Duration
Prepare for 2 splendid days in Colca Canyon, exploring the National Reserve, Chivay, and many other attractions.2 day tour of Colca Canyon takes you from Arequipa to see many regional attractions.Among them are the Colca's-holes used during the pre-Incan times built into the valley cliffs and canyons. This is where peole would store their food so you might call them ancient storage units/refrigerators.This particular tour is reserved for history lovers as well as adventure and outdoor lovers. You shall explore the National Reserve Canahuas along the way, visit the village Pata Wasi, mountain ranges, and volcanos and the spectacular terraces of the Colca Valley.
The Tour Highlights:
Day
1 AREQUIPA – PAMPA CANAHUAS NATIONAL RESERVE – COPORAQUE<
The 2 day
Colca tour departs at 7:30 am from Arequipa, driving 160 km to the town of
Chivay, capital of the Province of Caylloma. At the beginning of our excursion,
we will enjoy the majestic views of the Misti, Chachani and Pichu Pichu
volcanoes before approaching the National Reserve of “Pampa Cañahuas”,
where our transportation will make a short stop to observe the wild Vicuñas
(one of the 4 types of American camels) in its natural habitat. At this point,
we will be about 3,400 meters above sea level. Moving on we will arrive
at “Pata Wasi” (Pata=high Wasi=home), an Andean community at
the opposite border of the reserve.
Here you might
enjoy the natural formation of rocks and the view to the backside of the Misti
and Chachani volcanoes. To prevent altitude sickness we will have an original
Andean “Mate de Coca” drink or another hot drink in a rustic restaurant on the
road (service of bathrooms are here available).
Continuing on
the road we will pass “Tocra”, a high plain at more than 4,500
meters, where we will observe lakes with migrant birds and get pictures of the
“Altiplano” with its Llamas and Guanacos. The highest point of our tour will
be “Pata Pampa” (Pata=high, Pampa=land) located at 4,820 meters,
where we’ll observe the volcanoes Ampato, Sabancaya, Hualca-Hualca, Mismi (the
source of the Amazon River), and the “Cordillera de Chila”. When we are getting
close to the town of Chivay (3,651 meters) we will start to wonder at the
spectacular multicolor view of the terraces of the Colca valley.
We keep our
drive until Coporaque town and visit the Lodge La Casa
de Mamayacchi, where we will have our lunch (cost of lunch is not included
in the program).After lunch, your guide will invite you to a short walk through
Coporaque and its surroundings (this walk takes around 1 hour and is optional)
We’ll come
back to our transportation and visit a natural “hot springs”, where we will
enjoy a relaxing bath (entrance fee and personal towels to the baths are not
included).After this exciting day, we will bring you to your hotel or lodge.
Day
2 CRUZ DEL CONDOR VIEWPOINT – CHIVAY
We’ll have our
breakfast very early in the morning and leave to the famous “Cruz del
Condor” point. Arrive to view point and time enough to have an
enjoyable view of the deep of the Canyon and if the weather permits; majestic
pictures of the flight of the Condors. Next, on our Peruvian adventure we go for
a short,guided walk near the Canyon (1-hour approx.)
On the way
back to Chivay we’re going to visit the traditional village
of Pinchollo and the “Antahuilque viewpoint”, where wonderful
1,500-year-old terraces, constructed by the Collaguas, a culture well before
the Incas’ time, can be observed. We also will make a stop at the look-out
point of “Choquetico” with its hanging tombs “Tumbas colgantes“, and take a
look to the litomaqueta, a model of the canyon terraces carved in a rock. We
will continue visiting Maca, an Andean community that experienced an earthquake
in November of 1991 and the village of Yanque with the most beautiful church in
the valley.
Lunch in
Chivay town (Cost of Lunch is not included in the program) and return to
Arequipa city.
We
will depart at 7:30 am from Arequipa, driving 160 km to the town of Chivay,
capital of the Province of Caylloma.
Return details: return to Arequipa city.
Time | From | To |
---|---|---|
Monday, January 1, 2018 | Monday, December 31, 2018 |
Cancelations occurring 10 days or less before the tour start will result in a 100% charge.