South America’s Best: Machu Picchu, Galapagos & Uyuni Flats

AM: When you arrive in Ecuador’s capital of Quito — which lies at 2,800 meters above sea level at the foot of the Pichincha Volcano — you will be met at the airport and taken to your hotel.

AM: On this one-day tour, we will visit the historic district of the Ecuadorian capital, enjoying this urban jewel and its artistic and architectural treasures. One of the largest and best preserved colonial centers in South America, Quito’s “Old Town” area was declared the first “World Heritage Site” by UNESCO, in 1978.

The visit to the historic center begins with the Basilica del Voto Nacional, one of the largest churches in Ecuador and one of the most important works of Ecuadorian neo-gothic architecture. While the outside of the building stands out for its stone carvings that represent plants and animals of the country, the inside consists of 24 chapels. Beneath the structure are crypts in which lie the remains of several former presidents of the Republic, and on top of the 100-meter-tall church is a beautiful gazebo that also serves as a small cafe.

We will continue on to the always vibrant Plaza Grande (“Independence Square”), which is surrounded by the Cathedral, the Presidential Palace, the Municipal Building and the Archbishop’s Palace. We will then visit the church of the “Compañia de Jesus” to find its impressive interior inlaid in gold.

Your tour of historic Quito will end with a birds-eye view of the city from the panoramic “Virgin of Quito” monument atop El Panecillo Hill, which overlooks the capital. This will give you a chance to appreciate Quito from above, and – if the weather permits – to catch a view of the spectacular “Volcano Avenue,” two parallel mountain ranges containing eight of the country’s ten highest peaks.

From here, we will continue our journey 15 miles north of Quito to the Mitad del Mundo (“Middle of the World”), the monument on the equator that was built to commemorate the French scientists who in the 1830s made history by determining the shape of the planet thanks to their studies at this location.

Next to the monument is “Middle of the World City,” a village built in a colonial style – with a main square, a church, a post office, a bullring, restaurants and several souvenir and crafts shops.

The highlight of this visit is the equatorial line running along the latitude of 0° 0’ 0.” Here, you will be able to stand with one foot in each of the earth’s hemispheres – a great photo op! We will also visit the Intiñan Solar Museum, where you will have the opportunity to perform various unusual experiments like balancing an egg on a nail, losing weight in a second, or straddling the equatorial line that separates the two hemispheres. You will return to the hotel for the night.

AM: In the morning, you will be picked up from your hotel in Quito and driven to the airport for your flight to the Baltra airport, in the Galapagos Islands.

Upon arrival at Baltra airport, you will travel by bus to the Itabaca Channel, followed by a 5-minute ferry ride to Santa Cruz Island, and then an hour’s drive to the town of Puerto Ayora. En route, we will stop at a Highlands reserve to see amazing Galapagos giant tortoises in the wild. You will also have a chance to walk through lava tunnels before having lunch at a local restaurant.

We will reach Puerto Ayora in the afternoon, where you will check in at your selected hotel and still have plenty of free time to explore the town at your leisure.

AM: Today you will leave for Isabela Island by speedboat – a voyage of about 2 1/2 hours, depending on sea conditions. Upon our arrival, you will check in at your hotel and still have time to leisurely explore Puerto Villamil, the island’s main town.

In the afternoon, you will visit Las Tintoreras, taking a short boat trip across Isabela Island’s harbor. After passing the sea lions and pelicans that bathe in the sun on the fishing boats there, you will reach the small island of Las Tintoreras. Here, you will take an easy walk through the bizarre lava landscape with its huge colonies of marine iguanas. A colony of sea lions also live here and it’s common to see whitetip reef sharks resting in the water near the shore. The views from here will be lasting memories that you’ll carry for the rest of your life! The treacherous black lava field, the emerald green sea, the red mangroves, and the cloud-capped volcanoes of Isabela Island create an afternoon backdrop you’re not likely to ever forget.

AM: Following breakfast, you’ll head out for the Sierra Negra Volcano. After driving to the highlands of Isabela Island, you will start hiking up the volcano’s slopes to the edge of its crater. The Sierra Negra — reaching an altitude of around 1,500 meters, and having an outer diameter of approximately 9 kilometers — is the second largest lava dome in the world. You will hike along the cone to the resting place on the ridge’s northeast side. You will have lunch at Campo Duro, which is a charming organic farm whose owners prepare their food with locally grown fruits and vegetables. Cooked on a lava-rock grill, you can enjoy a delicious lunch that will be followed by a walk through fruit tree trails. Or, you can opt to just take a nap in one of their hammocks and breathe the clean, pure air beneath a huge Mango tree.

In the afternoon, you will go biking at the “Humedales”, the wetlands of Isabela Island. With a little luck, you will be able to see flamingos in the lagoons. You will also cross lava tunnels that are very popular among marine iguanas. Afterwards, you will continue to the "Wall of Tears," one of the most touching human-built monuments in the archipelago. The huge stone mound (8 meters high and around 200 meters long) was built in the 1940's by prisoners of a penal colony that was here from 1946 to 1959. After the visit you can enjoy the sunset at the beach in front of your hotel! The perfect end for a day in Paradise!

AM: Today you have a free morning to relax at the beautiful beach in Isabela.

Early in the afternoon, you will head on the speedboat back to Santa Cruz and you can enjoy visiting the small stores in Puerto Ayora before resting at the hotel.

AM: Departure: 8 a.m. (Approximately)

Travel time: After being picked up from your hotel, a 40-minute bus ride will take you across the island to the Baltra Channel, where you will embark onto a passenger boat that will have a restroom and plenty of room to relax for the 40-minute journey to North Seymour Island.

The Tour: The tour begins with a guided tour by a National Parks-accredited bilingual (English/Spanish-speaking) guide. We will trek along a 2.5 km trail through the nesting sites of the largest breeding colonies in the islands. Here you will find Blue-footed boobies, Magnificent and Great frigate birds, and swallow-tailed gulls. This will also present a chance to see sea lions, Galapagos land iguanas, marine iguanas, lava lizards and pelicans.

At the conclusion of the land tour, you will return to the boat for a hot lunch and refreshments before traveling to Las Bachas Beach on the northern coast of Santa Cruz Island. Here you can go snorkeling or take a relaxing walk along the beach. During the snorkel, it's possible to see many colorful types of reef fish, various rays, benign Whitetip reef sharks and Green turtles. Returning to the Baltra Channel, the bus will then transport you back to your hotel.

Return: Approx. 4 p.m. (depending on sea conditions).

(*) North Seymour Island — 1.9 sq./km and located approximately 7 km north of Baltra Island — is the site of one of the largest and most active seabird breeding colonies in the islands. It is a very dry island with no natural sources of water, leaving the animals, namely the land iguanas, to rely on the succulent flowers of cactus plants for nourishment. Whatever time of year, there is always some kind of courtship, mating, nesting or chick rearing to observe.

AM: Enjoy your last look at these “enchanted islands,” a unique and wondrous paradise! You will then be accompanied to the Baltra airport for your flight to Guayaquil. Once in Guayaquil, you will take the international flight to Lima.

Welcome to Lima, our guide will be waiting for you at the airport to take you to your hotel.

AM: You will wake up refreshed and enjoy a complimentary breakfast in your hotel before we escort you back to the airport for your morning flight to Cusco. Watch the windows as the desert coast rises into the snow-capped peaks of the Andes! We will be waiting for you when touch down at our Andean airport and will bring you to the historic city center of Cusco for a delicious lunch. Then, before you can feel the altitude, we will whisk you into the Sacred Valley.

Just 15 minutes outside of Cusco, you will stop at the vibrant market in the pueblo of Pisac, where locals come from miles around to sell their wares. Upon conclusion of your market visit, we will bring you to your hotel in the heart of the Sacred Valley.

AM: Prepare for a climactic day! In the morning, we will board the train in Ollantaytambo for our journey to Machu Picchu. Watch the cloud jungle pass by through the large glass windows! After a bus ride to the gates of this wonder of the world, lunch will be served on-site at the Sanctuary Lodge. You will then ascend stone steps, through heavy tree cover to finally emerge at the top of the world – Machu Picchu. The incredible Inca stone construction will be spread below, alternately hidden and revealed by clouds. Your expert guide will give you a private tour of the ancient city.

Upon returning for an evening in Aguas Calientes. Enjoy an excellent dinner on-site at your hotel and fall into bed, lulled to sleep by the sound of the cloud forest around you.

AM: After breakfast, we will go back to the entrance of the citadel to Hike the Huayna Picchu peak in order to get a full view of Machu Picchu – Huayna Picchu is just in front of Machu Picchu for the ones who do not know. In here, you shall reach the highest point. Also you have to consider that this is subject to availability, the hikes are limited and require advance notice.

After this visit, you will return to Aguas Calientes to take a train back to Cusco.

AM: This morning you will experience the lay of the land as only true world travellers know how: on foot traversing hidden alleyways, historic plazas, and local treasures. After breakfast on your own, your private guide will proceed to illuminate Cusco’s rich tapestry woven by its inviting cobblestone streets, charming neighbourhoods, and astounding landmarks.

Your first stop of the day will be to the Santo Domingo monastery, perched atop the most sacred of Incan sites, the Qoricancha temple of the sun. Once bathed in 24-karat gold long-since pilfered by Spanish conquistadors, this temple is now an astounding blend of Incan stonemasonry and colonial architecture. We will then climb up to the bohemian neighbourhood of San Blas, known for its whitewashed adobe buildings and quaint blue balconies, home to generations of renowned Cusco artisans, before dropping back down to Plaza de Armas for a stop in at the colonial Cathedral. Top off your tour with a visit to a local indigenous market brimming with a rainbow of local fruits and traditional remedies, and make sure to pause to marvel at the 12-angled stone nestled in a wall that has withstood the test of time (as well as a couple of earth-shattering earthquakes!).

Upon conclusion of your tour your guide will leave you with suggestions as to where you find a delicious, local lunch, and you’ll have the rest of the afternoon to explore the Imperial City at your leisure!

AM: fter breakfast, you will embark on a guided bus tour that will take you from Cusco to Puno.

Along the way, you’ll stop at the key points of interest that dot this breathtaking route. The first will be the church in the tiny town of Andahuaylilllas. Adorned with beautiful frescoes, gold leaf and incredible wood sculpture, this church is considered the “Sistine chapel of the Americas.”

Your next stop will be at the Inca outpost of Raqchi. Constructed on the Inca frontier, the stone and mud brick walls of the town were meant to repel invaders from the South.

After an enjoyable lunch en route, you’ll pass La Raya – the highest point on your route. Surrounded by glorious snow-covered mountains and buffeted by chilly winds, you’ll marvel at the artisans who offer their wares at the roadside market.

Finally, you’ll visit a pre-Inca site at Pukara before watching the flat golden plain turn into the building covered hills sloping into lake Titicaca that make up Puno!

We will meet you as you exit the bus in Puno and bring you to your hotel, where you’ll be able to take a hot shower and put your feet up, watching the lights start to twinkle on Lake Titicaca as night falls.

AM: After breakfast in the morning you will trek through the Incan Sacred Lake “Titicaca”, to visit the Floating Islands of Uros. The inhabitants still practice some ancient rituals with influence of the Aymaras, living of the aquatic plant reed mace or bulrush. Then you will follow to the Island of Taquile, larger than Titicaca, in its summit awaits a panoramic view of Lake Titicaca. You will learn more about the inhabitants and their traditions and customs. They will receive us with their traditional clothing, which are an example of their social organization and cooperative work as a community. Then you will board our water boat and return to Puno.

AM: Leaving the hotel early in the morning, you will go from Puno to La Paz crossing the Titicaca Lake. Then you will board a catamaran for a cruise to Sun Island, the mythical birthplace of the Inca Empire. You will disembark the vessel to visit Challapampa, a small isolated village on the north side of the island. The people of Challapampa receive visitors through an innovative program they have developed themselves, encouraging people to visit a typical home, school, chapel and a small museum they have organized. As a guest, you will be able to participate in authentic ancestral rituals, observe folklore demonstrations, and sail on board typical fishing boats. In the afternoon we will depart towards La Paz to spend the night.

AM: Later on, we will leave in private transportation on a “discovery tour” to the most spectacular lookout point over the city. Surprisingly, it is located at the bottom of the Choqueyapu River canyon, with a background formed by the Royal Mountain Range “Giants” (the Huayna Potosi, Mururata and Illimani volcanos). Designed particularly for photo lovers, this tour then takes us to the Jach´a Apacheta lookout point, on the edge of the precipice of the city of El Alto. Then we will go to the K´Illi K´Illi lookout point and to the Laykakota Park (closed on Mondays), on the north-western side of the city. Afterwards, we will cross the Americas Bridge to visit the “Plaza de España” lookout point in the colonial neighbourhood of Sopocachi.

From there, an abrupt descent leads us to the “South Zone,” passing through Llojeta and the “Garden Cemetery,” and finally to the “Valley of the Moon,” a place where we will be able to walk between psychedelic-looking limestone formations.

In the afternoon, we will return to the hotel.

AM: You will be driven from your hotel to La Paz two hours prior to your departure to Uyuni. Upon arrival in Uyuni, you will be driven in a 4WD vehicle to the Salar de Uyuni (el. 3,650 m.a.s.l.), the world’s largest salt desert.

On the way, we will visit the unique Cementerio de Trenes — an expanse in which colossal, abandoned steam trains reside. Then, take a short sightseeing tour of Uyuni and its enticing food market before continuing to the town of Colchani. In Colchani, you’ll visit the quaint Museo de la Llama y la Sal (The Museum of the Lama and the Salt) and a salt processing plant.

We will check in at the hotel for a nice rest.

AM: Today you will be amazed visiting the Uyuni Salt Flats. We will stop in the middle of the Salar on Incahuasi “island.” This volcanic island is covered with giant cacti and stromatolites, which are the fossilized bacterial colonies that evidenced the first traces of life on earth.

In a 4WD, you’ll cruise on the blinding white carpet of salt and admire one of Bolivia’s most popular attractions.

AM: In a private car, we will leave the hotel to the airport for a domestic flight (Uyuni – La Paz). Once arriving back in La Paz, you will take your international flight.