DAY 1: Lima Transfer Airport - Hotel
Arrival into Lima and transfer to hotel. | |
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DAY 2: Lima
After enjoying breakfast at the hotel, we will depart to Surquillo Market, close to the well-known district of Miraflores, where the best restaurants and shops are situated. In this market you will find all the fruits and vegetables for which Peru is famous. Here in Surquillo Market, you will also find most varieties of potatoes which grow in Peru. Chef Saravia will explain the difference between them and the dishes which are made with potato in Peruvian Gastronomy. We have so many things to discover in Peru! For lunch we will go to âMalabar Restaurantâ, where Chef Pedro Miguel Schiaffino creates dishes emphasising Peruvian native produce. Here we will try the exotic jungle ingredients . Early evening, after a short break from lunch, we will participate in a cooking class and tasting at Le Cordon Bleu Peru (LCB); a globally prestigious cooking school. One of their chefs will show us how to cook a selection of âPiqueos Criollosâ (Peruvian finger food) and then we will taste all of them. We will receive a recipe book from LCB, matched wines with the dishes and a certificate from LCB. After the cooking class we will go to the âAntigua Taberna Queirolo.âÂEstablished in 1880, it is still a meeting point for those looking to have a good chat over a Pisco. B. L.
Overnight in a Premium Room at NM Lima Hotel including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 3: Lima City Tour DOWN
In the early morning, we will be visiting âThe Terminal Pesqueroâ, the perfect place to find all of the seafood and fresh fish indigenous to Peru and its Pacific waters. Better if you wear comfortable clothes and boots, we will end up smelling like fish! Enjoy breakfast at La PescaderÃa near The Terminal Pesquero. This restaurant belongs to a fish processing plant and also sells fish. Fresh and innovative flavors are its signature. After breakfast, you will have the rest of the morning on your own, to stroll the streets of Lima, have a rest at the .
We will meet in the afternoon to have a guided tour around Lima, visiting the most attractive and important sites. We will go to the Main Square where the city was founded by Francisco Pizarro in 1535. We will continue to The Cathedral and its Religious Art Museum, the Church of Santo Domingo, with the tombs of Santa Rosa and San Martin de Porras. After that we will visit the Convent and Church of San Francisco, the greatest monumental complex of Colonial Art in America and Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Dinner will be at the world class restaurant Astrid y Gaston. B. D. Overnight in a Premium Room at NM Lima Hotel including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 4: Lima Transfer Hotel - Airport
Transfer to the airport for your outward flight from Lima.
Arrival into Cusco and transfer to hotel.
ENjoy an afternoon city tour to familiarise yourself with the city. We will spend the afternoon visiting the City of Cusco on a guided tour of the Main Square, the Cathedral built in the 16th century and full of valuable masterpieces, and the Temple of the Sun. Then, we will drive out of the city to visit the Inca sites of Kenko, Tambomachay, Puca Pucara and the impressive Fortress of Sacsayhuaman, strategically built on a hill overlooking Cusco.
Tonight dinner will be on your own. Cusco at night is a magic place to stroll; you can find beautiful places hidden down the narrow streets or meet locals and have a Mate de Coca tea to keep yourself acclimatised to the altitude. Mate de Coca is made from the leaf of the coca plant, the same plant that cocaine is derived from, but be assured, it is not cocaine. Recent studies have shown that coca chewing significantly aids in metabolizing high carbohydrate foods like potatoes, yucca, and corn - traditional staples in Andean diet. B.
Overnight in a Superior Room at Casa Andina Private Collection Cusco including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 5: Cusco
We will have the morning free to rest. We will enjoy a delicious lunch at âPacha Papaâ Restaurant where Rodolfo Rolando cooks regional dishes with ancient customs. Pachamanca, which comes from the Quechua âearthen potâ, is a traditional Peruvian dish based on the baking of lamb, mutton, pork, chicken or guinea pig, then marinated in spices with the aid of hot stones. Other Andean produce, such as potato, lima beans, and choclo (Peruvian corn) are included in the baking. Dinner is at your leisure and own expense. Many will probably still be full from lunch! B. L.
Overnight in a Superior Room at Casa Andina Private Collection Cusco including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 6: Sacred Valley of the Incas
Early this morning we will be travelling to Urubamba Valley, The Sacred Valley of Incas. We will pass through the millenary salt deposits of Mara, Moray and Pisac. Visit the market with terraces cultivated upon the mountains; the paradise of the Andes where you can still prove your skills bartering. For lunch we will go to âEl Huacatayâ where Chef PÃo Vasquez has created one of the most original culinary styles in Cusco. The key: the unusual use of local ingredients blended with elements from the Mediterranean and the Orient. After lunch we will visit the Inca Fortress and Citadel of Ollantaytambo, built to guard the entrance to this part of the Valley, and protect it from possible invasion from the tribes in the Lower jungle. This archaeological complex was a huge agricultural, administrative, social, religious, and military Centre in the Tahuantinsuyo era. The town is considered a living museum. Travel from Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley to Aguas Calientes in the comfort of the modern Vistadome train. Take advantage of the train's panoramic windows to soak in the incredible views of the Andes mountain range. Includes transfers. Overnight in a Superior Deluxe Room at Sumaq Hotel including breakfast (Deluxe Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 7: Machu Picchu Guided Tour
Upon arrival in Machu Picchu early in the morning, you will have a guided tour of the ruins and monuments, such as the Main Square, the Circular Tower, the Sacred Solar Clock, the Royal Quarters, the Temple of the Three Windows and the Cemeteries. The citadel was discovered in 1911 by the American explorer and Academic, Hiram Bingham. Many theories on the citadel exist, but most agree it was a holy site, hidden for centuries and never found by the invading Spanish. The tour includes a private tour and return bus from Aguas Calientes village.
Please be aware that your tour of Machu Picchu does not include an entry permit to Huayna Picchu (the iconic hill behind the Machu Picchu ruins). If you want to climb Huayna Picchu then you need to pre-book your permit. Please contact your sales consultant if you would like to do this. Dinner will be on your own. Overnight in a Superior Deluxe Room at Sumaq Hotel including breakfast (Deluxe Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 8: Machu Picchu - Sacred Valley
Today we will have the morning free to explore the ruins further. Your bus tickets and the entrance fee to the Huayna Picchu hill are included. Mid afternoon, we board the vistadome train back to Cusco and our hotel to relax and get ready for dinner. Dinner will be at âMap CaféâÂ, with its distinctive modern style. The building resembles a large glass cube and harmonises perfectly with the courtyard of the colonial town house housing the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art. The menu is original and Chef Manuel Cordova incorporates the best Andean ingredients to create a Peruvian Style of haute cuisine. B. D. Travel from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo in the comfort of the Vistadome train. Overnight in a Superior Room at Casa Andina Private Collection Cusco including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 9: Lima Transfer Airport - Hotel
Arrival into Lima and transfer to hotel.
Take an early morning flight to Lima and spend one last night in Peru. We will arrive into Lima and, after making ourselves comfortable at the hotel, take time for yourself. Have a relaxing bath or wander around the city buying some presents. Then, we will get ready for the last dish of our menu - the dessert of 'A taste of Peru' Gourmet Tour. Lunch will be served at Sonia restaurant. To finish the gourmet tour of Peru, there is no a better place than âCentralâ, which was one of the most exciting new restaurants in Lima in 2009. Brilliant chef Virgilio Martinez will blow your mind with his personal interpretation of Peruvian flavours highly influenced by international cuisines. B. D.
Overnight in a Premium Room at NM Lima Hotel including breakfast (Superior Category Accommodation). | |  |
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DAY 10: Lima Transfer Hotel - Airport
Transfer to the airport for your outward flight from Lima.
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