10 days in Peru
 

Hi!

I want to visit Peru in 10 days. The places I want to visit are (in order): Lima, Paracas, Arequipa, Puno, Cuzco, Machu Picchu and Inca's Sacred Valley. What are your opinions? Should I skip some of these places?

Thank you!

There is so much to see in Peru that the temptation is often to try and squeeze in too much. Seven places in ten days is an alarming pace. So yes, you should definitely skip some places. Taking into account travel time, I doubt you would have a full days sightseeing in any more than a couple of places. You also need to take into account the fact that many of these places are at high altitude and that it takes most people a few days to adjust.

Which ones you choose depends entirely upon your particular interests but, for a first time visitor, i would suggest concentrating on Cusco, Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley ending with a couple of days in the oft overlooked, Lima. If the flights work out and you just want to skim through a few places, add Arequipa or Puno but definitely not both.

I agree it may be too much..Try to lay out a detailed itinerary include travel schedule and open hours for the sights you want to see.

I wonder if your proposed itinerary was based on Peru Hop route? Which is designed to sell you more days on the bus and commissions on tours and hotels. Are you on a backpacker budget or a standard budget?

For example..did you know that the boats to Ballestas Islands leave only in the morning? It doesn't appear to me that Peru Hop has any bus that gets you to Paracas in time for a tour the same day..they all arrive too late. YOu either need to book a Cruz del Sur bus leaving LIma at approx 3 or 4 am or spend a night in Paracas.

Start with what you want to see...not where the bus goes.

I agree to focus on Sacred Valley, Cusco, Machu Picchu. That is easily 5 days by itself.

Another option which gets you to visit a few more places is more expensive due to the one way flights It can be done in 10 day but would be better with 14 ...
Day 1, arrive LIma and fly to Arequipa. See Arequipa that day.Day 2 Tour bus to Colca Canyon (two day, one night tour bought from an Arequipa tour company) Day3 Condor viewing and mid day bus to PUno, hotel in PUno. Day 4, see Lake Titicaca, 2nd night in PUno. Day 5 All day Inka Express bus Puno to Cusco. hotel in Cusco Day 6 Tour the Sacred Valley, ending in Ollntaytambo. Day 7 Day trip to Machu PIcchu. Day 8 Taxi/tour back through Sacred Valley to to Cusco, overnight. Day 9 see a little more of Cusco an Fly back to Lima. Day 10 See some of LIma that day with a late night flight back home.

I agree. Pick two magnificent places. Focus. And enjoy and explore deeply. Otherwise you will feel like "if it's Tuesday we must be in Belgium."

The fundamental questions to ask are

-What interests me the most?
-What do I love doing best?
-What are my TOP TWO PRIORITIES?

Anything that falls below can be dumped, and saved for another trip.

This country is worth savoring, at a pace that allows you to take in scenery that takes your breath away. If you are struggling to breathe, you're going to miss it entirely. This is high country in some of your listed choices. You're making an investment to be here. Let it pay off in taking in what it has to offer in full. You will be ever so glad you did.

Do your research, be highly selective, and don't sweat what you give up. You'll be back. I'll bet my backpack on it.

Thank you very much for your replies!

I'm gonna skip Puno and I will go directly from Arequipa to Cuzco. Also, I'm adding one day to the trip.

Agree with all the above. We did a very similar itinerary a few years back (Colca Canyon instead of Paracas) in 3 weeks and could have done more.

I still think you have an awful lot scheduled for a 11 day trip. Does your eleven days include the day you land and depart? If so then you really only have 9 sight-seeing days. How do you plan to travel between locations? Travel can often eat up half of a day.

Why have you picked the locations you mention? What do you plan to do in each spot?

hello, Peru is a mystical country in which you will find a variety of places to visit but the acclimate to Cusco which is 3399 masl is something that can spoil your holiday, for this reason it is advisable to take certain priority to what is Cusco , Machu Picchu, the sacred valley.
I found an itinerary that might help:

Day 01: Lima
Day 02-03: Amazon Rainforest
Day 04: Cusco City
Day 05: Sacred Valley tour
Day 06: Maras-Moray-Salineras Tour
Day 07: Southern Valley Tour
Day 08-09: Machu Picchu Tour
Day 10: Cusco
Day 11: Departure

I found her on the page: inca trail machu

I hope I have helped.

Hi there!
I live in Cusco and want to help with your itinerary.
for visiting all those places you'll need at least 12 days, you can even add a flight over the Nazca Lines along with your Ballestas island tour. I find a good idea to take a flight from Lima to Arequipa to save time and then follow Arequipa, the colca Canyon, the Lake Titicaca, Cusco & Machu Picchu. In my experience, many people who have made this kinf of itinerary would have liked to add a free day, mostly in Cusco, so the trip doesn't seem too short and speedy, but of course it depends on your time availability.
Otherwise, as many people above have suggested wisely, it would be nice to focus on 1-2 destinations, Lima, Ballestas and Cusco for example, 10 days will be enough to fully enjoy these destinations.
Hope this info have helped you to clarify your travel experience, don't hesitate to get back to me if you want. Regards, Ramiro.