LOST WORLD OF THE INCAS - CORPUS CHRISTI FESTIVAL

Day 1 Fly from London Heathrow, via Paris to Lima, and transfer to the 4-star Casa Andina Select Miraflores for a two-night stay.

Day 2 Peru’s vast capital is, at once, sophisticated and chaotic, colonial and cosmopolitan, arid and oceanfront. A tour of the city shows you the stately buildings of the Plaza des Armas; the Larco Museum of pre-Columbian art, housed in a hacienda; and, in the UNESCO listed Historic Centre, the monumental 17^th-century San Francisco Convent, the largest in South America. (B, L)

Day 3 Fly to Cuzco and journey to the Sacred Valley (at an altitude of 2,400m), visiting the Museum of Living Culture in Yucay, for an insight of Andean peoples’ customs and crafts; and touring to the town of Pisac, known for its Indian Market, and overlooked by the ruins of an ancient citadel. Continue to Urubamba for two nights at the 4-star Hotel Taypikala Sacred Valley. (B)

Day 4 Enjoy the different aspects of this special place, where picturesque colonial towns and little crafting villages enjoy a peaceful co-existence with significant Inca sites. We visit the archaeological site of Moray, on a high plateau; Ollantaytambo fortress, with views of its beautiful Inca village, the best surviving example of Inca town planning; and include a stop to view the UNESCO protected Salt Mines of Maras, where thousands of salt pools are stepped into pre-hispanic terraces; making a special visit to Maras village, for an insight of Andean culture and traditions. (B)

Day 5 Travel on the Vistadome train to Aguas Calientes and make the final ascent by road to Machu Picchu (at 2,500m), covering a spectacularly scenic saddle of land with some 200, dry-stone-walled, religious and residential buildings. Among the most recognised ancient sites on earth, its cosmic alignment is acknowledged, but the Inca’s reason for it remains an enigma. Spend the rest of the day exploring the site at leisure, before returning to Aguas Calientes for an overnight stay at the 3-star El Mapi by Inkaterra Hotel. (B, D)

Day 6 Enjoy a morning in Aguas Calientes (‘warm waters’), perhaps to relax in the thermal baths and browse in the artisan shops; or return to the magical ‘old mountain’, Machu Picchu, for independent exploration (second entry to the site £80, pre-bookable only). This afternoon, return by road and rail (4hrs) to Cuzco, for three nights at the 4-star Hilton Garden Inn. (B)

Day 7 Enjoy the spectacle and atmosphere of the Corpus Christi festival, one of the most significant religious celebrations on the Peruvian Catholic calendar. On the previous day, fifteen statues of the saints were brought to Cuzco’s cathedral from their respective churches in the city and its outlying areas. Today they are carried in procession on the shoulders of their churches’ congregations, adorned with flowers as they journey through the streets to the Plaza Mayor, and accompanied by folklore dancers and a band of musicians. (B)

Day 8 Once the Inca capital, awash with royal and religious buildings; then a 16^th century Spanish colonial town, when monasteries and manor houses were built on the archaeological Incan remains, Cuzco and its surrounds offer revealing glimpses of centuries past. A tour today shows you the city’s cathedral and colonial buildings; the nearby Inca ruins of Sacsayhuaman fortress and the baths of Tambo Machay; the Cultural Heritage archaeological complex of Kenko’s temple; and the Puca Pucara ‘red fort’ relics. (B)

Day 9 Journey by road across the Andean high plain (at 4,300m), visiting the town of Andahuaylillas and its Church of St. Peter, its incredibly ornate interior earning it the epithet of ‘America’s Sistine Chapel’; and continue to the temple ruins of Racchi, enroute to Lake Titicaca. At 3,800m, it is the world’s highest navigable waterway, mirror-still, mountain edged, dotted with islands, and steeped in legends. Divided between Peru (to the north and west) and Bolivia (south and east), this unique place is a world apart in more ways than just geographical. The 17^th century Peruvian port of Puno is the lake’s main city; where we stay two nights at the 4-star Casa Andina Premium Puno. (B, L)

Day 10 Sail to the floating islets of Uros, still inhabited by Aymara-speaking Indians, the islands’ bases, houses, and whimsical boats all built with buoyant totora reeds indigenous to the lake; and continue to Isla Tequile, 45km offshore and a couple of centuries back in time, a culturally colourful, community governed island, renowned for its textile art, where we enjoy a home-cooked lunch. (B, L)

Day 11 Travel (6hrs), via a lunch-stop in Chivay, to Colca, the gateway town to its eponymous river canyon, twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, and home to cacti, camelids, and a hundred bird species including the Andean Condor, with its eight-foot wingspan. Afternoon at leisure in Colca, with the chance to visit La Calera hot waters. Overnight at the 3-star Hotel Casa Andina Classic Colca. (B, L, D)

Day 12 Enter the Colca Canyon and drive to the Cruz del Condor viewpoint, for the unforgettable sight of the birds in flight, often seen in groups of up to twenty. Crossing the Colca Valley, where age-old customs are still observed and traditional costumes still worn in the villages, we visit Maca, focused on its colourful market and ornate church; and Yanque an authentic small town, off the beaten track. Continue (4hrs) to beautiful Arequipa, with its backdrop of three volcanos, for an overnight stay at the 4-star Hotel Casa Andina Premium Arequipa. (B, L)

Day 13 Colonial-era Arequipa is dubbed the White City for its Baroque structures built with pale volcanic stone, and known as ‘the city you never want to leave’ for its ambience, architecture, and artistry. With an enormous cathedral and the fountain-filled Plaza de Armas at its UNESCO listed heart, a morning tour of its highlights includes the 16^th-century Santa Catalina Convent, a multi-coloured mini-citadel of cloisters and cobbled lanes. Fly from Arequipa to Lima for the return overnight flight via Paris to London (B)

Day 14 Arrival at London Heathrow.

• Key
• B - Breakfast
• L - Lunch
• D - Dinner