5-Day Experiences in South America: 14 That Fill a Day Properly

1.La Paz: 5-Day Uyuni Salt Flats by Bus

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 153 reviews · 5 days · from $486Our pick

Travel from La Paz to Uyuni by comfortable night bus, then spend three days visiting the salt flats, Incahuasi Island, flamingo-filled lagoons, geysers, hot springs, and Licancabur Volcano. A bilingual guide and photographer leads a group of up to 10. Expect excellent scenery, local meals, long drives, and basic shared rooms.

“Our guide Adalid was awesome. He was knowledgeable and professional while guiding us all the way along the three-day tour. The nature in Balivia was intact and truly amazing. There wasn't too much infrastructure when we were there. Life there was very basic and simple. Temporarily experiencing the life style with the locals was pretty unique despite some inconvenience. Extra fees were needed (i.e. the entrance to the national park and the hot spring). I think it would be great if all the necessary costs were included in the tour rate; otherwise, it would be troublesome for those who did not have sufficient Bolivianos at hand. Anyways, it was a…”

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2.Small Group 5 Days Salkantay and Machu Picchu by Llactapata Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 88 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $593Top rated

Trek from Cusco across the Salkantay Pass to Machu Picchu, with a small group of up to nine people. You’ll hike to Humantay Lake, camp near the Andes, visit coffee and cacao farms, reach Llactapata, then tour Machu Picchu. Guides may include Jainor, Carlos, Henry, Dario, or Rolando.

“We celebrated our 20-year anniversary up on the Salkantay trail. The experience was phenomenal from the beauty of the place to the high quality of service by our guide Carlos, the cook, and the horseman. We really felt like everything was made to attend to our needs. Although it was challenging for first timers to hike in high altitude, we were able to go at our own pace and still enjoy the experience fully.”

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3.Machu Picchu: 5-Day Salkantay Trek with Panoramic Train

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 79 reviews · 5 days · from $655

Spend five days crossing Peru’s Salkantay route with a small group of up to 16 people. Hike to Humantay Lake and Salkantay Pass, eat Pachamanca barbecue, visit a coffee farm, camp at Llactapata with Machu Picchu in view, then return by Vistadome or 360° train. Guides such as César, Roger, and José provide steady support.

“The trip was really good organised they know what they doing. Frank and John our guides were incredible and looked after us really good. Big thanks to our chefs the food was soo delicious. And the campsites expecially the one on the 3 night are in such beutiful spots.”

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4.Ausangate Trek 5 Days

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 74 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $660

Spend five days circling Ausangate from Cusco with guides such as Guillermo or Urbano, crossing passes up to 5,200 meters, camping beside glacial lakes, soaking in hot springs, and meeting a local family. Small groups, cooks, horse support, meals, and camping gear are included. Bring a sleeping bag and prepare for cold, demanding days.

“An epic 5 days completing the Ausengate + Raimbow Mountain Trek with the Vidal Expedition crew (Chino, Begnino, Jośe, Angel). The scenery was amazing, super friendly and knowledgable team, yummy good, and lots of fun! Would highly highly recommend!! Thanks so much for such a cool experience :)”

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5.4 or 5 Day Quito to Cuenca and Cotopaxi,Quilotoa,Baños,Chimborazo

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 58 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $645

Travel from Quito to Cuenca by SUV, minivan, or minibus on a small-group route through Ecuador’s Andes. Walk beside Cotopaxi’s Limpiopungo Lake, visit Quilotoa and Baños, reach 5,000 meters at Chimborazo, explore Ingapirca and Cajas, and choose a Quito or Cuenca extension.

“Una experiencia maravillosa, lugares fantásticos, alojamiento y gastronomía excelente y un guia extraordinario fue la mejor combinacion.”

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6.Galapagos Intensive 5 days, land base (3Islands) Excludes galapagos flight

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 55 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $1,353

You’ll explore three Galapagos islands in five busy days, from giant tortoises at El Chato to penguins and sea turtles at Los Tuneles and Bartolome. Betty and the local Galapagos Natural Life team arrange hotels, boats, transfers, meals, and daily guides. Expect simple lodging, several early starts, and frequent snorkeling.

“Galápagos Natural Life were excellent. They organised everything for me so that a car would pick me up every morning and take me to wherever I needed to go, and I had no problems. They also chose a really enjoyable and interesting itinerary for me. Highly recommended!”

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7.Classic Choquequirao Trek – 5 Days / 4 Nights

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 52 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $735

This five-day trek from Cusco crosses the Apurímac Canyon to Choquequirao, an Inca citadel larger than Machu Picchu but visited by far fewer people. You will camp near Marampata, carry only a small personal bag, and travel with a bilingual guide, cook, mule team, emergency gear, and a group of up to 12. Guides such as Guido, George, Carlos, and Franz have led recent departures.

“WOW! Guido was/is a fantastic, knowledgeable, friendly, and humorous guide that cannot be outdone. His passion and knowledge for the culture is obvious throughout our trip. He connected with each one of our “Team Dave” and was there to help, each of us, when we needed it.”

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8.Ultimate Lares Trek & Inca Trail 5 days

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 47 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $980

Spend three days hiking the quiet Lares Valley, camping beside a high Andean lake, and crossing Condor Pass at 4,700 meters. Then take the Short Inca Trail through Chachabamba and Wiñay Huayna to Machu Picchu. Guides such as Manolo, Anthony, Gilbert, and Sara are known for strong local knowledge and patient support. Hotels, meals, transport, horses, and camping gear are included.

“My sister and I had the most wonderful time with TreXperience. Our experience was top notch all around. We first did the Lares trek with our guide Elias, chef Tiburcio, and horseman Toribio. It was my sisters birthday on the second day and the chef made her a full-on cake despite being camping in the woods without an oven. The food was delicious for every meal (we were stuffed) and the crew made us feel very welcome. It was a super authentic experience. Im glad I stuck to my gut going with this company instead of a more commercial company like alpaca exp.”

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9.Manaus to Belem 5-Day Local Boat Trip

★★★★★★★★★★3.4 · 46 reviews · 5 days · from $150Best value

You travel from Manaus to Belém on a working Amazon ferry, not a sightseeing cruise. Hotel pickup, port transfer, water, and five days aboard are included. Choose a hammock or air-conditioned cabin with a bathroom. Bring food, cash, and patience for River Time, limited signal, basic facilities, and an overnight stop in Santarém.

“I am sure I had reserved master suite but the voucher is said to be suite. So I had to pay R$500 on boat for upgrade. Bathroom had mildew and its smell in cabin made me sick. I had to a service to clean math room with likes of lysol, and only then smell got better. How they dare to call itmastersuite?”

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10.Wonderful Cusco 5-Day Tour with Entrance to Machupicchu

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 46 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $610

This five-day Cusco package combines Pisac, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, and Vinicunca, the 5,033-meter Rainbow Mountain. Maypi Travel includes four Cusco hotel nights, trains, Machu Picchu buses and entry, guided visits, meals, and airport transfers. Expect early starts, long road journeys, and a demanding high-altitude hike.

“The experience was perfect. On time with the schedules, delicious food, very wise your guides, security is excellent, and the price was comfortable.”

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11.Quito to Cuenca 4 or 5-Day Tour with Cotopaxi, Quilotoa, Baños and Chimborazo

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 45 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $649

Travel privately from Quito to Cuenca with bilingual guides such as Fernando, Lincoln, Luis, and others. Walk beside Quilotoa, hike at Cotopaxi and Chimborazo, visit Baños waterfalls, and add Ingapirca and Chordeleg on the five-day option. SUVs, minivans, hotel stays, selected meals, and airport or hotel drop-off are included.

“We had a great time -- Ecuador is a really beautiful country and travelling along the Pan American Highway was a great way to see more of it. The hotels that were booked for us were terrific. We had nice meals, beautiful scenery and a chance to go off on our own for a bit every day. Lincoln and Andres were knowledgeable, and very helpful.”

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12.Salkantay Trek To Machu Picchu 5 Days And 4 Nights

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 44 reviews · from $690

This five-day Salkantay Trek takes you from Cusco to Humantay Lake, the 15,252-foot Salkantay Pass, a local coffee farm, Llactapata, and Machu Picchu. Bilingual guides, cooks, horses, camping gear, meals, and one hotel night are included. Expect demanding altitude hiking, small-group support, and a train ride back to Cusco.

“What an amazing trip- I would thoroughly recommend it.”

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13.5-Day: Salkantay Trek to Machupicchu and Humantay Lake

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 42 reviews · 5 days (approx.) · from $360

Trek from Cusco to Machu Picchu through Humantay Lake, the 4,600-meter Salkantay Pass, cloud forest, Santa Teresa, and Aguas Calientes. You get four nights of lodging, meals, a bilingual guide, horses for up to 5 kilograms of gear, and a two-hour Machu Picchu tour. Guide Roger is specifically praised, when available.

“The Salkantay 5 day trek to Machu Picchu was a wonderful experience. Being in a small group made it more exceptional and personal. Our guide, Roger, was super, very helpful, and friendly! I would do it again”

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14.Salkantay 5-Day Trek To Machu Picchu

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 39 reviews · from $797

You’ll spend five days hiking from Mollepata to Machu Picchu with a bilingual local guide, three nights in camps, and one night in a three-star Aguas Calientes hotel. Expect steep high-altitude walking, cold nights, warm jungle valleys, hearty meals, mule support, and a guided morning visit to Machu Picchu.

“Such a fun and challenging experience. I had no issues completing the trek, you want to make sure you are in good shape before arriving as it can be difficult if you are not prepared for log days and sometimes tough terrain. Beautiful views good food and excellent tour guides! Highly recommend to all!”

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