Depart UK and fly to Cusco via Lima

On arrival at the airport one of our team will meet you and take you to your hotel in Cusco. Once everyone has settled in a full briefing will be given by your tour leader. After lunch, you will start the city tour. You will visit two of the most important monuments in Cusco: the Qoricancha Temple (Temple of the Sun) and the Cathedral. From the colonian city centre the group will then travel out to the Inca ruins of Sacsayhuaman, Q'enqo and Tambomachay. In the evening your tour leader will take the you out to a local restaurant for a taditional Peruvian meal. Overnight in Cusco (Hotel) Meals: no meals included today

After breakfast you will travel out to the Sacred Valley for a full days exploration.The fist stop is the beautiful market town of Pisac, your tour leader will take you on a walking tour through the last, original Inca streets, before starting the ascent to the fortress of Ollantaytambo. Overnight in Ollantaytambo (Hotel) Meals: breakfast

Machu Picchu was the greatest of all the Inca cities, it was here that the Inca's chose to hide their treasures from the invading Conquestadors. It remained undiscovered and hidden by jungle for more than three hundred years. You will travel to Machu Picchu on the train, the journey is an amazing 90 minute ride along the Urubamba River to Aguas Calientes. From here you will take a bus up to the ruins. We have included a guided tour of this incredible city where you will learn about Inca sun worship, building, agriculture and history. Everyone will return to Aguas Calientes for lunch, after which there is free time to enjoy the hot springs or the orchid gardens at our hotel. Overnight in Aguas Calientes (Hotel) Meals: breakfast

Early in the morning there is a chance to return to Machu Picchu to visit the Sun Gate before the trains arrive and the site becomes busy. From the Sun Gate you can get magical pictures as the early morning mist rises from the ruins. There is an opportunity to climb the beautiful peak of Wayna Picchu which overlooks the city and has wonderful views out across the floodplains of the Urubamba.

Today you will journey into the Andes. The first stop will be Ninamarca, a small complex of ancient, circular tombs, the Andean views from this site are spectacular! From the little town of Paucartambo, once at the center of the ancient trading routes of the Incas, you will continue upwards to Acjanaco. The Ranger Station here lies at 3500m above sea level and marks the entrance to Manu National Park. If the weather conditions permit, you will be able to look out over one of the largest National Parks in Peru. From this cold and cloudy station you will then descend deeper into the cloud forest. Overnight in Manu Cloud Forest (Lodge) Meals: breakfast, dinner

The Cock of The Rock is the national bird of Peru, and is one of hundreds of specacular bird species found in the cloud forest. Early in the morning you will get the chance to observe these beautiful birds at the 'lek' -a kind of mating arena where the males try to impress the females with fancy displays. On the way back to the lodge you may also spot monkeys foraging for their breakfast. Your journey then continues through the cloud forest, past waterfalls and ravines, and through one of the most diverse ecosystems on earth. There will be a chance to tour a coca plantation and learn the history of coca and its many medicinal properties. From here the road continues to Atalaya where you will leave the bus and board our motorised canoe for a journey of a life time into the Amazon Rainforest. The Alto Madre De Dios River is one of the most southerly tributaries of the mighty Amazon itself. Its red waters twist and turn through the leafy jungle, the canoe trip takes about one hour to reach your Amazonian home at the Manu Learning Centre.

One of the most interesting activities at the Manu Learning Centre is the monitoring of the clay lick or collpa. Early in the morning you can join researchers at the hide. Here you can observe the activity of macaws, parrots, and parakeets as they come to feed on the clay, the array of colours in the early morning light is an amazing spectacle. After breakfast there is free time to relax at the centre, you may wish to visit the orchid garden or wander on one of the short jungle trails close to the Centre.

In the afternoon one of the Centre's resident naturalists will tell the group about the ongoing projects at the Centre and the research work that is being done there. There is the opportunity to visit one of the research transects and even have a go at completing a species count. In the evening, if the sky is clear, there maybe chance for some star gazing after a hearty dinner. Overnight at the Manu Learning Centre (Lodge) Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner

After an early breakfast, our boat will take the group on a two-hour trip to the hot springs of Aguas Calientes (a different one!) in the land of the native community of Shintuya. Here you can enjoy the natural hot pools and cool waters of the creek, your picnic lunch by the river may include catfish, but only if you can catch one! After lunch you will cross to the other side of the river to visit the Shintuya community. There will be an introduction to the community and a chance to speak with some of the local people. There will also be a demonstation on how to make arrows and spears before returning to the Centre. Overnight at the Manu Learning Centre (Lodge) Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner

After breakfast you will prepare for departure and take the boat back to Atalaya and from here journey back to Cusco. Leaving behind the hot steamy jungle, you will travel back up through the misty cloud forest and then back into the Andean Valleys. Overnight in Cusco (Hotel) Meals: breakfast

After breakfast the coach will take you to Cusco airport for the homebound flight via Lima. Meals: breakfast