The Inca Trail and Beyond

Explore the great wonders of the world with world leading Adventurer Pat Falvey and Michael Gibbons, world renowned Archaeologist.

Through a variety of fascinating ecological zones, this tour offers a challenging high Andes Adventure along the Inca Trail to the incredible lost city of the Incas Machu Picchu. Alpine meadows flanking the high Andes down to the subtropical coffee and banana plantations alive with humming birds, parrots, orchids and the odd snake. We stop at the most glorious campsites in the Andes between two beautiful glacier clad giants, Salcantag 20,754 revered by the Incas as one of their most sacred mountains and Humantay 19,240 where we get close to exquisite glaciers.

We explore the great ruins of the Incas, and wander through village markets where ancient traditions live on in the hearts of the Andean people. We visit the most important Inca ruins, and we spend two days exploring the Lost City of Machu Picchu.

Along our journey we explore the witches market in Cusco, bargain over tapestries in Pisac, and walk off the beaten path in the rural Andes. This is an easy paced holiday perfect for anyone with a sense of curiosity and adventure.

Sandwiched between the driest desert and the largest rainforest in the world, the Andes of Peru contain some of the worlds most spectacular mountain scenery. Within these mountains, ancient civilisations, of which the Incas are the most famous, built cities, temples and roadways (of which there are known to be more then 25.000km) using precision construction techniques that continue to baffle scientists today. Both our tours to Peru enable you to explore the impressive relics of these civilisations, while enjoying some magnificent walks through the diverse scenery in the mountains and valleys of the Eastern Cordillera. On this tour we offer you a little more than just the classic Inca Trail, with plenty of time to visit all the major Inca sites in the area.

A Typical Day on Trek

Routine

On this trek our cooking and camp chores are handled by our local staff. We rise early each day and tuck into a breakfast of cereal or porridge, pancakes, eggs, tea/coffee, fruit, bread and jam. We are usually on the move at about 7.30, though much depends on what must be done around camp.

We always walk slowly, spending time learning from our local guide and enjoying the birds, flowers, butterflies and mountain views, and take lunch around midday, but the timings rather depend on the location of suitable lunch spots. After lunch we usually walk for just an hour or so before making camp, leaving plenty of time each evening for relaxation.

Trekking conditions

Our departures are scheduled to coincide with the dry season in Peru, when you can expect clear sunny days but cool nights. The trails you will follow are all well trod, especially once you reach the paved Inca Trail.

Trek staff

There will be an overall guide for your tour, who is a fully qualified English speaking Peruvian. There will be a cook and porters will carry all your main baggage as well as the tents, toilet tents, dining tent and food.

What you need to provide

Your personal equipment as detailed in the clothing and equipment list that will be provided on booking.

Ecological considerations

We believe that we are one of the most ecologically aware tour operators in Peru. We ask for your full consideration and co-operation concerning all ecological matters, especially in the disposal of rubbish. Our local staff will outline for you the procedures we use in Peru. If you have any suggestions for improvements, please let our local staff know and inform us at Irish and World-wide Adventures on your return. It is with the tourists, the locals and the tour operators' co-operation that we can ensure that our tours are as eco-friendly as possible.

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Peru's History

The first inhabitants of Peru were nomadic hunter-gatherers who lived in caves in Peru's coastal regions. The oldest site, Pikimachay cave, dates from 12,000 BC. Crops such as cotton, beans, squash and pepper chillis were planted around 4.000 BC; later, advanced cultures such as the Chavín introduced weaving, agriculture and religion to the country. Around 300 BC, the Chavín inexplicably disappeared, but over the centuries several other cultures - including the Salinar, Nazca, Paracas Necropolis and Wari (Huari) - became locally important. By the early 15th century, the Inca Empire had control of much of the area, even extending its influence into Colombia and Chile.

Between 1526-28, the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro explored Peru's coastal regions and, drawn by the riches of the Inca empire, returned to Spain to raise money and recruit men for another expedition to the country. Return he did, marching into Cajamarca, in northern Peru, before capturing, ransoming and executing the Inca emperor Atahualpa in 1533. Pizarro subsequently founded the city of Lima in 1535 but was assassinated six years later. The rebellion of the last Inca leader, Manco Inca, ended ingloriously with his beheading in 1572.

The next 200 years proved peaceful, with Lima becoming the major political, social and commercial centre of the Andean nations. However, the exploitation of Indians by their colonial masters led to an uprising in 1780 under the self-styled Inca Tupac Amaru II. The rebellion was short lived and most of the leaders were rounded up and executed. Peru continued to remain loyal to Spain until 1824 when the country was liberated by two outsiders: the Venezuelan Simón Bolívar and the Argentinean José de San Martín. In 1866, Peru won a brief war with Spain but was humiliated by Chile in the War of the Pacific (1879-83), which resulted in the loss of lucrative nitrate fields in the northern Atacama Desert. Peru also went to war with Ecuador over a border dispute in 1941. The 1942 treaty of Rio de Janeiro ceded the area north of the Río Marañón to Peru but Ecuador fiercely contested the decision. Border skirmishes have continually flared up, usually around January, the month when the treaty was signed. The squabbling has died down in recent years, as both countries work to impress potential foreign investors (who tend to be scared off by territorial skirmishes), and a treaty is in the works that should finally bring an end to this dispute.

Cuban-inspired guerrilla uprisings in 1965 led by the National Liberation Army were unsuccessful, but a series of nation-wide strikes coupled with a violent insurgency by the Maoist Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) guerrillas caused political instability in the 1980s. However, the 1990 presidential election of Alberto Fujimori and the capture in 1992 of inspirational Sendero Luminoso leaders has brought a sustained period of peace. Peru has once again become a favourite destination among adventure travellers from around the world.

For more information please contact us

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