100th Anniversary of Machu Picchu's Discovery

  • May 13, 2011
100th Anniversary of Machu Picchu's Discovery
One of the seven wonders of the Modern World, the archaeological site was discovered on July 24th, 1911 by American explorer Hiram Bingham. This entire year is being devoted to the extraordinary discovery.

The sighting of the “Lost City of the Incas” a century ago was historic. Not only had the Spanish conquistadores never found it, for all their explorations of the continent, nobody ever led them there, suggesting that the site had long since been abandoned and forgotten. A century after Bingham, a Centennial Festival, held on July 7th, will be broadcast to the entire world. Some 500 million people are expected to view the opening ceremony via satellite, where Nobel Prize Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa will speak. Among those attending will be 10 of Bingham's grand-children. Even Yale University, which has harbored 350 exhibit-able or museum-worthy artifacts excavated from Machu Picchu, is returning them to Peru to honor the momentous occasion.

My Exclusive Journeys can tailor a Machu Picchu Centennial Tour to include watching the sun come over the mystic site to stargazing there; visits to colonial Cuzco, shopping in colorful, indigenous markets and explorations of the nearby Sacred Valley. Rates for a five-day trip beginning in Lima begin at $1892 per person double occupancy. Included in this price are:

• Airport assistance in Lima
• Return flight to Cuzco
• Private airport transfers
• Accommodations for three nights in Cuzco at luxurious Monasterio Hotel
• Private Cuzco and surrounding ruins tour
• Breakfast daily at your hotel
• Private Pisac Tour: Peruse an indigenous market, visit the Inca fortress of Ollantaytambo and have lunch at a historic hacienda
• Return train ride aboard the Vistadome Train to Machu Picchu
• Accommodations for one night in Machu Picchu at enchanting Inkaterra Machu Picchu
• One lunch and one dinner while in Machu Picchu
• Private guided visit to Machu Picchu citadel
• A leisure walk in the company of countless hummingbirds, cock of the rocks and other tropical birds
• A Twilight Walk

CUZCO AND MACHU PICCHU GETAWAY

Day 1: Arrive in Lima and connecting flight to Cuzco. Explorations begin
Day 2: Cuzco: City Tour (B)
Day 3: Train ride or trek the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (B,L,D)
Day 4: Morning in Machu Picchu. Afternoon train to Cuzco (B)
Day 5: Fly to Lima. Return flight home

For more information, telephone direct: 954-651-3901; reservations: 888-334-6905; contact: ms@myexclusivejourneys.com or visit: www.myexclusivejourneys.com