009 Yuppie Tour, Northern Circuit of Peru 

Day 1
Flight to Lima, met at airport and escorted to facility.

Day 2
Sightseeing tour of Lima, which could include the older center with the palace, the cathedral and also even more interesting San Francisco Church & catacombs, the inquisition building, Miraflores, Museum of the Nation, Chorrillos, fabulous Indian Market with Peru’s best souvenirs (choice, as time allows).

Day 3
Flight to Tarapoto of the northern margin of the Amazon Basin.  Check out the town and proceed  to a real luxury resort, (bring bathing suits), check out the monkeys & parrots and walk along a tributary.

Day 4
Private coach takes us along the marginal jungle of Moyobamba, known for its thermal baths, waterfalls, and orchids.  We will enjoy another day in this tropical setting in the best 3 star hotel of the zone.

Day 5
On the way to Chachapoyas we will see a waterfall higher than the Empire State Building. Then our bus begins our serious 2 or 3-hour climb up the Andes through the spectacular Utcabamba River Valley.  Reception and check into the Colonial Mansion, 3 Star Hostel and night in the regional capitol of Chachapoyas, (named for the Cloud People).

Day 6
Our bus takes us to Levanto, the 7th and main “City of the Condors” as documented in “The Chronicles of the Inca”.  Levanto was the most significant city of the Inca invasion, and later Spanish Colonial Era, as capitol circa 1530 AD. Time stands still on the sleepy village plaza at the church, which is among Peru’s oldest, with an ornate hand carved high alter.  Abundant white limestone blocks everywhere, suggests Levanto’s huge past, also a couple of fortified walled cities overlook Levanto. We will see an ancient canal providing water from many miles away.  Next the Inca Military Garrison, (the zone’s first restoration), still guards the crossroads hub of over 2000 miles of Inca highways.  Levanto is the city documented by John Hemming’s “Conquest of the Incas”, as the strongest fortified zone of the Andes, where Inca Manco tried to relocate here during the revolt against the Spanish.  We will stay the night at Los Tambos Chachapoyanos brand new lodge, - built to resemble the ancient Cloud People’s style, but modern conveniences. This is jointly village owned and staffed to benefit the local people. 

Day 7
In the morning we stretch our legs with an energizing 4 hour walk downhill on perhaps Peru’s best continuously maintained and used Inca road to Chachapoyas, (which goes on to Columbia). Panoramic views are great and you can see how the Inca’s surpassed even Rome’s best engineering feat of highway construction.  Night at the local hostel.

Day 8
Visit the Museum Centro Mallqui where 219 mummies were relocated. These were featured October 98 on the Discovery Channel documentary "Lost Warriors of the Clouds". These were located in the gigantic zone south of here which 50 years ago was 15,000 sq. km. of unexplored Andes, with no road except the ancient Inca road to Cuzco. We take horses from here for a taste of an expedition on a trip to  a Chachapoyan ruins reputed to be "a palace". Dinner and overnight at best hostel of the frontier. 

Day 9
Take horses (optional) up to nearby Revash mausoleum for a view of these brightly painted funeral chulpas on a cliff face. Afterwards we go by bus to our Choctamal Lodge, high in the cloud forest above the clouds with a sweeping view of Kuelap. 

Day 10
We will spend the day at Fortress Kuelap known as "the Machu Picchu of the North". Kuelap has over 400 buildings inside 5 levels of walls, and is the largest stone structure in all South America.  Orchids and bromeliads cover the walls and trees inside this fortress, which is estimated to have 3 times more volume of materials than Egypt's largest pyramid. We return to our Choctamal Lodge.

Day 11
Our bus takes us to see some gigantic caverns that have stonewall structures in it and human bones, signifying “the underworld”.  Several caves here are unexplored, and at most only ½ km has been seen in a few of them. We can also see some sarcophagus (life size funeral statues) so high, ¾ of the way to the cliff top, they look like “peach fuzz” from the river below. We stay the night in a unique colonial hotel overlooking the village square’s neat topiaries.

Day 12
We can go to the City of the Dead, which isn’t a mausoleum but rather was for the living, complete with grindstones.  Can you imagine a cliff as high & steep as the side of the Grand Canyon, with a city stretched along a thin ledge half way down?  Across you can see 2 waterfalls as high as any building. We return to Chachapoyas and the 3 star Colonial Mansion, and perhaps a disco? 

Day 13
The next morning our bus makes the trip out, through Peru’s “rice bowl”, and to the desert Pacific Coast.  This completes the world’s most extreme geography when we arrive at Chiclayo for the night.

Day 14
Today we see the richest gold tomb of America. The Lord of Sipan is in another pyramid or giant mound complex.  This “Pharaoh’s” likeness was on pottery all up and down the coast, and so strange that it was thought to be mythical, ---- until his royal tomb was recently discovered.  Continuous excavations in the pyramids keep unearthing even more royal tombs as I write.  We’ll see the Bruning Museum with treasures from America’s richest gold tombs.  Flight in the afternoon to Lima.

Day 15
Flight to the USA.

Cost:  US$ 1,775  p.p.  minimum 3 passengers. 

For small groups of 4 to 12
One time price includes horses, guides, food, and about everything in Peru except souvenirs, alcohol, internal flights and airport taxes. This zone is so unpopulated and unaccustomed to tourist, that natives are honest, friendly and not used to tipping.  Internal flights are around $180 round trip.

This tour comes in a 1 and 2 week version, with 1 week about half the cost but more restrictive. This can be part of an extension added to other destinations, which we can arrange, along with flights and internal transportation, if you wish.