Inca & Amazon Venture

- Multi-Country

Locations Throughout the World

  Bolivia

La Paz

  Chile

• Rural Areas: 
Rural Areas

  Ecuador

• Quito: 
Quito

  Peru

• Cusco: 
Cusco
• Lima: 
Lima

Dates: Please enquire

Description: Inca & Altiplano Venture explores the jungles, desert and high Andes of Ecuador and Peru, before heading South to undertake valuable community work and explore Chile's Atacama Desert and Bolivia's high altiplano. The Venture finishes on a high (literally!), watching the sun dawn over Machu Picchu.

Quito Language School & Project, Ecuador:
(2 weeks)
VentureCo's local language school staff take great delight in introducing you to the essentials of local living as well as the ins and outs of Spanish verbs! There's still plenty of time to unwind in the pavement cafes, visit a vivarium full of snakes and after a bit of salsa dancing you'll be learning a whole new body language too!

Our projects in Ecuador vary, from renovation work on old Spanish colonial houses now used as shelters for street kids, to helping local communities build greenhouses to provide year-round fruit and veg. Weekends are a time to rejuvenate; visit a cloud-forest, home to dinner-plate sized butterflies; try your hand at "tubing" and develop field-craft skills vital to the expedition.

The Expedition & Mountain Project, Ecuador & Peru:
(6 weeks)
We start with mountain bikes, descending from the Andes to the Amazon where we swap bikes for dugouts canoes, to explore the jungle. Traveling via the Pacific coast we reach Peru's Cordillera Blanca for a four-day trek amongst 6,000m peaks. We meet our project partners in the mountain town Huaraz and spend two weeks contributing to their conservation projects before tackling the epic Santa Cruz trek.

Expedition, Chile, Bolivia & the Amazon:
(5 weeks)
Turning east and climbing back into the Andes, we use jeeps to explore the salt pans on the high Bolivian Altiplano, at 5,200m the highest point of the Venture. Travelling on we reach Potosi, the world's highest city, where the C17th silver mines continue working as if time has stood still. In La Paz you can get a real bargain from the handicraft markets and far more than you bargained for in the witchcraft market!

Continuing eastwards along the Inca trail known as "The Chorro Trail" we reach the Bolivian lowlands where we take a three-day Amazon jungle safari that reveals a little-known wildlife paradise. On Lake Titicaca we trace the mythological birthplace of the Incas to the islands of the Sun and the Moon and explore the floating reed islands of the Uros Indians.

Cusco Language School & Project, Peru:
(1 week)
Our refresher Spanish course takes place in Cusco, the Inca's capital, high in the Andes. In the afternoons we join the Amigos project which works closely with disadvantaged youngsters.

Expedition, Peru:
(2 weeks)
The trek known as "The Inca Trail" is just one of many trails built by the Incas. Our final trek crosses the Apurimac river to the Inca citadel Choquequirao from where we take little-known trails to reach its twin citadel, Machu Picchu. It's a challenging trek that takes you into indigenous lands inaccessible by vehicle: a fitting climax to the Venture.

Highlights:
* Learn conversational Spanish and practice it on both an urban and a rural community project
* Mountain bike across the Andes and canoe through the Amazon jungle
* Tackle Peru's Cordillera Blanca and Santa Cruz treks
* Drive across the salt pans of the Bolivian altiplano to the world's highest city
* Experience a unique Amazon jungle Safari in the Bolivian lowlands
* Explore the world's highest navigable lake; Titicaca
* Take a quieter, but equally scenic route, up to the awe-inspiring Macchu Picchu

Cost in US$: $9940 for 15 weeks

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants.

Participants Travel Independently Or in Groups

Typically Participants Work in Groups of maximum of 16

Application Process Involves:

• Written Application

Post Services Include:

• Exit DebriefingAbroad
• Re-Entry Debriefing at Home

VentureCo Worldwide's Mission Statement: To provide 3-phase travel experiences that are inovative, imaginative and enjoyable. Phase 1: Language school and cultural orientation. That leads to: Phase 2: the volunteer developement project That leads to: Phase 3: the expedition that explores the neighbouring lands and environments of the host region.

Year Founded: 1999