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Puno, lake Titicaca 

While some of the shore zones are very shallow and offer the best conditions for growing the totora (reed species), in other places the shore drops steeply into the water by up to 50 m. The deepest point of the lake is 281 m.

The totora is of great importance for the daily life of the inhabitants of the lake: it is the raw material for the manufacture of boats (caballitos de totora), for handicrafts and even for the artificial islands of the Uros.

Lake Titicaca plays an important role in the history of Peru. Even before the Incas, the culture of the Tiahuanaco flourished here, of which many archaeological remains bear witness, e.g. the funerary towers of Sillustani. Legend has it that Manco Capac and Mama Occllo, the founders of the Inca Empire, rose from the depths of the lake.

36 islands rise out of the water of Lake Titicaca. The most important are Taquile and Amantani in the Peruvian part and the Sun and Moon Island in the Bolivian part and the artificial islands of the Uros made of totora (reeds). The inhabitants of the islands still preserve their ancestral way of life, customs, language and dress.

Travel programs:

PTW-PUN001

Half a day

Guided tour of the city: main square, cathedral, the house of Conde de Lemos, Arco Deustua, «Casa del Corregidor», Huaisapata hill.

PTW-PUN002

Half a day

The burial towers of Sillustani, on the shores of Lake Umayo, are round towers where, in pre-Inca times, the nobles of society were buried.

PTW-PUN003

1 day

Boat trip to the floating islands of the Uros and visit to the island of Taquile, characterized by the spectacular landscape and whose inhabitants still cling to the ancient traditions.

PTW-PUN004

2 days

Boat trip to the floating islands of the Uros. Continue to Amantani Island. Overnight on Amantani. Drive to the island of Taquile.

For more tours that include Puno and Lake Titicaca see Roundtrips.

Contents / Regionaltravel / Puno