Wild Orchids of Machu Picchu - New tour for 2016

PERU SPECIALIST ANNOUNCES NEW LUXURY BOTANICAL TOUR

Adventure Operator INCA to Feature High Andes Journey in Search of Rare OrchidsFor the first time in 2016, Perú specialist INCA – International Nature & Culture Adventures will feature a very special botanical adventure to the high Andean forests in search of rare orchids. INCA will offer its eight-day Wild Orchids of Machu Picchu, with orchid expert Roger Valencia Espinoza, visiting Cusco, the Inca's legendary city of gold and Machu Picchu, South America's most dramatic archaeological site. Starting at $4,095, the tour will be offered April 2 to 9, 2016 and March 18 to 25, 2017.

One of the world's most ecologically diverse destinations, Peru contains 82 percent of all the world's ecosystems and is home to about 10 percent of the world's orchid species, or some 2,400 orchids. Orchids grow from sea level to the high puna páramo at 13,000 feet, and INCA's itinerary will concentrate in the Cusco-Vilacamba region. This heartland of the Inca where the Andes meet the Amazon has an astonishing variety of orchids. Scheduled at the end of the wet season, the trip coincides with peak blooming time, during the last two weeks of March and first week of April. This past August, three new orchid species were discovered near Machu Picchu, and guests on INCA's journey will be among the first to see them.

Roger Valencia Espinoza is a renowned professor at the Graduate School of Tourism of the Peruvian University of Applied Sciences and a researcher at the University of San Martin de Porres. An avid orchid enthusiast, Roger will lead guests through the stunning side canyons of Urubamba and Ollantaytambo, through the lush Andean high jungle around Santa Teresa, in the Sacred Valley and around the grounds of Machu Picchu, the stunning 15th-century Inca site.

Accommodations range from the elegant Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel set in lush gardens with a traditional health spa to the rustic adventure lodge of EcoQuechua After exploring Cusco, the Center of the Inca universe, INCA's guests will luxuriate at the award-winning five-star Palacio del Inka, a colonial mansion built atop an Incan palace.

INCA's President Bill Roberson had long been fascinated by the wild, remote areas of Perú, so it was natural that the company's first trip 40 years ago explored Inca culture by trekking through the Andes.

INCA's eight-day Wild Orchids of Machu Picchu includes roundtrip airport transfers, all hotel accommodations; all meals and non-alcoholic beverages; all guides, activities, tours, entry fees and sightseeing arrangements as specified in the itinerary. Not included are any airfares, airport taxes and fees; tips for guides or naturalists; alcoholic beverages; excess baggage charges, or other items of a personal nature. Prices start at $4,995 per person, double occupancy for two to three guests and $4,095 per person for four or more guests.

For further information, visit INCA's website, or call 1-510-420-1550.

International Nature and Culture Adventures

INCA - International Nature and Culture Adventures has been creating "adventures with a conscience" for nearly 40 years. Specializing in eight destinations – Antarctica, Alaska, Galápagos, Chile and Patagonia, Perú, Turkey, Zambia and Zimbabwe – INCA carefully crafts each journey with constant attention to detail. Scheduled journeys are limited to about 16 travelers, and INCA also customizes trips for individuals, families and small groups.

A long time partner of the Galápagos Conservancy that is dedicated to the long-term protection of the Galápagos Islands, INCA operates the organization's annual Galápagos cruise on the yacht Integrity.