Today we’ll make the incredible journey – by van, plane, and dugout canoe – to pristine Amazon rainforest outside Puerto Maldonado. The irrepressible life all around you, with buzzing insects, flocks of birds and monkeys, and plants growing so fast you can almost see it happening, lets you know immediately that you’ve come to a very different world. The feeling that you’ve stepped into another dimension is enhanced when you find yourself spending the evening spotting caimans (freshwater crocodiles) from a boat on a jungle waterway!

Meals: Dinner included

Accommodation: Remote jungle lodge in the Amazon

We’ll spend the morning at Collpa Chuncho, the biggest macaw clay lick in the world! Up to 100 big, clever, guacamayos (macaws) congregate here each morning, eating clay which provides nutrients they can’t get anywhere else. Along the way there and back, there’s a good chance we’ll spot sloths and monkeys going about their morning business.

After lunch at the lodge we’ll hike (about 1.5 hours) to an oxbow lake, where we’ll paddle around spotting dozens of different bird species in the shallows, troops of monkeys on the lakeshore, and flocks of red-bellied macaws in the flooded palm forest.

Both tonight and tomorrow, optional guided night hikes give you the opportunity to spot tapirs, night monkeys and tarantulas, and to sink into the incredible soundtrack of the jungle after dark.

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Remote jungle lodge in the Amazon

We’ll spend today exploring Lake Sachavacayoc, home to countless monkeys, caimans, tapirs, anacondas, hoatzin, and lots of blue and yellow macaws and one of the best places in the Amazon for wildlife spotting.
If you like, you can fish for piranha today, and our cooks back at the lodge are happy to fry up your carnivorous catch for dinner!

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Remote jungle lodge in the Amazon

Today we’ll retrace our journey back to Puerto Maldonado airport and take the half hour flight to Cusco – the birthplace of the Incas and one of the world’s most beautiful and fascinating cities! Your guide will meet you when you land and take you to your accommodation to settle in, then for a relaxed walking tour of Cusco’s historic center.

It’s important to drink plenty of water and take it relatively easy today as you adjust to Cusco’s 3300m (10,000ft) altitude.

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Hotel in downtown Cusco

This morning we’re headed for Moray – three massive Inca amphitheatres of incredible engineering precision and stern, magnificent beauty. In the afternoon we’ll explore Salineras – a surreal and beautiful patchwork of pools and paths that still produces salt using Inca technology, and is our favourite sight in the whole region! Biking between these sites – through tiny villages and rolling countryside (“Andean flat”!), is available, or you’re welcome to stay in the vehicle and just soak up the incredible scenery.

Later we’ll catch the train to Aguas Calientes, where we’ll spend the night.

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Hotel in Aguas Calientes

A spectacular stone city surrounded by incredibly steep, incredibly green mountains, Machu Picchu needs no introduction and is deservedly one of the new Seven Wonders of the World.

We’ll get an early start, so there’s time for your guide to show you around Machu Picchu’s main citadel, as well as our favourite hidden nooks and crannies, before the crowds arrive. Then there’s time for your own exploration of the massive, still-mysterious site, before we catch the train to Ollantaytambo, where we’ll spend the night.

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Hotel in Ollantaytambo

This morning we’ll wander through charming Ollantaytambo, perhaps the most perfectly preserved of all Inca towns, with atmospheric cobbled alleyways and sun-drenched plazas presided over by a spectacular, llama-shaped ruin. Then we’ll drive through the sunny, scenic Sacred Valley, past incredible terracing, ancient irrigation canals and massive hilltop forts, to Pisac. Pisac’s bustling town square is home to the region’s largest and most famous craft market, and the surrounding streets are a maze of charming gardens, carved stone buildings, and hidden courtyards. We’ll also explore the Inca fortress that bristles over the town.

Finally, we’ll head back to Cusco, stopping along the way to visit Cochahuasi, an animal sanctuary where we can get close to flamingos, monkeys, lynxes, and Peru’s national emblem, the spectacular Andean Condor.

Meals: All meals included

Accommodation: Hotel in Cusco

By this stage in your trip, you might like a day of down time to rest, relax and sort through photos! Or if you feel active, you’ve come to the right place – there are things to do in Cusco to suit every age and personality: churches, museums, markets, art galleries and adventure parks; plus organized tours and adventure activities like rafting and horse riding. This is also the perfect day to just wander around and enjoy the spectacular mountain views, traditionally dressed locals, excellent cafes and charming architecture of downtown Cusco.

Meals: Breakfast included

Accommodation: Hotel in Cusco

Today we’ll fly you to Guayaquil in Ecuador, where you’ll stay one night and rest up ready for the next stage of your South American adventure!

Meals: Breakfast included

Accommodation: Hotel in Guayaquil

We’ll get you back to the airport in time to check in for your two hour flight to Baltra airport in the Galapagos!
Here your guide will meet you and together you’ll start the island-hopping – by bus, taxi, and ferry across Itabaca Channel – to a highlands ranch where you can see giant tortoises wandering around.

Santa Cruz is home to the most scenic beaches for wandering, paddling, swimming and generally enjoying, in the whole Galapagos, and we’ll spend the afternoon enjoying some beach time!

This evening, enjoy one of the great aspects of Latin American beachside life – the central street of Puerto Ayora is closed to traffic and restaurants put tables and chairs on the street so kids can run free and everyone can enjoy an al fresco dinner. You’ll feel the stress fall away as you relax into the tropical island vibe!

Meals: Breakfast and lunch included

Accommodation: Santa Cruz Island

Today we’ll sail to an uninhabited island on a yacht. Here we’ll wander among land iguanas, blue footed boobies, and dozens of other species of birds. The various uninhabited islands - Santa Fé, Plazas, Bartolomé and Seymour – all have different highlights, such as the lava landscapes of Bartolomé and the frigate bird and iguana breeding grounds of Seymour. We’ll let you know which island we’re thinking of for you when you book your tour – let us know if you have particular interests and we’ll make sure to match you with the island that suits you best!

Meals: Breakfast and lunch included

Accommodation: Santa Cruz Island

An early start gets us on the 7am speedboat to Isabela where we’ll get you settled in to your accommodation and oriented for a free morning. You might like to spend this checking out the tortoise breeding centre or the flamingo lagoon, or if you’re a bird lover simply wandering along the stunning, white sand beach, which offers the best opportunity to spot migratory birds in the entire Galapagos!

After lunch we’ll take a short boat ride – past reef sharks, blue footed boobies, pelicans and penguins– to the Tintoreras islets, where we’ll take a short hike (be careful not to step on a marine iguana – they are everywhere!). We’ll also snorkel here in crystalline water, among sea turtles, rays, penguins, and multitudes of different fish.

Meals: Breakfast and lunch included

Accommodation: Isabela Island

This morning a 45 minute boat ride takes us to Cabo Rosa, where lava flows into the ocean have created hundreds of natural tunnels and arches above and below the water. Here we’ll experience the best snorkelling in the Galapagos, sharing the water with giant sea turtles, rays, seahorses and many tropical fish, and observed with interest by sea lions, penguins and blue-footed boobies.

Late this afternoon you’ll enjoy some free time to soak up the serenity and beauty of Isabela one last time.

Note: if you prefer, you can hike to Sierra Negra volcano today instead.

Meals: Breakfast and lunch included

Accommodation: Isabela Island

This morning we’ll hop across the islands back to Baltra airport, via speed boat and ferry across two different channels, in time for your flight back to Guayaquil and onwards towards home. Thank you so much for travelling with us!

Meals: Breakfast included