Kuelap & Gocta Express Itineraries
Four-day snapshot of Amazonas, including Kuelap & Gocta Waterfall.
Begins and ends at Chachapoyas airport & visits nearby Huancas.
Private transport, English-speaking guides, all meals and best accommodation in the region.
Can extend to include Karajia & Quiocta Cave and/or Revash & Leymebamba.
Overview
Making use of ATSA flights between Lima and Chachapoyas - a one-hour drive from Cocachimba - this is a great, new way to experience the best of Amazonas, in a relatively short time frame.
The standard tour is four days, incorporating visits to the fortified city of Kuelap and the beautiful Gocta Falls and a small sanctuary for Marvellous Spatuletail Hummingbirds.
The itinerary can be extended to include a visit to Revash and the Leymebamba Museum and/or the sarcophagi at Karajia.
Kuelap & Gocta Express Itinerary Outline:
Day 1: Transfer to Cocachimba, via Sonche Canyon & Chachapoyas City. Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
Day 2: Gocta Falls. Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
Day 3: Kuelap & Macro. Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
Day 4: Transfer to Chachapoyas or Pedro Ruiz.
OPTIONAL Extra Day: Karajia & Quiocta Cave. Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
OPTIONAL Extra Day: Revash & Leymebamba. Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
Prices
Below prices are per person, based on double occupancy, in standard rooms, with all meals. An English-speaking guide is provided for every day, apart from the final one - the drive back to Chachapoyas Airport.
| Itinerary | Length | Prices From |
|---|---|---|
| Gocta & Kuelap | 4 Days | £341 / $467 |
| Gocta, Kuelap & Revash | 5 Days | £442 / $605 |
| Gocta, Kuelap, Revash & Karajia | 6 Days | £626 / $856 |
With its views of Gocta Waterfall, Gocta Andes Lodge is an iconic hotel and as such, generally needs to be booked well in advance to secure a room.
If Gocta Lodge is not available, or you prefer a budget option, you can choose to stay at a hotel in Chachapoyas City itself:
| Itinerary | Length | Prices From |
|---|---|---|
| Gocta & Kuelap | 4 Days | £237 / $324 |
| Gocta, Kuelap & Revash | 5 Days | £321 / $439 |
| Gocta, Kuelap, Revash & Karajia | 6 Days | £474 / $648 |
Itineraries
complete Itinerary:
NB. The order of excursions may vary, according to the days of operation.
Day 1 - Chachapoyas: Arrival & Drive to Gocta via Huancas (L,D)
We welcome you at Chachapoyas airport (or your hotel / the bus station) and then make the short journey to nearby Huancas, a traditional, sleepy village known for its hand-made pottery. Perhaps even more notable is its location, overlooking the very impressive Sonche Canyon, which is 1km deep in places.
We then make the short drive to Chachapoyas, for a brief exploration of its historical centre, followed by lunch at a local restaurant.
After lunch, we make the roughly one-hour drive in private vehicle to Cocachimba, where our accommodation is located.
View of Gocta Waterfall from Gocta Lodge.
You have the afternoon to settle in and then enjoy the sunset in front of Gocta Falls, one of the highest cascades in the world, in the heart of the Peruvian northern Andes.
NB. This is dependent upon flight arrival time.
Dinner & Overnight at Gocta Andes Lodge, or similar.
View from back of horse on way to Gocta Waterfall.
Day 2 - Hike to Gocta Waterfall (B,L,D)
Breakfast.
From Gocta Lodge there is an amazing view of the falls, but the trail leading to them is even more breathtaking. It is a two hour hike (each way), passing through Andean orchards and lush forest full of bromeliads and orchids.
NB. There is the option to do this trail on horseback (at a small extra cost).
Late lunch at the lodge, followed by a free afternoon to rest, relax in the pool, or explore the local village of Cocachimba.
It is recommended to visit a nearby farm where the iconic Marvellous Spatuletail Hummingbird can regularly be seen … apart from the month of July, when they are shedding and regrowing their tail feathers. The best time of day to visit is around 5pm.
Dinner & Overnight at Gocta Lodge, or similar.
Day 3 - Kuelap & Macro (B,L,D)
After breakfast we start driving along the Utcubamba valley, between bromeliads and cacti, towards Nuevo Tingo.
Kuelap Citadel’s outer wall.
Here we take the newly-built cable car to Kuelap Fortress, located at an altitude of 3,000m (9,842ft).
Guided visit of Kuelap archaeological site, followed by lunch back in the village of Nuevo Tingo (or a picnic lunch).
After lunch, we drive - and then take another more basic cable car across the Utcubamba River - to the archaeological site of Macro, built between 1,100 and 1,300 AD. It covers an area of 3 hectares and is characterised by several platforms and foundations on a circular base, decorated with friezes in rhomboid shape, typical of the Chachapoya culture.
After the visit, we make the scenic, two-hour return drive to our accommodation.
Dinner & Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
NB. The Kuelap cable car does not operate on Mondays.
Day 4 - Gocta - Chachapoyas (B)
Breakfast and departure in private vehicle back to Chachapoyas.
Alternatively, you could be dropped in Pedro Ruiz to catch a long-distance coach.
Arrival at Chachapoyas airport, in time to check in for the flight to Lima.
End of tour.
If wanting to spend longer in the Chachapoyas region, here are the days that can be added:
Additional Day 1: Revash & Leymebamba: Chachapoya Mummies (B,L,D)
Breakfast and departure towards the high Utcubamba valley.
The house-like sarcophagi at Revash.
We take a detour off the road to Leymebamba to drive to the village of San Bartolo.
From here it is a half-hour hike to get to Revash Mausoleums. Chachapoya culture was the only one in the Americas to build sarcophagi for burials, which are located on massive cliffs, often carved and decorated.
Back on the road again, we arrive at Leymebamba for lunch, and an afternoon visit to the Mummies Museum.
Return to Gocta Lodge for dinner & overnight.
Additional Day 2: Karajia: Sarcophagi & Quiocta Cave (B,L,D)
Breakfast and tour to Luya Valley.
View of Karajia sarcophagi in cliff-side.
We begin by driving to the village of Cruzpata. The latter stages of this drive are on unpaved road.
From Cruzpata, it is a downhill hike of about half an hour to reach the viewpoint for Karajia.
NB. Horses can be rented for the journey between Cruzpata & Karajia.
On the way back from Karajia, we make a short detour to Quiocta Caves, a series of subterranean limestone chambers, with impressive stalactite and stalagmite formations, that the Chachapoya used as a burial site.
Dinner & Overnight at Gocta Lodge.
Inclusions
Included in cost of Kuelap & Gocta Falls itinerary:
Accommodation in a double or twin room in stated hotels (subject to availability).
Meals where stated (B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner).
NB. If staying in Chachapoyas City, dinner is NOT included on any day, but can be added at additional cost.Excursions as described, in a shared, group service.
NB 1. The excursion to Revash & Leymebamba is in a private service.
2. Private transfers & excursions can be arranged at additional cost.Transfers specified in the itinerary, in a private minibus.
English-speaking guides for all but the last day.
Entrance Fees
Not included:
Services not specified in the programme
Extras and tips
Local and International airport taxes (where applicable)
Private transfer from/to Chachapoyas Airport / bus station / hotel.
Map
Reviews
What our clients say about the Kuelap & Gocta Express:
“Gocta Falls, amazing view, great food that was included.
... Jhon [the guide from Gocta Lodge] stood above and beyond everyone else. It was also nice to have him for three days, he got to know us.”
“I/ we all had a great time with Peru North and visiting Gocta Lodge in April.
Visiting Kuelap was the standout natural/ cultural destination for our abbreviated, one-full-day trip.
I am glad we got to see Kuelap versus taking the hike to Gocta Falls, although we would have loved to have done that if we had time.
Just to see Gocta Falls from the lodge was spectacular in itself.
We were fortunate in our limited itinerary to spot a marvelous spatuletail (and other colorful hummingbirds) thanks to our guide Jhon. ”
“We have thoroughly enjoyed our trip so far.
Currently staying in Gocta Lodge where we can’t praise the staff and our guide enough and have been blown away by the amazing scenery.”
“We as a family had a wonderful time.
The department of Amazonas (where Chachapoyas and Kuelap are located) is a very beautiful area of Peru, something that we were not aware of.
The plantations fields and “greenery” of the mountains are worth the trip. Add Kuelap and friendliness of the people is a plus.”
“In summary, the trip exceeded our expectations. Three factors - our guide Ronald, the overall level of service, and the landscapes - natural and cultural - accounted for our satisfaction.
... We would (and have) recommend the trip to anyone who had the time and the stamina!”
“We were both very happy with the trip we had chosen ... we felt like it was very well organized and we knew exactly what we needed to bring and do.
The excursions were very good. We had a very kind guide that showed us around and listened to our needs.
The walk to Gocta waterfall was amazing and definitely my highlight.”