Thanks to new flight routes popping up left, right and centre, Latin America is within easier reach than ever before, and so there’s really no better time to pack your bags and head off to explore the spellbinding region. In light of this, specialist tour operator Aracari is this year launching a new South American adventure through Peru and Bolivia that showcases the very best of each country’s heritage and culture, whilst criss-crossing breathtaking scenery, from cities to salt flats.
Image credit: Belmond
The journey kicks off with a private Vespa tour through Lima. You’ll whizz through the colourful streets, sampling local delicacies from the very best ceviche to freshly shaken pisco sours. Later you’ll be whisked off to rub shoulders with prominent Peruvian characters: fashionistas can explore Lima’s shopping scene with former Vogue model Susy Dyson, whilst foodies can venture to critically acclaimed restaurant Malabar for a private culinary experience with star head chef, Pedro Miguel Schiaffino.
Fancy yourself a culture vulture? Next stop Cusco: the spiritual home of Peru’s rich Incan history. Alongside Aracari’s resident art historian Lisy Kuon, you will explore the city’s fascinating Incan temples before boarding the newly launched Belmond Andean Explorer, South America’s first luxury sleeper train: think en suite bathrooms, lush Andean-influenced interiors and an open-air observation deck (and not a triple bunk in sight).
Image: Belmond
Winding through the spectacular Peruvian Andes, you’ll make your way to Lake Titicaca, where the newly refurbished Yavari steamship awaits to explore the quirky floating Uros Islands. Rest your weary head at sleek lakeside hideaway Amantica, before setting out for the Incan ruins of the Sun Virgins Temple, meeting indigenous artisans and making friends with the local llamas en route.
Bidding farewell to Peru, it’s time to hop onto the new luxury hydrofoil and zoom across the Bolivian border. Arriving in La Paz, you’ll settle into ATIX — the city’s first five star design hotel — and set out to explore the Bolivian capital’s magical culture, visiting witches markets and sampling traditional Saltenas, before catching a cable car up to the Andean plateau of El Alto to explore the colourful cholets.
Looking for your fix of adrenaline? Not to worry — you’ll finish the tour at the spectacular Uyuni salt flats, where you’ll get the chance to paraglide above the Salar, before cosying up for the night in a vintage airstream camper, waking to see the sunrise over the shimmering saltpan.
Phew. Sound like your kind of adventure? Aracari’s ‘Peru and Bolivia: Gastronomy, History and Adventure’ itinerary launches in May 2017 and starts from $8,419 per person, including all hotels, private guides and domestic flights. International flights not included.
For more information, visit www.aracari.com.
