Chachapoyas to Inca Trail Tour

On the northern slopes of the Andes, the Chachapoyas reign was developed between the 800s after Christ until the year 1450. They built stone citadels on the mountains known today as the Kuelap Fortress. With its walls approximately 20 meters high, this archaeological complex was not discovered for centuries due to the lush vegetation. Inside, sculptures of stone and the ruins of more than 400 circular dwellings, including many restored for visitors, rest. The legend says that the Chachapoya, known by the Inca Empire as the cloud people, were a tribe formed of fierce, tall and fearsome people. These mysterious people ruled an extensive field of dense mountains located between the Huallaga and Marañon rivers, along the Peruvian jungle. The Chachapoyas were finally conquered by the Incas in the last days of the 15th century. Discover the beauty of Cajamarca and enjoy the thermal baths of the Inca. In this place was the Inca Atahualpa when the Spaniards arrived in 1532. It is evident that at that time the Inca fulfilled a ritual fast and he did it in this old village that received the name of Puntamarca, Pulltumarca or Cunoc. Explore the magic of Cusco, visit the Sacred Valley of the Incas a beautiful land that will transport you to the Inca era, composed of numerous rivers that descend by gorges and small valleys; It has numerous archaeological monuments and indigenous towns such as Pisaq and Ollantaytambo. This valley was very appreciated by the Incas due to its special geographical and climatic qualities. It was one of the main production points for the wealth of its lands and the place where the best corn grain in Peru is produced. Hike the Inca Trail, the original path of the Incas and The most famous pedestrian street in America. 43 kilometers of forests, fog, and flames. Millennial stone steps and majestic views. In the end, an incomparable reward: Machu Picchu the wonder of the world.

Overview

Itinerary

Includes

Before you go

Quick Itinerary

Day 01: Arrival to Lima

Day 02: Flight to Chiclayo/Sican Museum Tour

Day 03: Moche Tour

Day 04-05: Chachapoyas Tour

Day 06: Kuelap Tour & Leymebamba Tour

Day 07: Travel to Cajamarca

Day 08: Cajamarca City Tour + Inca Baths Tour

Day 09: Cumbe de Mayo Tour

Day 10: Flight to Lima

Day 11: Flight to Cusco

Day 12: Sacred Valley of the Incas Tour

Day 13-16: Hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

Day 17: Cusco City

Day 18: Departure

Highlights of Chachapoyas - Inca Trail Tour:

Sican Museum Tour: Sicán or Moon House is a museum that collects the product of the research carried out by the archaeologist Izumi Shimada, director of the Sicán Archaeological Project (1978), for more than two decades.
The Sican National Museum was inaugurated in November 2001 and is located in the city of Ferreñafe, 20 km north of the city of Chiclayo.
The exhibition collects the artifacts found in the excavations of the site of Batan Grande and the Historical Sanctuary of Pómac, and shows them as they were used or manufactured. The intention is to capture different aspects linked to the Sican culture.
Chachapoyas is a beautiful city that is located in the department of Amazonas. Its climate is usually temperate and with moderate rain, so you should always be prepared so that it does not ruin your fun.
Chachapoyas is a very privileged place, and in its areas is Kuelap, archaeological site that you must include in your route.
It is believed that the word Kuelap comes from the deformation of the word "Cónlap", name of a village that lived in the region. The fortress houses 505 houses, many of them circular, while in the outside there will be 420 circular stone houses with friezes in the form of diamonds and zigzags.
The Kuelap Archaeological Complex was declared a Cultural Heritage of the Nation. The also called "Kuelap Fortress" is located at 3000 m.a.s.l
The Inca Baths Tour have hot springs with temperatures above 70ºC (158ºF). The minerals that compose them have therapeutic properties for the treatment of affections to the bones, nervous system, skin and it is even said to cure gastritis.
Inca Thermal Baths attend from Monday to Sunday, from six in the morning until six thirty in the afternoon.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas is located 35 kilometers from Cusco, and about 600 meters below the level of Cusco. It covers the part of the basin of the Vilcanota river between the towns of Pisac and Ollantaytambo.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas is located in the province of Urubamba, in the Cusco region. Very close to the Valley you will find Maras, Moray, the Architectural Complex Ollantaytambo and the Vilcanota River.
Machu Picchu is the place an ancient Inca city, hidden in the Andes of Peru. Located at 2430 m.a.s.l, it is often known as "The Lost City of the Incas".
It is one of the famous and spectacular ruins in the world. Declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site since 1983, Machu Picchu receives more than one million visitors a year and is one of the 7 New Wonders of the World.

Interesting Info:

Day 1: Arrival to Lima

Lima, The City of Kings, the noble title that until now it holds, Lima grows as a metropolis in a fast and modern way. Being the only capital city of America located by the sea, Lima is populous (more than 8 million inhabitants) and is full of places of interest and restaurants of international fame. It is the gastronomic capital of America and only for that reason, one of the many that has, becomes a pleasant tourist focus. Its beaches, likewise, offer us the beauty of its women and its waves. Their neighborhoods, on the other hand, will show us the deep heart of a city that demonstrates the booming destiny of Peru.

Day 2: Flight to Chiclayo/Sican Museum Tour

The National Sican Museum is, by its size, the most important that is established in Peru in the last four decades. The patient archaeological field research at first, and then both the monumental design of the site and the order and arrangement of cultural material, are a chain of work that has taken many years, which has been decisive cultural cooperation between Peru and Japan. sican museumThe Sican National Museum is the result of three decades of uninterrupted research that the Sicán Archaeological Project, led by Dr. Izumi Shimada, carried out in what was the Batan Grande Reserved Zone, known in the Mochica language as "Sicán or Moon House".

Day 3: Moche Tour

Explore Moche tour , with diverse cultures and incredible archaeological sites on the north coast of Peru. With one night in Chiclayo and one in Trujillo, this itinerary includes a visit to Tucume, the archaeological site of the famous Sipán Lord, and the Museum of the Royal Tombs. Near Trujillo we will visit Chan Chan, the huge 500 acre complex and adobe palaces built by the pre-Inca Chimú culture, as well as the majestic Moche Temples of the Sun and the Moon.

Day 4- 5: Chachapoyas Tour

Chachapoyas is a beautiful city that is located in the department of Amazonas. Its climate is usually temperate and moderate rain, so you should always be prepared so that it does not ruin your fun. Chachapoyas is a very privileged place, and that is in its areas is Kuélap, archaeological site that you must include in your route . However, to begin with, you should take a walk around its Main Square, which you should visit and be able to enjoy its pool that is made of bronze of colonial origin. You also visit Well of Yanayacu, where Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo is said to have sprung water from a rock and made people turn into jerky when drinking from it. You should also visit The House Monsante, which has been declared a "Historical Monument", since it maintains the characteristics of a traditional house in the area. Another beautiful place to visit is the Yumbilla Waterfall.

Day 6: Kuelap Tour & Leymebamba Tour

The Kuélap Fortress is located in the annex of the same name, El Tingo district, Luya province, department of Amazonas. Standing at 3000 m.a.s.l., in an area where the Andes Mountain Range ends and starts the jungle. Corresponds to the Quechua ecological zone and belongs to "The Northeast Region of the Marañon". Its approximate location is 35Km to the south direction of Chachapoyas. Kuélap is the main attraction in the Chachapoyas region. The fortress of Kuélap is also called the "Machu Picchu del Norte". It has a size of almost 65,000 square meters; even bigger than the Inca Citadel of Machu Picchu.

Day 7: Travel to Cajamarca

Cajamarca is a land where history joins nature to create an unforgettable experience. Find in this region a magnificent colonial architecture, colorful villages and a gastronomy worthy of admiration. Relax in the Thermal Inca Baths, admire the Archaeological Complex of Cumbemayo and have fun in its carnivals full of life and color. You will definitely have a good time here! It was in this Andean city of the North where the Spaniards began the Conquest of the Inca Empire in 1532, when they captured and requested ransom for the Inca Atahualpa. In exchange for keeping his life, Atahualpa offered his captors a room full of gold as high as his hand could reach. In total six tons of this precious metal were delivered, but despite this, the Spaniards did not keep their word and murdered their hostage. Today, the serenity of Cajamarca has forgotten that violent history. The rescue room of Atahualpa remains the last vestige of Inca architecture, in addition to the Andean Baroque Cathedral and the churches of San Francisco, Belén and Recoleta located on the front of the Main Square.

Day 08: Cajamarca City Tour + Baños del Inca Tour

This City Tour is the best way to explore the cultural highlights of the historic center of Cajamarca. An important characteristic of Cajamarca is the "Rescue Room" or "rescue room", a historically important site where the Inca Atahualpa was held captive by the Spaniards. We will also learn about the old Bethlehem complex, a church and old hospital in the city along with museums. Other sites that will be visited are the Main Square of Cajamarca, the Cathedral and the Church of San Francisco. The last stop will be the beautiful viewpoint called Santa Apolonia, here we will visit the famous "Throne of the Inca" and enjoy the panoramic view of the Cajamarca Valley. Also we will visit the Thermal Baths of the Inca.

Day 9: Cumbemayo Tour

It is located 20 km southwest of Cajamarca and at an altitude of 3500 meters above sea level. It is an archaeological zone surrounded by a picturesque landscape that hosts many geological formations in the form of a forest of stones or cliffs, the most known forms being those that resemble silhouettes of friars in silent procession, which is why these rock formations have acquired the appellation of "fraylones". The tourist complex includes:

The Aqueduct: Considered one of the most remarkable works of hydraulic engineering in pre-Columbian America because it is made of living rock and which, in the past, served to transfer the waters that had as a natural destination the Pacific Basin towards the Atlantic Basin, avoiding with unparalleled mastery the continental watershed
The Sanctuary: It is a farallón that has the appearance of a human head in which a grotto of 2.50 meters in diameter was carved, in the form of an open mouth, with rudimentary steps of access to the interior that resembles an oral cavity and in the that you can see niches, petroglyphs, and other details never seen before. Near the sanctuary there is a geological fault that crossing it represents an experience that is never forgotten, even when it must be done with due care.
Cave: It contains important petroglyphs not well defined, although some can be identified with anthropomorphic gormas and unclear felines.
The Cumbemayo Site Museum: exhibits an archaeological sample formed by ceramic, lithic, metal and pre-Hispanic bony objects found in the territory. It also has an ethnographic area in which post-Columbian clothes and utensils are exhibited, being both an archaeological and an ethnological museum. The visit to the Museum is automatically included in all the circuits referring to Cumbemayo.

Day 10: Flight to Lima

This day, we will take the Domestic flight to the City of kings, Lima.

Day 11: Flight to Cusco

Also known as Qosqo, archaeological capital of America, was the main city of the Inca Empire, considered by them as "Navel of the world." It was the vital center of the millennial Tahuantinsuyo (Empire of the Incas) and is currently the most visited city in Peru for offering great architectural and spiritual richness. Cusco is fascinating because it is a destination where you will find history, nature, adventure, art, gastronomy and customs that are kept alive.

Day 12: Sacred Valley of the Incas Tour

Named for being the main food supplier of the Inca empire, the Sacred Valley sits on the banks of the Urubamba River. This river in its beginnings has the name of Vilcanota, that comes from the Quechua word Wilcamayu or Sacred River. The Incas built archaeological centers, along their banks, that replicated the constellations that they knew of the Andean sky so this contributes, even more, to the beauty of this enchanting valley.We will visit:

The ruins of Pisac : are a must on your way through the Sacred Valley, ignorance of these ruins makes many of the people who visit the town of Pisac, overlook this spectacular excursion; However, this "inadvertence" gives you the opportunity to explore something unique, which not many people know. If you visit Pisac, be sure to include the ruins of Pisac in your itinerary, it may be the beginning or the highlight on your trip through Cusco and Machu Picchu. The ruins are located above the town of Pisac one hour from Cusco, and it is one of the best archaeological sites in Peru. The name Pisac, derives from the Quechua word "Pisaca" which means partridge; some historians suggest that the agricultural terraces on the slopes of the mountain represent the wings of a partridge. In this place is also the largest known Inca cemetery.
The market of Pisac: 40 minutes from Cusco at the eastern end of the Sacred Valley is the small town of Pisac. Visited in most cases by its numerous Inca ruins, but also by its market Why is it so popular and what can be found there? It is known that in the time of the Incas Pisac was a place of great agricultural importance, used to plant corn, quinoa, potato, kiwicha, etc. Francisco Pizarro and the conquistadors destroyed Pisac in early 1530, and the modern city of Pisac was built in the valley by Viceroy Toledo in 1570. Early records show that the main square became an important commercial area and the market was born of Pisac as we know it. The Pisac market can be found every day of the week; but on Sunday, the market is much larger and until the last inch of the square is occupied by vendors. Take your time to wander through the craft and weaving sections, buy some of the fine alpaca clothes, ah, and remember you can haggle
The ruins of Ollantaytambo: In the VX century, the Inca Pachacútec conquered and began to rebuild Ollantaytambo, an ancient Inca administrative center and gateway to the "Inca Trail" that led to Machu Picchu. The city became the residence of the Inca nobility; After the death of the Inca Pachacutec, Manco Inca used the city as a refuge against the Spaniards; originally built for religious purposes, it would become a fortress to repel the attack of the invaders. The main attraction of the city of Ollantaytambo is the Ollantaytambo fortress, it is located in the place known as the Temple of the Hill; It is also the most common starting point for people who travel the Inca Trail. In the complex you can also see a series of discarded stones, known as the tired stones, very close to the Temple of the Sun. This unfinished temple is composed of 6 monoliths, each of which weighs 50 tons and were brought from a nearby quarry.

day 13 - 16: Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

The Classic Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is a walk that is traveled, along old paths, worked by the ancient Peruvians. It is a place full of magic, tradition and history, where you can find a nice contact with nature, and have the unique experience of walking ancient roads and soak up the Inca culture.

Duration of the adventure: The walk lasts 4 days and 3 nights, along 43 km, with an itinerary organized for each day. Thus, the experience of traveling this road allows you to have contact with the landscape, appreciate the prolongation of the Andes Mountain Range and its undeniable snow-capped peaks, as well as the experience of skirting the Urubamba River and seeing any physical effort rewarded. beauty of the place.

Day 17: Cusco City

Today is a relaxing day so you can explore the fascinating capital of the Incas.This day you can explore by your own the city start at the monumental main square, where you can see the Cathedral of Cusco. In your journey through the streets you will find craft shops, jewelers and typical clothes, so you will know part of the art of Cusco. Do not forget to go to the traditional and picturesque neighborhood of San Blas, where you will find high quality local crafts, bars and traditional cafes always surrounded by cobbled streets and balconies from where you can see this neighborhood and the entire city of Cusco. Around Cusco the Incas built Fortresses like Sacsayhuaman, temples like Qoricancha, Qenko and Tambomachay, if you wish, you can visit these imposing places by hiring the City Tour, in the tour you will see the ingenuity and art of the Inca constructions. We invite you to discover this extraordinary and fascinating metropolis in all its diversity, and we offer you the most complete, safe and updated guide to make your trip unique and unforgettable.