Morning departure from London Heathrow, on LAN Airlines via Madrid (2 hours 15 minutes) to Lima (12 hours 25 minutes) On arrival you will be met by your Peruvian Tour Manager and transferred to the Casa Andina Private Collection, Miraflores for 3 nights.

This morning your sightseeing is in the fabled ‘City of Kings’, in the colonial heart of Lima, where you will visit the magnificent grandeur of the Plaza de Armas, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as the magnificently ornate church of San Francisco, a beautiful mix of baroque and Mudejar styling, which is renowned for its tilework and panelled ceilings. The afternoon is at leisure with an optional visit to the ruins of Pachacamac, set amongst the landscapes of the Lurin Valley. Once one of the most important religious sites in the entire central Andes, its towering pyramids and ornate palaces brought it unwanted attention from the invading Spanish, who destroyed the city is search for gold.

An early start this morning, with a drive through the beautiful Valley of Supe, north of Lima, for a full day excursion to the sacred city of Caral. En route you will see coastal valleys, deserts with their irrigation channels and an abundance of local flora and fauna. The site is rarely included in itineraries, but as it is considered to be the most ancient civilization in America, almost as ancient as the civilizations in Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and China we feel that it is a highlight and important to include. It is formed from a group of buildings, including 6 pyramids of 30 metres in height, an amphitheatre and ordinary houses. After visiting the archaeological site, a late lunch is included at a local restaurant in Supe before returning to Lima.

Morning flight to the city of Arequipa (1 hour 25 minutes) set in a beautiful valley before the magnificent backdrop of a trio of imposing volcanoes. Stay at the Libertador Arequipa overnight. Founded in 1540, Arequipa is an elegant city filled with colonial grandeur, many of its dazzling churches constructed from the white volcanic sillar that litters the landscape. In the afternoon, tour the city, taking in something of its grace and charm and visiting the remarkable Santa Catalina Convent, a quite astonishing complex of cobbled streets and elegant buildings that were only opened up to the public in the 1970s and provide a rare insight into a far from impoverished holy order.

Leaving this morning head towards the remote Colca Valley, passing a landscape peppered with unspoilt Cabana and Collagua villages and pre-Columbian terraces, where llamas, alpacas and a variety of birdlife punctuate our journey to the town of Chivay. Arrive in time for lunch and overnight stay at the hotel, Casa Andina.

Twice as deep as the Grand Canyon and home to Andean condors, the Colca Canyon is spectacular in the extreme. Carved by the Rio Colca it lies at a lofty 3,500 mt above sea level at Chivay and an early start sees us visiting the spectacular majesty of this natural wonder. The canyon presents a tableau of plunging gorges set before the slopes of Sabancaya, one of the most active volcanoes in the Americas and, after exploration of the area and lunch at the hotel, continue through the majestic Andean landscape en route to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Stay for 2 nights at the Libertador Lake Titicaca.

The highest navigable lake on the planet, Titicaca sits on the ‘altiplano’, the high barren plateau that extends across Peru and Bolivia. Lying at over 3,800 mt above sea level this immense lake has been the home to Aymara and Quechua tribes for centuries and this morning a boat ride is included to visit the Aymara Indians and their floating reed islands. The lake has long held deep significance for the indigenous people, its sacred waters believed to have been the birthplace of the legendary founders of the Inca race, the mythical ‘Children of the Sun’. The afternoon is free.

This morning board the ‘Andean Explorer’ to Cusco, crossing the high altiplano and passing along the Rio Vilcanota. During this 10 hour, highly scenic journey, a three course lunch is served on board and a stop at La Raya, provides an opportunity to take in the local vendors selling an array of locally made rugs and clothes at the highest point on the line (4,321 mt). On arrival in Cusco, transfer to the Libertador Hotel.

Full day circular tour of the beautiful Sacred Valley of the Incas, visiting the towns of Chinchero and Urubamba and the ruins at Ollantaytambo. This mighty fortress enjoys the rare honour of being the setting for one of the only defeats inflicted on the Spanish conquistadors by the Incas, when Hernando Pizarro was forced to flee back to Cusco after failing to breach the citadel in 1536. Overnight at the Tambo del Inka Luxury Collection.

This morning travel by Vistadome train from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu (approximately 2 hours), the famous ‘Lost City’ of the Incas. Enjoy a guided tour of what is surely one of the most spectacular archaeological sites anywhere on earth. Hidden amongst the breathtaking Andean mountains, until its ‘discovery’ in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, the city is a quite exceptional collection of tombs, temples, stairways and palaces that served as a major ceremonial and agricultural centre for the Inca Empire. Overnight at the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Hotel. (For those who would like to stay at the Sanctuary Lodge next to the ruins we can book this – subject to availability – for a supplement starting from £130 per person twin share. Please enquire at time of booking).

The morning is free to revisit the site on your own, or simply relax amidst the stunning mountain landscapes (Bales include a second entry ticket to the ruins for you) before the afternoon train back to Cusco, for 2 nights at the Libertador Hotel.

A morning tour of Cusco takes in the impressive Plaza de Armas, with its cathedral, the Convent of Santo Domingo and the Inca fortress of Sacsayhuaman, whose imposing zigzagged walls were built to defend the city. The once great capital of the ancient Incan empire, Cusco is believed to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in South America and its streets present a rich treasure trove of archaeological remains, as well as a dazzling array of monuments to its colonial heritage. The afternoon is free to continue exploring at your leisure, enjoying the captivating atmosphere of one of the most engaging cities in the Americas.

Morning flight to Lima (1 hour), where rooms are available at the Ramada Airport Hotel until the evening LAN Airlines flight, via Madrid back to London.

Arrive London Heathrow in the evening.