"An incredible blend of art, tradition, history, food, and community. Could not have asked for more..."  -Adrienne F

Simply said, this 13-night, 14-day journey is a visit with master artisans in a spectacular country. This is deep and ancient Peru. Culture and Place. A true and intimate immersion into a vibrant land.  

We will meet with the legendary activist and artisan, Nilda Callanaupa, in her village of Chinchero; Shipibo artisan, Olinda Silvano in her Lima workspace; folk potter Artemio Pomo in his family workshop. We’ll learn from the creatives at Warmichic about how they are using clothing design to counter discrimination against rural emigrant women and the designers at Amapolay who fuse present and past in their works to raise awareness of Peru’s powerful indigenous legacy. IFAM has been honored to host all of these artisans in Santa Fe!

Yet Peru is endless! We’ll dive into a hands-on retablo making workshop in Ayacucho, visit a jewelry artisan in Cuzco, learn how alpaca are sheared in Patacancha, see the making of story-telling tapestries, cook up an iconic Peruvian lunch and try our hand at weaving. We will peer into the past as we explore ancient temples and ceremonial centers, learn rich stories with museum visits and fully enjoy the delights of humanity in the plazas, eateries and markets of Peru.

The setting for all this goodness could hardly be more stunning. We journey from the edge of the Pacific Ocean to mesmerizing valleys bounded by the spirit-infused peaks of the Andes. With three included internal flights, our path takes us through the colonial and bohemian neighborhoods of Lima to the ancient capital of the Inca, Cuzco; A gem among gems. We’ll explore the off-the-beaten-path cultural hub of Ayacucho and spend time in the Sacred Valley in the ancient Incan town of Ollantaytambo with its incan stonework, ancient canals and our hotel in the midst of an organic farm.  

Peru Great Masters is custom designed for IFAM and operated by Traditions Tours/Eric Mindling. Our Tour Host and coordinator is Hillary Freeman. Please feel free to contact her with any questions at hillaryfreemantravels@gmail.com or  650-400-1106.  

"We loved it!" Sunny S.

"Transformative. Rich in cultural experiences. Authentic engagement with the artists. Plenty of history too." Shelley W.

" This was the most satisfying tour trip I have taken because of its content, intimate meetings with locals, pace of events, competency & good humor of tour leaders, sheer beauty of Peru & its people ...." Patrick F.

"Such a wide variety of people and places from the coast to the mountains." Adrienne F.

Lima

Welcome to Lima!  We will be staying at Casa República, a boutique hotel in a 1920’s mansion located in the heart of what many consider to be Lima’s most interesting and inviting neighborhood, Barranco. You can check in any time after 2PM. If you are flying in today, odds are reasonable you will get in late. Let us know your arrival plans and we’ll meet you in the hotel lobby to welcome you and help you get situated. 

Overnight Casa Republica hotel

B, L / Lima

Lima is a humming, modern city built over ancient settlements. We’ll get a sense of then and now exploring Huaca Pucllana, an ancient adobe pyramid in the heart of Lima. Then, to add color to our imagination of how the inhabitants of those adobe temples looked, we visit the Museo Amano with its remarkable collection of pre-Columbian textiles. Lunch will be at one of Lima’s signature world class restaurants,  Mayta.  Back to Barranco, we head to Amapolay, a fusion art clothing store and another IFAM invitee. The evening is free, walk the streets of Barranco neighborhood, go have dinner at a restaurant featured on Netflix, eat cotton candy in the park. 

Overnight at Casa Republica hotel. 

 B, L /Lima

 We will start diving into the world of Amazonic textiles and Kené art, learning about the rich traditions behind these crafts in a far corner of the city with IFAM artist, Olinda Silvano. Then we’ll walk Lima's historic downtown, exploring its colonial architecture and vibrant streets. After a delicious lunch, we'll visit Museo Larco to delve into Peru's rich history. Later that afternoon, we’ll also meet IFAM artist Qarla Quispe, a designer, quiet activist and founder of  Warmichic, a renowned Andean fashion clothing store. 

 Overnight Casa Republica hotel 

 B, L /Ayaucucho

We leave the coast early, flying up, up to Ayacucho. At 9,000’ elevation, this is the perfect place to get our bodies acclimatized to the higher reaches of Andean Peru we’ll soon be visiting. Today we’ll delve into the world of retablos, an artform that Ayacucho is legendary for.  Essentially storytelling boxes, we’ll learn about this colorful folk art at the Museum Joaquín Lopez de Antay. Inspired we’ll go to work creating our own retablo with the Ataucusi family. We set you free this evening to relax and enjoy friendly Ayacucho.

Overnight at Hotel Santa Rosa

B, L /Ayacucho

 We’ll wander through the crumbling remains of Wari, once the art of a historic kingdom and one of the largest urban settlements in Peru. With José Ochatoma, the most renowned local archeologist, we’ll learn about who these ancient ones were. Then onward to the town of Quinua to meet IFAM potter, Artemio Poma, who will guide us through a workshop and share his expertise, while his wife prepares an outstanding traditional lunch. Tonight we have included an option to visit a local folk music venue, perhaps sip a traditional Ayacucho cocktail and maybe hit the dance floor.

  Overnight at Hotel Santa Rosa  

 B, L, D /Ayacucho

Tablas de Sarhua, or the Sarhua Boards, are joyful wooden storytelling tablets. Folkart with a ritual history. We visit the home workshop of Marcial Berrocal where we will be surrounded by hundreds of these talking boards. Here we will talk about this old way of story telling and do a little of our own. We’ll also visit the impactful Museum of Memory, a more modern version of story telling to learn of more recent history and Peru's internal armed conflict. Then we visit the production center for IFAM participant, Hilos y Colores. This social enterprise is doing a remarkable job  promoting Ayacucho's textile techniques. Wonderfully hosted by co-founders, Faustino and Mercedes, we’ll learn about this meaningful organization. We close out the day with a delicious dinner. 

Overnight at Hotel Santa Rosa. 

Overnight at Hotel Santa Rosa

B, L /Ayacucho 

Today is a day of reunions. We head into the countryside, destination Vinchos. Here we meet again our retablo maestro, Silvestre Ataucusi, to finish the work we started two days ago. But this time surrounded by mountains, a creek not too far off, and pure air in pure abundance…we drink in creativity and ease.  Creekside trout lunch. Can’t get fresher. Then we take one step deeper into the textile culture supported by Hilos y Colores. Mercedes Yauri, who we met yesterday, introduces us to a group of village artisans. Our goal is to learn a bit, but even more than that, enjoy togetherness, going slow, building a bridge of connection through our simple humanity. Really, this is what it’s all about. 

 Overnight at Hotel Santa Rosa 

B, L, D/Cusco

 We fly away from Ayacucho early, like an Andean condor meeting the sun, and land in the heart of the Incan empire, the gem of gems, Cusco. Our time in Ayacucho has prepared our bodies for the 11,000’ elevation of this city of cobbles, roof tiles and unfathomably perfect Incan stonework. We’ll take a walking tour around the main downtown area, and then explore the grandeur of the Cusco Cathedral and its impressive art collection. There will be free time in the afternoon before we gather for a celebration dinner. We’ll be staying at Costa del Sol Hotel Wyndham hotel, within the walls of a 17th century mansion and a short walk from the central plaza of Cusco. 

Overnight at Costa del Sol Hotel Wyndham hotel 

 B, L /Cusco

 We continue our explorations of Cusco today. Truth is, one could joyfully walk the streets of Cuzco, often called the Rome of the Americas, for ages. We start the day at the heart of this jewel, with a very special visit to The Temple of the Sun, Qorikancha, with our guide Amadeo Valer, an archaeologist and author. This place is ancient and semi ancient, where Incan and Spanish architecture overlap each other and speak of the time when one power came to wash over another. We’ll then rest our feet and enliven our pallets with a cooking workshop. Our lunch will be the fruit of our own labor as we cook up iconic Peruvian dishes under the expert guidance of a skilled chef. Then we’ll close out our day meeting Abraham Aller, a renowned artist specializing in religious imagery.  

Overnight at Costa del Sol Hotel Wyndham hotel

 B, L /Cusco

The ancient layout of Cusco is a mythical Jaguar. The river being the tail, the great plaza and city the body and the ceremonial center of Sacsaywaman and Q'enqo, the head. We will walk through the Jaguar’s mouth today! Here, the glory of Incan stone work, unsurpassed anywhere in the Americas and still a technical mystery, is on full display. We’ll also visit the gorgeous Xapiri Ground art house that is a bridge to indigenous Amazonian culture and arts. After enjoying lunch together, chance for a break. Later this afternoon we meet IFAM jewelry artisan, Hilda Cachi, and discover her unique creations and family’s legacy. In the evening, experience a special night out with a concert at a local jazz venue.

Overnight at Costa del Sol Hotel Wyndham hotel

 B, L /Ollantaytambo, Sacred Valley 

Pack bags, load the llamas and onward. We follow the new road, old trail to the ancient village of Chinchero, birthplace of Nilda Callañaupa. At the Chinchero weaving center we will sit among traditional Quechua weavers and try our hand at weaving. You won’t go home with a handwoven scarf of your own creation, but you will begin to understand what it takes to organize threads into something useful and gorgeous. Then, surrounded by the breathtaking peaks of the Andes, we descend from our high perch into the Sacred Valley of the Inca. We’ll take you to an especially sweet lunch spot and then onward to the enchanting ancient village town of  Ollantaytambo, our last base camp on this grand exploration. We’ll settle into the river and railroad side hotel, El Albergue, which is a community unto itself.  It has a distillery, coffee roaster, organic gardens that provide much of the produce for the restaurant and kind, rustic rooms set throughout the century old, forested compound. (And it’s but one train stop away from Machu Picchu, something to keep in mind as a little thing to do once the tour is over ;).

Overnight at El Albergue Ollantaytambo hotel. 

 B, L /Ollantaytambo, Sacred Valley

Ollantaytambo was once the royal estate of the Incan Emperor Pachacutec. This truly delightful village rests in a river-fed valley with stunning ruins lining the valley walls on either side. We’ll explore the spectacular, terraced ruins of the ceremonial center on the western side of the valley. It is appropriate to stare agape at the massive stones used to build this site.  Lunch will be of a ritual sort, a Pachamanca, an earth baked meal done in the old way.

Overnight at El Albergue Ollantaytambo hotel. 

B,L,D/Ollantaytambo

Our day begins early as we travel up a side valley to the small village of Patacancha where we will meet with herdsmen and artisans. We have met many weavers on this journey. Today we come to source, learning about communal organizing, how alpaca are sheared and how their wool is prepared for weaving. And we’ll close our travels with a Pachamama ceremony, in gratitude for the gifts of this earth.  In the evening we celebrate with a farewell dinner and enjoy the lively atmosphere of Ollantaytambo town. 

 Overnight at El Albergue Ollantaytambo hotel. 

 B / Ollantaytambo-Lima

After a leisurely breakfast, we transfer to Cusco airport for your included departure flight to Lima which arrives in Lima at 5PM when the tour will have officially ended. Book onward travel or take yourself to a hotel in Lima. 

Buen viaje!!

Hillary Freeman is our fantastic host for this journey to Peru and she will be your support before and during this journey.   Please feel free to contact her with any questions at hillaryfreemantravels@gmail.com or  650-400-1106.  

Hillary describes herself as a leader, mentor, educator, polymath, and travel expert. She has been traveling since she was 5 years old, as both of her parents were avid adventurers. She has lead 25+  international travel adventures to 9 countries in Asia, Europe, Central America and South America. Hillary is a people person. She looks for the light in everyone she meets.  She ensures travelers safety while helping them immerse in the experiences. Humor, fun, activity, and camaraderie are key components to trips she leads.  Hillary is a mother of two and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She enjoys hiking, biking, swimming, playing tennis, and all water sports. Her water polo team won a gold medal in the senior Olympics.  Hillary’s academic interests range from human culture, philosophy, and the arts to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).