I will be in Peru at the end of July for a two week trip. The places I want to visit for sure are Cuzco, Lake Titicaca and Machu Picchu.
Could anyone share an itinerary? Specifics would be appreciated...did you bus it or fly...how many days in each place, etc. Thanks.
Reply to this You're advised to stay in Cusco for a day or two to adjust to the altitude although not everyone has problems. Whilst there you could get the bolesto turistico (available in Cusco) which gives you entrance to the surrounding Inca sites outside Cusco as well as several museums in the city. Depends whether you want to do the Inca trek or just visit Machu Picchu, equally it depends on where you're coming from. You can see a lot of Lake Titicaca if you're coming from Bolivia travelling to Cusco. You can fly between cities such as Cusco and Lima for fairly reasonable prices (I got one during high season for under $100) but the buses are generally very good and reasonable prices although some are quite long. I would also reccommend Nazca for a flight over the lines and Huacachina is good fun for sandboarding. A trip to the Amazon is also a possiblity if you want as well as a lot of hiking/trekking - it really depends what you're interested in. If you are going to be in the north of Peru Chan-chan is well worth a visit as well as Trujillo for various pre-Inca sites and the northern beaches are good as well. Have fun!
Reply to this Katm1987,
Yeah...I'm not into bus rides longer than 5 hours for a stretch. I am probably going to fly from Lima to Arequipa or Cuzco and bus/ train it from there to Lake Titicaca.
Not going to do the Amazon on this stretch...since I don't think there's enough time. I'd rather spend more time in fewer places than rush around and try to see it all.
Thanks for the recommendation to go to Chan-chan and Trujillo. I hadn't heard about those places.
Reply to this Two weeks is very little time, especially if you plan to trek near Cusco. We spent 3 weeks there and it was nowhere near enough time. Arequipa is also worth a stop, it's good for acclimatising too.
If you go north to Trujillo and Chan Chan, be sure to stop in Huaraz too. Beautiful scenery and great hiking in Cordillera Blanca.
Reply to this Barry,
On the two week part of the trip my friend and I are sticking around Cuzco... Machu Picchu, Cuzco, and Lake Titicaca. Do you have a suggested time frame you could recommend?
I have another week on my own that I could tack on. That's when I thought about going north to Trujillo, or maybe to the Amazon.
Reply to this I think 2 days is fine for Lake Titicaca. I preferred the Bolivian side and Isla del Sol to Puno - you could get to Copacabana direct from Cusco and skip Puno. If you do stay in Puno the mopst popular trips are to the Uros Islands and Taquile. Uros Islands are very touristy, Taquile might be a better option (though I didn't get to do this one).
If you spend the rest of your time in and around Cusco you could fit in a trek (3 or 4 days), Machu Picchu (1 day), Sacred Valley (2-4 days) and the rest of your time in Cusco city.
Reply to this i would focus on the three sites you have mentioned and return to peru for all the rest.
fly from Lima to Lake titicaca, do the homestay there. (a good agency is allways travel - they have a good social ethic) I think that Amantani island is lovely.
from Lake Titicaca (puno) take the bus (first class or Inca Express) which stops along the way (so you can get out and stretch your legs)
In Cusco city yourself you can spend 2 days, Sacred Valley 2-3 days and then Machu Picchu for a couple of days... or one of the hikes if you have time.
the Inca trail is all sold out but there are a range of good 2-4 day hikes going.
Reply to this Plan for a couple of days in Cusco before you do the trek in order to acclimatize. Lake Titicaca is actually even higher than Cusco so beware of that for altitude sickness (better to do Cusco first to ease your way into it). I would recommend both sides of Lake Titicaca if you can swing it...Isla del Sol is gorgeous on the Bolivian side (Copacabana).
As for Peru....I highly recommend Huanchaco....that is the surf town that is 15 mins from Trujillo (you can catch a local bus from Trujillo for really cheap). Stay there instead of Trujillo...I stayed at Naylamp Hostel which was awesome! You also have some ruins around there....Chan Chan which is in between Huanchaco and Trujillo....and Sol y Luna is on the other side of Trujillo from Huanchaco...really quite impressive as well. Both places are reached for super cheap by local buses.
I didn´t find Chiclayo anything special so I wouldn´t recommend it.
Lima is a sketchy city so I wouldn´t recommend it either. Nothing much there.
Nazca Lines is ok...I did the flight over the lines for $40. Wasn´t overly impressive but was still pretty cool.
Ariquipa is nice and so is Colca Canyon. Not sure you have time for those though cuz Colca Canyon is quite a ways out of the way.
Reply to this Just reading more about your timeline....you can do Puno in one day. I got there in the morning (around 7am)....did a boat tour to 3 islands and was on my way by 3pm in the afternoon to Copacabana. Arrived in Copacabana by 8pm if i recall....you can then jet to Isla del Sol that next morning (you just hire a boat at hte dock the next morning)....you can do Isla del Sol in one day but i would recommend one night on the island if you can swing it. Copacabana is fine for one or 2 nights too...not a lot there. Just like there is nothing in Puno really but the floating islands.
Reply to this Anna-
I looked up All Ways Travel trips to Lake Titicaca...that's just what I was looking for. They seem to be doing good work for the community. Thanks!
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