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Read about our add-on trip to Lake Titicaca!
Named by Out Traveler magazine as one of the Top 10 Trips to Change Your Life!
Thanksgiving on the Orient Express through the Andes!
For thousands of years, Peru's extraordinary beauty has been both the backdrop of incredible cultural and spiritual expression, and a pallet for architectural artists. Your journey will take you through the cultural heart of Lima, charming Cusco, and the Valley of the Incas (all world heritage sights). But perhaps what will impress and inspire you most is your visit to one of the world's most important archeological sights: the ancient mystical city of Machu Picchu.
Many visitors to Machu Picchu report a strange energy they felt, walking among the ruins. Perhaps it's simply the beauty of the Inca's mass stone structures set atop high mountains over the winding Urubamba River below. Or, perhaps it is the leftover blessings of an ancient Inca Priest. Whatever it may be, nothing can truly prepare oneself for the "magic" of Machu Picchu.
• Services of a Zoom Concierge throughout your trip.
• Tour of the city of Lima.
• Thanksgiving dinner at the most historic, grand, private manor in Cusco a Zoom Vacations Signature Event™.
• Lunch and Tour of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, including several Inca sites.
• ALL meals while in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, a la carte!
• ALL meals at Machu Picchu, a la carte!
• Unforgettable gourmet lunch at a private Hacienda, featuring breathtaking views of the valley. This magical estate is not open to the public.
•Orient Express transport to Machu Picchu
• All entrance fees for two full days in Machu Picchu.
• High Tea at the Orient Express Sanctuary Lodge
• Orient Express train journey to Cusco, complete with cocktails and a gourmet dinner. It doesn't get any better than this!
• Tours of the magical city of Cusco, including visits to ancient Inca temples.
• A Visit to the best silver shop in South America.
• Optional dinner and visit to a 4th century archeological site in Lima.
• Optional rare orchid tour on the private grounds of the Machu Picchu Pueblo hotel.
• Optional excursions such as horseback riding, Inka Trail hike, private pre-Columbian art collections and much more!
• All breakfasts and land transfers.
• As with all Zoom Vacations, several trip-enhancing surprises.
•Intra-Peru air not included
Day 1 - Saturday, November 19
City of Lima
 Arrival and transfer to the Orient Express Miraflores Park Plaza Hotel. Day at Leisure. Today, a very special welcome dinner will be held at Lima's oldest manor that, uniquely has been inhabited since 1535. Seventeen generations from the original owner still live in the house. The original owner was among the first Spanish conquerors to arrive in Peru. Evening free to enjoy Lima's nightlife.
Accommodations: Orient Express Miraflores Park Plaza Hotel
Included Meals: Welcome Dinner and cocktails
Day 2 - Sunday, November 20
City of Lima
 We depart promptly for a tour of the Historic Center of Lima, the City of Kings, including a visit to the main city square, the Cathedral, Plaza de Armas, the ancient catacombs and Santo Domingo Convent. Lima's magnificent colonial architecture led UNESCO to declare the Historic Center of Lima a World Heritage Site. Baroque and Neoclassical churches and convents, balconies dating from the 16th, 17th and 18th Centuries, colonial town houses and beautiful public spaces speak of a past in which Lima was Spain's richest vice regal capital in the Americas.
 Lima once ranked as the richest and most important city in the Americas and was considered to be the most beautiful colonial settlement in the region. Founded in 1535 by the conquistador Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish Crown's "City of Kings" quickly became the center of power and trade for the entire American viceregency that stretched from Quito to Santiago. Lima was home to some of the Americas' finest Baroque and Renaissance churches, palaces, and mansions, as well as the continent's first university, founded in 1551. For two centuries, the capital also served as the headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition.
Lunch
Gourmet lunch will be served at an old Lima hacienda which is now a restaurant. The hacienda Moreyra is a colonial house that stood in what is now the heart of San Isidro, Lima's most elegant district, since it was constructed in the 1700s.
Accommodations: Orient Express Miraflores Park Plaza Hotel
Included Meals: Breakfast and lunch
Day 3 - Monday, November 21
Cusco / The Sacred Valley of the Incas
 Morning flight to Cusco. Upon arrival, transfer to The Sacred Valley of the Incas.
Lunch
Today's lunch will be unforgettable. At noon we will arrive at an hacienda, located on high ground in the valley which provides a unique view of this green and fertile land. The house was built as a place to keep and exhibit their valuable collection of art from the pre-Columbian and vice regal periods. The family of the estate waits with a buffet lunch based on the valley's culinary traditions.
Registration at Aranwa Hotel and Spa.
 In the evening, time permitting, we will visit Maras, which is the name of a place and of an indigenous community. The soil of Maras is rich in salt, and its people have always made a living by extracting this resource using terraced salt pools. The salt pans are a magical sight, gleaming white in the sun. Today we will visit Maras and see the salt being extracted in the traditional way. If time permits we will go to Moray, another Inca site, where different crops were planted on circular terraces built to create microclimates and for researching different species.
Accommodations: Aranwa Hotel and Spa
Included Meals: Breakfast and Lunch
Day 4 - Tuesday, November 22
The Sacred Valley of the Incas
 After breakfast, we will visit a beautiful alpaca farm, where we will have the chance to feed many different speciest of alpaca, grazing at the farm.
We proceed to the famous outdoor market of Pisac (featured on the Amazing Race) and Pisac ruins, a huge fortress on the the Inca Trail.
In the evening, time permitting, we will visit Maras, which is the name of a place and of an indigenous community. The soil of Maras is rich in salt, and its people have always made a living by extracting this resource using terraced salt pools. The salt pans are a magical sight, gleaming white in the sun. Today we will visit Maras and see the salt being extracted in the traditional way. If time permits we will go to Moray, another Inca site, where different crops were planted on circular terraces built to create microclimates and for researching different species.
Accommodations: Aranwa Hotel and Spa
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 5 - Wednesday, November 23
The Sacred Valley of the Incas / Machu Picchu
 Enjoy a morning excursion to Ollantaytambo, and visit the archaelogical remains and its typical market. Ollantaytambo contains a fortress built to defend it against the invading Chankas. Ollantaytambo is also an Inca village whose stone houses are still inhabited by the descendants of those ancient Peruvians. The people of this area are characterized by their woolen costumes dyed in red and black.
We'll transfer you to the station to board the Hiram Bingham Orient-Express train that will take us to the Lost City of the Incas, Machu Picchu. You will arrive early enough to be able to enjoy the stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site before the masses arrive. Our expert guide will explain all the pertinent aspects of this magical citadel, an awe-inspiring experience. Following the visit, we retire for afternoon tea at the Orient-Express Sanctuary Lodge overlooking Machu Picchu.  Thereafter, we descend to Aguas Calientes to register at the beautiful boutique Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, rated the 8th best hotel in South America by the Reader's of Conde Nast Traveler (2nd in Peru, after the Hotel Monasterio)! The Readers of Travel and Leisure rated it the 4th best resort in Central and South America, and the best in Peru.
Relax in one of the world's most appealing boutique hotels; a fusion of calmness, comfort, Andean style and architecture, and natural beauty which spreads over 12 acres of low-rise cottages, streams, waterfalls, plantations and wild forest interspersed by stone pathways. The hotel boasts rooms beautifully furnished with regional timber and styled with local handcrafted Andean architecture nestled in one or two-storey whitewash cottages.
Accommodations: Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel
Included Meals: Breakfast, and dinner
Day 6 - Thursday, November 24
Machu Picchu / Cusco
 Today, wake up late and enjoy a big breakfast. There will be time to enjoy the spa, do a little shopping, visit Machu Picchu again, and more in our charming hotel.
In the afternoon, we take an orchid tour on the private grounds of the Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel.
Late afternoon departure for Cusco on the Hiram Bingham Orient-Express train where cocktails and a gourmet dinner will be served. On board you will receive the royal treatment. Relax and enjoy a cocktail accompanied by the sounds of a guitar trio, before retreating to the dining car for a specially prepared gourmet Thanksgiving dinner as you glide along the Andes Mountains and Urubamba Valley. Upon arrival just outside Cusco, in Poroy, private transfer to the stunning Orient-Express Hotel Monasterio, a 16th century monastery named by Conde Nast Traveler Gold List as the best hotel in South America. Furthermore, the Readers of Travel and Leisure rated it the 4th best city hotel in Central and South America, and the best in Peru.
Accommodations: Orient-Express Hotel Monasterio
Included Meals: Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner on the Hiram Bingham Orient-Express train
Day 7 - Friday, November 25
Cusco
 Roam the older quarters of the city, which date back to the 16th and 17th centuries. We will Pass by the Hatunrumiyoc Street with its famous twelve angle stone and visit the impressive Cathedral at the Plaza de Armas. We also visit Koricancha, the most important Inca temple, dedicated to the worship of the sun. The Spanish built a church and Dominican monastery on top of this temple, which reveals the two cultures existing together. In the late afternoon you are free to walk around this marvelous city or join our optional tour. The most enjoyable way to spend the day can simply be to walk around the city and enjoy its immense vitality. Cusco is a very cosmopolitan city for its size and this is evident by day, but especially at night, in its infinite number of bars, discos and restaurants.
Afternoon is at leisure to enjoy shopping as well as exploring this ancient city of the Conquistadors, and to enjoy the beauty of the Hotel Monasterio.
Accommodations: Orient-Express Hotel Monasterio
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 8 - Saturday, November 26
Lima / Home
Late morning flight to Lima.
Optional dinner and spa treatments are available at the
Ramada Hotel, just steps from the airport.
Included Meals: Breakfast
Sacred Valley
Aranwa Hotel and Spa
5 Star Hotel, 2 nights
Aranwa Sacred Valley Hotel & Wellness is built on a seventeenth century colonial hacienda by the Vilcanota River, just one hour away from the city of Cusco and on the route to Machu Picchu. The hotel offers rooms decorated in colonial style as well as other modern minimalist decor.
Enjoy unforgettable days in Aranwa Sacred Valley Hotel & Wellness and let yourself be carried away by its mystical atmosphere surrounded by the natural beauty of Sacred Valley.
A splendid architecture and attention to every detail make the hotel a very cozy atmosphere. It has 115 rooms modern and colonial type including 14 suites.
Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel
Deluxe Boutique Hotel, 1 night
Nestled in the spectacular Andes mountain range this 5-star Machu Picchu Pueblo retreat is situated
in the Machu Picchu National Park, minutes away from the Citadel.
How does one best prepare for a visit to the enigmatic Lost City of the Incas? Nothing less than a natural paradise will do ? a paradise where one connects completely with the sacred energy of the mountain. In Inkaterra's vacation paradise and luxury boutique hotel, a pueblo of luxurious whitewashed bungalow nestles into terraced hills. Spa services use sublime natural essences, and a first-class restaurant boasts stunning views of the rushing Vilcanota River.
The train station is only steps away. But Inkaterra Machu Picchu Hotel exists in a world apart. An intimate 85-cottage luxury hotel is surrounded by 12 secluded acres of exquisite beauty, where a reverence for nature reigns hand-in-hand with a commitment to indulging the whims of our guests.
Cusco
Orient Express Hotel Monastario
5 stars, the finest hotel in South America, 2 nights
A landmark 6th century monastery beautifully transformed into a luxurious 5-star hotel Orient Express
property, a member of the Leading Hotels of
the World.
High in the Andes, more than 3000 metres above sea level, lies the historic city of Cuzco, with its unique blend of Spanish and Inca cultures. At the heart of Cuzco is the 16th-century Hotel Monasterio, originally built as a monastery in 1592.
Hotel Monasterio, an Orient-Express Hotel is the ideal base from which to discover Cuzco and the ancient ruins at Machu Picchu, which can be reached via a spectacular three-hour train journey.
Lima
Orient Express Miraflores Park Plaza Hotel
5 stars, 2 nights
A 5-star Orient Express
property that provides easy access for all that is best
about Lima and is renowned for its setting beside the Pacific Ocean.
The Miraflores Park Hotel is specially conceived for business people and is located in the Malécon de la Reserva, in an exclusive residential area. The hotel provides easy access for all that's best about the city and is renowned for its setting beside the Pacific Ocean.
Peru's capital is one of the most interesting cities in South America - a potent mix of colonial architecture, superb museums, Inca gold and antiquities, and glamorous shops.
Do I need a visa to travel to Peru?
If you are a United States citizen and/or are traveling from the United States, you will not need a visa to travel to Peru.
Into which airport do I need to fly?
You need to fly into the Lima International Airport (LIM).
What day should I depart my home country?
You must depart your home country for arrival into Lima on November 19.
Can Zoom book extra days for me at the beginning or end of this trip?
Absolutely! Simply let us know the amount of days you need at the beginning and/or end of the trip, and we will book the nights you need (additional room night charges will apply).
If I am traveling as a single, does Zoom offer a roommate pairing program?
Absolutely! Before the trip, we will get to know all of our travelers, and we will use what we know about you to make the best pairing possible.
May I travel as a single without a roommate?
Absolutely, you may travel as a single and pay a single supplement, which varies depending on your time of booking.
How do we travel from place to place in Peru?
We take the luxurious Orient Express Hiram Bingham train from the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu, and from Machu Picchu to Cusco. We travel via luxury motor coach for our time in the Sacred Valley, Cusco, and Lima. Zoom Vacations will also assist you in booking your round-trip flight from Lima to Cusco.
What is the fitness level required for this trip?
This trip is easily accessible to a variety of fitness levels. None of our included activities require a high degree of athletic skill. However, your optional activities will give you the opportunity to make your vacation as active and/or adventuresome as you choose.
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