Best of Bolivia and Peru: 18-Day Grand Tour

Day 1: Arrival in Sucre
Arrive in Sucre, Bolivia's constitutional capital, where you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel. Known as the "White City" for its elegant, beautifully preserved whitewashed colonial buildings, Sucre enjoys a pleasant climate and a relaxed atmosphere that helps you adjust gently to higher altitudes. The remainder of the day is at leisure to stroll through leafy plazas and relax in charming local cafés. (-/-/-)

Day 2: Sucre City Tour
Discover Sucre on a guided city tour. Visit the Casa de la Libertad, where Bolivia's Declaration of Independence was signed - admire panoramic city views from La Recoleta, and explore the lively Central Market packed with fresh fruits and local crafts. Enjoy a free afternoon strolling through picturesque streets and leafy plazas. (B/-/-)

Day 3: Sucre - Potosí
Depart Sucre for a scenic drive through the rugged Andean highlands to Potosí, one of the highest cities in the world at over 4,000 meters above sea level. Upon arrival, visit the iconic Casa Nacional de la Moneda (Royal Mint), where fascinating museum exhibits display centuries of silver-coin manufacturing, colonial art, and local history beneath the looming peak of Cerro Rico. (B/-/-)

Day 4: Potosí - Uyuni
Spend the morning exploring Potosí's colonial center, admiring ornate baroque churches and historic mansions that reflect the city's vast silver-driven past. Later, travel overland across the windswept Altiplano, passing remote mining settlements and open landscapes before arriving in Uyuni, the primary gateway to the salt flats. (B/-/-)

Day 5: Salar de Uyuni
Spend a full day exploring the stunning Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat. Begin at the atmospheric Train Cemetery where 19th-century steam locomotives rest, stop at Colchani village to see how local families process salt, and venture far onto the brilliant white crust to capture perspective photos across the dazzling, seemingly endless expanse. (B/-/-)

Day 6: Fly to La Paz
Transfer to Uyuni Airport for your short domestic flight to La Paz, the highest administrative capital in the world. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel and enjoy free time to rest while taking in views of Mount Illimani towering over the city. Nestled inside a dramatic canyon, La Paz blends ancient indigenous heritage with modern city life. (B/-/-)

Day 7: La Paz - Copacabana
Explore La Paz's historic Plaza Murillo, wander through the colorful Witches' Market to learn about traditional Aymara herbal medicine and spiritual offerings, and ride the aerial Mi Teleférico cable car for bird's-eye urban views. In the afternoon, travel across the Altiplano, cross the narrow Strait of Tiquina by local boat, and reach the picturesque lakeside town of Copacabana on Lake Titicaca. (B/-/-)

Day 8: Copacabana - Puno (Peru)
Enjoy breakfast in Copacabana before departing overland across the border into Peru, driving along the Altiplano to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca. (B/-/-)

Day 9: Lake Titicaca: Uros and Amantaní Islands
Board a boat from Puno across the sacred waters of Lake Titicaca. Stop first at the floating Uros Islands to see how indigenous families construct their floating homes entirely from woven totora reeds, then continue to remote Amantaní Island to learn about traditional Quechua farming methods and enjoy a home-cooked lunch before returning to Puno. (B/L/-)

Day 10: Drive Puno to Arequipa and Santa Catalina Convent
Journey across the vast Altiplano plateau to Arequipa, Peru's "White City", famed for its historic architecture built from pale volcanic sillar stone. Upon arrival, tour the sprawling, 16th-century Santa Catalina Monastery, an extraordinary walled complex featuring vibrant blue and red courtyards, narrow cobblestone streets, and peaceful cloisters. (B/-/-)

Day 11: Arequipa to Colca Canyon (Chivay)
Drive into the high Andes toward Colca Canyon, one of the deepest canyons on Earth. There, you can watch huge Andean condors soar high above the deep canyon from scenic lookouts. Pass through the Salinas y Aguada Blanca National Reserve where wild vicuñas, llamas, and alpacas roam across wide Altiplano plains, stopping at mountain passes for views before arriving in the Colca Valley town of Chivay. (B/-/-)

Day 12: Chivay - Cusco
Travel overland across dramatic mountain passes, high plateaus, and remote villages toward Cusco, the legendary historic capital of the Inca Empire. Check into your hotel and take the rest of the evening to rest, hydrate, and adjust to the mountain air. (B/-/-)

Day 13: Cusco City Tour and Sacsayhuamán Fortress
Take a guided walking tour through Cusco's historic center, viewing colonial architecture built directly on ancient Inca stone foundations. Visit Sacsayhuamán Fortress, a monumental ceremonial complex renowned for its massive, interlocking zigzag stone walls - some weighing over 100 tons, assembled with precise engineering without mortar, offering sweeping panoramic views over the city below. (B/-/-)

Day 14: Sacred Valley (Maras & Moray) - Aguas Calientes
Travel into the Sacred Valley to visit the Maras Salt Mines, where thousands of terraced pools fed by a salty subterranean spring have been harvested by around 600 local families since pre-Inca times. Continue to Moray's circular agricultural terraces, which acted as an ancient farming laboratory, before boarding the scenic train through the Urubamba Valley to Aguas Calientes. (B/-/-)

Day 15: Machu Picchu Citadel and Return to Cusco
Take an early morning 20-minute shuttle bus up the winding mountain road to the UNESCO-listed citadel of Machu Picchu, proudly recognized as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Enjoy a detailed guided tour through its sacred temples, terraced hillsides, and stone plazas nestled within subtropical cloud forests, returning by train and road back to Cusco in the late afternoon. (B/-/-)

Day 16: Free Day in Cusco or Optional Rainbow Mountain Hike 
Enjoy a free day to discover Cusco at your own pace, visiting museums, cozy cafés, and historic plazas and browsing traditional artisan markets or local boutiques to shop for soft, high-quality baby alpaca wool clothing, scarves, and rare vicuña textiles. Alternatively, take an adventurous optional full-day excursion to Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca) to hike past turquoise lakes and marvel at striking, multicolored mineral stripes. To reach the top of Rainbow Mountain from the parking lot, visitors can choose to hike on foot (about 1.5–2 hours), hire a local horse with a handler, or take a motorcycle/ATV ride along the valley - though all options require a final 10 to 15-minute walk on foot to reach the summit viewpoint. (B/-/-)

Day 17: Flight Cusco to Lima and Free Day 
Transfer to Cusco Airport for your flight to Peru's coastal capital, Lima. Enjoy your afternoon at leisure strolling along the oceanfront Malecón in Miraflores, trying fresh ceviche at a local cevichería, head to Makaha Beach along the Miraflores coast to try an exciting surf lesson with a local coach, take a historic walk through the UNESCO-listed Centro Histórico to see the Grand Plaza Mayor and Catacombs, or explore the colorful streets of Barranco. (B/-/-)

Day 18: Departure 
After breakfast, transfer to Lima Airport for your international flight home. (B/-/-)