Incas and Amazon for Families with Teens

Flights from the U.S. usually arrive in Lima late in the evening. After clearing customs, just walk across the road to the airport hotel for a transit night before continuing on to Puerto Maldonado in the morning, where your real adventure begins. If you want time to explore Lima, it is possible to add additional time before or after the trip.

Return to the terminal via the walkway in time to catch the flight out to Puerto Maldonado in the early morning. On your arrival, you’ll be met by your guide and driven to Puerto Filadelphia for a relaxing 2.5-hour boat ride down the incredible Amazon River to Tambopata Rainforest lodge, your accommodations for the night. Don’t be surprised if you see monkeys, parrots, and capybaras when you look out from your room! Enjoy dinner followed by a caiman search along the river’s edge.

In the morning at dawn, you will cross the river to visit one of the earth’s one-of-a-kind places where the bank of the river is an ENORMOUS (about 12 stories high) wall of clay. You will not believe how many pairs of parrots and macaws swoop in for a lick. If you get in position really early and stay really still, you get to see and hear it all. They are RAUCOUS!

Make your way back to the lodge for breakfast and then hike the Floodplain Trail where you’ll discover more to add to your species count: huge Ceiba trees, strangler figs, saddleback tamarins, squirrel and brown capuchin monkeys, and collared peccary. If you’re lucky, you may see ocelot, puma and jaguar tracks, although these cats are very difficult to spot.

After lunch, visit Pond Platform, a great place to spot waterfowl such as Muscovy duck, sunbittern, and Hoatzin along with woodpeckers, oropendolas, flycatchers, and parakeets.

In the evening, enjoy a jungle night walk to seek out the nocturnal wildlife such as tree and poison dart frogs, snakes, and possibly mammals such as the honey bear or margay if you’re lucky.

Weather permitting, you can return to the Macaw Clay lick for another fascinating view.

After breakfast, you can enjoy a variety of activities provided by the lodge. In addition to the clay lick, there are lots of birding opportunities, several additional trails for hiking to see different habitats for several different species of monkeys, and trails to a variety of ecosystems including the rainforest’s towering trees and bamboo forests. Every hike offers the opportunity to spot and observe the wildlife of the rainforest including the three-toed sloth, the odd-looking capybara, and possibly the majestic jaguar!

Perhaps the kids would enjoy an afternoon soccer game with the staff at the lodge, or maybe the family would just rather hang out and relax while listening to the sounds of nature in the background.

Tonight you can participate in an optional trip to spot caiman, which entails traveling to the river’s edge at night and scanning the shores with headlamps and flashlights to catch the red gleams of reflection from caiman eyes.

This morning you’ll return to Puerto Maldonado to catch an afternoon flight to Cusco. On arrival, you’ll be met and transferred to your hotel to freshen up, then head out on a short, guided walking tour around the city to get oriented with the historical capital of the Inca Empire. Some of the sights in town you might see are the 16th century Cusco Cathedral and the Iglesia del Triunfo, both located at the lively Plaza de Armas in the town center. Not only is the Cathedral a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it also contains many archeological artifacts.

After breakfast, drive approximately one and a half hours to the Urumbamba River where the pretty stretches of calm water are punctuated by awesome rapids. Listen up and paddle hard! Then, you’ll be spoiled by an amazing riverside picnic banquet. After a leisurely lunch, head back to Cusco for some free time before tomorrow’s next adventure.

Today’s lovely walking tour is a superb introduction into the Inca heritage of Peru and at 3,650 m/ 11,972 ft, a perfect acclimatization hike for anyone planning to do the Inca trail or other longer hikes in the area. Begin by visiting the most stunning ruins at Sacsayhuaman on the outskirts of Cusco. Although much of the smaller stones of this 13th-century fortress complex were used to build modern-day Cusco, the remaining stones are up to 8.5 m (28 ft) high and weigh over 360 tons. The distinctive zig-zag ramparts that form the complex are said to be characteristic of the head of a puma with many functions including storehouses, administration buildings, reservoirs, and a play area. It was also the site of a crucial battle between the Incas and the Spanish.

Next, head to the Inca ruin of Tambo Machay, popularly called the Inca’s Bath due to its finely preserved waterfalls, carefully diverted through fine stone channels. The Incas acknowledged water as one of the principal elements of life and revered it accordingly. As you make your way back towards Cusco, visit the site of Puca Pucara. This delightful ruin on a small prominence is believed not to be the “red fort” as its name suggests, but a “Tambo” – a rest house for traveling animals, goods, and travelers.

You’ll then cut across the country following the old Inca road from Cusco to the village of Pisac. The traditional farming methods and highly adapted Andean crops are a treat to see still functioning. Stop at a large ‘waca’ or outcrop of rock known as Salumpuncu, or the Temple of the Moon. This demonstrates the Incas affinity with rock as they improve the naturally occurring features of this huge rock into caves, seats, carvings, mummy-niches, and an altar that is supposed to be bathed in moonlight on the full-moon of the winter solstice. Time permitting, the settlement of Cusillyuioc, known as the Temple of the Monkey, just below is an interesting layout of caves and tunnels. En route, you will enjoy a delicious picnic lunch.

With Cusco now in your sights, visit the fascinating Qenqo, a waca containing some of the finest examples of Inca carvings in-situ. The eroded limestone fissures have been artfully carved into zig-zag channels (from where Qenqo derives its name), pumas, condors, snakes, and houses. Bountiful Mummy Niches in the caves, an amphitheater, and the central phallic column all add to the mystery of its multi-functional use. An old Inca road brings you to San Cristobal church built on top of Inca Manco Capac’s Palace offering a fantastic viewpoint of Cusco. The final steps down the streets of San Blas bring you to the Plaza de Armas and the end of the tour.

Distance: 12 km/ 7.5 mi; altitude gain: negligible; altitude loss: 600 m/ 1,968 ft

This morning, visit the Chicuchase Wasi Alternative School for girls in Cusco. Their focus is on providing free education, teaching academic skills to poor indigenous female children who are otherwise forgotten by mainstream education. They have been working for more than 25 years educating families of the value of education to female children and the potential they have.

Next, get ready for quite a workout today. This ride is possibly the best one-day bike trip in Peru, taking you on a largely downhill route across the Chinchero plain and into the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Using dirt trails and ancient mule routes, pass by the beautiful Lake Huaypo and on through the village of Chequereq. A short uphill ride brings you to the intriguing circular Inca ruins of Moray where you’ll enjoy a picnic lunch and then spend time exploring these fascinating ruins. From here take a smooth mule trail to the town of Maras for another descent of a lifetime, down into the amazing salt-pans, before finally meeting your vehicle again beside the Urubamba River for the drive to Ollantaytambo.

Today you’ll take the train towards Machu Picchu, the lost city of the Incas. It was stumbled upon by accident in 1911 and with no Spanish records, Incan legends, or oral histories, remains a mysterious site. Elegant ornamental stonework hints at the possibility of Machu Picchu’s importance as a ceremonial center. You’ll disembark at Kilometer 104 and cross the hanging bridge to the Chachabamba site. After a brief visit, begin a three to four-hour ascent to the ruins of Wiñay Wayna, an important ritual site. The Inca Trail then cuts across the ridge above Machu Picchu to reach the Gate of the Sun (Intipunku) for your first awe-inspiring glimpse of Machu Picchu. Total hiking time is about six hours.

Notes:
Bookings must be made at least 90 days in advance in order to obtain permits for Macchu Picchu.
There is an option of taking the train all the way to Machu Picchu town.

Full-suspension e-bikes are provided.

In the morning, you’ll take a short, winding bus ride up to Machu Pichu where your guide will lead you through the vast ruins.  You’ll have the option to climb Huayna Picchu for a great work-out and a true birds-eye view. This needs to be booked far in advance due to permit restrictions. Otherwise, you can wander through the valley at your own pace and soak in the mountain air.

In the afternoon, the train and bus take you back to Cusco for a final night in Peru.

Today you’ll be transferred to the airport for your flight to Lima. Depending on your flight schedule (extra cost), enjoy a roughly five-hour Lima city tour before catching your flight home. Explore the dazzling Plaza Mayor (Plaza de Armas) in the historic city center, built in the early 16th century. It is surrounded by beautiful architectural buildings including the Government Palace, the 17th-century Cathedral of Lima, and Archbishop’s Palace.