Aymara Route Tour from Puno
$40 Full Day
Overview
2 days
Arequipa on day one, Puno on day two
4,910 m
The pass at Patapampa, the highest point
1 night
Casa Andina Standard Colca, breakfast in
$130
Per person in a double room
Arequipa to Puno with the canyon in the middle. The condors on the second morning, then the road across the altiplano to Lake Titicaca.
Most people going from Arequipa to Puno take the night bus and see nothing. This route takes two days and sees everything on the way. Day one climbs out of the city, over the pass, and drops into the Colca valley by early afternoon. The hot springs are yours until dinner. Day two starts at the Cruz del Condor, where the birds rise on the morning thermals. Then the drive east across the plateau, and you are at your hotel in Puno by about seven. Your luggage travels with you the whole way. There is no going back to Arequipa.
Bring everything. This trip does not return to Arequipa.
The bus that leaves Chivay after lunch on day two goes east to Puno, not west. So your bags come with you from the first morning. Hotels in Arequipa will not be revisited. It is the one thing that catches people out, because the ordinary Colca tour leaves luggage behind. If your Puno hotel is outside the town centre, on the lake shore for instance, tell us when you book. Some of those carry a drop off charge.
Two Ways to Get From Arequipa to Puno
The question is not whether to see the canyon. It is whether to see it on the way.
The usual way
The shape
Two days to the canyon and back to Arequipa. Then a night bus or a day bus to Puno. Three days in all.
Luggage
Stays in Arequipa for the Colca days. You collect it before the bus.
Price
84 dollars for the canyon, plus the bus to Puno.
This page
Colca on the way to Puno
The shape
Two days. The canyon on the way, and you wake up on day three beside Lake Titicaca.
Luggage
Travels with you. No return to Arequipa at all.
Price
130 dollars. The hotel night and the road to Puno are in.
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A better hotel, if you want one
The standard night is at Casa Andina Standard Colca in Chivay, a three star with a good breakfast. Colca Lodge has its own hot springs on the river below Yanque. A night there makes the price 181 dollars per person in a double. Tell us which when you book. Either way the second morning starts at the same hour.
The altitude on this trip is real. The pass at Patapampa is 4,910 metres, higher than anything on the Inca Trail. The bus does not stop there long, and it carries oxygen. Chivay, where you sleep, is 3,635 metres. Puno is 3,812. So the trip climbs, drops, and climbs again. One or two nights in Arequipa first make a large difference. Our note on Cusco or Puno first covers the same logic from the other side.
When you reach Puno the lake is next. The day tour to Uros and Taquile leaves at seven the following morning. The night on Amantani is the two day version. All of our Lake Titicaca tours are on one page. Going the other way? The Puno to Arequipa trip via the Colca Canyon is the same route in reverse. Our guide to the Cruz del Condor explains when the condors fly and how close they come. The rest of the Colca Canyon tours are together too.
Tour Highlights
- ✓ Arequipa to Puno without a night bus. The Colca Canyon, the condors and the altiplano all seen in daylight on the way.
- ✓ The Cruz del Condor on the second morning. The birds ride the thermals out of the canyon at eye level.
- ✓ A night at Casa Andina Standard Colca in Chivay with breakfast, and the afternoon at the La Calera hot springs.
- ✓ The pass at Patapampa, 4,910 metres, with the volcanoes Ampato, Sabancaya and Hualca Hualca along the skyline.
- ✓ Vicunas at Pampa Canahuas, flamingos at Tocra, and the lakes at Lagunillas on the road to Puno.
- ✓ Hotel pickup in Arequipa, hotel drop off in Puno. Luggage travels with you the whole way.
What to Expect
Two days on the road, one night in the valley, and the condors before the long drive east.
Day one leaves Arequipa between half past seven and eight. The road climbs past the vicuna reserve at Pampa Canahuas and the wetlands at Tocra, where flamingos feed. The pass at Patapampa is the top, with the volcanoes lined up along the horizon. Then down into the valley. Chivay by two, lunch in town, and the hot springs at La Calera for the afternoon.
Day two starts at six. The Cruz del Condor is an hour and a half down the valley. The birds are at their best between eight and ten. On the way back the guide stops at Maca and Yanque, both with colonial churches. Then three viewpoints over the terraces. Lunch in Chivay. At one the bus turns east.
The afternoon crosses the altiplano. Patahuasi for a break, the lakes at Lagunillas for birds, and the first sight of Titicaca before dark. At your hotel in Puno between seven and eight.
Tour Itinerary
1
Arequipa to Chivay
Arequipa to the pass. Collected from your hotel between 07:30 and 08:00. The road leaves the city on the Yura side and climbs steadily. First stop is Pampa Canahuas, inside the Salinas and Aguada Blanca reserve, where vicunas graze near the road. Then the wetlands at Tocra for flamingos and Andean geese. The crater of Chucura, an extinct volcano, is passed on the way up to Patapampa.
Patapampa and the drop to Chivay. The viewpoint at Patapampa looks across at the volcanoes of the western range. It is the highest point of the trip and a short stop. The road then falls into the Colca valley. Chivay between half past one and two. Lunch is in town and is not included.
The hot springs. Check in at Casa Andina Standard Colca. In the afternoon the bus takes the group to La Calera, the thermal pools outside Chivay. The water is between 35 and 38 degrees. Entrance is 15 soles, paid there. In the evening there is an optional dinner with a folk show in town.
Departs 07:30 AM
Pass altitude 4,910 m
Drive to Chivay About 1 hour
Chivay altitude 3,635 m
Hotel Casa Andina Standard Colca
2
The condors, then on to Puno
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Good to know
On the luggage
This is a one way trip. Everything you own comes with you on the first morning and rides in the bus to Puno. The times are approximate and the bus waits for nobody at the pass, because the cold is not kind. Lunch on both days is in Chivay and is your own.
✓
Inclusions
- ✓ Pickup at your hotel in Arequipa on day one and drop off at your hotel in central Puno on day two
- ✓ Shared tourist transport Arequipa to Chivay to the Cruz del Condor to Puno
- ✓ One night at Casa Andina Standard Colca in Chivay, double room, with breakfast
- ✓ A guide in Spanish and English for the whole route
- ✓ Oxygen on board for the pass
X
Not Included
- X The Colca tourist ticket, 70 soles for most foreign visitors and 40 for Latin Americans, paid in cash at the checkpoint
- X Entrance to the La Calera hot springs, 15 soles
- X Two lunches and the dinner in Chivay
- X Drop off at hotels outside central Puno, which carries a surcharge
- X Tips and travel insurance
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About the exclusions
On the price
The price is 130 dollars per person in a double room and 167 in a single. It covers the transport from Arequipa to Puno, the guide, the hotel night with breakfast and the pickups. The tourist ticket, the hot springs and the meals are paid in cash on the way. The upgrade to Colca Lodge is 181 dollars per person in a double.
Departure Information
Available: Daily departures
Group Size: Up to 13 people
Start Time: 7:30 AM
Pickup: Your hotel in Arequipa
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this tour go back to Arequipa?
No. It ends in Puno. Day one is Arequipa to Chivay. Day two is the condors in the morning and the road to Puno in the afternoon. You are dropped at your hotel in Puno between seven and eight in the evening. Bring all your luggage on the first morning.
What is the hotel like?
Do I need to pay the tourist ticket?
Will I see condors?
How high does the road go?
What do I get to eat?
Where does the bus drop me in Puno?
How many people are on the bus?
Can I do it the other way round, from Puno?
What should I pack for the two days?
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