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We will return to the ranch at approximately
3 pm. After a drink, we will drive back to Quito to
visit the old town, a world heritage site and one
of the best examples of colonial South America. The
tour of the city will include a visit to the heart
of colonial Quito, including several churches: San
Francisco, Cathedral Metropolitana, La Compania and
La Merced. We will also take in the Metropolitan Museum
and the famous Panecillo, a lookout point from where
most of the old town, with its steep and narrow streets,
is visible.
Dinner will be at the restaurant El Nispero, one
of the best restaurants for traditional Ecuadorian
cuisine.
Riding time: approx. 4 hours. Altitude: 2700 - 3700
m/8,860 - 12,140 ft.
Day 3. After an
early breakfast you will leave at 6:15 am to catch
the 7:30 am flight to the Galapagos Islands for a
4-day tour of the Archipelago on board of the M/V
Galapagos Legend, an expedition ship for 110 passengers.
The flight takes approximately 1.5 hours. After landing
at Baltra airport, you will be taken on board of the
M/V Legend for a welcome drink, introductory briefing,
and lunch. After lunch we visit North Seymour Island,
home of the blue footed boobies and two species of
frigate birds. After this visit we continue our cruise.
The M/V Legend blends luxurious cabins with excellent
service. A variety of activities are offered on board,
providing the opportunity to make your precious leisure
time unforgettable.
Day 4. The M/V Legend
has traveled to Genovesa Island overnight. Genovesa
is one of the northern islands. It is the perfect
nesting site for frigate birds, masked boobies, red-footed
boobies, night herons, red-billed tropic birds, and
swallow-tailed gulls. The morning visit includes El
Barranco. In the afternoon you visit Darwin Bay, where
a collapsed caldera forms a low island that opens
to the south.
Day 5. The voyage
continues south to Espanola Island, the southernmost
and one of the oldest islands of the archipelago.
In the morning you will visit Suarez Point. Located
on the western tip of the island, it is one of the
most outstanding visitors sites in the Galapagos.
Known for being one of the best spots for waved albatrosses
and hood mockingbirds, the impressive cliffs at the
end of Suarez Point offer spectacular views of marine
iguanas and sea lions.
The ship travels from Espanola to
San Cristobal Island during midday. This allows for
an afternoon visit to the Interpretation Center in
Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, the capital of the archipelago
and the perfect site to learn about the islands and
the important events that have taken place here. Here
you will be able to observe various species of Galapagos
tortoises.
Day 6. The ship
has traveled to Santa Cruz overnight. You will visit
Black Turtle Cove in the morning, a shallow mangrove
lagoon between Santa Cruz and Baltra Islands. Here
you will observe abundant bird life above the surface,
as well as some of the life beneath the surface: golden
rays, white tipped sharks, and green sea turtles can
be spotted swimming in the area.
Black Turtle Point is the last visit
before returning to the airport for the 12:45 pm flight
back to Quito. Because of the one-hour time difference
between the island and the mainland, you will arrive
in Quito at approximately 4:45 pm. After arrival you
will be taken back to the Hotel Hilton Colon.
Dinner at Restaurant Café
Mosaico, located in one of the most beautiful spots
in old town Quito, overlooking colonial Quito.
Day 7. Today begins
at 8 am, when we pick you up from your hotel for the
1.5 hour drive to the Hacienda Antisana, named after
the fourth highest mountain in the Ecuadorian Andes
(5704 m/18,700 feet).
Antisana is one of the most spectacular
reserves in the Ecuadorian Andes. Although it is located
only 50 miles from Quito, it has remained isolated
for centuries. Here are excellent trails on which
to ride our Peruvian Paso horses and observe the representative
fauna of the high Andes. Cara cars, black-faced ibis,
condors, llamas, fox, and deer can be seen in the
area.
Heading south we will ride gently
downhill to a nearby valley, before climbing approximately
200 m (670 feet) to a lookout point from where La
Mica lagoon is visible. From here we will turn northeast
and continue uphill, climbing another couple of hundred
meters with Antisana in front of us. The view is spectacular.
On a clear day the rock walls of Antisana seem to
be within arm’s reach, while the snow-capped
peaks of Sincholagua and Cotopaxi are seen in the
distance. Picnic lunch en route.
Halfway through the ride we make
our closest approach to Antisana. From here we will
begin the gentle descent along the main valley back
to the hacienda. We are sure to see wildlife along
the way. We return to the Hacienda around 3 pm, and
are welcomed with a refreshing drink. We will be back
in Quito at around 5 pm. Dinner at the restaurant
La Ronda and accommodation at the Hilton Colon.
Riding time: 4 to 5 hours.
Altitude: 3900 – 4100 m/12,800 – 13,450
ft.
Day 8. After breakfast, and before
the transfer to the Quito airport for your two-hour
flight to Lima around midday, we will visit the Equator
Monument, marking 0°0’0” latitude.
Arrive in Lima late in the afternoon.
We will be waiting at the airport to transfer you
to your hotel. The hotel is centrally located in Miraflores
and is owned by Don Felipe Matellini, a true aficionado
and breeder of the Peruvian Paso horse. If time allows
you can visit museums.
Dinner at Lima’s famous restaurant La Rosa
Nautica.
Day 9. After breakfast
drive to the airport. The spectacular one-hour flight
over the Andes arrives mid-morning in the ancient
Inca capital of Cusco (altitude 3338 m/10,952 ft.).
From here it is a one-hour drive to your hotel in
the Sacred Valley of the Incas. This charming hotel
is perfectly located in the heart of the Sacred Valley,
between Cusco and Machu Picchu, and only 5 km from
the stables. Once you have settled at the hotel we
will bring you to our stables.
After a lunchtime barbeque at the ranch, we will mount
our horses for a 3- to 4-hour ride in the Sacred Valley.
Dinner at the Restaurant Tres Keros in Urubamba. Overnight
at the Hotel Sonesta Posada del Inca in Yucay or the
Hotel Casa Andina Private Collection in Yanahuara.
Day 10. Our ride
begins around 10 am, after a leisurely breakfast.
We mount our horses and set off in the direction of
Ollantaytambo. We cross the Urubamba River and pass
Pichingote, an old Andean village where the houses
are partially built into caves. Then on to Salinas.
Here we see salt pans from Inca times still being
used by the locals to extract salt from the mountain
spring water. The salt pans consist of a series of
platforms where the salty water is channeled through
an impressive irrigation system and left to evaporate
in the sun. Take plenty of film to capture this unique
sight.
We will climb with the horses almost
1000 m (3,281 ft.) to the reach the Andean altiplano.
This climb takes about two hours, and will be at an
easy pace because the change of altitude does not
only affect the horses. Once at 3700 m (12,140 ft.),
we will be surrounded by stunning scenery and the
snowcapped mountains of Chicon, Veronica and Salcantay.
We continue our ride to Maras, a
typical Andean village with a beautiful 400-year-old
colonial church, where we enjoy our picnic lunch.
From Maras we follow an interesting trail to the agricultural
terraces of Moray. Hundreds of years ago, people in
this region took four huge natural depressions in
the landscape and sculpted them into multilevel agricultural
terraces that served as an experimental agricultural
station for the development of different crop strains.
This was possible due to a remarkable phenomenon:
the climates of many different ecological zones were
present at a single site. In the thirty or so meters
of altitude between the bottom and top levels of Moray's
main depression, scientist John Earls has recorded
a full 15 degrees Celsius (59 deg. F) difference in
temperature. That is equal to the difference between
the mean annual temperatures of London and Bombay.
It is possible that Moray played a key role in the
original transformation of maize into a high-altitude
crop. There are no great ruined structures in Moray
to impress; it is more for the contemplative traveler
with an affinity for such phenomena as the Nazca Lines,
the stone rings of Avebury and the menhirs of Brittany.
From Moray we continue our ride to
Lago Huaypo, where we will leave our horses in the
caring hands of their grooms.
Transfer to the Hotel Sonesta Posada del Inca in Yucay
or the Hotel Casa Andina Private Collection in the
Sacred Valley of the Incas. Dinner at local restaurant.
Riding time: approx. 5 hours. Altitude: 2700 - 3700
m/8,860 - 12,140 ft.
Day 11. After a
filling breakfast at our hotel, we continue our riding
adventure following primitive trails across the altiplano.
The scenery is spectacular with snowcapped mountains,
wildflowers and beautiful mountain lakes. We will
meet smiling Quechua children with their herds of
sheep or cattle and see campesinos plowing their fields
in the traditional way, oxen hitched to a wooden plow.
We may even share a chicha (their traditional maize
drink) with them. We will follow the trail to Chinchero
where our back-up team is awaiting us with our picnic
lunch.
On a clear day the views from Chinchero
are tremendous; to the west and northwest stretches
a vista of rolling altiplano, ringed in the distance
by the dramatic snowcapped peaks of the Cordilleras
Vilcabamba and Urubamba. After lunch we will have
plenty of time to visit the ruins of Chinchero. The
main square of the town is famous for its massive
Inca wall, set with ten of the largest trapezoidal
niches known among Inca structures. This was probably
the base wall of a palace - perhaps that of Topa Inca
- that once overlooked the square. For those interested
in Andean textiles, good weavings can sometimes be
found here.
In the afternoon we continue our
ride and arrive around 5 pm at Lago Piuray, where
we leave our horses. Transfer to the Hotel Sonesta
Posada del Inca in Yucay or the Hotel Casa Andina
Private Collection in the Sacred Valley of the Incas.
Dinner at a local restaurant.
Riding time: 4 - 5 hours. Altitude: 3000 - 3800 m/9,840
- 12,470 ft.
Day 12. After a
comfortable night in our hotel and a filling breakfast,
we return to the horses. From Lago Piuray we crisscross
through the rough and sturdy Andean landscape, passing
remote Quechua communities, herder's huts and small
farms called chacras. Today is one of the most beautiful
riding days. We will travel a cobblestone-paved section
of the network of Inca roads called the Capac Nan,
and enjoy beautiful vistas as we climb to an altitude
of 4000 m/13,125 ft. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking,
with impressive views of the many snowcapped mountains
and the altiplano. We will pass many impressive Inca
ruins, like an ancient Inca aqueduct and Inca irrigation
channels. Today some technical riding is required
as we will cross some difficult gorges along the trail.
It is not a dangerous ride, but some uphill canters
are necessary. Our hardy, sure-footed mounts will
be well up to the task.
After a hard day's ride following
old Inca trails, we arrive around 4:30 pm at the historic
city of Cusco, the oldest continuously inhabited city
in South America and the former capital of the great
Inca Empire. The Inca called their empire Tahuantinsuyu,
"The Four Quarters of the Earth." Cusco,
meaning "the Navel of the World," was the
center of Tahuantinsuyu; its main square, the Huacapata
(today's Plaza de Armas), marked the heart of Cusco
and of the Inca Empire.
Dinner in Cusco. Accommodation at
the comfortable Hotel Monasterio or Hotel Novotel,
Cusco’s most prestigious hotels. If you still
have energy you can explore Cusco's legendary nightlife.
Riding time: 6 - 7 hours. Altitude: 3400 - 4000 m/11,155
- 13,125 ft.
Day 13. After breakfast,
we catch the luxury “Hiram Bingham" train
to the ruins of Machu Picchu. The experience of visiting
Machu Picchu is not limited to the ruins themselves.
The train journey is one of the most spectacular in
the world. This newest train service allows us to
travel in luxury and comfort.
The Hiram Bingham will depart Cuzco
at 9:00 a.m., allowing a more leisurely start to the
day than the traditional 6:00 a.m. departures of other
services. Brunch will be served on board while travelers
enjoy spectacular scenery as it unfolds through the
large windows. Arrival in Machu Picchu at 12:30 p.m.
allows Hiram Bingham passengers the advantage of entering
the Sanctuary at an hour when the majority of visitors
are already beginning to leave for their journey back
to Cuzco to arrive in time for dinner. Thus, Hiram
Bingham passengers will not only have the opportunity
to experience the ruins at Machu Picchu in relative
solitude, but will have a longer period of time there,
returning to the luxury train only as the sun goes
down.
Since its discovery by Hiram Bingham
in 1911, Machu Picchu has captivated the hearts and
minds of the modern world. Take lots of film; this
is every bit as magnificent as you have imagined.
Once back on board for the 6:30 p.m. departure, pre-dinner
cocktails and live entertainment will be enjoyed in
the bar. After drinks, guests will enjoy a three-course
a la carte dinner in the dining cars. The train will
pull into Poroy station in Cuzco at 10:00 p.m., with
passengers relaxed and ready for bed.
Overnight at the comfortable Hotel Monasterio or Hotel
Novotel in Cusco.
Day 14. Early in the morning, transfer
to the airport in Cusco for your flight to Lima. The
driving time is one hour, followed by a one-hour flight,
arriving in Lima at 1 pm. The earliest possible departure
time from Lima is 3 pm.
The itinerary is flexible. Changes may occur due to
weather and other unforeseeable circumstances.
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