Independent Galapagos at the Finch Bay Resort & Peru

Welcome to Quito, where your hotel is available for mid-afternoon check-in.

• Your included private city tour showcases the rich legacy left by the Incas and the Spaniards. See Independence Square, dominated by its formidable cathedral, San Francisco Plaza Church, and the Basilica with its marvelous stained-glass windows.

• Fly to Baltra in the Galápagos.
• Upon arrival, board a yacht bound for North Seymour, an island teeming with life. You might have to give way to a passing sea lion, marine iguana, or blue-footed boobies that nest here. As you walk along the shore, see large flocks of pelicans in a dive-bomb feeding-frenzy, and one of the Galápagos’ largest nesting sites of the magnificent frigatebird. In the bushes you can see the males up close with their puffed-up scarlet throat sacs.
• Return to the yacht and continue to the Finch Bay Hotel.

• Transfer to the lush highlands of Santa Cruz to a farming area called El Manzanillo on the edge of the Giant Tortoise Reserve. Here, tortoises can be seen grazing year-round, along with woodpecker finches, mockingbirds, and flycatchers.
• After lunch, visit a local farm, where coffee, sugar cane, and cocoa beans are grown, harvested, and prepared.
• Return to the hotel and perhaps spend time on the private beach.

• This morning, travel to Punta Carrion on Santa Cruz Island for some time to snorkel. The shallow reefs and mangroves make this an ideal site to snorkel with plenty of reef fish as well as occasional sea lions and sharks.
• Next, sail to South Plaza Island, a small island full of fascinating wildlife, both along its shore and along its dramatic, wind-swept cliffs. Here you will see large, yellow land iguanas, swallow-tailed gulls, masked and blue-footed boobies, sea lions, and much more during your guided walk.
• Return to the hotel this afternoon.

• Today’s adventure takes you to wildlife-rich Divine Bay on Santa Cruz Island. Marine iguanas, herons, noddy terns, blue-footed boobies, and tropicbirds are commonly seen here. You may explore by boat or, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can take to the sea by kayak. Keep an eye out for sea turtles, rays, and reef sharks as you cruise the tranquil waters.
• Return to the hotel for lunch, followed by an afternoon visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station, established to help conserve the Galápagos’ natural habitats and protect the area’s famous giant tortoises.

• Depart the hotel this morning for the airport in Baltra.
• Then, fly to Lima where you will be met by your Local Guide who will take you to your hotel.

• Fly to Cusco, high in the Andes, where you will be met by your Local Guide.
• Your guided tour visits the cathedral in Plaza de Armas and Santo Domingo Monastery, one of the most important temples devoted to worship of the sun. It is said it was covered in gold leaf and filled with golden representations of nature.
• Take a short drive outside the city to the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, a fortress of gigantic stones—with some blocks weighing more than 350 tons. Followed by the amphitheater of Kenko, and the red fortress of Puca Pucara.

• Today, a short drive into the Urubamba Valley, the Sacred Valley of the Incas, brings you to Awanakancha to learn about the importance of the alpaca for Inca cultures, as well as the ancient weaving techniques still in use today.
• Continue to the market town of Pisac, where you can buy handmade rugs, alpaca sweaters, and jewelry at bargain prices.
• At the other end of the valley, visit Ollantaytambo to see some of the finest examples of Inca masonry.

• Embark on a train trip bound for Machu Picchu and cut a path through the Sacred Valley to this “Lost City of the Incas,” discovered by American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911.
• On a guided tour of Machu Picchu, explore this intact fortress with its temple remains, holy houses, and mile-long aqueduct. For hikers, a brisk one-hour walk leads to the Sun Gate, the ancient entrance used by the Incas.

• A morning at leisure allows you to wake up early to see the sunrise over Machu Picchu with your second included entrance to the ruins.
• Return to Cusco by train.

• Fly to Lima today.

Your vacation ends after breakfast this morning.