The magnificent city we see today is the result of the superimposition of one culture upon another. Nestled in the heart of the Andes, Cusco was the political and religious capital of the Incas, the hub of the greatest empire ever seen in the Americas and a place of pilgrimage for all those who worshipped the sun god, Inti. With the arrival of the Spanish in 1532, Cusco's temples and palaces became the foundations for magnificent neo-Baroque churches, and above its narrow streets appeared the wooden balconies of red-roofed colonial houses.

Beyond the Sacred Valley of the Incas, where the Urubamba River leaves the highlands to rush down into the cloud forest, the ancient city of Machu Picchu lies amid a verdant tropical landscape crisscrossed by a network of Inca highways, where it lay hidden from the world for four centuries until it was discovered by science in 1911. Reached by hikers along the world-famous Inca Trail or via a spectacular railway journey from Cusco, Machu Picchu has lost none of its mystery in the ninety years since its discovery.

This neo-colonial city of white volcanic stone lies at 2,380 m above sea level in a fertile, irrigated valley surrounded by desert and wedged between the Andes and Peru's Pacific coast. Arequipa receives less than 150mm of annual rainfall and the sun shines all year round. Its beautiful, tree-studded plaza is dominated by the elaborate facade of the cathedral. The Colca canyon can be reached from Arequipa. At more than 3,400 m deep, it is considered one of the deepest canyons in the world. At Colca condors rise above ancient Inca terracing and the whitewashed colonial churches of picturesque villages.

The Colca canyon can be reached from Arequipa. At more than 3,400 m deep, it is considered the deepest canyon in the world after Cotahuasi (also in Arequipa), where condors rise above ancient Inca terracing and the whitewashed colonial churches of picturesque villages.

Deep in the tropical forest we find the Tambopata National Reserve, a remote corner of the world rich in fauna and flora. Tambopata is one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet, a place where one can breathe the peaceful air and be in contact with nature. Situated in southeastern Peru, nestled in the foothills of the towering Andes in the department of Cusco and the lowland forests of Madre de Dios, Tambopata is visited all year round by nature lovers, scientists, researchers and journalists, all of whom marvel at its innumerable natural wonders.

Most tourists come to Cusco in search of Peru's Inca heritage, but the ancient capital of the Incas is also the gateway to the most pristine tropical forests in South America. The Manu National Park is widely considered the most biodiverse ecosystem in the world, with over 1000 species of birds, 13 species of monkeys, 1200 species of butterfly and 15,000 different flowering plants, as well as rare and endangered mammals such as the jaguar and the giant river otter.

The Paracas National Reserve is Peru's only maritime protected area: a haven for marine fauna including dolphins, seals, Humboldt penguins and an infinity of sea birds. This abundance has attracted fauna to the desert itself: foxes roam the dunes and man has braved this arid region for some 9000 years. Ica is Peru's wine producing region, a fertile irrigated valley surrounded by rolling sand dunes.

Some of the finest museums on the continent and literally thousands of archaeological sites formed by the vestiges of the wealth of pre-Inca cultures that settled in this desert region combine to make northern Peru a fascinating destination often described as the "Egypt of the Americas". And for those wanting a rest from ancient cultures, the coast offers some of the best surfing in the world and the best seafood on the continent.

Although it is not as well-known as southern Peru, the northern coast has much to offer, from its many archaeological sites and elegant colonial cities, to the country's best beaches. Despite having grown to become Peru's second city, Trujillo has retained its colonial-era charm and is the perfect place from which to explore the region.

Huaraz is the main town in the Cordillera Blanca, a region crowned by some of the most beautiful mountains in the world and dotted with green and blue highland lakes fed by glacial melt waters. The Cordillera Blanca is the highest tropical mountain chain on the planet, with more than fifty peaks soaring to over 5700 m above sea level, including Huascarán, which at 6768 m is the highest mountain in Peru. Below these permanent snows the possibilities for trekking are endless, through villages where life has gone on unchanged for centuries, across a landscape grazed by llamas and watered by frigid turquoise lakes and steaming thermal springs.

Founded in 1535 upon the remains of pre-Inca cultures, this metropolis of almost eight million inhabitants has many faces. In its recently-restored historic centre, the patios of colonial and republican era mansions seek refuge behind imposing facades, severe wooden porticos and Moorish-style balconies. The suburb of Miraflores offers first class hotels and restaurants, whilst the small bars and cafes of Barranco - a refuge of artists and poets - are home to the bohemian and intellectual life of the city.

This seldom-visited region is still being explored and previously unknown pre-Inca sites have been discovered very recently. The Chachapoyas culture pre-dated the Incas by a thousand years, although it survived to fight alongside the Incas at the capture of Atahualpa by Pizarro in Cajamarca. This transition region between the Andes and the Amazon is a mist-shrouded forest where it is easy to imagine further treasures in store for those intrepid enough to journey there...