Mountain Sky View

Staying around on site for a few days to acclimatise to the high altitude? Practise for the testing hike up to Machu Picchu with jungle walks along Santa Teresa Valley, visiting local fruit orchards as you meander. Bucket-list side-trips include a visit to the Coffee Route in Lucmabamba (an hour’s drive or five hours’ hike), where you can tour plantations, have a go at harvesting coffee beans, taste the produce and buy souvenirs for home. You might consider a foray into the foothills of Salkantay (half an hour’s drive or four hours’ walk); as one of the highest Andean peaks, it’s a dramatic, snow-capped backdrop for selfies to post on your socials. Rejuvenate aching limbs in the thermal waters at Aguas Termales Cocalmayo hot springs (90 minutes’ drive or seven hours on foot), with a choice of three steaming pools to soak in, and have a wander along the banks of the adjacent Urubamba River, with pristine waters fed by snow melt.