Colca Canyon Trek 3 Days/ 2 Nights Private
Duration
From
Overview
The Colca Valley is a colorful andean valley with many small towns founded during the Spanish colonial times. It is still inhabited by people of the Collaguas and the Cabanas cultures who maintain the ancestral traditions and continue to cultivate the pre-Inca stepped terraces.
The name Colca refers to small granaries of mud and stone, built into the cliffs of the valley and the canyon. These repositories were used during the Inca and pre-Inca times to store food such as potatoes, quinoa and other andean crops. They were also used as tombs for important people.
Full Itinerary
We will depart 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 PichuPichu volcanoes before approaching the National Reserve of “Salinas y Aguada Blanca”, 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 4,000 meters above sea level. Moving on we will arrive to “Alto Sumbay”, 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 4,400 meters, where we will observe lakes with wild birds and get pictures of the “Antiplano” with its Llamas and Alpacas. The highest point of our tour will be “Pata Pampa” (Pata=high, Pampa=land) located at 4,910 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 get close to the town of Chivay (3,651 meters) we will start to wonder at the spectacular multicolour 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 (the 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.
We will have breakfast very early in the morning and leave for the famous “Cruz del Condor” point. As soon as we arrive to the Cruz del Condor viewpoint, the group will split and you will continue with our transportation and driver to the town of Cabanaconde where you will meet your trek guide and start your 2-day hike into the canyon. We will at first head down a steep road until we arrive at the town of San Juan de Chuccho (a Town located on the other side of the canyon). Here we will have our lunch rest a bit and get some energy for the rest of the day. This route is a beautiful hike down to the canyon wall, with the growing feeling of being truly inside the Colca canyon. After lunch we keep hiking up (halfway up), to catch the road to Malata and Tapay. We will walk along the immense Colca Wall and then walk down again toward to Colca River arriving finally at the beautiful Oasis in Sangalle. There we shall get a well-deserved night of rest after a nice dinner. You can bathe in the swimming pool and after our dinner get to rest and recover. Overnight.
The next morning, we should leave at 4:00 am, after having a nutritious breakfast to start the ascent of a steep wall that’ll lead us out of the Canyon. This epic hike will look harder than it is, but it should not be underestimated as it is steeper than the hiked route done in the previous day. On the way up, if we are lucky, we can observe some condors as it is quite early. We will arrive around 8:30-9:00 am in Cabanaconde town where we will meet our driver and transport and then join the Colca classic tour group. On the way back to Chivay we’re going to visit the traditional village of Pinchollo and the “Antahuilque viewpoint”, where 1500-year-old terraces can be observed. We also will make a stop at the lookout point of “Choquetico” with its hanging tombs “Tumbas colgantes“, and take a look at 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 (the cost of Lunch is not included in the program) and return to Arequipa city around 4:00 pm.
Included/Exclude
- Pick-up from your Hotel in Arequipa
- Drop off at your Hotel in Arequipa
- 24-hour-support from the company owner
- Tourist Transportation
- 2 English-speaking guides
- First-night accommodation in Hotel/ Lodge with breakfast
- Second night in basic Lodge in the Canyon
- 1 breakfast, 1 lunch box and 1 dinner in the Canyon
- S/. 70 soles tourist entrance ticket to the Colca Valley
- Excursions or meals not mentioned in this program
- S/. 10 soles entrance to the hot springs thermal baths
- Snacks/ beverages/ drinks
- Insurance of any kind
Recommendations, what to bring
- Warm clothes for the night and early morning
- Sturdy shoes
- A small backpack
- Camera and recharger
- Drinking water
- Sun block
- Rainjacket
- Sunglasses, sun hat
- Mosquito repellent
- Swimming suit
- Money for souvenirs and drinks
- Travel towel, sandals
- Flashlight, batteries
What we need when you make a reservation
- Full name as it is written on your passport
- Passport number
- Nationality
- Date of birth
- Tour departure date
- Send a deposit of 60% of the total price of your tour. (The remainder of your balance will be due upon your arrival in Arequipa) Payment may be made via *Western Union, PayPal, ABN AMRO Bank in Holland or securely and directly through our website by choosing your desired tour and clicking the BOOK NOW button.
Prices
Price per person: US$ 550
Price is based on two people up.
We are looking forward to creating an unforgettable experience for you.
