Culture and Community in Peru

  • 9 Days
  • Explorer Value Trip

We're always ready to personalize
a tour to your unique needs

Culture and Community in Peru Get Started

Map & Route

Depart

Lima

2 2 Nights

Sacred Valley

2 2 Nights

Aguas Calientes

1 1 Night

Cuzco

2 2 Nights

Overnight Flight

1 1 Night
Return
map Culture and Community in Peru

What's Included

Our itineraries reflect 40 years of experience in crafting exceptional educational tours. That means we know exactly how to make the best of your time abroad—incredible destinations, immersive activities, centrally located hotels, and smart, well-traveled tour managers who ensure your educational goals are met. Here are some of the exceptional features of this tour.

ACIS Guarantees

We have high standards, which is why we take care to include these features in every tour.

Round-Trip Flights

Leave the airlines to us.

3-Star Hotels

After a busy day, comfort is key.

Centrally Located Hotels

Save the commuting time, beat the morning crowds and keep right on exploring after dark when your hotel is in the heart of the city.

Double Occupancy

Daily Breakfast and Dinner (unless otherwise noted)

Delicious, authentic, multi-course dinners at local restaurants with meal times tailored to maximize your experience.

24-Hour Tour Manager

Part guide, part educator, part engineer, part mind-reader, part magician—ACIS Tour Managers are your travel partner.

Start Exploring

Never wait hours at the airport to share a transfer with other later groups.

Service Guarantee

We're so sure you're going to love your tour, we guarantee it!

All Local Transportation

Urban transportation is on us, allowing you to explore each destination with ease.

Global Network

24/7 on the ground support whenever and wherever you need it.

Exceptional Experiences

Our tours are designed to help you and your students be in the moment and experience everything the world has to offer.

Pisac Indian Market

Pisac Indian Market

The charming Andean town of Pisac thrives on market day. Navigate colorful stalls stocked with local handicrafts, Alpaca wool clothing, ceramics, antiques, meat and produce. You'll have the chance to practice your language skills, interacting with the vendors and learning the fine art of bartering from members of the native communities who come to buy and sell their goods, many sporting the traditional colorful dress of the region.

Learn More

The charming Andean town of Pisac thrives on market day. Navigate colorful stalls stocked with local handicrafts, Alpaca wool clothing, ceramics, antiques, meat and produce. You'll have the chance to practice your language skills, interacting with the vendors and learning the fine art of bartering from members of the native communities who come to buy and sell their goods, many sporting the traditional colorful dress of the region.

Pre-Columbian Ceramics Workshop

Pre-Columbian Ceramics Workshop

Learn the techniques of renowned artist Pablo Seminario and craft your own ceramic piece in the Pre-Columbian style.

Learn More

Learn the techniques of renowned artist Pablo Seminario and craft your own ceramic piece in the Pre-Columbian style.

Janaq Chuquibamba Andean Community Exchange

Janaq Chuquibamba Andean Community Exchange

An immersive exchange introduces you to the traditional dress, customs, rituals, food and more of this native Andean community.

Learn More

An immersive exchange introduces you to the traditional dress, customs, rituals, food and more of this native Andean community.

Lima Tour with Guide

Lima Tour with Guide

San Francisco Church

San Francisco Church

Larco Museum

Larco Museum

Lima-Cuzco Flight

Lima-Cuzco Flight

Maras Salt Mines

Maras Salt Mines

Ollantaytambo Ruins

Ollantaytambo Ruins

Train to Machu Picchu

Train to Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu

Cuzco Tour with Guide

Cuzco Tour with Guide

Qorikancha Temple

Qorikancha Temple

Cuzco-Lima Flight

Cuzco-Lima Flight

Video

Peru

Featured in this video

Itinerary

This itinerary is the starting point for your tour, but it’s not set in stone. If there are days you would like to change, or specific places you’d like to go, we can work with you to create a personalized program that fits the needs of you and your students.

Day 1: Lima

Depart from the USA. Upon arrival in Lima, you'll meet your ACIS Tour Manager and begin to explore Peru's culturally rich capital city.

Day 2: Lima

Begin the day with a guided sightseeing tour of Lima. Stops includes the impressive Plaza de Armas, the city's historic hub, surrounded by palaces and other historic buildings; entrance to the nearby San Francisco Church, completed in 1774 and an excellent example of Spanish Baroque architecture; and a visit to the fascinating Larco Museum, filled with precious pre-Columbian art. Later put on some comfortable shoes for a walking tour of the Miraflores neighborhood, an upscale district teeming with shops, restaurants and nightclubs.

Day 3: Sacred Valley

Say adios to Lima as you fly off to Cuzco, which centuries ago was the capital of the Incan empire. After a drive to the Sacred Valley in the Andean highlands, you'll visit the town of Pisac and browse its famed Indian Market, a boisterous and dazzlingly colorful open-air bazaar that showcases hand-crafted Peruvian goods. Later, you'll channel your inner pottery-maker at a pre-Columbian ceramics workshop at Ceramicas Seminario, where clay and culture collide. Well-known artist and researcher Pablo Seminario will teach you how to fashion your own traditional Peruvian pottery, using age-old techniques and tools based on his extensive study of the subject.

Day 4: Sacred Valley

Today you'll be immersed in ancient Andean customs, rituals and cuisine during a full-day cultural exchange with the Janaq Chuquibamba indigenous community. Following a welcoming ceremony featuring music and flowers, you'll learn about the food residents grow and the farming implements they use, then test your green thumb by actually planting crops. You'll also cook a traditional Andean dish, using savory local ingredients, and sample the results at a community lunch. The experience concludes with a tinka, or symbolic blessing, bestowed in appreciation of this unique sharing between different cultures.

Day 5: Aguas Calientes

In the morning, you'll head north to see the Maras Salt Mines, a marvel of rustic engineering and ingenuity that features terraced evaporation ponds where residents have been producing salt since the days of the Incas. More intriguing history awaits at the next stop, Ollantaytambo, home of the centuries-old ruins of an ancient Inca hillside fortress and village. Then board the train to Aguas Calientes. Known for its hot springs, this small town is the gateway to the fabled ruins of Machu Picchu.

Day 6: Cuzco

Take a guided sightseeing tour of iconic Machu Picchu, the mysterious mountainside city built by the Incas in the 15th century. Discovered in 1911, see first-hand why these ruins are considered one of the world's most important archaeological finds. Then enjoy a scenic train ride back to Cuzco.

Day 7: Cuzco

The day starts with a guided sightseeing tour of historic Cuzco, including entrance to Qorikancha, the ruins of an Inca temple that now form the foundation of a church and convent, and a stop at the bustling San Pedro Market. If you're equine-inclined, you may choose an optional afternoon horseback riding excursion through surrounding Andean fields and villages. Otherwise, use the time to practice your Spanish in the center of Cuzco, perhaps while ordering a picaron, a doughnut-like snack, or a bag of choclo, a tasty roasted-corn treat. The day concludes with dinner and entertainment at a local restaurant.

Day 8: Overnight Flight

After flying back to Lima, you'll have time to explore more of this magical city on your own before departing on an overnight flight home. Perhaps see the regal Presidential Palace, built by Spanish explorer Francisco Pizzaro, or browse through the art and artifacts on display at the Aliaga House, where 18 generations of the Aliaga family have resided since the 1500s.

Day 9: United States

Arrive in the USA.



Optional Extensions and Extra Nights:

Further immerse yourself in the history and culture of Peru with an extra night in Lima, including the services of your ACIS Tour Manager.

Price This Tour

Price This Tour

Optional Extras

Ultimate-Plus Protection Plan

Most Enhanced health coverage, program interruption, baggage delay/loss and travel delay protection while on tour. Plus, enhanced medical/job loss cancellation refund policy

Rate $450

Add to Tour

Ultimate Protection Plan

Enhanced health coverage, program interruption, baggage delay/loss and travel delay protection while on tour. Plus, enhanced medical/job loss cancellation refund policy

Rate $315

Add to Tour

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