Volunteer Vacation in Lima-Canete

Day-by-Day Itinerary

Day 1: Arrival to Lima

Upon your arrival to Lima, you will be met and transported to your hotel in Lima, where you will spend a well-deserved overnight stay. * An extra day in Lima can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals. * While in Lima, we highly recommend adding culinary activities such as cooking classes and tasting dinners in the best restaurants of Latin America, for more information check our Culinary site: taste-of-peru.com and ask our agents for more information. An extra day in Lima can be added upon request.

Day 2: Lima City Tour with Peruvian typical lunch & Free Afternoon (B, L)

After breakfast at your hotel in Lima, one of our representatives will meet you at your hotel, and accompany you on your guided tour. On the City Tour, we will see the Spanish city Square and get a snapshot of the most important city sites. Sites to be visited: Main Square, The Cathedral, Government Palace, City Hall, San Francisco Monastery (including catacombs), old streets with colonial houses, and a great driving tour through beautiful San Isidro and Miraflores. You will have a delicious typical Peruvian lunch at one of the best restaurants in Lima, which will be sure to satisfy even the pickiest of eaters. After lunch, you will be taken back to your hotel for the remainder of the afternoon. You can use this time to relax at your hotel or to explore the city on your own. * An extra day in Lima can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals.

Day 3: Transportation from Lima to Cañete + Volunteer work (B)

After breakfast at your hotel in Lima, you will be picked up, and taken directly to the town of Cañete. The town of Cañete is a small, impoverished town, located around 100km south of the city of Lima. This town was utterly devastated after the latest major earthquake, the struck Peru in the year 2008. You will have the chance to see the town, and meet several of the inhabitants who were most notably affected by the earthquake. Your volunteer activities will vary and there is not age restriction for the Volunteer tour.  All our tours are children friendly and in fact children really enjoy the activities, as they will have the chance to meet children of various ages. We usually include two days of volunteer work in the community.  Each person/group decide on a monetary donation, which is entirely used for the project.  Depending on the amount of the donation, the scope of the project is defined.  You can choose a work focused in building/refurbishing infrastructure needed such as a classroom, a clinic, a school, shelter or simply someone’s house. Most of the work done by the volunteers involves painting walls, painting doors, installing windows, refurbishing furniture, and any other work that can be finish in two days.  From time to time we get a plumber or electrician in our group, which helps since they can use their skills here. For children, paint the walls/door is fun and easy to do.  If they get bored by these they can always play with the children from the town that are always they are visiting and helping our volunteers. If you have a specific skill (nurse, doctor, dentist, teacher) please let us know and we will suggest the best project and budget per person needed to implement the project. If you prefer not to do infrastructure, we have various other projects to choose from as well. At the conclusion of your volunteer activities, you will be taken to your hotel in Cañete, where you will have the chance to rest for the next day’s volunteer activities. * An extra volunteer day in Cañete can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals. You also can choose to stay in a Lima Hotel, as Lima is only 1-hour from Canete, let us know if you prefer that and we will send you and updated itinerary.

Day 4: 2nd Day Volunteer and deliver donations & Back to Lima (B)

After breakfast at your hotel in Cañete, you will be met at your hotel and taken to your volunteer place within the town of Cañete, where you will have the chance to complete your volunteer experience, and say goodbye to the inhabitants of the town, prior to departing on the second portion of your Peruvian excursion. Before departure, some passengers also like to offer the children of the community with a “chocolatada” or farewell party in which we serve hot chocolate and cake and give out color pencils and paper for the kids to draw farewell drawings for the volunteers. Also, some passengers like to use this day to deliver donations. If you want to bring donations such as used clothes, school supplies, you can. This is neither a requirement nor an obligation and is entirely up to the each passenger.  Please see suggestions below. * An extra volunteer day in Cañete can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals.

Day 5: Flight to Cusco & Afternoon City Tour (B)

We transfer back to the airport for the short, one-hour flight to Cusco, the ancient capital of the Incas, located at 11,100 feet above sea level. You will be met upon arrival and transferred to your hotel of choice. You will have the remainder of the morning to rest and freshen up. It’s best to take it easy this morning to let your body adjust to the altitude. Some find enjoying a cup of hot coca tea a real help in adjusting to the high elevation and that is what the locals traditionally use coca for. Both lunch and dinner are on your own today as there are so many choices available at reasonable price either in or near your hotel. * Depending on which domestic flight you choose you will have more or less time to rest.

After lunch, you will set out on grand tour of Cusco, the former capital of the once vast Incan Empire. The city’s Spanish Colonial architecture both overlays and is interlaced with the earlier Incan architecture. We walk Cusco’s impressive Plaza de Armas and visit both the Spanish cathedral and Incan temple of the sun, Qoricancha. The Spanish conquistadores destroyed significant portions of the Inca civilization while leaving their mark on Cusco. Ornate cathedrals, adobe walls, carved balconies, hidden courtyards and cobblestone streets add to the historic richness of the ancient Incan capital.

Next we set out to visit the ruins above the city that were considered an essential part of the ancient capital. We start with one of the most impressive of them all, Sacsayhuaman. This is where Inti Raymi, the Festival of the Sun, is held during the Summer Solstice. Some of the stones used to build the site weigh up to 70 tons yet are fitted so precisely–without the use of mortar–that one cannot slide even the thinnest object between them. Some believe that the site forms the head of puma or jaguar and that the huge triangulated walls form its teeth, or symbolize lightening. Tambomachay, the Temple of the Sacred Waters, is another site we will visit and is a marvel of hydraulic engineering. Its waters still flow today. At Q´enqo we’ll see the remains of a ceremonial site used for fertility rites and for celebrations of the solstice and equinox. * An extra day in Cusco can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals.

Day 6: Sacred Valley Tour (B, L)

After breakfast, we set out into the Urubamba Valley, also known as the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Our first stop will be a visit to the Pisac market. The Pisac market has a wide variety of artisan arts & crafts and you will have the chance to see the many different products that the sacred valley produces. This is a great opportunity to for you to do some unique shopping, and to purchase souvenirs for your family and friends. After the market, we head deeper into the Sacred Valley and visit the Inca town of Ollantaytambo, still inhabited by the locals in much the same way as it was during the time of the Incas. The lodging area is formed by complex structures known as “canchas” or apartments. The Inca built a temple on a terraced site above the town. The impressive, standing stones they erected, conjure up images of Atlantis. This is the site where Manco Inca and his warriors staged a temporary victory over the Spanish Conquistadors, led by Francisco Pizarro. During this victory, the Inca warriors flooded the fields, while raining down spears and arrows from above, making it difficult for the Spanish horses to maneuver, ultimately forcing a rare retreat on the part of the Conquistadors. We then return to Urubamba, where you will have a chance to break for lunch and recover energies to continue with our tour.

After lunch, we head out to the bustling market town of Chinchero, our final visit today. The town of Chinchero is the Birthplace of the Rainbow, situated at over 11,500 feet. Its extensive agricultural terraces made it, in Incan times, the breadbasket of Cusco city. The main sight to see at this location is a catholic church, with fine paintings from the Cusquenian School. Modern Chinchero has a very active community of women weavers who create textiles on backstrap looms using only natural dyes. The weavers make fine, high quality mantas, table runners, pillows, bags, belts, and scarves in soft natural colors. At the end of the day you will go back to Cusco. All of our suggested hotels are well situated, so that you can relax and enjoy more of both ancient and contemporary life this evening. * An overnight at the sacred valley can be added upon request. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals.

Day 7: Machu Picchu (B, S)

The day you have been waiting for! After breakfast we catch the train to the town of Aquas Calientes at the base of Machu Picchu. Continue by bus for the short ride up switch backs to the Machu Picchu citadel overhead. We enter the ruins for a breathtaking view of the city in the sky. You will enjoy a full tour of the lost city and have lunch on your own after the tour. In the afternoon we say farewell to Machu Picchu as we set out by train heading to the station at Poroy and then on to Cusco Hotel by car arriving at night. * An overnight in MachuPicchu can be added upon request. Also, we can add bus and entrance tickets for a second day at the citadel. Please let us know if you like us to add additional activities and meals.

Day 8: Return to Lima / Flight Home (B)

Your journey to Peru winds to a close as we provide transfer to the airport in Cusco for the flight back to the capital, where you will ultimately catch your flight back home (Flight time will depend on your flight time back home). * Please let us know if you like to add extra activities or a day hotel if your flight is late at night.

NOTE: Some people prefer to go directly to the sacred valley upon arrival to the Cusco Airport. Please let us know if you prefer that to send you an updated itinerary

Not exactly what you want?

Remember that Magical focuses on providing the best available options and can work with you on customizing your tour to better fit your interests and budget, without compromising the quality of your tour. Just contact us with your questions and preferences and we can modify this tour based on your expectations and requests.

Important Notes:

About MachuPicchu Entrance Tickets

As the popularity of MachuPicchu has increased in the last few years, and in order to preserve the ancient paths of MachuPicchu, the Peruvian Cultural Institute (INC) has restricted the number of people that could enter MachuPicchu to 2,500 people per day. This means that, once the 2,500 tickets are sold out, no further entrance tickets will available. Also, please note that to avoid a secondary market for these tickets, all tickets are issued with the name of the passenger, his/her passport number, nationality and date of birth. Therefore, tickets are non refundable and non transferable.

About Huaynapichu Tickets

Entrance tickets to Huaynapichu are not longer free, entrance tickets are now US$12.00 per person. There are two scheduled visits per day, with a limit of 200 people per visit (Total of 400 per day). If you are interested in hiking the Huaynapichu, we will need you to let us know at the same time you book your trip since the Huaynapichu tickets need to be purchased in conjunction to the MachuPicchu tickets.

Price

This tour (*) is available from:

USD$849.90 per person – All Pool tours, except Volunteer activities that is in private. All Private Transfers.

For single supplement and prices in a private service, please contact us!

* Based on double occupancy, 4 people, Budget Accommodations

IMPORTANT: As price depends on each passenger choices, please contact us to send you an updated price based on your specific request. Please send us the following information and we will respond within 24 hours with your updated price.

• Number of people in your party
• Level of accommodation (3, 4, 5*). Please see options
• Choosing a Private or Group Tour?
• Train choice. Please see options
• Adding options: if you like to add day tours, extra days, meals, etc
• Need domestic or international flights?
• Have a special request (e.g.: special diet, wheelchair, children, senior, etc)

What’s Included?

• Expedition train Roundtrip. Upgrade to other trains: Vistadome train, Hiram Bingham Train upon request.
• Bus to Machu Picchu roundtrip.
• Expert leadership, guides & support personnel for all listed tours
• Accommodations: 3 nights in Lima/ 3 nights in Cuzco / 1 night in Cañete
• Meals as noted (B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner, S = Snack). We can add any meals upon request
• Land excursions as noted including entrance fees (Lima Cathedral, San Francisco Catacombs, BTG, Cathedral and Qoricancha, Machu Picchu Access Ticket)
• Private Transportation: Lima airport/Lima Hotel, Lima Hotel/Cañete, Cañete/Lima Hotel, Lima Hotel/Lima Airport, Cusco Airport/Cusco Hotel, Cusco Hotel/Train Station, Train Station/Cusco Hotel, Cusco Hotel/Cusco Airport.

What’s Not Included?

• Donation for the project to be implemented. Budget depends on the project and could go from $20 per person to $200 per person, depending on the specific scope of the project.
• Airport taxes: Local ($5-6) and International ($31) departure tax of payable in local currency by each passenger at Lima International Airport upon departure (if applicable)
• International and domestic airfares, usually quoted separately
• Excess baggage charges
• Medical immunizations
• Insurance of any kind: mandatory evacuation insurance; suggested cancellation insurance, interruption, baggage loss, damage and delay
• Tipping & Gratuities (Guides $4 per person per day / Drivers $1 per person per day)
• Items of a personal nature (clothing, sodas, liquor, snacks, laundry, etc.)
• Visas. Please be advised that some citizens other than Canadians and US may need visa to travel to Peru. Please advise us of your nationality to help you or check with the Peruvian Consulate

Suggestions for Donations

If you choose to bring donations, you should check with your international airline carrier and get information on the allowed weight and size for the suitcases that are allowed in their international flight.   A list of things that are recommended are:

• School Supplies: Pencils, colored, pencils, crayons, notebooks, pens, erasers, construction Paper in various colors, glue, scissors. Although not a main necessity, kids absolutely love stickers.
• Clothes: Any piece of clothing that you can bring will be greatly appreciated.  You can focus on the following: t-shirts, sweatshirts, sweat pants, pants, shoes (boots, sandals, tennis shoes, etc). Keep in mind they live in farms and walk long distances so comfortable shoes will be great, sweaters—they live in a very cool place, baby clothes and receiving blanquets (all sizes from children to adults).
• Toys: Any small toys will work. Stuff animals are usually the best.  Do not bring any battery-operated toys since batteries are very expensive.
• Other: Small tape recorder (if double voltage Peru’s current is 220), blankets and linens, towels
• Multivitamins for children and adults, Feeding bottles for babies, pacifiers, small toys.
• Hygiene kits including a toothbrush, tooth paste, bar of soap and small towel.

Domestic Tickets

Lima/Cusco/Lima: From US $190 per person. This is an example price. Prices depend on the airline, date and time of booking.