Chiclayo - Peru

The North Tours


Area Map, click to enlarge

The North of Peru is rich and full of interesting places such as Trujillo, Chiclayo and the lost world of the Chachapoyas.
The Pre-Columbian Chachapoyas culture, conquered in the 15th century by the Incas, has left a landscape scattered with villages and burial sites which until recently had been largely overlooked by archaeologists. Situated in the cloud forests around the town of Chachapoyas in Peru’s northern Amazonas Department, these sites are dominated by the mighty fortress of Kuelap, perched majestically atop mountain-top cliffs overlooking the verdant Andean landscape. In Chachapoyas, remnants of the past invite discovery by the bold adventurer, and the cultures of the present extend a friendly welcome.
In Chiclayo you will visit the tomb of the Lord of Sipan (the richest tomb discovered in the Americas), the Valley of the 26 pyramids of Tucume and Bruning Museum where there is an interesting collection of gold artifacts and ceramics
The pyramids of the Sun and Moon, just south of Trujillo, are the largest structures ever put up in South America, and are second in the Western Hemisphere only to the Pyramid of Cholula, Mexico, in size. They formed the spiritual center of the Moche Empire, a highly sophisticated yet mysterious culture that pre-dated the Incas by nearly 1000 years. It is quite certain that the Moche Indians had contact with other civilizations in the ancient Americas, and there is good reason to believe they may have been influenced by Asian ocean- going voyagers as well. The Pyramid of the Moon contains a central, vaulted chamber, and the mountain directly behind, Cerro Blanco, appears to have been shaped by humans into a pyramid form as well. Despite their achievements in architecture, metal-working, and ceramics (one can still find countless pottery shards in the sands surrounding the site), the Moche were very militaristic, and scenes from their pottery depict ritual bloodletting and torture. They may have evolved a system of  “black” magic that aided them in their conquests of neighboring peoples, or they may have taken spiritual teachings from Asia and twisted their meanings into bizarre new practices over the centuries. Huanchaco is a fishing town where “caballitos de totora” are still used by the local inhabitants, who venture into the cold currents of the Pacific in these precarious-looking reed boats. This massive adobe city, really a series of royal compounds built by the Chimu, was a major source of gold for both the Incas, and later, for the Spanish. Though well-looted over the centuries, gold artifacts still occasionally appear in the drifting sands. Contacts between Chan Chan and the Asian continent have never been proven, but there are tantalizing hints. Pottery figures depict Asiatic men with beards and turbans; even the name “Chan Chan” seems to be Chinese in origin. Don’t miss the famous “honeycombs,” where strange acoustic effects allow visitors to whisper to each other over long distances inside the adobe structures. Also visit The small city of Huaráz, the hub for all hiking activity and Chavin de Huantar, the most representative Ceremonial center of the high Peruvian Culture with 3000 years older, Chavin is considered to be the first high Peruvian Culture.

We offer 3 exciting tours in this area , please make a choice:

 

Package Tours	Duration	Highlights
Sipan and Chan Chan	3 days and 2 nights DAILY DEPARTURES from  Chiclayo	Tomb of the Lord of Sipan, the amazing adobe city of Chan Chan
Chachapoyas 4 days	4 days and 3 nights Available on Monday - Wednesday – Saturday From May to October - Upon Request	Chachapoyas, Kuelap citadel, Leymebamba - starting from Chiclayo
Chachapoyas 5 days	5 days and 4 nights Available on Wednesdays and Saturdays from May to October - Upon Request	Chachapoyas, Kuelap citadel, Leymebamba - starting from Chiclayo
Lost Cities of Northern Peru	6 days and 5 nights	Lima, Caral, Chavin de Huantar, Huaraz, Trujillo, Chiclayo, Tucume, Moche.
Peru Discoverer 10 days	10 days and 9 nights	Chachapoyas (Kuelap fortress, burial building of Revash and Mummy museum at Leymebamba)
The Lost World of Chachapoyas 10 days	10 days and 9 nights	Chachapoyas, Kuelap citadel, Leymebamba