Tour Itinerary
OPTION 1: FOR THOSE WITH MORE HIKING EXPERIENCE
FIRST DAY
The guide will collect you at 6:45 in the morning with our private van, which will take us to Pampa San Miguel, where we begin our descent into the canyon. After about 4 hours of trekking we will arrive to the first community, San Juan de Chuccho (2350 m.s.n.m), where we will see the Colca river and take a rest. We then continue for one more hour to another community called Cosñirhua (2550 m.s.n.m.). Here we have lunch and after another rest we continue our trek for 20 minutes to the next community, Malata (2550 m.s.n.m). Along the way the guide will explain about life in these communities and about the flora and fauna we will see. We then continue walking for 1½ hours until we arrive at the Oasis called Sangalle (2160 m.s.n.m). We spend the night here in the oasis lodge, giving you the chance to relax in the oasis and enjoy the beautiful surrounding
SECOND DAY
After waking up very early in the morning we will begin our ascent at 4:00 or 4:30 towards the town of Cabanconde, this will take us about 3 hours, depending on the speed of the group. We will arrive at about 7:00 in the morning and have breakfast. We will then take our van over to la Cruz Del Condor, where we will stay for around an hour, giving you a chance to see the condors and have an excellent view of the canyon. Following the Cruz Del Condor we head to Chivay, the capital of the province and then onto the hot waters of la Calera (35 oC), very recommendable after a long trek! We then return to Chivay to have lunch before taking our van back to Arequipa, arriving around 6:00 in the evening. The van can drop you off back at your hotel.
OPTION 2: FOR THOSE WITH LESS HIKING EXPERIENCE
We go straight to Cabanaconde and hike the steeper but shorter route directly down to the oasis. We spend the night here before following the same schedule for Day 2.
All is included in the whole trekk!
The 2days/1night Tour costs 230 USD.
It's the same price as for the 3days/2night tour. The reason is because the 2days/1night tour isn't that famous and there aren't a lot of people booking this tour. So probably that you will do the tour just with your partner or friends as there wouldn't be any other people.
Why choose Land Adventures?
Our priority is that our Clients can fully enjoy the tours and to provide them the best quality and service. That's a reason why we keep our groups always small.
As we use private transport we can be much more flexible than other companies. So you can decide where you wanna have a stop or photograph something along the way. In small groups everyting's much more easy, you decide if you wanna go on quite fast or if you prefere to take it slowly and have some more stops.
Our guides are the best in town! They're all speaking fluently english and know a lot about the canyon, the region, the flora and fauna and the people and their life there. They're also really good fun :-)
So come to our office in Arequipa, it's just 2 blocks down the Plaza the Armas: Cruz Verde 300B, Arequipa. Phone: 5154204872.
The Land Adventures Team is looking forward to seeing you soon!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. Do I need a sleeping bag?
No, for the 2-day and for the 3-day trek we have rooms with beds and blakets. You can always ask for a spare blanket if you are cold.
2.How cold does it get during the night?
Especially during winter (June-August) it gets a bit chilly in the Canyon. Usually it gets to aroung 5 or 10 degrees in the Canyon and about -3 degrees in Cabanaconde. The climate is more or less the same as in Arequipa, sunny during the day and a bit chilly during the night. So it's good to bring some warm clothes with you.
3. How is the accomodation?
For the 3 day trek we spend the first night in San Juan de Chuccho in local houses. It is clean but very simple. There are not many groups of tourists staying in San Juan de Chuccho and this is a nice way to discover the authentic life of the canyon. The second night we spend in Cabanaconde in a hostel. For the 2 day trek we spend the night in the oasis in cosy bamboo huts.
4. I am vegetarian, is that a problem?
Our guides can cook vegetarian food for you, this is no problem. They can also cater for other preferences and allergies. You just need to let us know so that we can organise everything.
5. What languages do the guides speak?
All our guides are Peruvian. Most of them grew up in the Colca region and know the area like their own trouser pockets. All speak Spanish and English. We have some guides who know basic German and French as well. If you need it, we can organise briefings with our guides the day before your trekking starts. You will meet the guide and ask him anyhthing you want to know or just chat with him.
6. Do i Need to carry water with me from Arequipa or can I buy it in the Canyon?
In the Canyon it is posible to buy water, snacks, toilet paper and other useful things around every three hours of walking. Everything is a bit more expensive to buy there, because the locals have to carry everything down themselves or with their donkeys. You can find pretty much everything down there. It is not necessary to carry too much water on the first day - It would only make your backpack heavy.
7. Is the altitude a problem in the Canyon?
It can be, we climb down and up more than 1000 meters. There are sometimes people who freel the altitude and get a bit sick, but in general it's not a problem. In case you do get sick our guides have a first-aid kit and a lot of coca leaves as well.
8. What do we need to bring?
It's important to bring the following things: hat, sunglasses, raincoat (rain season from January till March), warm clothes, insect repellent, extra money, water, snacks, hiking shoes, small backpack, flashlight, swimming trunks and towel...it's important that you bring enought warm clothes with you, because it gets cold during the night.
