Uros Amantani and Taquile Island 2 Day Tour from Puno

This 2-day tour includes a visit to the Uros floating Islands, a small community that has lived on reed islands for decades. This journey also takes you to Amantani Island, an Andean community where you learn to dance to Andean music in an evening party with the locals and spend the night in a rural house provided by a native family. This tour on Lake Titicaca ends with a visit to Taquile Island, a traditional Quechua-speaking community, full of ancient agricultural terraces and ruins dating back to the pre-Inca times.

Day 1

After visiting the Uros islands you head to Amantani Island, located 26 miles (38 kilometers) from the city of Puno (3.5 hours away). Because of the distant location, tourism on the island of Amantani has not developed in a huge way and homestays remain an authentic cultural experience. The 3,600 inhabitants of this island have also a Quechua origin and they are mainly small farmers. The houses are very simple and services are basic. There is no running water, no electricity, and of course no comfortable toilets or showers. This homestay experience and the encounter with the host family is a revelation of the reality of Andean people at such altitude. Here you are welcome to share with the locals their time, an artistic gift, educational activities, or just a nice chat. In the afternoon you can play football with the locals and at night you can dress yourself with a traditional outfit (given by the families) to dance with the locals at a party.

Day 2

The next day you say goodbye to the families and walk down to the pier. You then head to the island of Taquile. Here you walk along a narrow path enjoying the impressive views of Lake Titicaca. At the top you will have time to wander around and to shop at a local crafts market – the weaving tradition of Taquile dates back to early civilizations. After a typical lunch you descend to the harbor and take the boat back to Puno.