. This elegant hotel is housed in a converted 1920's property, which is precisely why we love it! Overnight Country Club Lima*****.

Day 2
Lima

After a delicious breakfast you will be met by your host or hostess, an Aracari specialist who will show you Lima in a way only a passionate insider can. Our specialists are architects, art historians and very cultured individuals. Lunch in one of Lima's traditional restaurants bo as ting a fabulous selection of Creole cuisine. Afternoon guided visit at the Larco Herrera Museum or National Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology by one of the most respected archaeologists in Lima, ex curator of the Larco Herrera Museum.  Dinner at one of our favourite Lima gourmet restaurants or one in a spectacular setting.   Overnight Hotel Country Club Lima.

Day 3
Lima - Cuzco - Urubamba Valley

You will be collected from the hotel and driven to the airport to take you flight to Cuzco (3400m/11,220 ft) at 9.00 am. Arrival at Cuzco airport, where you will be met by the Maria del Carmen Vargas, Aracari representative, as well as by your guide. After a short briefing by Mari Carmen you will continue on with your guide for a visit of Pisac Ruins (1 hour away), our favourite site in the Urubamba Valley with stunning terracing hugging the contours of the hills. After this visit, you will proceed towards Urubamba (45 minutes drive) where your hotel is located. Lunch at the hotel or at a local restaurant and rest of the afternoon at leisure to acclimatize to altitude. Overnight Inkaterra Villas Urubamba or Hotel Sol y Luna**** .

Day 4
Ballon ride over the urubamba valley

Few pleasures are as grand as drifting slowly over the earth in an open basket – it's romantic, it's breathtaking and it's a journey you will never forget. Experience the silent beauty of floating hundreds of feet above the beautiful Urubamba Valley, across snow-covered hilltops and the Vilcanota river.
The whole experience will last the best part of the morning. When it is over, you will head toward the lovely Hacienda Huayo Ccari , the private estate of one of Cuzco's oldest land owning families for lunch. Textile demonstration in the garden is conducted by Nilda Callanaupa, one of South America's top weavers, is a must.
Return to your Hotel in the late afternoon. Overnight Inkaterra Villas Urubamba or Hotel Sol y Luna**** .
If you choose Sol y Luna you should try and experience one of their spa treatments!

Day 5
Huchuy Qosqo Trek: Tauca (3750m/12375ft) - Huchuy Qosqo (3650m/12045ft)

This is the most popular of the short treks we do, as it is quite easy, it covers very varied terrain and allows you to camp at a little-known Inca site , situated on a plateau with stunning views overlooking the valley and snow-capped peaks of the Vilcabamba range. You will start your day by driving to Tauca, approximately 35 min. drive from your hotel in Urubamba in the direction of Chinchero. Here you will meet your crew and pack animals, and start your trek heading northeast (7-9 hours).
The total distance of the trek is approximately 14 Km. Maximum altitude is 4300m. The trek includes a private guide, full board, cook and all the necessary kit to prepare your picnic lunch. This is a fully outfitted trek at the highest standard. You will need to carry nothing else than your camera and water bottle.
Return to your hotel. Overnight Inkaterra Villas Urubamba or Hotel Sol y Luna**** .

Day 6
Chinchero - Maras & Moray

Visit the town and ruins of Chinchero , which has an attractive church dating back to the 17th Century, built on an Inca temple. This is by far the most scenic route in the Valley. Drive to the enigmatic Inca site of Moray, which is thought to have been a centre for agricultural experimentation. Your drive will continue through a high savannah until you descend into a gorge where terraces, this time holding salt deposits, are visible.
After the visit you will be surprised by a superb ‘al fresco' Gourmet Lunch near the village of Maras Before or after your picnic, explore the salt mines of Maras, where salt has been obtained since pre-Inca times. From Maras, you can walk down to the river (45 minutes) along narrow rural paths. You will reach a bridge and cross the river where your vehicle will be expecting you.
Return to your hotel. Overnight Inkaterra Villas Urubamba or Hotel Sol y Luna****.

Day 7
Machu Picchu!!

You will be collected by your guide and driven to Ollantaytambo (30 min) at approximately 8.00am to take the Vistadome train to Aguas Calientes, the station that serves Machu Picchu. The total train ride is approximately 2 hours, mainly through wonderful cloud forest scenery. You will get off approximately 1 ½ hours before arrival at Aguas Calientes, and together with your guide,   start your 1 day Inca trail.
You will carry your daypack and box lunch only. You will cross a hanging bridge to then approach the small but interesting Inca archaeological complex of Cachabamba. After a brief visit of this site you will begin a three to four hours ascent to the ruins of Wiñay Wayna: an important Inca spiritual site, and one of the loveliest of all Inca ruins. At this point the trail joins with the main Inca Trail. From here you will be walking on Inca pavement. Here the Inca Trail cuts across the ridge above Machu Picchu to finally reach Intipunku or Gate of the Sun, from where the trail winds downhill into the lost citadel located right above the Urubamba River.
You will then take a half hour bus ride down to your Hotel, the lovely Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel , or enjoy the perfect location by the ruins themselves, at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge ***.

Day 8
Machu Picchu, Return to Cuzco

This morning you will be able to enjoy Machu Picchu almost all to yourself, as you will be able to access the site as soon as it opens, and watch the morning unfold. Machu Picchu at this time is pure magic. All day at leisure in Machu Picchu. A-la-carte lunch at Tampu Restaurant in Sanctuary Lodge. Afternoon return by Train from Machu Picchu to Cuzco, journey time is approximately 3.45 hours. At the trains station you will be collected and driven to the Hotel Monasterio del Cusco***** where you will overnight.

Day 9
"Insider" Cuzco Visit

Experience Cuzco with a difference! In the morning your guide will take you to the most important sites within the Historic Centre of Cuzco, such as the Cathedral, Korikancha or Sun Temple. Lunch at Map Café Our favourite restaurant in Cuzco, the Map Café is a statement of elegant simplicity situated in a fantastic location. Set in an intriguing glass ‘box' in the courtyard of the Pre-Columbian Art Museum, this restaurant offers the best in Andean Nouvelle cuisine. Afternoon at leisure.  Evening visit of the Monasterio hote , one of Cuzco's most remarkable colonial buildings housing a fine collection of colonial art. The visit will be conducted by an Art historian and will be followed by a drink at the hotel Bar . Overnight Hotel Monasterio .

Day 10
Around cuzco: Tipon

Today you will visit Tipon, one of our favourite Inca sites. The site consists of the only known Inca aqueduct, reaching approx 800 m towards the glacier, a temple complex, baths and irrigation systems. This wonderful and seldom visited Inca site, located on a promontory 40 minutes southeast of Cuzco on a good road, is a delight for those visitors wanting to go for a short hike and visit a site that is not overrun by tourists.   You will have the unusual opportunity of enjoying a picnic lunch right at the ruins, enjoying the lovely views, with the delightful sound of the water fountains.  (Picnic-ing within the site is normally forbidden in more popular sites).
Return to Cuzco and visit the unmissable site of Sacsayhuaman, the only Inca site known boasting megalythic architecture known. Return to your hotel. Overnight Hotel Monasterio.

Day 11
LimA Culinary adventure

Transfer to the airport to catch your morning flight to Lima. Full day tasting with a chef from Gaston Acurio's (Peru's most prestigious chef) team.  We can tailor the visit to your particular tastes, focusing on fish, Chinese, Japanese, or Creole cuisine for example.
You will first go to Surquillo or Magdalena market for fruits, vegetables and other products to then go on to “La Gran Fruta” for natural juices. You will continue on to San Isidro market, a modern market for fish and seafood. For lunch, we will take you to the classic “Sonia” for a ceviche tasting and on to La Mar, Gaston's modern cebicheria for more tasting of this fabulous dish and variations. For puddings and coffee we will go to T'anta in San Isidro, and then on to your hotel for a Siesta!.
In the evening, you will be expected at Astrid & Gaston to sample a tasting menu.
Overnight Hotel Country Club Lima