Djoser · Peru

Peru: Inca Trails & Lake Titicaca

Machu Picchu, condors and a night with island hosts

Three weeks through Peru's greatest hits and quietest corners: the Nazca lines, condors over the Colca Canyon, a homestay on an island in Lake Titicaca and, of course, sunrise over Machu Picchu.

Peru: Inca Trails & Lake Titicaca — Photo by Djoser on Djoser

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The story

The journey begins with salt air and chaos on Lima's Miraflores cliffs, the Pacific crashing grey and enormous below. By day three you're boarding a dune buggy at Huacachina, screaming down sand walls the colour of burnt caramel, then lying quiet in Nazca's desert silence, squinting up at lines scratched into the earth by hands that knew something we've forgotten. Arequipa arrives like a reward — white volcanic stone glowing pink at dusk, the smell of slow-braised meat drifting from a courtyard kitchen.

Colca Canyon swallows you whole. Condors rise on thermals so close you hear feathers shift in the wind. Lake Titicaca follows, impossibly blue at 3,800 metres, the altitude pressing against your temples while reed islands float like living dreams and the sky turns colours that have no names in English.

Cusco hums with ceremony and diesel. The Sacred Valley softens everything. Then Machu Picchu at dawn — clouds peeling back slowly, stone terraces emerging, and the strange feeling that you have been here before, in some life you almost remember.

The route

Highlights

Guided visit to Machu Picchu (entrance included)
Homestay with a host family on Amantani island
Condors over the Colca Canyon
Scenic flight option over the Nazca lines
Desert oasis of Huacachina

Day by day

1
Lima
Day 1-2

Ceviche and colonial grandeur in the capital's historic centre and bohemian Barranco.
Explore Lima →

Photo by Djoser on Djoser
2
Pisco & Huacachina
Day 3-4

Sea lions of the Ballestas islands and sandboarding at the desert oasis of Huacachina.
- Islas Ballestas
- Huacachina Oasis
3
Nazca
Day 5-6

The mysterious Nazca lines (optional scenic flight) and the ancient Chauchilla burial ground.
- Nazca Lines (Líneas de Nazca)
- Chauchilla Cemetery
4
Arequipa
Day 7-8

The white city beneath the El Misti volcano, with the colourful Santa Catalina monastery.
5
Colca Canyon
Day 9-10

Twice as deep as the Grand Canyon — watch condors ride the thermals at Cruz del Condor.
- Cañón del Colca
- Cruz del Cóndor
6
Lake Titicaca
Day 11-13

The floating reed islands of the Uros and an overnight homestay with a host family on Amantani island, 3,800 metres up.
- Islas Flotantes de los Uros
- Isla Amantaní
Explore Lake Titicaca →
7
Cusco
Day 14-15

The Inca capital: baroque churches on Inca foundations, and the fortress of Sacsayhuamán above town.
- Plaza de Armas del Cusco
- Catedral del Cusco
- Sacsayhuamán
- Barrio de San Blas
Explore Cusco →
8
Sacred Valley & Ollantaytambo
Day 16-17

Markets of Pisac, terraced Inca ruins and the living Inca town of Ollantaytambo, gateway to the rails.
- Pisac Market (Mercado de Pisac)
- Pisac Inca Ruins
- Ollantaytambo
9
Machu Picchu
Day 18

By train to Aguas Calientes and up to the lost city itself — guided visit included.
- Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Pueblo)
Explore Machu Picchu →
Cusco & Lima
Day 19-21

Back over the Andes to Cusco, then the flight home via Lima.