Peru Photography Tour: Nazca Lines, Colca Canyon and Machu Picchu

Begin with a Lima Airport Arrival Transfer, then explore the Historic Center of Lima on foot from the Plaza Mayor to the 16th-century Cathedral. Visit Casa Aliaga, a colonial mansion granted in 1535, and the Larco Museum in Pueblo Libre, set in a restored viceregal mansion over a pre-Columbian pyramid. End the evening at Love Park in Miraflores for sunset over the Pacific, with a nightcap at an open-air cafe, before returning to your selected hotel in Lima.

Begin with a transfer from Lima to Paracas, then continue to Pisco Airport for a Nazca Lines overflight. Aboard a Cessna Grand Caravan, the 90-minute flight reveals figures such as a hummingbird, dog, tree, whale and lizard, alongside geometric lines. Afterward, head to Huacachina, the desert oasis, for sandboarding on the surrounding dunes. The day closes with a transfer from Huacachina to a hotel in Paracas.

Travel from Paracas back to Lima, then spend the day independently exploring the city on foot. Suggested options include the historic center and the 16th-century Cathedral, Casa Aliaga, and the Larco Museum, known for its pre-Colonial gold and silver as well as erotic art. In Miraflores, Love Park is recommended at sunset. Downtown wandering and award-winning restaurants also feature among the ideas. Overnight at a selected hotel in Lima (TBD).

begins with a transfer from your Lima hotel to Lima Airport, followed by a flight from Lima to Arequipa. On arrival, an airport-to-hotel transfer brings you into the city. In the afternoon, the Arequipa City Tour visits the Monasterio de Santa Catalina, the Baroque Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús with its Cupula of Saint Ignacio, the Main Square and Neo-renaissance Cathedral, and the Yanahuara district, where the plaza overlooks the Misti, Chachani and Pichu Pichu volcanoes. The evening is free at the Arequipa hotel.

After an early breakfast, the journey from Arequipa heads into the high Andes, passing through the Reserva Nacional de Salinas y Aguada Blanca toward Colca Canyon. The scenic drive crosses Patapampa Pass at 15,300 ft, where the Mirador de los Andes reveals volcanoes Hualca Hualca, Sabancaya and Ampato. Descending toward Chivay, pre-Inca agricultural terraces line the hillsides. Lunch is taken on Chivay's main square, offering a first taste of the Colca Valley. A short ride then reaches the Calera Hot Springs for a thermal soak, before the transfer from Chivay to Cabanaconde and a hotel stay in Cabanaconde.

Begin with a morning drive to Mirador Cruz del Cóndor, a renowned viewpoint over Colca Canyon where condors may ride the thermal currents. The route passes villages and pre-Inca ruins, with Ampato and Hualca glaciers in the distance. After descending into the canyon, lunch is taken on Chivay's main square, followed by time at Chivay Market. Later, transfer from Chivay to Puno, a five-to-six-hour Andean drive to Lake Titicaca. Arrive at Puno, higher than Arequipa, and settle in at the Puno hotel.

A full day on Lake Titicaca starts with a boat excursion to the Uros floating islands, constructed from totora reeds and home to communities considered among the earliest to settle the Andes, where daily life and traditions are shared. Lunch follows at a local restaurant on Taquile Island, featuring quinoa soup, lake-caught fish and vegetables. The Taquile Island visit explores a communal society that stayed largely isolated until the 1950s, known for its weavings, with lake views from the shores. The boat then returns to Puno, followed by a Puno hotel.

Leave Puno with a transfer to Juliaca Airport, then fly to Cusco and take an arrival transfer to the hotel. Settle in before a suggested afternoon exploring the old Inca capital on foot: the Cathedral on the Plaza de Armas, the archaeological complex of Puca Pucara, and the artisan quarter of San Blas. The evening is free to find a local Peruvian table. Overnight in Cusco, ahead of the early drive south toward Huarcapay Lakes and the inter-montane valleys on the Manu Road journey.

Today explores Cusco through the San Pedro Market, where locals shop for produce and groceries and fresh fruit smoothies stand out. The route continues to Qoricancha, the Inca Empire's most important Sun Temple, with intact architecture and smaller temples for the moon, rainbow, stars, lightning and thunder. A walk then leads to Sacsayhuamán, a significant religious site with immense stones that the Spanish viewed as a military fortress due to its location and construction. The Cusco City Tour ends with a return to the hotel to rest.

Leaving Cusco, the route descends into the Sacred Valley toward Pisac, pausing at terraces, irrigation canals and mountain viewpoints. In Pisac, there is time for the traditional market in the village and the Inca fortress and terraces on the hillside. The journey then continues deeper into the valley to Ollantaytambo, home to remarkably preserved Inca architecture. Exploring its narrow alleys and broad plazas leads to the llama-shaped ruin overlooking the rooftops. The day closes with an overnight stay at an Ollantaytambo hotel to be confirmed.

Leaving Ollantaytambo, the road climbs past snowy Andean peaks, yellow wheat fields and scattered villages on the way to Moray. There, bowl-shaped Inca agricultural terraces are cut into the land, thought to have served as crop-testing plots. A couple of miles on, the Salinas de Maras spread across the hillside in thousands of salt pools fed by a stream, a striking shift after the ruins. Chinchero follows with Inca terraces, small colonial churches and a weaving studio where wool is cleaned and worked into textiles. The day ends with a transfer back to Ollantaytambo and an overnight hotel stay.

A train from Ollantaytambo carries you to Km 104, where the Short Inca Trail begins with a steep climb to Chachabamba. The route continues uphill to Wiñay Wayna at 2,732 m, where a boxed lunch is taken amid green mountains and native orchids. From there the trail passes through semi-tropical cloud forest toward Intipunku, the Sun Gate, offering the first panoramic views of Machu Picchu. A half-hour descent brings you to the citadel for a brief pause and photos before a bus to Aguas Calientes and a hotel stay.

Begin with the bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu, then join a guided excursion through the 15th-century Inca citadel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. After the visit, return by bus to Aguas Calientes for lunch in town, a relaxed midday stop. Continue with the train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo, followed by the Ollantaytambo to Cusco return transfer. The day ends with an overnight hotel in Cusco, the old Inca capital.

On the final day, the journey concludes with a departure transfer from a Cusco hotel to Cusco Airport. This straightforward route marks the end of the itinerary, providing a smooth connection from your accommodation in Cusco to the airport for your onward flight. No additional activities are scheduled, making this a simple and practical way to wrap up the experience before leaving the city.