Bright Horizons 16

Your Insight Cruises host will meet you after you have claimed your luggage and passed through customs at Lima, Peru’s airport. Transfer to our hotel, the Ramada Costa del Sol, and regroup. Join us in the early evening for a welcoming cocktail party and then have the remainder of the evening at leisure (no other services included this evening) [Ramada Costa del Sol].

• Transfer to Cusco;
  archaeologic tour of Cusco

Our escorted group will take an early morning flight to Cusco. We’ll check in to the Hotel Monasterio and you will have time to rest and acclimate to Cusco’s elevation. In the afternoon, we’ll survey key archaeologic sites in Cusco and environs (The city of Cusco itself is a UNESCO World Heritage site). We’ll visit the Koricancha, known as “The Temple of the Sun” or the “Golden Enclosure,” a sacred Inca site which became the foundation of Santo Domingo Convent. We’ll go next door to see the Gothic-Renaissance Cathedral of Santo Domingo, noted for its collection of colonial art, archaeological artifacts, and incorporation of stones from Sacsayhuaman, an Inca holy site.
 

Sacsayhuaman is our next stop, home of the Inti Raymi summer solstice festival of the sun. We’ll take a look at Qenqo, whose purpose is unknown and whose Inca stonework is remarkable. Our last stop is Puca Pucara, the "Red Fort," which provides an excellent view of the Cusco Valley. Dinner is at leisure (Breakfast is provided) [Hotel Monasterio].

• Sacred Valley train ride to Machu Picchu

We’ll transfer from the Hotel Monasterio to Ollantaytambo train station, getting a glimpse of everyday life in the Andes, and take the Vistadome train through the Sacred Valley, bracketed by green peaks and the seething Urubamba River.

We’ll then ascend Machu Picchu from the train station in bustling Aguas Calientes. After lunch at the Sanctuary Lodge, a guide will accompany us into Machu Picchu citadel. Dinner is at leisure (Breakfast and lunch are provided) [Sanctuary Lodge at Machu Picchu].

• A second look at Machu Picchu; return to Cusco

After breakfast, you can take a second look at the citadel of Machu Picchu with our guide, providing us with additional insight and perspective on the site. In late afternoon, we’ll head back to Cusco by Vistadome train and van. Dinner is at leisure (Breakfast and lunch are provided) [Hotel Monasterio].

• On the road from Cusco to Santiago via Lima

After an early breakfast at the Monasterio Hotel, we’ll transfer to Cusco airport for our trip to Santiago, Chile. Dinner is at leisure (Breakfast is provided) [Hotel Atton El Bosque].

• Onward to Bright Horizons 16!

We’ll orient ourselves to the city by seeing different aspects of Santiago: civic spaces, public art in Santiago’s modern subway system, a museum, residential districts, Central Market, and a panoramic view of the city.

After lunch, we’ll transfer to Valparaiso to embark on Holland America’s ms Veendam (Breakfast and lunch are provided).

• All airfare (i.e., all transportation to Machu Picchu and the return to our ship the afternoon of departure is included — once you arrive in our Lima hotel on the 15th).
• Five (5) nights accommodation in outstanding hotels.
• Eight (8) meals: five (5) breakfasts and three (3) lunches at our carefully selected restaurants. (Non-alcoholic beverages provided with each meal on land.)
• Services of an English-speaking host (7x24) and local tour guides.
• All land transportation (as listed on the itinerary).
• Entrance fees to all tourist sites (as listed on the itinerary), including the Machu Picchu park fee.
• All gratuities.
• Baggage handling, city and hotel taxes.

• The price of the above is $4,499 pp based on double occupancy.
• Single premium is $1,249.
• Deposit is 15% ($675 pp based on double occupancy).
• Please note that our South American host will eat with you during all group meals throughout the trip. This is to ensure that you are receiving the best service. If, at any time, you would prefer to dine on your own, please let the host know.
• Pricing is based on the February 2012 exchange rate of $1 USD to $483 CLP (Chilean Pesos). At the time of final payment (November 15, 2012) if the exchange rate goes up by more than 10% from the current rate, pricing will be adjusted accordingly.

• Visa-processing fees (if needed).
• Travel insurance.
• Chilean government reciprocity fee of $140 per person will be charged upon arrival in the Santiago airport by the local authorities. You only need pay this once per 10 years (assuming you maintain the stamp in your passport).
• Personal expenses such as alcoholic beverages, imported mineral waters, telephone charges, room service, and laundry charges.

• Should you decide to cancel your place on this tour between the time of deposit and 90 days prior to the tour, you will forfeit $600 USD pp deposit; thereafter you will forfeit 100% of the tour price.
• All notices of cancellation must be written to be effective. The date of cancellation will be the date of reception by Insight Cruises’ personnel.