Lima, Machu Picchu, Cuzco First journey to Peru

Day 1 Direct flight to Lima

Reception at the airport, private transfer and stay for two nights in a quiet neighbourhood in the centre of Lima. The hotel’s leafy patio is a small haven of peace and freshness in the heart of the capital. We love the slightly pop and bohemian feel of the decor, the bold references to the world of art, the beautiful library with its eclectic selection and the comfortable and bright rooms.

Day 2 Lima

Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Cercado, which is the old part of Lima, offers splendid examples of Spanish colonial architecture, such as the Torre-Tagle Palace (18th century) and San Juan Cathedral (17th century), which houses the tomb of Francisco Pizarro. The Barranco district, meanwhile, has long been renowned. In the 19th century, the Lima aristocracy visited these beaches. Today, creatives from all backgrounds have taken over buildings and casonas. Gallery owners, restaurateurs and café owners have followed up. Visitors to the Museum of Contemporary Art enjoy both the museum and the flower-filled gardens. Perhaps you would like to visit another museum? The Museo Larco, for example, whose collections cover several millennia of Peruvian history up to the colonial period, showcasing all the ancient cultures. Or the Museo Pedro de Osma, which is housed in a small 19th-century palace and displays an exceptional collection of religious art from the viceregal period.
Optional - Private tour of Barranco.

Day 3 Lima - Yucai

Private transfer to the airport, then flight to Cuzco. Another transfer to the village of Yucai in the Sacred Valley. Stay for three nights at a charming hacienda housed within the walls of a former Franciscan monastery built in the 18th century. The property covers 20,000 m² in the heart of the Sacred Valley. The rooms are not huge but elegant and bright, and all have large windows overlooking the gardens of the posada. There are endless possibilities for walks in the surrounding area, so it is a little paradise for nature lovers.

Day 4 Yucai

Already on your itinerary - Local markets bring everyone together in a riot of vibrant colours; highland Indians are known for their red ponchos. You set off on our tour by car, with a driver. Starting with Pisaq: market (fresh cheese, chicken, herbs, bread, cabbage, guinea pigs, corn and potatoes of all kinds), centuries-old agricultural terraces and Inca citadel. At the other end of the valley is the fortified site of Ollantaytambo, which is a magnificently preserved example of Inca urban planning.

Day 5 Yucai

Already on your itinerary - You are taken to the area by car and then, accompanied by a private guide, you begin your exploration on foot with the concentric terraces of the Inca agricultural research centre at Moray. The facility made it possible to artificially reproduce different climatic conditions and therefore develop protocols for acclimatising foreign plants. You then descend gently through a beautiful rural landscape dominated by the Vilcabamba mountain range to the salt pans of Maras, whose thousands of pools form a strange white honeycomb landscape. This day in the countryside involves about three hours of walking.

Day 6 Yucai - Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu)

Transfer to Ollantaytambo station and panoramic train to Aguas Calientes/Machu Picchu Pueblo.
Already on your itinerary - In the shuttle bus that follows the winding road, you prepare yourselves for the shock. Because Machu Picchu, the citadel of Pachacutec, is such an astonishing feat of engineering that it leaves you speechless. The beauty of the mountains, the scale of the design, the logistics and engineering required to build it, and the vigour and ingenuity demonstrated by the Incas here are beyond comprehension. Amazement, in the strongest sense of the word! To go beyond a simple sense of wonder and gain a deeper understanding of the majesty, a private guide is an excellent interpreter.
Overnight stay in a hotel with contemporary décor designed using recycled materials. The rooms are comfortable and the cuisine is exemplary in its freshness. In the evening, meet at the bar to enjoy some tapas accompanied by local pisco in a relaxed atmosphere. And to help you rest your body and mind, the hotel has a spa with a heated swimming pool and sauna, among other facilities.

Day 7 Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu) - Cuzco

Transfer to the station and panoramic train to Ollantaytambo. Private transfer to Cuzco and stay for three nights in a pretty cobbled street in the centre of the Inca capital. Your hotel has preserved the charm of the original quinta. The rooms feature efficient layouts and quality bedding and surround a patio where you can relax after a day of sightseeing. Throughout, the old and the new coexist with taste and restraint.
On your itinerary - A pisco tasting. The national drink is a fine wine brandy. You head to one of the best places in Cuzco for pisco, to try it in its classic form as a pisco sour.

Day 8 Cuzco

The navel of the world, the city was probably founded by the Killke a century before the arrival of the Incas. The Incas expanded it and made it the capital of their empire. The Spanish partially destroyed it, but built their own Cuzco, Ciudad Noble y Grande, on top of it. The encounter between Andean culture and Baroque effervescence produced surprising results, which seem to define the codes of a unique way of life. The Inca capital still literally forms the foundation of the city as walls and foundations often date back to pre-Hispanic times and can be seen in many places (especially in the old colonial district of San Blas, where your hotel is located). On the Plaza de Armas stand the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin and the Church of the Society of Jesus, both of which are magnificent and adorned with gold and paintings from the Cuzco school (16th-17th centuries). Sacsayhuaman is just over one mile (two kilometres) north of Qusqu and is one of the most impressive Inca ruins. This triple zigzag wall in the shape of a puma's head is a tour de force. The cyclopean precision of the monoliths' assembly is impressive.
Optional - Private tour of Cuzco, capital of Tahuantinsuyu.

Day 9

Day 10 Cuzco - Return flight

Private transfer to the airport and return flight via Lima.