Peru: Itinerary
About
Best months to visit Peru are May-Sept during the dry season. However there are far fewer crowds March-May. We visited April 2-12, 2016 and spent the entire time making our way up to Machu Picchu. If we had more time on this trip I would add:
Lima (especially for the sand dunes, sea food and rainbow mountains)
Lake Titicaca (one of South America's largest lakes in the Andes Mountains)
Maras (to see the salt mines)
Day 1: Cusco
Land in Cusco
- The airport is nestled in the mountains at ~11k feet making Cusco higher in elevation that Machu Picchu (~7k feet).
Check into Milhouse Hostel
- We loved this hostel, they had private rooms available, great common space with hammocks, fun bar with tasty drinks (especially the pisco sours) and decent free breakfast.
Hang in Cusco, acclimate to the altitude, try Coca tea. Coca tea is made from dried coca leaves, and can help with altitude sickness.
Day 2: Cusco
We spent the day exploring the town, shops and museums of Cusco:
Hang in Plaza de Armes: The main square in Cusco, during our visit there was a wide range of activities here from political protests to live music and dancing.
Temple of the Sun (Qorikancha): Temple from 1438, covered in gold and used as a place of worship. Now a museum dedicated to the Inca empire and some contemporary art.
San Pedro Market: Large market open everyday for produce, meats, souvenirs etc. Address: Thupaq Amaru 477, Cusco 08002, Peru (~8min walk from Plaza de Armes).
Hike to Cristo Blanco: We did this first thing in the morning. The hostel provided a map but we had a little trouble finding our way at first and asked other passing tourist for directions.
Choco Museo: Touristy but fun, we didn’t book anything ahead of time and paid for the most basic tour/activity when we got there.
Cusco Cathedral: Located in Plaza de Armes, place of worship, full of colonial art, and a a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We walked through here to look at the art/architecture.
Visit Saqsaywaman (we didn’t end up doing this but I’ve heard it’s great): Historic capital of the Inca Empire you can walk among the ruins that were first built around 1100 CE.
Day 3: Cusco to Santa Maria Village
We didn’t want to do the Inca Trail on our own, so we booked a guided tour that included activities beyond just hiking (eg., mountain biking, rafting, zip-lining). We used Bamba Tours, which offer several different treks to Machu Picchu.
Bus from Plaza San Fransisco in Cusco to Ollantaytambo
- This was a small town where we had breakfast. The bus ride was a great way to see the countryside outside of Cusco.
Bus from Ollantaytambo to Malaga Pass
Mountain bike from the top of Malaga Pass down to Santa Maria village
White Water Raft down the Urubamba River
Spend the night in Santa Maria Village
Day 4: Santa Maria Village TO Santa Teresa village
Wake up early and hike 13 miles through the jungle/mountains on the Inca Trail
- Saw local farmers harvesting coca leaves, cocoa beans, bananas, avocados etc
- Stopped at a families home and met their pet monkey that loved Inca cola
- Hiked up Huancarccasa and saw beautiful views of the canyon and river flowing through it
- Stopped at a rest area to try snake wine and meet an imperial monkey
- Took an extremely sketchy “gondola” ride to cross a river
End the hike at the Santa Teresa Hot Springs known as Cocalmayo
- The beautiful hot springs nestled in the mountains was a great way to end our 13 mile hike
Bus into Santa Teresa Town
Spend the night in Santa Teresa
Day 5: Santa Maria Village TO Aguas Calientes
Spend the morning at Vertikal Zipline Peru
- We zip-lined through one of the largest gorges in Peru, and walked over a giant suspension bridge
Hike 3 hours along train tracks from Santa Teresa to the Hydroelectric Station for lunch
- There were many tourist here as its on the main path to Machu Picchu and where most tourist catch the train up to Machu Picchu
Hike another 3 hours to Aguas Calientes
Spend the night in Aguas Calientes
- This is the main town closest to Machu Picchu, its full of restaurants, shops/cafes and was our first time taking a hot shower + having access to wifi since Cusco.
Day 6: Aguas Calientes TO MACHU PICHU
Wake up at 4am and begin trek to Machu Pichu
- This hike is not easy, it is an entirely vertical ascent up stone stairs (details here)
- It took us around 1.5 hours in the dark (and was raining) but we arrived at Machu Pichu just in time for the sunrise around 6am
Machu Pichu
- We luckily were some of the first people there since we arrived on foot, however the busloads of tourists began pouring in around 7am
- Our guide have us a 2 hour walking tour of the ancient city and we explored a bit on our own
Bus from Machu Pichu back to Aguas Calientes
Take train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo
Bus from Ollantaytambo back to Plaza San Francisco in Cusco, spend one last night in Cusco
Day 7: Fly Home
Taxi from hostel to airport
Fly home
