Without Machu Picchu you’ll enjoy the trip of a lifetime

SPECIAL: PERU WITHOUT MACHU PICCHU – Machu Picchu is closed. It will stay that way through all of February at the very least. Do you have your flights booked and are wondering what to do next? Should you cancel or put off your trip to Cuzco?

February 4, 2010 | Travel and Places

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Parque de las Leyendas, zoo and ruins

Parque de las Leyendas, a zoo built among the ruins of a pre-Inca city, somehow manages to mix ecology and archaeology, attracting hundreds of Peruvian families each day. Off the usual tourist trail for foreigners, it could make a good half-day trip and is a great chance to learn about Peru’s rich biodiversity and about Lima’s ancient past.

March 13, 2009 | Archaeology, Lima City Guide

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Cruz del Condor

About 50km west of Chivay, Cruz de Condor is a lookout point over the Colca Canyon that is considered one of the best places to witness Condors in flight in their natural habitat.

The lookout, 1,200m above the canyon river, fills up with crowds each morning hoping that conditions are right for the condors to fly.

May 23, 2008 | Arequipa Guide, Nature

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Colca Canyon

Twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the United States, the Colca Canyon in Arequipa is the second deepest in Peru and the Americas, second only to the Cotahuasi Canyon just a short distance away.

It’s difficult to measure the exact depth. Do you measure the deepest point or the average depth, how do you choose the deepest point, do you measure from the peaks that line the canyon, peaks that tower not only over the canyon but also over all the surrounding area?

May 19, 2008 | Arequipa Guide

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The Condor

The largest bird in the Americas is the Andean Condor, having a wingspan of sometimes more than 3 metres, or 10 feet, and weighing as much as 15kg.

May 14, 2008 | Commentary/Opinion, Nature

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Kunturwasi

High in the hills above the Rio Jequetepeque valley that leads from the northern Peruvian coast into the mountains of Cajamarca, is a temple named Kuntur Wasi, the House of the Condor. Looking out over a vast area from its mountain top perch, from this ancient temple you can survey an area as vast as a condor could.

February 15, 2008 | Archaeology, Cajamarca Guide

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Chaparrí

Created when the people of Santa Catalina realised there was value in the preservation of natural habitats, and thanks to the work of Peruvian photographer Heinz Plenge, this huge reserve in Chongoyape, 60km from Chiclayo, is part of one of the largest remaining dry forests in the world.

January 5, 2008 | Lambayeque & Chiclayo Guide, Nature

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