“Doing the last day of the Inca Trail and hiking in, appreciating the way the site was meant to be accessed and the drama of its location as you look down at it, is amazing. It feels like the expected thing to say Machu Picchu was a highlight, but it lives up to its billing.”

I’ve long told travelers interested in off-the-beaten-path adventures that camping next to the remote and little-visited ruins of Huchuy Qosqo is the closest you’ll ever feel to being Indiana Jones. That was all it took for my 9-year-old Trey to be hooked. Peru offers stunning mountain landscapes filled with varied and fascinating indigenous cultures. Blend this with vast opportunities for adventures, luxurious and intimate properties, some of the world’s freshest and diverse cuisine, and great value, and you have one of the world’s best places for impactful and fun family travel.

Our time in Peru was filled with moments both adventurous and meaningful. We spent time with a local ceramist painting Pukara bulls to ward off evil spirits. We went horseback riding past ruins and villages. We stargazed and had morning coffee at a massive remote ruin complex we had all to ourselves. We planted potatoes with village elders and schoolchildren Knowmad has long worked with. We unearthed our pachamanca meal cooked on hot stones underground. We paddleboarded in the shadow of sacred peaks. And I’ll never forget seeing my kids’ faces during their first glimpses of Machu Picchu. Highlights abounded on this trip, creating lasting memories that blended adventurous days with luxurious properties by night.