Peru Family Adventures

Lima

You are met on your arrival at Lima airport and taken to a nearby airport hotel (you will see the city on your return), ready for your early flight to Cusco next morning.

Adventures in the Sacred Valley

Fly to Cusco, where you are met by your guide and driven to your hotel in the lovely Sacred Valley (90min, lots to see on the way). After lunch at the excellent Wayra restaurant, your guide takes you to a pottery studio where, under the watchful eye of a local craftsman, your family can try their hands at creating their own ‘masterpieces’. Your evening is free to relax at the hotel.

Bike like an Inca

After breakfast you set off with your guide on sturdy mountain bikes on a country track beside the Urubamba river, a perfect way to soak up the beauty of the Incas’ Sacred Valley. A patchwork of small fields growing corn, kiwicha, and quinoa lines your route, the smallholders take a break to nod or wave. After an hour or two you cross the river into the market town of Pisac for a well-earned lunch. The market’s morning bustle is over, so you wander easily among the stalls of artisan crafts, herbs and spices, or fruit and vegetables. Look for farmers from remote mountain villages with potatoes to barter for tropical fruits brought up from the jungle: a scene that has not changed in centuries. Your bikes are stowed and a short drive takes you back to your hotel.

SUP splashabout, ‘pachamanca’ lunch and a hike

This morning you are driven to Lake Huaypo, among fields of sunflowers with fantastic views to the snow-capped Urubamba mountains. You help prepare a ‘pachamanca’, a traditional meal of meat and vegetables baked with hot stones set in the earth and covered over. Then it’s time to try SUP–stand-up paddle-boarding–under the instruction of expert guides. This fantastic new sport has spread fast around the world and this is a spectacular place to try it out against a fabulous backdrop, with expert safety-first training. With lots of splashing about everyone should soon pick up the skills, wobbling at first but growing in confidence as you venture on to the lake. Once off the water, it is time to uncover your earthen oven and enjoy the succulent pachamanca lunch you prepared earlier. In the afternoon you drive (15min or so) to the spectacular salt pans of Maras: a hillside terraced with pools of salt that has been worked by hand for generations. Glistening under the sun, they are a photographer’s dream. A mule track, used to ferry the dry salt to the valley, leads back to your hotel after another memorable day.

Machu Picchu and the 1 day ‘Royal’ Inca Trail

Assuming you were able to book far enough in advance for us to obtain the necessary permits in your name, this morning catch a train from Ollantaytambo to Km104 for the start of the ‘Royal’ Inca Trail. You only need to carry a day pack on the hike, as your main luggage goes directly to your hotel. You arrive at Machu Picchu in the peace of the late afternoon with time to explore the ruins. You hop on a bus down to Machu Picchu Pueblo, to stay the night at a local hotel. If no Inca Trail permits were available by the time you booked, you would continue with your guide by train beyond Km104 to Machu Picchu Pueblo itself, where there are some interesting options you can choose. One is the pretty hiking trail to Mandor waterfall (the site of Hiram Bingham’s base camp), where there is an orchid garden that is also a good place for butterflies and cloud forest birds. Another option is to explore the market and shops of Machu Picchu Pueblo, and relax in the hot springs. Or choose an extra visit to Machu Picchu itself; buying the bus and entrance tickets direct. Day 6 BL Starting at a time you decide with your guide, you head up by bus to the ruins of Machu Picchu (p$$), the Lost City of the Incas. You explore key parts of the ruins with a guide, then there is time to explore, to walk to the Inca Bridge or the Watchman’s Hut, or just soak up the atmosphere. In the late afternoon you board the train back to Cusco, where a waiting bus takes you to your hotel.

Machu Picchu Pueblo, and relax in the hot springs. Or choose an extra visit to Machu Picchu itself; buying the bus and entrance tickets direct.

Starting at a time you decide with your guide, you head up by bus to the ruins of Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas. You explore key parts of the ruins with a guide, then there is time to explore, to walk to the Inca Bridge or the Watchman’s Hut, or just soak up the atmosphere. In the late afternoon you board the train back to Cusco, where a waiting bus takes you to your hotel.

Cusco: Incan fortress and Incan chocolate

Your guide collects you to see the magnificent Incan fortress of Saqsawaman that stands guard over the city, with spectacular views from the top of its mighty ramparts and a system of tunnels just waiting to be explored. A 20min walk brings you back down to Cusco, with free time for lunch and to explore the city on foot. In the late afternoon it is time for chocolate: the Incas liked it and so do you, but how is it made? Your chocolatier host recounts the story and helps you make your very own bar of Peruvian chocolate.

Whitewater rapids, llamas and condors

This morning you are driven to rapids in the Urubamba river at Pinipampa, where conditions are excellent for beginners. Your expert guides show you all you need to know to ride the rapids safely in your trusty inflatable canoe. Whatever your age, you are sure to get off the water grinning from ear to ear. A tasty lunch at a local restaurant then it’s time to meet the locals: the four-legged variety. Get close to llamas and alpacas, and see how the traditional cloth is woven and dyed. Nearby Cochahuasi sanctuary is home to rescued animals, often with macaws, the Peruvian hairless dog, and even pumas and condors in residence.

Cusco

A free day to explore Cusco, or just relax.

Adventures in the Amazon

You are collected from your hotel for your flight to Puerto Maldonado on the Madre de Dios river in Peru’s southern Amazon. You are met by staff from your jungle lodge and transferred with others to their HQ in town for a briefing. A 30min drive on a dirt road brings you to a small dock and a covered river boat that speeds you to Refugio Lodge. The journey varies with river level and boat, but is typically 3½h. From the lodge’s dock it is a 10min walk on a cleared forest trail to the lodge itself. Your luggage is carried by the staff.

Refugio Lodge has excellent programmes of activities led by its resident naturalist guides, shared with other guests. Boat trips around an oxbow lake look for wildlife such as hoatzin, caiman and horned screamers. At a small clay lick parrots and parakeets can be seen from a special blind. There are great nature walks on good trails through varied forest. A 30m (155-step) metal canopy tower gives great views across the forest canopy. Refugio Lodge is run in partnership with the local Infierno community. Activities with the community include an ethno-botanical trail, a working jungle farm, and a real Brazil nut concession. Optional local extras include kayaking, biking, canopy climbing, a children’s trail, and a wellness centre.

Refugio Lodge has excellent programmes of activities led by its resident naturalist guides, shared with other guests. Boat trips around an oxbow lake look for wildlife such as hoatzin, caiman and horned screamers. At a small clay lick parrots and parakeets can be seen from a special blind. There are great nature walks on good trails through varied forest. A 30m (155-step) metal canopy tower gives great views across the forest canopy. Refugio Lodge is run in partnership with the local Infierno community. Activities with the community include an ethno-botanical trail, a working jungle farm, and a real Brazil nut concession. Optional local extras include kayaking, biking, canopy climbing, a children’s trail, and a wellness centre.

Lima

Returning by river to Puerto Maldonado (a shorter journey travelling with the current) you fly via Cusco back to Lima where you are met and transferred to your hotel in the Miraflores district. Later your Lima guide collects you for an evening visit to the Parque de la Reserva, unless a restaurant tempts you.

With most flights to Europe leaving in the early evening, there is time to visit the splendid Larco Museum in the morning. You are later transferred to Lima airport in time for your international flight home.