Best Luxury Machu Picchu Tours – Machu Picchu Luxury Tour

Machu Picchu Luxury Tour Itinerary

Best Luxury Machu Picchu Tours

Day 1 Welcome to Lima Peru

Our representative will meet you at the airport and will transfer you to the hotel in downtown Lima. We will be accommodating you in Miraflores Park, a Belmond Hotel. 

Day 2 Lima’s Historical Highlights

After relishing a lavish breakfast at the hotel, our representative will pick you up at an agreed time. We will drive you to the old town, home to museums and colonial architecture. 

We will begin with a visit to the Gold Museum of Lima. It houses some of the golden relics from ancient times. Our local expert will give you an immersive tour which will give you an introduction to Inca civilization and Andean mythology.

After the guided tour, we will stop for lunch at the Larco Museum where you will get to savor some local delicacies. Lima is regarded as the Gastronomic Capital of the World. You will discover more about the Peruvian Gastronomy during your lunch at this exquisite restaurant.

After lunch, we will give you a tour of the Larco museum. It is popular for its largest private pottery collection in South America. Our local expert will share some lesser known facts about different types of pots found here.

Once you have had your fill of the day, we will be driving you back to Miraflores Park, a Belmond hotel. You can stop for dinner at the in house hotel or savor some local meal at one of the nearby restaurants. Feel free to ask our tour guide for any recommendations. 

Day 3 Lima to Cusco Sacred Valley

After breakfast, we will be driving you to the airport for your flight to Cusco. The one hour flight will offer staggering views of the Andes as you begin your descent to the former capital of the Incas.

Our local expert will meet you on arrival and will drive you to the Sacred Valley of the Incas.

We won’t be staying in Cusco city on the third day of your Machu Picchu Luxury Tour. This would allow you to spend some time and acclimatize In Sacred Valley of the Incas which is relatively lower in altitude than Cusco.

On our way, we will be stopping in Awanakancha. It is roughly a 30 minutes drive away from Cusco. Here you will be introduced to the local textile industry. Locals will demonstrate the process of extraction of wools from Llmas and Alpacas and how they dye them to knit sweaters and more.

We will also visit the nearby Alpaca and Llama farm where our local expert will explain the nature of these animals and mainly you will learn the difference between them. For lunch, we will be stopping in Hacienda Sarapampa. Prepare for the most delightful atmosphere while you enjoy your traditional Andean lunch. 

After lunch, we will be driving you to the traditional market in Pisac. Accompanied by our destination expert, you will be visiting the market here, famous for handicrafts and artifacts.

Once you have enjoyed the visit, we will drive you to Sol y Luna hotel or Rio Sagrado Belmond Hotel where you will be accommodated for the night. 

Dinner will be at your leisure.

Day 4 The Heart of the Sacred Valley

The fourth day of the Machu Picchu Luxury Tour starts with a drive to Ollantaytambo. After breakfast, we will be transferring you in our private transport to Ollantaytambo. Often referred to as the Living Inca Town the city has been continuously since the Inca civilization.

Ollantaytambo:

Locals here continue to practice their age-old traditions and customs which are passed down by their ancestors.

Ollantaytambo is snuggled amidst two hills, each of the houses Inca ruins. We will be visiting the most prominent one here which was the most sacred Inca site and was turned to a battleground during the infamous battle of Ollantaytambo in 1532. 

Maras:

After getting an insight into the life of the locals and history of Ollantaytambo, we will be driving you to Maras. Maras is home to the most picturesque site in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, the salt mines. They have existed since Pre Inca times and are built on the slope of a hill. 

Locals here practice the traditional solar evaporation method. They let in natural spring water and wait for it to evaporate. When it does, it leaves behind crystals of salt which are manually scrapped out. 

Moray:

We will then visit Moray. Home to circular farming terraces, Moray was more like an agricultural laboratory to the Incas. The Roman amphitheater-like circular terrace is dug into the ground with different levels.

Each level has a different temperature which allows the Incas to determine the best weather condition needed to grow a crop. There is a difference of roughly 15 degrees celsius (27 degrees fahrenheit) between the top and bottom level. 

We will stop for lunch in Hacienda Orihuela. The restaurant is nestled in the mountains and offers delicious local cuisine. It also houses a private Museum. 

After lunch, we will drive you back to the hotel. You can have dinner at your leisure.

Day 5 Sacred Valley to Aguas Calientes

After relishing an Andean breakfast, we will be transferring you to the train station. You will be boarding the Luxury Hiram Bingham train to Aguas Calientes town.

The three hour ride from Andes to Amazon will offer staggering views of snow capped Andean peaks as you leave Ollantaytambo. You will witness a change in topography as you will near Aguas Calientes. 

Get ready to be pampered during the train ride. The train has a bar, music show and lunch will be provided onboard.

Once in Aguas Calientes, we will be transferring you to our signature Belmond Sanctuary Lodge or Inkaterra Pueblo Hotel.

Day 6 Machu Picchu (Second Entry) and train to Cusco

The highlight of your Peru travel experience. Early in the morning, we will be visiting the emblematic inca citadel of Machu Picchu. Your private tour guide will assist you in entering the citadel.

Your original passport will be verified against the entrance ticket by local authorities.

Once inside the citadel, you will witness the shimmering rays of the morning sun beaming on the mortar walls of Machu Picchu as the blanket of cloud would unveil the citadel. 

The two hours tour will begin with a short introduction to the Inca empire and the prominence of Machu Picchu to the Incas.

We will then visit the renowned sites, the remains of royal quarters, ceremonial sites and more. 

After the tour, you will have some free time to explore the citadel on your own. If you have booked to climb the Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu mountain, the tour guide will direct you to the respective trail head. 

Alternatively, you can also hike to Sungate. This is the point of entrance to those hiking the esteemed Inca trail to Machu Picchu.

After contemplating the views and getting an immersive insight into Inca civilization, we will exit the citadel and take the 25 minutes bus back to Aguas Calientes. You will have some free time so you can stop for lunch or saunter the cobble stoned streets rimmed with shops selling souvenirs.

Around midday, we will be taking the Vista dome train back to Ollantaytambo. Our representative will meet you on arrival and will drive you back to Cusco. We will be accommodating you in Monestario – A Belmond hotel or Inkaterra La Casona in the heart of Cusco city.

Day 7 Cusco City Tour

After breakfast, we will be picking you up from your hotel for a half day tour of the prominent sites in Cusco city. 

Our first stop will be in Qorikancha. To Incas, this was the holiest site. They worshiped one of their three supreme Gods, Inti (Sun God) from here.

Qorikancha:

During the Inca rule, the courtyard of Qorikancha was full of idols made entirely of Gold. The golden glory did not stay for too long though. It was tarnished soon when the Spanish rulers captured Atahualpa, the renowned Inca emperor.

The Incas stripped most of the gold to pay ransom for his release. True to the colonial form, on receiving the ransom, they reneged on his release and killed him.

Upon conquering Cusco, the conquistadors demolished the temple to build the church of Santo Domingo on its foundations.

Our local expert will be giving you a detailed tour of different prominent parts of the temple.

Once you have had your fill of the centerpiece of the Incan empire, we will be driving you off the city, up the hill to tour the remains of the prominent Inca fortress, Sacsayhuaman.

Sacsayhuaman:

Nestled on a hilltop, overlooking the center of Cusco, Sacsayhuaman was built using massive stones, each weighing over a ton. Even today, it is a mystery how the Incas managed to transport these stones here.

After soaking in the panoramic view of Cusco and marveling at the Incan architecture, we will be driving you further to Q’enqo.

Q’enqo:

Q’enqo is another notable Inca site. The incas used this place to do their offering to mother nature, often as a form of sacrifice. They also did mummification of corpses here.

Tambomachay:

Our next stop will be in Tambomachay. Not too far from Q’enqo, Tambomachay served as a spa to Inca’s political elites. They built a series of canals here linking them to the nearby Timpuc river through which the water flows even today.

Puca Pucara:

We will culminate the Cusco City Tour with a visit to Puca Pucara. In Quechua, the name signifies red rock as it gets a red shade at sunset. This served as a military watch tower to the Incas.

And end the tour in the afternoon with lunch at your leisure. In the evening you will be able to walk around the center (downtown) area at your leisure.

Day 8 Cusco to Lima Local market and cooking class

Depending on your flight timings, we will be transferring you to Cusco airport for your flight to Lima. Our representative will meet you in Lima airport on arrival and drive you to meet a professional Peruvian Chef. 

Along with the chef, you will be visiting the traditional market to buy supplies to cook your traditional Peruvian food. 

During this experience, you will get to learn more about local produce and participate in a cooking class. Now, when you get back home you can cook a Peruvian meal for all of your friends. You will also get to make a pisco sour!

Your Luxury Machu Picchu Tour experience ends with this. After lunch, we will be transferring you to the airport for your onward flight. If you want to spend a few days on your own in Lima, you can let us know the name of the hotel and we will drop you there.