This holiday visits the places ticked below. You can design your own itinerary by adding destinations. Select the destinations you would like and click the red button to see full details of the holiday you have chosen.
Including stay at Refugio Amazonas Jungle Lodge
This holiday includes a visit to the jungle. Llama Travel offers three jungle lodges, with different itineraries and levels of comfort. Click on a lodge for a detailed itinerary.
Refugio AmazonasA comfortable lodge located close to the Tambopata Reserve. Cold water showers only.
Reserva Amazonica - supplement £220 (£250 single)A superior lodge with hot water showers. There is a 300-metre canopy walkway.
When staying in the Reserva Amazonica, you can choose which excursions to take when you arrive. A suggested jungle itinerary is included below.
The Tambopata Research Center is located in the Tambopata National Reserve where there is no human habitation, and is surrounded by primary forest. This offers an excellent opportunity for spotting jungle wildlife. The world's largest macaw clay lick is nearby, where hundreds of parrots and macaws of up to 15 species gather on clear mornings. The best months for the lick are July to November. The jungle itinerary includes 2 nights in the Tambopata Research Center and 2 nights in the Refugio Amazonas.
Day 1 (Thursday) Lima Fly from the UK to Lima. You are met at the airport and escorted to your hotel (2 nights).
Day 2 (Friday) Lima Enjoy a free day in Lima, or alternatively take our half day Colonial Lima excursion. The city tour includes a visit to the catacombs of San Francisco and the cathedral of Lima where the conquistador Francisco Pizarro is buried. Afterwards, return to the modern district Miraflores and visit the pre-Inca site of Huaca Pucllana.
Day 3 (Saturday) Jungle Morning flight to the jungle town of Puerto Maldonado. After a 10 mile drive to the port of Inferno, take a beautiful two and a half hour boat ride up the Tambopata River to your lodge close to the Tambopata National Reserve. After an introduction to the lodge, have dinner before taking a night trip on the river to look for caimans.
Day 4 (Sunday) Jungle Take a beautiful morning hike through the forest to Condenado oxbow lake, where you paddle to search for caimans, horned screamers, hoatzin and other lakeside wildlife. You walk back through the jungle to the lodge for lunch. In the afternoon, you have a fascinating visit to an Amazon farm in a nearby community, where every plant and tree serves a purpose. Then explore a patch of brazil nut forest that has been harvested for decades, and visit a camp used by brazil nut gatherers, to understand the jungle’s only sustainably harvested product. After dinner, take a night walk in the forest.
Day 5 (Monday) Jungle A morning boat ride to a parakeet lick, where on most clear mornings different species descend to ingest the clay. After returning to the lodge, take a 20 minute walk to a peccary clay lick, where you may see herds of wild rainforest pigs and maybe other mammals. In the afternoon, take a short walk to the 25-metre scaffolding canopy tower. From the top of the tower, you have a wonderful view over primary forest and a chance to watch the flocks of toucans and macaws.
Day 3 (Saturday) Jungle Morning flight to the jungle town of Puerto Maldonado, followed by a boat ride down the Madre de Dios River to your lodge. Afternoon visit to the canopy walkway, linking 8 observation platforms, allowing you to see the jungle from a different perspective, 30 metres above the ground. Look for giant strangler fig trees, orchids, toucans and woodpeckers. Then walk through the forest, along a 200-metre bridge over fooded marshland.
Day 4 (Sunday) Jungle Walk through the forest to Lago Sandoval, where you take a canoe ride on this giant oxbow lake. This is home to river otters, macaws and other colourful birds. Then walk to Concepcion farm, where you have a picnic lunch. Here, the garden has more than 200 medicinal plants which grow in the jungle. After dinner, take a night walk through the forest, listening to the sounds of the jungle and looking for nocturnal creatures.
Day 5 (Monday) Jungle Visit Gamitana Creek, where you have a two and a half hour walk following the stream upriver. The creek is home to piranha, caimans, turtles and varied birdlife. Observe the local wildlife and try some native fishing techniques. Take a canoe ride downstream, before a picnic lunch at Gamitana Farm, where you take a guided tour. Then take a late afternoon boat ride, looking for caimans and other nocturnal animals, as night falls.
Day 1 (Thursday) Lima Fly from the UK to Lima. You are met at the airport and escorted to your hotel (1 night).
Day 2 (Friday) Jungle Morning flight to the jungle town of Puerto Maldonado. After a 10 mile drive to the port of Infierno, take a beautiful two and a half hour boat ride up the Tambopata National Reserve. After and introduction to the lodge, have dinner before taking a night trip on the river to look for caimans.
Day 3 (Saturday) Jungle In the morning, climb the 25 metre canopy tower for wonderful views over primary forest and to look for clocks of toucans and macaws. Then visit a camp used by Brazil nut gatherers to understand the jungle’s only sustainably harvested product. You then take a 4 and a half hour boat ride upriver to the Tambopata Research Center. As you move away from the area of human habitation, wildlife becomes more abundant. After arriving at the lodge, take a walk through the forest, looking for howler monkeys and dusky titi monkeys. In the evening, scientists will give a lecture on the macaw project.
Day 4 (Sunday) Jungle A dawn excursion to observe the macaw clay lick. Then take a walk through the rainforest, looking for monkeys and peccaries. After lunch, visit the pond platform to look for lakeside birds, including hoatzin and flycatchers. After dark, take a night walk to look for frogs.
Day 5 (Monday) Jungle Take a 3 and a half hour ride back to the Refugio Amazonas. Then take a short afternoon hike to Condenado Lake to look for lakeside birdlife and caiman.
Day 6 (Tuesday) Cusco An early boat transfer to Puerto Maldonado for your flight to Cusco, the historic capital of the Inca Empire nestled in the Andes at 3,300 metres above sea level. The afternoon is free to help you acclimatise to the altitude (6 nights).
Day 7 (Wednesday) Cusco Enjoy a free day in Cusco, or take the half day optional Inca Cusco excursion. This excursion takes you to several Inca sites in and around Cusco, including the fortress of Sacsayhuaman and Qoricancha, one of the most important sites in the Inca Empire.
Day 8 (Thursday) Cusco Take the optional full day Sacred Valley excursion. You visit the bustling market town of Pisac, which sells some of the finest crafts in Peru. After a good lunch at a country restaurant, explore the superb Inca ruins at Ollantaytambo, and then continue to the colonial village of Chincheros, with amazing views of patchwork fields.
Day 9 (Friday) Cusco or Machu Picchu Take the optional excursion to Machu Picchu, which starts with a magical train ride, followed by a guided visit to the ruins. You then have some free time to further explore the ruins independently. After a buffet lunch next to the ruins, board the mid-afternoon train to Cusco, arriving in the evening, or check into your hotel in the valley and return to the ruins on the following day.
Alternatively, take the Short Inca Trail excursion to Machu Picchu. This one day 9 mile hike climbs to the beautiful Wiñay Wayna ruins arriving at the Sun Gate in the late afternoon. You check into your hotel in the valley below and return to Machu Picchu for a guided tour the next day, before returning to Cusco.
Days 10 & 11 (Saturday & Sunday) Cusco Two free days. Get to know Cusco better; there are 500 Inca sites around the city, alternatively revisit the Sacred Valley or try one of the many adventure sports on offer.
An excellent day trip is to visit the town of Maras which is famous for its salt pans. The soil in the region has large amounts of salt in it, and salt evaporation ponds have been used since pre-Inca times. Close to the town of Maras are the very different Inca ruins of Moray, which were used as an agricultural experimentation centre. The ruins consist of many levels of terraces in concentric circles at different elevations, and each different level was used to try out different crop strains.
Day 12 (Monday) Puno A fascinating full-day coach journey across the altiplano, including guided visits to the Inca site of Raqchi and the beautiful colonial church in Andahuaylillas. After lunch in Sicuani (included), visit the pre-Inca site of Pucara, before arriving in Puno, on the edge of Lake Titicaca (2 nights). There is also the option to travel to Puno by Train. This beautiful train journey across the altiplano includes a three course lunch, and the train has a special glass walled observatory car.
Day 13 (Tuesday) Puno A full day on the lake, exploring the islands by fast, comfortable boat. You first visit the floating Uros Islands, made from reeds grown on the lake. The islanders also use the reeds for food and to make boats, which you can ride in. You then continue to Taquile Island, where the islanders have established their own distinct culture. After an energetic walk up the hill to the main village, have lunch of fresh fish caught in the lake. Taquile Island produces some of the finest handicrafts in Peru, and crafts are still one of the most important activities for the Islanders. You return to your hotel in the afternoon with the Cordillera Real mountain range providing an impressive backdrop.
Day 14 (Wednesday) Arequipa Visit the funerary towers of Sillustani, constructed by the Colla people before they were conquered by the Incas, offering a fascinating insight into pre-Inca culture. There are over 60 towers at Sillustani, and the style of the Chullpa varies according to the person who was being buried. Afternoon flight to Arequipa (2 nights).
Day 15 (Thursday) Arequipa Fly to Arequipa in the morning, in the afternoon take a tour of city (1 night). The tour includes visits to the main square and its colonial buildings, and the Santa Catalina convent which was closed to the public until 1970, and even today nuns still use part of the convent. The city is one of the most beautiful in Peru, and it is nicknamed the white city, as the centre is constructed out of sillar (a white volcanic stone).
Day 16 (Friday) Colca Canyon Leave early for the Colca Canyon, an impressive journey over the Andes reaching almost 5,000m at one point. This offers spectacular views of the Andes, with snow-capped mountain peaks and volcanoes visible and you pass herds of wild vicunas and alpacas. After the drive, some of which is on unpaved roads, you arrive at your lodge in time for a welcome swim in the hot volcanic springs (1 night).
Day 17 (Saturday) Arequipa An early start to the edge of the canyon, one mile above the river, where it is possible to see condors rise on the thermals, and glide past, only metres away. This lookout is one of few places in the world that offers the chance to see these birds at such close quarters. Then visit typical highland villages before returning to Arequipa in the evening (1 night).
Day 18 (Sunday) Lima Fly to Lima. (1 night).
Day 19 (Monday) Paracas In the morning, transfer to the Cruz del Sur coach terminal for the 4 hour ‘Cruzero’ coach service down the coast direct to your hotel in Paracas. Afternoon free, perhaps visit the Paracas National reserve or relax around the pool (2 nights).
Flights over the Nazca Lines The best way to appreciate the Nazca Lines is by flying over them. However, Llama Travel is currently not offering flights over the lines due to safety concerns raised by a number of incidents in recent years on different airlines offering these flights. Llama Travel is monitoring the situation and if, at a later date, these safety concerns are addressed, we may be able to offer flights over the lines again. We now offer a full day excursion to many Nazca culture sites, including a viewing tower from which you can see some of the Nazca lines. We now offer a full day excursion to many Nazca culture sites, including a viewing tower from which you can see some of the Nazca lines.
Day 20 (Tuesday) Paracas Enjoy a free day around Paracas or take the optional Archaeological Nazca excursion. This full day excursion gives a fascinating insight into the Nazca culture. Visit the regional Ica museum, the Cantayoc Aqueduct and a viewing platform from where some of the Nazca Lines figures are visible.
Day 21 (Wednesday) Lima In the morning, take an exciting boat ride to the Ballestas Islands. The trip lasts approximately 2 hours, and the islands are home to sea lions, humboldt penguins, cormorants, boobies and pelicans; in total there are over 150 species of marine birds. You will also see the Paracas Candelabra, which is a prehistoric geoglyph on a dune in Pisco bay. In the afternoon return to Lima by bus. (1 night)
Day 22 (Thursday) Fly overnight to the UK.
Day 23 (Friday) Arrival in the UK.
Please note: jungle excursions may vary due to weather conditions.
Lima: Bed and Breakfast
Cusco: Bed and Breakfast
Jungle Lodge: Full board
Puno: Bed and Breakfast; lunch is included on the coach or train from Cusco to Lake Titicaca; lunch is included on the full day excursion on Lake Titicaca
Arequipa: Bed and Breakfast
Colca Canyon: Bed and Breakfast
Paracas: Bed and Breakfast