11-Day Peru Tour: Lima to Machu Picchu with Puno & Lake Titicaca

From Lima's colonial streets to Machu Picchu's stone terraces, then down to Lake Titicaca's floating islands

An 11-day guided tour through Peru's main attractions, starting with airport pickup in Lima and ending with a transfer to Cusco airport. You visit Lima, Paracas, Ica, the Nazca Lines, Cusco's ruins, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, Rainbow Mountain, and Lake Titicaca's Uros and Taquile islands. Professional guides lead each section in English or Spanish; all transport, entry tickets, most meals and hotel pickups are included. Machu Picchu tickets depend on Ministry of Culture availability—if none are available for your dates, you receive a full refund.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Airport reception and Lima city tour

• Meet representative at Lima airport
• Transfer to hotel in Lima
• Start Lima city tour at 2:00 pm
• Visit Colonial and Contemporary Lima
• Return to hotel by 6:00 pm

Day 2 — Lima to Paracas and Ica tour

• Transfer to bus terminal at 4:00 am
• Bus Lima to Paracas
• Ballestas Islands boat tour
• Transfer Paracas to Ica by bus
• Visit Plaza de Armas and church in Ica
• Tour artisanal wine cellar and taste Pisco
• Visit Huacachina Oasis and free time
• Adventure tour: tubulares and sandboarding

Day 3 — Ica to Nasca and return to Lima

• Bus transfer Ica to Nasca at 8:30 am
• Arrival and transfer to Maria Reiche airfield
• Overflight Nasca Lines
• Bus Nasca to Lima at 4:30 pm

Day 4 — Lima to Cusco and city tour

• Transfer hotel to Lima airport in morning
• Flight Lima to Cusco
• Reception and transfer to hotel in Cusco
• Enjoy coca tea and acclimatize
• Start Cusco city tour at 2:00 pm
• Visit Koricancha, Sacsayhuamán, Qenqo, Puca Pucara, Tambomachay
• Return to hotel by 6:30 pm

Day 5 — Sacred Valley tour

• Pick up from hotel at 8:00 am
• Visit Pisaq archaeological site with guided tour
• Travel to Urubamba for buffet lunch
• Visit Ollantaytambo archaeological site with guided tour
• Board train to Aguas Calientes
• Overnight in Aguas Calientes
• Guide provides Machu Picchu visit details at night

Day 6 — Machu Picchu visit and return to Cusco

• Early bus to Machu Picchu ruins
• Guided tour of Machu Picchu
• Return to Aguas Calientes for lunch
• Free time in Aguas Calientes
• Train to Ollantaytambo
• Bus from Ollantaytambo to Cusco

Day 7 — Maras salt mines and Moray tour

• Pick up from hotel at 8:00 am
• Visit town of Maras
• Guided tour of Moray agricultural site
• Visit Salineras salt mines and shopping
• Return to Cusco by 3:00 pm

Day 8 — Humantay Lake trek

• Pick up from hotel at 4:00 am
• Travel to Mollepata and have breakfast
• Hike to Humantay Lake (1.5 hours)
• Enjoy lake and surrounding nature
• Return to Mollepata
• Lunch in Mollepata
• Return to Cusco by 5:00 pm

Day 9 — Rainbow Mountain trek

• Pick up from hotel at 4:00 am
• Travel to Cusipata district
• Buffet breakfast at 6:30 am
• Travel to Wasipata area
• Start trek to Rainbow Mountain (1.5 hours)
• Visit Rainbow Mountain (40 minutes)
• Return trek to bus (1 hour 15 minutes)
• Buffet lunch in Cusipata at 1:00 pm
• Return to Cusco by 4:30 pm

Day 10 — Lake Titicaca Uros and Taquile Islands

• Breakfast at hotel
• Pick up at 8:00 am for port transfer
• Boat tour to Uros Floating Islands (2 hours)
• Visit Uros customs and crafts
• Boat tour to Taquile Island
• Guided visit of Taquile Island (2 hours)
• Lunch with panoramic lake view
• Return to Puno port and transfer to hotel

Day 11 — Transfer to airport

• Transfer from hotel to airport

The Experience

You arrive at Lima airport and a representative meets you for transfer to your hotel. The afternoon is free to rest; at 2 pm a guide picks you up for a five-hour city tour through Lima's colonial center and contemporary neighborhoods. That evening you stay in Lima.

Day 2 starts before dawn with a 4 am pickup for the bus to Paracas. By 7:30 am you're on a boat heading to the Ballestas Islands, where you see the Candelabra geoglyph carved into the cliffs, sea lions, penguins, and pelicans. After the boat tour you travel by bus to Ica, visit the Plaza de Armas and a traditional Pisco winery where you taste the local brandy, then spend the afternoon at Huacachina oasis surrounded by dunes. The day ends with a tubular and sandboarding adventure across the desert—you ride boards down the sand dunes before returning to Ica for the night.

Day 3 is a long travel day: an early bus to Nazca, a 30-minute overflight of the Nazca Lines where you see the condor, monkey, and hummingbird figures from the air, then a night bus back to Lima on a Cruz del Sur sleeper bed. Day 4 you fly from Lima to Cusco, acclimatize with coca tea at your hotel, and take a five-hour afternoon city tour visiting Koricancha temple, Sacsayhuamán fortress, and four smaller ruins before returning to your hotel.

Days 5 and 6 center on Machu Picchu. On Day 5 you travel through the Sacred Valley for 90 minutes to Pisac ruins with a one-hour guided tour, have lunch in Urubamba, then spend an hour at Ollantaytambo ruins before boarding the train to Aguas Calientes. Day 6 you wake early, take a bus up to Machu Picchu for a guided tour (duration depends on which circuit your ticket allows), have lunch in Aguas Calientes, then train and bus back to Cusco. Days 7, 8, and 9 are optional high-altitude excursions: Maras salt mines and Moray agricultural site; Humantay Lake at 4,250 meters with a 90-minute walk; and Rainbow Mountain (Winicunca) with a 90-minute trek, breakfast and lunch included both days.

Day 10 you travel from Cusco to Puno (a separate bus ticket is included). From Puno's port you take a tourist boat to the Uros floating islands for two hours, then to Taquile Island for a two-hour guided visit and lunch with views of Lake Titicaca before returning to Puno. Day 11 is your transfer to Cusco airport. Throughout the tour, professional guides speak English or Spanish, hotel pickups are arranged each morning, and entry tickets to all attractions are included—though Machu Picchu tickets are subject to Ministry of Culture availability and may be circuits 1 or 2 only.

What’s included

Airport pickup in Lima and Cusco, hotel pickups throughout the tour, all transport by bus and train (including the Ollantaytambo-Aguas Calientes train and return), the Ballestas Islands boat tour, Nazca Lines overflight, entry to Machu Picchu (circuits 1 or 2, subject to availability), entry to all archaeological sites and attractions (Pisac, Ollantaytambo, Koricancha, Sacsayhuamán, Maras, Moray, Rainbow Mountain, Uros, Taquile), professional guides in English or Spanish, breakfasts and lunches on most days, coca tea and oxygen in Cusco, walking sticks for mountain treks, and the return transfer to Cusco airport on Day 11.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsNot for back problems

Operated by Chullos Travel Peru

Is this one for you?Book this if you're arriving in Lima without a rental car—all transport between regions and daily hotel pickups are arranged, so you only need to show up each morning.

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Top questions

What happens on my first day if I land in Lima in the morning?

You have a free morning after airport pickup and transfer to your hotel. At 2 pm a guide meets you to start a five-hour city tour through Lima's colonial and contemporary districts, returning by 6 pm.

Do I need to book Machu Picchu tickets separately, or are they included?

Machu Picchu entry is included, but tickets are subject to availability from Peru's Ministry of Culture. Tickets are purchased as circuits 1 or 2; other circuits may be available for an additional charge. If no tickets are available for your travel dates, you receive a full refund of the entire tour package.

What is the Ballestas Islands tour like?

You board a boat from Paracas to see the Candelabra geoglyph etched into the cliffs, rock formations, sea lions, penguins, pelicans, and other marine wildlife. The boat tour lasts around two hours.

How much walking and altitude am I doing on this tour?

The Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu days involve moderate walking on archaeological sites. Optional days include a 90-minute walk to Humantay Lake at 4,250 meters and a 90-minute trek to Rainbow Mountain. The tour requires at least moderate physical fitness; it is not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries, cardiovascular issues, or pregnancy.

What meals are included, and when do I eat on my own?

Breakfasts and lunches are included on most days—in Mollepata, Tintinco, Urubamba, Aguas Calientes, Taquile, and during the mountain excursions. Dinners and meals on travel days not listed are your own.

Does the guide speak English?

Professional guides lead each section of the tour in English or Spanish, depending on your group's preference.