Machu Picchu & Galápagos Island Hopping — Self-Launched

Land at Jorge Chávez and take the Airport Express Lima bus (~£6) or an authorised taxi (~£20) into Miraflores or Barranco. Spend the afternoon walking the Malecón cliff path, watch the sunset over the Pacific, and eat a cheap menu del día (S/15–20, ~£4) in Barranco. Do a supermarket run for water and snacks.

🚌Airport Express bus ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm in Miraflores or Barranco (e.g. Pariwana Miraflores or a Barranco guesthouse), £12–16

• →Malecón sunset walk
• →Barranco street-art wander
• →Menu del día dinner

Morning flight from Lima to Cusco (~£55–80 one way on Sky/JetSMART; book 3–6 weeks out, prices climb at short notice). Taxi to your hostel in San Blas (~£4). Take it very easy: light lunch, coca tea, short wander around Plaza de Armas and San Blas lanes. Buy your Boleto Turístico (S/130, ~£28) if you plan on multiple ruins and museums, and sort a SIM card.

🚌Flight ~£65 + airport taxi ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm in San Blas, Cusco, £12–18

• →Plaza de Armas
• →San Blas neighbourhood
• →Coca tea and rest for altitude

Second acclimatisation day. Walk to Qorikancha, then take a local combi or taxi to Sacsayhuamán and hike back down through San Blas. In the afternoon browse San Pedro market, or book a Cusco cooking class directly (local operators charge ~£18–25, versus the operator's £37 add-on). Keep it gentle — tomorrow is a long day.

🚌Combis and taxis ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm in San Blas, £12–18

• →Qorikancha
• →Sacsayhuamán ruins
• →San Pedro market
• →Optional cooking class ~£20

Self-launch the Sacred Valley with public transport. Colectivo from Cusco to Pisac (S/5) for the market and hillside ruins, then a second colectivo to Urubamba (~£2), then on to Ollantaytambo. Visit the Ollantaytambo terraces and the storehouse hike up the valley wall on your own — no ticket needed for the storehouses. Eat at a local picantería (set lunch ~£3).

🚌Two colectivos ~£5 total

🛏Guesthouse in Ollantaytambo, £12–18

• →Pisac market
• →Pisac ruins (Boleto Turístico entry)
• →Ollantaytambo ruins
• →Storehouse hike

Morning PeruRail/Inca Rail Expedition service from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes (~£45–60 booked direct at perurail.com or incarail.com — book 4–8 weeks ahead, the cheapest fares sell out). Drop bags, then soak in the town hot springs (S/20, ~£4) and wander the craft market by the river.

🚌Expedition train ~£50

🛏Hostel in Aguas Calientes, £15–22

• →Expedition train through the Urubamba gorge
• →Hot springs
• →Riverside market

Buy your Machu Picchu entry in advance on the official Ministerio de Cultura site (machupicchu.gob.pe) — Circuit 2 is the classic view, ~S/152 (~£33). Skip the £25 official bus and walk up the switchbacks from town (60–90 mins, free, and you arrive at opening). Meet a licensed guide at the gate (~£10–15 shared, or £25 private) or do it self-launched with a downloadable guide. Afternoon train back to Ollantaytambo (~£45) then a colectivo to Cusco (~£2).

🚌Walk up, train back ~£45, colectivo ~£2

🛏Hostel dorm in San Blas, Cusco, £12–18

• →Machu Picchu sunrise entry (Circuit 2)
• →Optional local guide ~£12
• →Afternoon return train

Rest day. Options you can book day-of: Rainbow Mountain day trip (~£25 with a local agency on the plaza, versus £60+ online), horseback riding in the hills (~£18), or the Inka Museum (S/10). Cheap laundry, market lunch, and an early night — you fly at altitude tomorrow.

🚌Walking / taxis ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm in San Blas, £12–18

• →Optional Rainbow Mountain day trip ~£25
• →Inka Museum
• →San Blas cafés

Fly back to Lima (~£55–75). Base yourself in Miraflores for the night. Afternoon options: the free-ish Museo Larco (S/35), cliff-top paragliding if you're feeling flush, or a ceviche lunch in a mercado. Early night — tomorrow is a long flight day.

🚌Flight ~£65 + airport bus ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm Miraflores, £12–16

• →Museo Larco
• →Miraflores cliff walk
• →Ceviche lunch

Lima to Quito flight (~£150–200 one way on Avianca/LATAM/Copa via Bogotá or direct; book well ahead). G Adventures folds this flight into the tour price — you book it yourself. Note the Quito runway closure days listed in their notes and avoid them. Settle into a hostel in the Centro Histórico or La Mariscal, and get your Galápagos Transit Control Card sorted online (~£16, $20) before you fly tomorrow.

🚌Flight ~£175 + airport taxi ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm in Quito Old Town or La Mariscal, £10–15

• →Quito Old Town wander
• →Buy Galápagos Transit Control Card online
• →Basílica del Voto Nacional

Early flight Quito → Baltra (~£140–200 return-inclusive, LATAM/Avianca via Guayaquil, book ahead as Galápagos seats are limited). Pay the Galápagos National Park entry on arrival — $200 / ~£160 cash, and it has gone up, so bring USD. Bus from Baltra to the Itabaca Channel (~£2) plus the public ferry crossing (~£2), then a bus or shared taxi into Puerto Ayora. Afternoon: walk to the Charles Darwin Research Station (free/donation) to see the giant tortoise breeding programme. Skip the £95 operator fee on Tintoreras-style extras by booking locally.

🚌Flight ~£170 (return leg) + airport bus/ferry ~£5

🛏Hostel or guesthouse Puerto Ayora, £15–25

• →Charles Darwin Research Station
• →Puerto Ayora fish market with pelicans and sea lions

Morning walk (free) or £1 water taxi across Academy Bay past Playa de los Alemanes, through cactus forest to Las Grietas — the clear brackish lagoon where you can snorkel, bring your own mask. Afternoon: take the public/inter-island speedboat to Floreana (~£55–70 depending on operator, book through your Puerto Ayora guesthouse the day before). Stay in a small locally-run hospedaje and eat at the community restaurants — Floreana has only ~150 residents and this is the island-hopping experience at its most genuine.

🚌Water taxi £1 + inter-island speedboat ~£60

🛏Local hospedaje on Floreana, £15–25

• →Las Grietas snorkel
• →Speedboat crossing
• →Floreana community dinner

Walk the black-sand track south to Lobería, snorkel with sea lions offshore (rent gear locally, ~£5), then loop back via Playa Negra. In the afternoon, arrange a pickup-truck run up to the highlands (shared, ~£15–20 per person) to see the Asilo de la Paz, flamingos at the lagoon, and the old Post Office Barrel at Puerto Velasco Ibarra. Bring cash — no ATMs on Floreana.

🚌Shared pickup truck up to the highlands ~£18

🛏Local hospedaje on Floreana, £15–25

• →Lobería snorkel with sea lions
• →Flamingo Lagoon
• →Post Office Barrel
• →Asilo de la Paz highlands

Morning speedboat to Isabela (~£45–60, pay the Isabela municipal tax ~£8/ $10 on landing). Drop bags in Puerto Villamil. Afternoon: hire a guide for the Sierra Negra volcano hike — you should not walk this unsupported, local guides at the trailhead run ~£25–35 and it's a 5–6 hour, 16km walk around the rim of the largest caldera in the archipelago. Alternatively cycle to the Wall of Tears (~£12 bike hire).

🚌Speedboat ~£55 + Isabela tax ~£8

🛏Guesthouse in Puerto Villamil, £15–25

• →Sierra Negra volcano hike with local guide
• →Isabela wetlands and flamingos

Book Los Túneles the day before at any Puerto Villamil agency (~£110–120, versus the operator's £110–£118 add-on — usually includes wetsuit, snorkel, guide and lunch) for the lava-tunnel snorkelling with sea turtles and seahorses. On a tighter budget, Concha de Perla is a free snorkel spot a 10-minute walk from town, or Las Tintoreras (~£35–40) for white-tipped reef sharks. Afternoon beach time on Playa Grande.

🚌Walking / island tour boat included in activity

🛏Guesthouse in Puerto Villamil, £15–25

• →Los Túneles snorkel ~£115
• →or Concha de Perla (free) / Las Tintoreras ~£38
• →Playa Grande swim

Morning public speedboat back to Santa Cruz (~£55). In the afternoon hike the 2.5km trail to Tortuga Bay — white-sand beach, marine iguanas everywhere, free entry (register at the gate). Rent a kayak in the mangroves for ~£12 if you have energy left. Final dinner of ceviche and a beer back in Puerto Ayora.

🚌Inter-island speedboat ~£55 + water taxi £1

🛏Hostel or guesthouse Puerto Ayora, £15–25

• →Tortuga Bay hike and beach
• →Optional mangrove kayak ~£12

Bus and ferry back to Baltra, fly to Quito (~£170 return leg already counted on Day 10, or book as a round trip). If you have hours to spare in Quito, the Teleférico cable car (~£7) and the Mitad del Mundo equator line make a good layover. Then fly home.

🚌Bus/ferry ~£5 + flight ~£170 (counted Day 10)

🛏None (or a hostel in Quito if you have a late flight, ~£12)

• →Teleférico cable car ~£7
• →Mitad del Mundo equator line ~£4