The Parina Tour
Altiplano, Tarabuco market, Potosí silver mines, Lake Titicaca & Machu Picchu
Thursdays from UK
Duration – 17 days, 14 nights
Santa Cruz 1 night, Sucre 2n, Potosí 2n, La Paz 3n, Lake Titicaca 1n, Cusco 4n, Lima 1n.
Itinerary
Day 1 Depart from the UK in the evening arriving the following day in Santa Cruz, capital of Bolivia’s eastern lowlands.
Day 2 At leisure.
Day 3 Morning free to explore. Afternoon flight to Sucre, a delightful colonial city of cobbled lanes and attractive plazas.
Day 4 Full day excursion to the market at Tarabuco, considered one of the most authentic in Latin America.
Day 5 Scenic drive past the snow-powdered Andes to Potosí. Afternoon city tour and visit to the Imperial Mint where the silver mined in Cerro Rico, the conical hill dominating the cityscape, was converted to currency for the Spanish court.
Day 6 Morning visit to the drift mines that burrow deep into the hill.
Day 7 Transfer to Sucre for flight to La Paz, Bolivia’s high-altitude capital.
Day 8 Half day excursion to the pre-Columbian temples at Tiwanaku, standing on the lonely steppes of the altiplano.
Day 9 Day at leisure in La Paz.
Day 10 Drive to Lake Titicaca, cross the border into Peru. Overnight at the lakeside town of Puno.
Day 11 Full day rail journey through Peru’s Central Valley to Cusco, Inca capital and remarkable colonial city.
Day 12 Full day excursion to the fertile Sacred Valley of the Incas, including the ruined temples and fortresses at Pisac and Ollantaytambo.
Day 13 Afternoon tour of the city and Inca sites nearby.
Day 14 Full day trip by train and bus to Machu Picchu, the mountain-top Inca ‘Lost City’, swathed in sub-tropical forest.
Day 15 One hour flight to Lima, Peru’s monumental capital. Tour of the city’s colonial highlights.
Day 16 Return flight to the UK, arriving day 17, Saturday.
How about?
A few days in Buenos Aires on your way home.
Trekking along original Inca Trails in Peru.
Visiting the Jesuit missions from Santa Cruz.
The above optional excursions may dovetail into the existing 13 night itinerary, or require extra nights. | 
|