Peru Experience

Fact File
Trip Code: PEXP
Region: South America
Countries visited: Peru
Activities: Spanish lessons, Dance classes, Community volunteering, Trekking
Duration: 4 weeks
Difficulty: Challenging
Profile: From rainforests and mountains to miles of coastline, Peru’s scenery is as diverse as it is stunning and your trip will give you the opportunity to see the best of it.
Transport: plane, car, bus
Accomodation: Lodging with a family. Two meals per day
Group: min 1, max 20

From: £1299 to £1699 land only.

Peru’s diversity of wildlife, landscape and culture makes it a wonderful and adventurous travel destination.

Week One - A Peruvian introduction You will spend your first week acclimatising to the Peruvian culture and ways of life; get to know your fellow travellers and learn a little of the local lingo.

Weeks Two & Three - Community volunteering You can choose between working at a local school, orphanage or helping street children for your volunteering weeks. All projects are based in the capital of Cusco.

Week Four - Lake Titicaca The dizzying heights and stunning views of Lake Titicaca are world famous, you will have the unique opportunity to embark on a boat trip across the lake and around the reed islands. The trip includes an additional stay with the villagers of an inhabited island.

Itinerary

Week One Schedule
Sunday: Arrival into Cusco. Your host family will meet you at the airport.
Monday: Your first day at the Spanish school. You will have a placement exam to make sure you are in the correct class for your level. City tour of Cusco and orientation giving you information about your Experience.
Tuesday: Spanish lessons in the morning. Free afternoon
Wednesday: Spanish lessons in the morning. Evening dance classes.
Thursday: Spanish lessons in the morning. Visit to the Temple of the Sun.
Friday: Spanish lessons in the morning.
Saturday: Free day
Sunday: Visit to a Llama- Alpaca farm. Head to the most famous of the Andean highland markets, Pisac, where you can learn to bargain and take in all the rich cultural sights. Back to Cusco.

Week Two Schedule
You will volunteer from Monday to Friday with evenings free to socialise in the many bars, restaurants and Latin dance clubs in the centre of Cusco.

Option A:
Saturday: A visit to the lost Incan city of Machu Picchu. You’ll have to get up early to get the train up to the site with your anthropologist guide.
Sunday: This is a free day to spend as you wish.

Option B:
You have the option of doing an exciting trek to Machu Picchu if you are feeling adventurous; this trip leaves on Thursday and arrives at Machu Picchu four gruelling days later in time for sunrise over the city.
The incredible lost Inca city in the clouds, Machu Picchu, awaits you at the end of the trek. Machu Picchu is a mysterious place built in a staggering landscape for reasons forgotten with the passing of the Inca Empire. It is believed to have been constructed by the great ruler Pachacuti around the middle of the 15th century. The Spanish conquistadors never found the site, probably because it was abandoned before the conquest.
Because the Incas left no written records, historians can only speculate on the purpose of Machu Picchu. Some believe that the dramatic location may have held religious, geographical or astronomical significance to the Incas.
Trekking - The trek is 43km (27 miles) long and, depending on which campsites are used, the approximate hours hiked per day are:
Day 1: Five hours
Day 2: Eight hours
Day 3: Seven hours
Day 4: Four hours
On the final day you will wake up early to trek up to the "Sun Gate" and view Machu Picchu at sunrise - this is truly a sight to behold.

Week Three Schedule
Monday to Friday: You continue to work at your chosen volunteer project.
Saturday: Afternoon visit to the ‘Oracle of Saqsayhuaman’ and the amphitheatre of O’enqo, Pukapukara and Tambomachay.
Sunday: Day trip into the sacred valley and to some of the most famous Inca ruins and breathtaking scenery in South America.

Week Four Schedule
Monday: Free day in Cusco for last minute shopping
Tuesday: Head to Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca by bus. Stop off at Incan sites along the way.
Wednesday: Take a boat from Puno out to Uros and Amantani Islands. Spend a night with the local villagers on Amantani Island.
Thursday: On to Taquile Island to spend sometime with another indigenous community and to learn about their culture. Tonight you will be staying on Taquile.
Friday: Hop on a boat back to Puno for some free time and relaxation.
Saturday: Bid farewell to Peru as the end of your Experience arrives. You will be transferred from Puno to the airport.

Dates and prices, flights not included

Code	Start Date	Duration	Price	Status	Enquire
PEXP1	The first Monday of each month.	4 weeks	£1299	Guaranteed	Get a quote
PEXP2	The first Monday of each month.	4 weeks + Trekking Option	£1699	Guaranteed	Get a quote

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Similar Holidays: South America Holidays, Peru Holidays, Volunteering Holidays

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