Vida Es Dulce

Detailed Itinerary

Day One – Begin your holiday in Peru

We will be waiting for you at Lima airport to meet you when you land in Peru and take you by private transfer to your hotel in the cosmopolitan area of Miraflores. Our local representative will assist with your hotel check in and be there to answer any questions you might have or to direct you to any restaurants you might have already picked out.

Day Two – Market Visit and Cookery Class

We’ll leave you with some free time to relax this morning, and then just before lunch we’ll pick you up and take you to Lima’s Central market where you can experience first-hand the huge variety of fruit, meat and fish available. Our chef will point out all of the different products which you can’t find in the UK, and you’ll also have a chance to haggle for some ingredients yourself. Once you’ve secured the produce you need, we’ll head to the chef kitchen to prepare a true Limeño lunch including a classic ceviche. (Breakfast/Lunch included)

Day Three – Para-gliding and a Desert Oasis

After breakfast his morning we will pick you up and take you the short distance down to the Pacific cliffs of Miraflores. Here you’ll meet with our paragliding experts before strapping in (accompanied by an instructor) for a real birds-eye view of Lima. Soaring high above the ocean and the city is a fantastic experience and, of course, tremendous fun! After your para-gliding we will take you back to the hotel so you can head out and get some lunch, and we will take you to the coach station, where you will catch a coach down the Pan-American Highway to the desert oasis of Huacachina. You’ll arrive in the late afternoon, and you’ll have the rest of the day and night free to explore this stunning genuine desert oasis, with its palm tree-lined lagoon and towering sand dunes. (B)

Day Four – Wine-tasting and Sand-boarding

Did you know that the first vines in the New World were planted in Peru? Even today the province of Ica is famous for its wines, producing some excellent reds and, of course, the world-famous Pisco brandy. This morning we’ll pick you up from your hotel and take you to a couple of Peru’s best wineries where you’ll have guided tours and talk to the experts about their work. Then, in the afternoon we’ll head back to Huacachina and take you out on a dune-buggy ride into the desert. Those who want to can also try their hand at Peru’s hottest sport: sand-boarding. If you haven’t seen it before, imagine snow-boarding but down colossal sand dunes! We’ll end the dune buggy ride by driving to the top of one of the highest dunes to enjoy the spectacular desert sunset before heading back into Huacachina for the evening. (B)

Day Five - Fly to Arequipa

This morning we will take you back to the airport in Lima for a flight up into the foothills of the Andes, and the ‘White City’ of Arequipa, so-called because its main buildings are all made from the local white granite. On arrival, we’ll take you to your centrally-located hotel and then you’ll have the rest of the afternoon free to relax and enjoy a wander around the historic centre what is many people’s favourite city in Peru. (B)

Day Six – Arequipa

You’ll spend today in what is probably Peru’s most lovely city - a kind of Seville at the foot of the El Misti volcano. The fantastic sights of Arequipa, such as the monastery of Santa Catalina, are just begging to be seen. You will have the whole of the day free so plenty of time to relax in the city’s famously laid-back atmosphere when you’ve finished exploring. (B)

Day Seven – Bike Riding and Barbecue

A bright and early start this morning, as we take you out of the city for a bike ride in the beautiful countryside surrounding the city. As well as the lovely mountain scenery we’ll be able to visit some of the small traditional villages in the area, many of which have barely changed in hundreds of years. After a full morning exploring, we will stop at a local restaurant for a traditional Peruvian asado barbecue lunch, which we can enjoy outside in the fresh mountain air. (B/L)

Day Eight – Fly to Cusco

After breakfast this morning we will take you to the airport for your flight to the ancient Inca capital of Cusco. On arrival our local representative will be waiting for you and take you to your next top class hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to spend how you wish. It’s a good idea to have a wander around the town as you get used to the altitude. The central Plaza de Armas is very close to your hotel and there’s a host of excellent Andean restaurants to choose from. (B)

Day Nine – Free Day in Cusco

We usually like to give people some time to explore on their own, so today is up to you. You could visit the bustling local market, walk up to the bohemian San Blas district with its galleries and jewellers, visit the hilltop Inca fortress of Sacsayhuaman, or perhaps just sit back with a cup of coca tea and get those postcards written... Of course, if you’d prefer something more active then we’d be delighted to make some suggestions. In the evening we will have a short briefing session before you start your trek tomorrow. (B)

Day Ten – Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

This morning we will pick you up and take you to the station to catch the train from Cusco, following the Urubamba river to Km.104 of the railway, where you will descend and cross a footbridge to begin your hike at the Inca site of Chachabamba. After a brief visit to this lovely ruin with its water channels and fountains, you start the four-hour ascent that takes you past spectacular overlooks above the great valley, then below a lovely waterfall near the delightful site of Wiñay Wayna (Forever Young). You ascend through this largest and most exquisite of the Inca Trail sites, passing its chain of ritual baths and elegantly curved terracing, and then joining the main Inca trail. You then follow it across a steep mountainside and up narrow stairways through lush, humid cloud-forest of giant ferns and broad-leaf vegetation. Suddenly, you cross the stone threshold of Intipunku (Sun Gate) and encounter an unforgettable sweep of natural beauty and human artistry – a backdrop of twisting gorge and forested peaks framing the magical city of Machu Picchu.

You then walk the last half-hour or so down the royal flagstone walkway, past outlying shrines and buildings and through the heart of Machu Picchu, taking a bus to the town of Aguas Calientes, where you will stay tonight. In the evening we will take you to the novo-andino restaurant at the Sumaq hotel, where their chefs specialise in fusion dishes offering a modern take on traditional Andean dishes. (B/L/D)

Day Eleven – Machu Picchu Tour

Today, you will enjoy an early morning visit to the famous lost city so we make sure you get there before everybody else: even the people doing the full four-day trail! You then have the rest of the day in both guided and individual exploration. After we’ve seen the most fascinating features of this astounding and mysterious Inca city, you may want to take the optional hike to an amazing overview of the site, or just to investigate Machu Picchu’s hidden nooks and corners. After having a full experience of this amazing site, we return to Aguas Calientes and board the return train to Cusco. (B)

Day Twelve – Last Day on Holiday in Peru

We have left the last day of your holiday free to make sure we can accommodate any international flight time and get you to the airport in plenty of time for your journey home. If you don’t depart until the evening we can organise some extra sightseeing for you and we always make sure you keep your hotel room until you leave for the airport so you can leave your packing until the very last minute if you so desire. (B)

What's Included?

Our standard price for this adventure holiday in Peru is £2495 per person, which is based on two sharing a double or twin room in our standard hotels.

That price includes all your accommodation, internal transport, transfers, tours, guides, equipment and entrance fees. It also includes all the indicated meals as well as all the ingredients for your cookery classes in Peru.

We don't have any "local payments" or sneaky charges: everything you have read about on this itinerary is included in that price. And because everything we do is tailor-made, we don't have fixed departure dates or minimum numbers for our trips. Outside of national holidays or other special events, this price is valid for the whole of 2020.

International flights

So with the exception of a few meals, everything on your holiday is included. What we don't include as standard is your international flights, because with these you have a huge range of options depending on the date you want to travel, the route you want to fly, and your preferred departure airport in the UK.

We aren't tied to any particular airline, and we will be delighted to discuss all options with you, or you can even book the flights yourself if you prefer: it's totally up to you.