Looking to get away from work for a week? Take our 8-day Peru trip to experience the highlights of Land of the Incas in 8 days or alternatively add on one of our suggestions below to create your own personal South America experience. Travelling from sea level to the soaring heights of the Andes, across great desserts and through the world’s deepest canyon we’ll show you the mysterious Nazca lines and the gleaming white city of Arequipa in the shadow of Volcan Misti, the great Inca City of Cusco with its bars, great restaurants, fantastic sites and great handicraft shopping as well as the Sacred Valley and timeless Pisac market, in a land populated by llamas, condors, alpacas, in just over the space of a week.

Please note that excursions on this trip are part of a pooled service and your group may well be joined by members of other tour groups.

Nazca - Arequipa.  From the coast we catch an overnight bus and journey up into the Andes to Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city. Arequipa is set in a spectacular backdrop of snowcapped peaks and is a very attractive colonial city with beautiful plaza, cathedral and cobble stoned streets.  We take a walking tour of the city and visit the once mysterious Monasterio de Santa Catalina. It was built in the 16th century and became a secret city within a city. Behind its walls up to 450 nuns and their servants lived lives that no one else knew about. It was opened to the public gaze in the 1970s, and you are now able to take a guided tour through its maze of alleyways and gardens.

Another interesting optional trip is to visit Juanita. Juanita is an Inca mummy, sacrificed to the Inca gods over 500 years ago, and then found by a team of archaeologists at the top of the Volcano near Ambato, over 5000 metres high, in 1995. Many of the textiles and gold, which adorned the female torso were very well preserved, and they continue to be well preserved, along with many other artifacts, at her home in the Universidad Catolica near the Santa Catalina monastery.

Cuzco and The Sacred Valley. After the canyon trip comes the beginning of your Inca adventure. We leave Chivay and return to Arequipa where we catch a morning flight to the beautiful city of Cuzco.

This was the capital of the Inca Empire. The word Cuzco actually derives from the word Qosqo (from the Inca language of Quechua), which means Navel of the World, for this city was the hub of a network extending to each of the 4 regions which formed the 4 parts of the world according to the Incas world view. This is where the Inca Emperors held their throne during the period of the Inca Empire in the 15th and early 16th centuries. The city is packed with historical buildings such as many colonial churches and houses, and still has original Inca built walls. Take a stroll around the magnificent Plaza de Armas, with the Cathedral on one side and the La Compania de Jesus on the other. Additionally there are many ancient Inca sites to visit in and around Cuzco. Most notable are those of Koricancha and Sacsayhuaman. Koricancha, or Place of Gold, was the Incas principal religious building, dedicated to the worship of the sun. Sacsayhuaman is situated on the outskirts of Cuzco overlooking the city. This spectacular fortress guarded the Inca capital. The ruins are renowned for their enormous carved stones joined together with incredible precision. Cuzco has some great markets for souvenir hunting – good buys are jewellery, ceramics, and sweaters, all of which you can get from workshops that are open to the public. And while you’re here you can eat to your heart’s content: Peruvian food is good and hearty, featuring tamales filled with cheese or meat, soups and stews, kebabs and peppers. Cuzco is also renowned as a party town, with some of the best nightlife in Peru.

The trip now takes you to the Urumbamba Valley for a tour of what is known as the Sacred Valley. We visit the magnificent ruins of Pisac, set high in the sides of the valley, and then to the famous markets in the town of Pisac, located below the ruins. These markets offer a great selection of blankets, jumpers and other local handicrafts. From here we continue along the valley to Ollantaytambo, where we visit another Inca Ruin before returning to Cusco for our last night.

The Pre-Departure meeting is held at 9am ON DAY ONE of the scheduled departure date. The pre-departure meeting is held to discuss the tour itinerary in more detail, meet your crew and fellow passengers.

In addition the crew will check that all passengers have the necessary travel documents, insurance and immunization certificates for the tour. It is IMPORTANT that you attend this meeting. Please advise KUMUKA or your AGENT if you CANNOT attend this meeting.

All passengers MUST bring:
1. Passport.
2. Vaccination Certificate.
3. Travel Voucher.
4. Travel Insurance Policy.

Tour guides will accompany you on each of the different excursions included in your trip itinerary, as well as during all transfers to and from hotels, airports and bus stations. You may have the same tour guide for all excursions and transfers or you may have different specialist tour guides for each of these. Please note that tour guides may not necessarily accompany you or your group during internal flights or long distance bus journeys, and may not be staying overnight at your hotel, lodge or homestay. You will be provided with a 24-hour telephone number to contact either your tour guide or our local partner agency in charge of running the tour, in the unlikely event that an urgent situation or emergency should arise.

Travel insurance is compulsory for all tours. All clients MUST be insured to cover personal accident, medical expenses, cancellation, curtailment and repatriation. It is also very important that your insurance policy is relevant to the Kumuka style of travel. Kumuka offers a specially negotiated insurance policy specifically tailored to adventure travel. As well as providing substantial cover for medical emergency, cancellation and curtailment, personal luggage, money and valuables and legal expenses, this insurance will also provide cover for the adventure activities you may choose to undertake whilst on tour. Please call us on the Kumuka freephone number 0800 068 8855 (UK only), or on 1300 667 277 in Australia, for further information.

No client will be allowed on tours without suitable insurance. If you have already arranged insurance elsewhere, please be aware that many of the optional activities such as bungy jumping or water rafting may not be covered on your policy. If you plan on doing any of these activities please purchase additional insurance.

At the start of your tour you will be asked to present your original policy document and complete an insurance information form. We recommend that you have a photocopy of this document, which you keep separate from the original.

Please note: you will not be permitted to join a Kumuka Tour without travel insurance.

It is important that you obtain the appropriate visas before you embark on your South America trip. Country  entry regulations change daily, www.kumuka.com provides visa information. Please consult your Travel Agent or relevant embassy for all details such as opening hours or costs.

EACH CLIENT IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR OBTAINING ALL NECESSARY VISAS BEFORE JOINING A TOUR.

Please note that clients travelling on SA6 Buenos Aires to Rio tours should be aware that Brazilian visas (if required) were taking 3-4 working days to issue in 2005. We strongly advise that you arrive into Buenos Aires at least 4 working days before your trip starts in order to ensure that you have sufficient time to obtain your Brazilian visa.

Kumuka does not accept responsibility for changes in regulations or requirements for visas. The information provided is given in good faith.

If you are beginning your trip in one of the Andean countries (Peru, Ecuador or Bolivia) please be aware that you may be susceptible to some form of altitude sickness. If you are starting your trip in La Paz, allow 2 days to adapt to these conditions.

You may feel nauseous, overwhelmingly tired, short of breath or experience headaches. There are methods though of minimising the levels of altitude sickness that each person experiences.

• Taking the following steps will greatly help in minimising the level of altitude sickness, but please be aware that every individual reacts differently to it.
• Drink plenty of bottled water. At high altitude your breathing is rapid and shallow, causing you to dehydrate. 2 litres of water per day is the recommended amount.
• Avoid alcohol.
• Avoid smoking. If you are a heavy smoker they should either cut down or stop completely for their time in the altitude (although some smokers say they have an easier time because they are used to having less oxygen).

Taking the above measures will in most cases mean that within 2 days your body should adjust to taking less oxygen but each individual will be affected differently.

Travel Tip: Always bring a lightweight, waterproof jacket and/or an umbrella even during the height of summer - this should prepare you for anything!

In Patagonia temperatures can fall to below zero, even in the height of summer. Be prepared for very cold conditions. You should bring a warm jacket, gloves and woolly hat if you are doing a trip in Patagonia.

You might like to read up on the destinations that you are about to visit as these cities all have interesting sites and histories. We recommend a variety of guidebooks such as Lonely Planet, The Rough Guide and Insight Guides. All these publications have good general information as well as more specific country information that will help orientate you in the countries you visit.

Please use your discretion and be sensitive to cultural differences in the countries that you visit, in particular visits to religious buildings and when taking photographs. Your Tour Leader will advise you of any specific customs to observe.

We suggest that you take into account the time of year you will be travelling, and pack accordingly to the season. Quick drying clothes are recommended, and at many hotels there are laundry facilities. Your tour leader will advise where this is possible.

Personal Effects:
Camera & film, Spare passport photos, Water bottle, Money belt, Sewing kit, Sunhat/Sunglasses, Music cassettes /CDs, Books, Wet Ones, Soap to wash clothes, Writing materials, Swiss Army knife, Calculator, Personal toiletries, including tampons, Contraceptives, Insect Repellent, Sunscreen.

NOTE: If you wear glasses, it is advisable to bring a spare pair since opticians are uncommon. If you wear contact lenses you may find that climatic changes and dust can create visual irritation, therefore, it is advisable to bring a pair of glasses.

Spanish is the language most widely spoken in the countries we visit in Latin America but English will be spoken in the larger cities. You might like to take the time before your trip to read up on the country you will be visiting and perhaps learn a few words of the language. Your effort will always be welcomed and will make your trip all the more enjoyable.

Local Restaurants - Latin American food is delicious, nutritious and varied and local restaurants provide an important insight into local ways of life. There is always an excellent range of restaurants to choose from. An evening meal can range from US$5 up to US$20. Most travellers spend an average of US$5 to US$15 plus drinks. Local alcoholic drinks are generally inexpensive even in restaurants and bars.

Vegetarians are easily catered for.

All our tours begin with a pre-departure meeting when you meet your tour leader, driver and fellow travellers. If you wish to spend a few additional days in your start city before the departure of your tour, then we can arrange accommodation for you. On the last day of the tour we usually arrive at our final destination in the late afternoon, when the tour ends. If you would like to book accommodation for that night or even stay additional nights, we will be more than happy to arrange this for you as well. All our accommodation is carefully chosen, conveniently located, clean and comfortable. (All rates per person per night and subject to availability).

The Local Payment must be paid direct to your tour leader at the pre-departure meeting. Please make sure that these monies are paid locally in US$ cash. Local Payment is non-refundable, as well as being a mandatory sum.

Local Payment covers the following items for all passengers and the Kumuka crew:

All accommodation (hotels, hostels and campsite fees), 3 meals per day whilst camping and some road lunches. It also covers included excursions, entrance fees and some local guides as stated in the itinerary, as well as items such as wood, ice and charcoal. On all tours drinks are not included with lunch and dinner unless otherwise stated.

The tour leader will administer the Local Payment with the assistance of a member of the group.

Please do not hesitate to contact Kumuka if you have any questions or queries with regard to Local Payment.

Under no circumstances are any illegal drugs allowed on any part of the trip. Anyone discovered in possession of any such drugs, will be asked to leave the tour immediately without question or refund.