The Magic of Machu Picchu & Easter Island

Day 1: Lima, Peru

Arrive in Lima and transfer to our hotel near the airport.

Day 2: Cusco

Fly this morning to Cusco, heart of the once-grand Inca Empire. Its name, from the indigenous Quechua word “qosq’o,” means “navel of the earth.” Set in a high Andean valley, gilded Cusco thrived until Spanish conquistadors destroyed the Inca civilization in their 16th-century colonial quest. Our accommodations at the ornate Hotel Libertador, a restored colonial palace, evoke the material splendor of that era. We take a walking tour of the city this afternoon.

Day 3: Sacred Valley of the Incas

The treasures of the Sacred Valley unfold today as we travel along the Urubamba River past farms, villages and Incan architectural ruins. At Pisac, we visit the famous market, where the local Quechua Indians dressed in vivid attire sell their handicrafts. Bright embroidery and woolen garments are favorite purchases. We see llamas and alpacas at Purikuq, a local weavers cooperative set up to support three local communities. Overnight at Sol y Luna.

Day 4: Maras & Moray

Visit the salt mines of Maras today, 3,000 small pools mined by the Incas centuries ago and still worked by locals today. We’ll also visit Moray, an Inca site more than 500 years old where giant natural sinkholes have been converted into terraced farming areas. Some archaeologists believe these served as an agricultural experiment where Inca cultivators took advantage of microclimates provided by different elevations.

Day 5: Machu Picchu

This morning we board the train at Ollantaytambo for a 1-1/2-hour journey along the Urubamba River to Aguas Calientes. Here we disembark and continue a short distance by bus to Machu Picchu. The ruins of the mystical city rise into the sky, surrounded by green mountain ramparts draped in jungle. We immerse ourselves in the lore and legend of one of the world’s most astounding archaeological sites, a place, in Hiram Bingham’s words, that “appears to have been expressly designed by nature as a sanctuary for the oppressed.”

Our Expedition Leader interprets all we see as we explore the labyrinth of granite houses, temples, walls and cisterns. Llamas wander among terraced steps that once grew maize and potatoes for some 1,200 inhabitants. Archaeologists believe Machu Picchu may have been a royal estate and religious retreat, based on its sacred geography and astronomical orientation. Important ceremonies were conducted here, including a winter solstice rite at which a priest would “tie the sun” to a hitching post stone to prevent it from disappearing altogether.

Leaving the ruins behind, we overnight in private casitas at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Hotel, a luxury retreat on the river where 300 species of native orchids bloom.

Day 6: Machu Picchu & Cusco

The morning is free to return to the ruins, explore the trails and gardens around the hotel, or soak in the hot springs. This afternoon we return to Cusco.

Day 7: Cusco to Lima / Easter Island

Fly to Lima, where we enjoy a tour of the city and time to relax before transferring to the airport for our overnight flight to Easter Island.

Day 8: Easter Island

We arrive at Easter Island at 5:30 this morning and transfer directly to the Altiplanico Hotel, where we are able to rest or relax in our rooms that are ready for us upon arrival. This afternoon, choose between a city tour or snorkeling outing. The city tour includes a stroll through a local open-air craft market before visiting the Sebastian Englert anthropology museum, named for an island missionary and scholar of ancient Rapa Nui traditions and culture. Visit the Tahai archaeological complex, gaining insights into Rapa Nui’s vexing history, Ahu altars and legendary moai statues. For those who opt to snorkel, the clear South Pacific waters offer a spectacular opportunity for close-up encounters with colorful fish and gliding sea turtles.

Tonight, we celebrate our introduction to Rapa Nui culture with a traditional Polynesian "Umu" dinner, in which an underground oven is heated by stones placed in a fire. Once the fire burns to embers, banana leaves are placed atop the stones as a cooking platform. Meat, fish, fruits and vegetables are wrapped tightly in banana fronds and left to cook slowly for several hours, till the feast is revealed.

Day 9: Ahu Akivi / Rano Kau / Orongo

Today we are immersed in Rapa Nui mystery and legend, encountering the carved monoliths for which Easter Island is famous. The majority of the statues, believed to represent the living faces of deified ancestors, were carved between 1250 and 1500 and weigh up to 80 tons. The ceremonial shrines with rectangular stone platforms on which the moai sit are known as ahu, meaning “sacred altar.”

The first such site we visit is Ahu Akivi, one of the later constructions dating to the mid-15th century. Unlike the other sites, Ahu Akivi lies inland and face the ocean, with a commanding view of the western part of the island. Its seven moai stand about 14 feet tall and weigh approximately 12 metric tons each. The Moai face sunset during spring and autumn equinox. The statues were raised and the site restored in 1960 by famed American archaeologist William Mulloy and his Chilean colleague Gonzalo Figueroa García-Huidobro.

After lunch in Hanga Roa, we drive to the top of Rano Kau volcano and the ceremonial village of Orongo, perched on the crater rim. Until the mid-19th century, islanders performed sacred “birdman rituals” here. Each spring a chosen member of each tribe raced to retrieve a manutara egg, scrambling down a sheer cliff face, swimming across shark-infested water, stealing an egg, and doing the same trip in reverse. High on the cliffs, we drink in panoramic views of the offshore islets where boobies, terns and manutara have nested for centuries. Rapa Nui's ancient cultural traditions are revealed further this evening at a traditional dance show.

Day 10: Ahu Ura Uranga / Ahu Akahanga / Rano Raraku

More of Easter Islands mysteries are unveiled today as we drive along the coastal road to Hanga Te'e and three powerful religious epicenters. We visit the ancient temple of Vaniu and the Ahu Ura Uranga and Ahu Akahanga altar sites.  "Ahu" means sacred place and refers to the stone platform on which moai statues were erected. Here, the moai gaze inland, protecting clans with their inspirational power, or “mana.” The statues were recently restored after a 1960 tidal wave washed them yards away from their original settings.

Next we continue to Ahu Te Pito Te Kura, or the "Belly Button of Light," a remarkable, perfectly rounded stone used for ceremonial purposes. If we put a compass on the stone, it would start spinning wildly and finally indicate a wrong direction! Our exploration continues with Rano Raraku volcano, whose border is ringed with moai leading toward a quarry inside the vast crater rim. Ninety percent of the moai were hand-carved here from volcanic tuff, before relocation across the island—some up to 10 miles away. To date, 887 moai have been identified; nearly 400 remain inside the crater in varying stages of completion, silent witnesses to the mystery that suddenly halted their construction. 

Day 11: Easter Island / Lima / Home

Fly back to Lima and say final farewells.