Luxury Amazon Cruise & Machu Picchu

Travel by train to Machu Picchu, one of South America’s most iconic sites.

Visit this remarkable site with a private guide, enjoy lunch at the famous Sanctuary Lodge, and then have the chance to explore the ruins on your own before returning to your hotel in Aguas Calientes.

Return to Machu Picchu in the early morning to explore and discover the citadel on your own. You’ll also have the chance to hike to the top of Huayna Picchu, the mountain that towers above Machu Picchu, or hike back along the Inca Trail to Inti Punku (the Gate of the Sun). There is a lot to see in and around Machu Picchu.

After visiting the ruins, catch the afternoon train back to Cusco, where you’ll be dropped off at your hotel.

Get to know Cusco with your knowledgeable private guide, visiting the historical highlights of this fascinating city. Visit Sacsahuaman, the massive Incan fortress on the hills above the city, where you can enjoy views out over Cusco and the entire surrounding area. Afterward enjoy the afternoon to explore more of the city on your own.

Cusco is one of the highlights of a trip to Peru, an intriguing place built on the foundations of the former Incan capital. You can observe massive Incan walls along many of the streets of the city. The city has a vibrant atmosphere and many excellent restaurants.

Fly north to Iquitos, in the Great Plains of the Amazon Basin. Your guide will meet you in the airport and take you to the riverside village of Nauta, where you will board the ship to start your cruise. Enjoy dinner aboard, meet the crew and your fellow passengers, then relax and enjoy the scenery as you get underway.

Take your first excursion in the Pacaya Simiria National Reserve. During the wet season (Dec – May) you will explore Belluda Stream by skiff, looking for parrots, macaws and monkeys. You may also see Morpho butterflies and various species of hawks, including the noisy “laughing falcon,” named for its loud falsetto call. During the dry season (Jun – Nov), you have the chance to do some hiking at Yanallpa, where you can explore two different kinds of ecosystems: “flooded forest” and “terra firme forest.” Here you may see snail kites, black-tailed ant birds, manikins, tanagers, hummingbirds, woodpeckers, nun birds, orioles, blackbirds, and pygmy marmosets. Your hike will take you to a lagoon filled with unique fresh water fish, where you will explore the waters in a dugout canoe.

Return to the Delfin II for lunch, then head to Dorado River in the skiffs, with a good chance of seeing gray and pink river dolphins and possibly swimming with them. You may also spot snail kites, festive parrots, endangered scarlet macaws, olive-spotted hummingbirds, Amazonian parrotlets, iguanas, squirrel monkeys, and wood creepers.

Head into the heart of the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve for further exploration of the largest protected wetland reserve in the world. The wildlife tends to be very active in the early morning, and you’ll be on the lookout for parrots, macaws, toucans, kingfishers, black collared hawks, southern swallows, white winged swallows, and manikins, plus troops of squirrel monkeys and small family groups of red howler monkeys. As the sun starts to heat up, continue along the shores of the Pacaya River, and breakfast will be served as you float along a favored dolphin feeding spot. After breakfast, you can jump in the water for a refreshing morning swim.

Enjoy lunch aboard Delfin II as the ship navigates down the Puinahua River toward Nauta. In the afternoon you will explore Atun Poza. During the wet season (Dec – May) explore Atun Poza by skiff, searching for egrets, herons, hawks, long-legged neo-tropical cormorants, and loud horned screamers. Discover the other black-water lagoons linked to this huge lake, where wattled jacanas can be found along with a variety of spiders, grasshoppers, dragonflies, butterflies, moths, and beetles living along the freshwater swamps and marshes. You may also see social spiders and observe how their webs embrace huge parts of a tree. During the dry Season (Jun – Nov) hike around Atun Poza, passing through tropical rainforest with emergent trees and canopy trees reaching up to 180 feet in height. You may see giant otters, and this is an excellent location for spotting birds such as the blue-fronted jacamar, collared trogons, and red-capped cardinals.

Head to the village of Puerto Miguel to meet local villagers and learn about their culture, traditions and folklore. Afterward explore the Yarapa River, looking for squirrel and capuchin monkeys, herons, egrets and green iguanas. Reach a beautiful lagoon called Uvos, named for the fruit that grows wild along its shores, and try to spot the pink river dolphins that ply its waters in search of fish. The forest also boasts abundant flora, including a variety of bromeliads and orchids, and monkeys frequently appear here.

After lunch back aboard the ship, disembark at Nauta for your journey back to Iquitos. En route you will stop at the Manatee Rescue Center for a brief visit before continuing on to the airport for your flight back to Lima, to connect with your flight home or to your next destination.