I don't have a lot of time to research this all on my own so I'm asking for any help and advice I can get as quickly as possible. My husband and I are "suppose" to be in Cuzco and Machu Picchu on February 12th-17th. Obviously, with the current events down there, this seems extremely unlikely. I'm not looking for anyone to give me an itinerary or tell me how many days I need in every place I go, I just want to know what YOUR highlights of Peru were besides Cuzco and the Sacred Valley Region.

Obviously the hotels and airlines/trains we are using down there are pretty busy right and/or don't have electricity right now and I haven't heard back from any of them, so I don't know anything about if getting in and out of Cuzco from Lima will be possible this soon....or really if it is even a smart idea to even try to get to Cuzco....

Any help would be appreciated.

Have you already booked your flights into Lima & Cusco?

I think it very unlikely that you will be able to get to Machu Picchu.

It is possible that you will still be able to get into Cusco by air, although I would certainly CALL the hotel and confirm that it is a good idea. Do not expect an email reply. By the way, have you had the innoculations for Hep A & B? If not,I think it would be advisable to at least start them if your doctor approves. And check with him on medications for intestinal issues.

I liked Lima but most Americans are intimidated by it. The food there is some of the best in the world. If you are an adventurous person/eater you could spend several days there.

I wonder if you should join saexplorers.org They have clubhouses in Lima and Cusco I think they would be a good source of information.

You might look at Diana's trip report on Peru if she doesn't respond directly.

Sounds like Feb. is not good, more rain is coming on top of what they have already had. Jan. and Feb. are the rainy season typically, but even if Feb. is normal rainy on top of this, it can't be good. I have seen reports of 85 to 100K homeless in Cuzco and the surrounding area, and the smaller villages and towns like Pisac and Oropesa are being hard hit by the rain and mudslides also.

What about Nazca, Puno, Ariquepa, etc- the other places people on here post about in Peru. Do a search for trip reports on Peru, there are lots of them on the other places besides the Sacred Valley.

I would suggest postponing your trip if that's possible. I couldn't imagine going to Peru and not seeing Machu Picchu, unless of course you plan to visit again. Just my opinion.
Good luck!

From what I've been reading, many flights to and from Cusco have been cancelled because of weather. I'm not sure you're guaranteed of getting even that far. With February being the rainiest month in a normal year, I can't believe this February would be a good time to go.

As far as I'm concerned, you can't go wrong anywhere in Peru. It is such a fantastic country, and there is so much more to it than Cusco, MP and the Sacred Valley. (It's a shame to miss those this time, but they'll always be there.) I like the suggestions of Puno and Arequipa.

February is also the slowest month of the year for tourism in Peru. Weather, of course. Whatever you select as an alternative, it shouldn't be difficult to find space, even only two weeks out.

Ferrocarril Transandino, has anounced that the damage caused to the rail way has at least 8 critical points and it should take 18 weeks to repair those, although they will split work to repair into three sections and oonce the second section is repaired tourists will have the chance again to see Machu Picchu going first by bus and then by train, to acomplish this, the Peruvian authorities and train companies will work together to improve the road Santa Maria - Santa Teresa - Hydroelectric Station so travelers will take a bus from Cusco to Santa Teresa and Hydroelectric Station and the train from there to Aguas Calientes. There are two posibilities to access Machu Picchu both first bus and then train.

I called our tour company today and they told me their people down there expect that travel to Machu Picchu is expected to go in about 2 weeks. I can't see that myself based on the 8 week estimate given by the train company as well as the photos online. Personally, without seeing Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley and Cusco I see no reason to go. I have been to Lima and loved it, but that alone would not be reason to visit Peru. We are scheduled to go in April and will be checking on the status of things in about 2 weeks. Unless something more definitive is known, we will sadly have to cancel and schedule another destination. MP is still #1 on our list but I can't chance going there and not seeing it. We will just have to plan it in 2011.

Highlights for me included Arequipa, a beautiful town - Santa Catalina convent is amazing! Puno and Titicaca are also definitely worth a few days. A link to our blog with more detail and some photos

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...ai/1/tpod.html
Entries 62 onwards.

I am reading estimates of eight weeks to 5 months for restoration of the train. We have a trip in mid-June and I am considering other destinations. The pictures of the destruction are very extensive. I am trying to learn more about what has been the impact in the Cuzco-Sacred Valley area. Apparently many bridges have also been destroyed.

adventures.worldnomads.com/destination/168/itinerary/23.aspx

Personally would stay flexible follow the Gringo Trail

to Cusco then go to MP if possible.

It looks like they will get the bus route going

via Santa Maria very quickly as it already exists.

Another (quite different!) alternative is the rainforest; I have twice been to the Explorama Lodges (and intend to go for weekend there this year on my way to Chile) and have had a marvelous time. www.explorama.com

Peru really is a lovely country with a wide range of sights and sites!

I went to Peru mainly for MP so if that were not possible I would have cancelled.

But if you choose not to cancel then I highly recommend the rain forest. I thought the rain forest was even more interesting than MP, although not everyone would agree. The reason I enjoyed the rain forest so much was for the foliage and wildlife in the jungle. Be advised that if you do visit the rain forest you should have a yellow fever shot and malaria pills.

Another place I enjoyed was Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca. You can take a boat ride around the lake. Make sure your boat ride includes a stop at Taquile Island and the floating islands.

I enjoyed Lake Titicaca, but I would seriously consider postponing your trip if you can't visit MP and Cuzco.

Thank you so much for ALL of your input! It is all so incredibly helpful! Now we just have to sit down and come up with our alternative!

We are fortunate enough to be able to do a lot of traveling so making it back to Peru will not be a challenge for us if we don't make MP and Cuzco on this trip. Of course we'd be bummed out, but when we do finally make it to MP, it'll be that much sweeter!

Some people combine the Galapagos with MP. Something for future thought if you don't go in Feb. We went to MP and did an Amazon river cruise out of Iquitos for 7 days. We will be going to the Galapagos and Ecuador in October for 16 days.

It looks as though www.perurail.com is posting

you will be able to go

to MP via Santa Maria in a couple of weeks

For $30 each way minibus from Cusco will

drop you off at the train in HidoElectrica

In order to re-establish communication with Machupicchu town by using the railroad, FTSA has determined to restore the tracks at the same time in three stages:

Hidroeléctrica - Machupicchu town: The work will last three weeks, to allow the visitors and residents to use bimodal transportation between the area. In order to achieve this objective it will be necessary to restore the road between Santa Teresa and Hidroeléctrica.

Udates suggest this will be done in 10 days.

I am happy that Perurail has officially posted their intentions. Now lets keep our fingers crossed that the weather improves so that they can proceed with the plan. We are going March 23rd and 24th!

Peru without the Machu Picchu = France without Paris.

Create a daily "Peru" Google Alert so you can catch any relevant news... daily !

Some tunnels have been damged on the Santa Maria

route so they have pushed the opening back to 4/1/10

Would do the gringo trail visit the fortress at

www.ollantaytambo.org instead of MP still amazing.

The good news is they have cut the price of the

Boleto Tourisitco in half to encoucourage Cusco/SV

visitors.