Any suggestions for Peru itinerary for October 2010
 

Hi. I'm planning a 15-20 day trip in Peru sometime in late September/early October. I'm hoping to avoid the peak tourist season....... here's my itinerary so far;
Day 1: Arrive in Lima
Day 2: Lima
Day 3/Day 4: Pisco-Paracas/Islas Ballestas
Day 3/Day 4: Ica/Nazca
Day 5: Arequipa
Day 6: Arequipa
Day 7: Puno/Titicaca
Day 8: Puno/Titicaca
Day 9: Cuzco
Day 10:Cuzco
Day11 -Day14: Inca Trail/MachuPichu
Day15: Cuzco-Lima
Day16: Depart Lima

Does anyone have any comments? I haven't read too many(any?) trip reports for travel in October. Is it a good time to be traveling to Peru? I will be traveling solo. And I would like to make reservations (hotel/plane etc) myself as far as possible. I was planning on leaving the Amazon experience out of this trip this time. But is it worthwhile? I can add a few days to my trip. I hope it's not already too late to start planning an October trip!

I was in Peru last year for the last week of September and first two weeks of October. I did the Cusco > Inca Trail > Machu Picchu > Lake Titicaca > Arequipa route. The weather was great. I had one day of rain on the Inca Trail, it rained twice at Machu Picchu in the afternoons and then one rainy day in Cusco but the rest of my three weeks travel I had full sun. You still have plently of time to plan your October trip, but the one thing I would keep a close eyes on is the availability for the October Inca Trail hike. The sooner you can nail down the dates for that and reserve a space the better.

Was Peru too crowded even in October? ....the Inca Trail/Machu Picchu especially? Who did you go with on the Inca Trail? So far, I've shortlisted Llamapath Tours based on reviews I've read on Fodors. Peru Treks also seems to be popular.
Did you fly-in to Cusco directly from Lima? How may days did you give yourself to acclimatize before starting on the hike?

There were always tourists of course, but I didn't find it suffocatingly crowded with people and this was especially true on the Inca Trail. I thought the crowd size on the trail was nice, not packed length to length with hikers. I went with Peru Treks and had two fantastic guides. The people in my group was cool also. I actually wouldn't mind doing the hike again sometimes in the near future since I now know what to expect more or less and can be more prepared for it :).

I overnighted in Lima and then flew to Cusco on the 7am flight the next morning. In hindsight the overnight in Lima for me was a waste of time and money since my plane got into Lima late, and I had to get up early the next morning. I was in Cusco for 3 days before the hike. That was a really good thing since I experienced really bad headaches and tiredness for almost two days in Cusco due to the altitude. Since you will be in Arequipa and Lake Titicaca and then Cusco before doing the hike you should have no problem at all with altitude sickness on the trail.

Thanks! One more question....how many people were there in your group? PeruTreks website says they don't exceed 16. Do they stick to this?

Thanks again!

Any recommendations for a 10 day Peru itinerary? October is the travel time.

thanks

I will be travelling from Brussels, Belgium from 11 or 12 october 2010 for 3 weeks to Peru.

Nice program !

Maybe we'll meet ... ;-)

My favorite hotels in Peru(solo traveler)
El Albergue in Ollantaytambo (on the platform)
http://www.elalbergue.com/

Balcon Cusco (few blocks from Plaza de Armas)
http://www.balconcusco.com/en/

Second Home Peru (Barranco nbhd Lima)
http://www.secondhomeperu.com/

Amazon Lodge (Iquitos) no single supplement
Amazonia Expeditions (spend at least 5 to 7 days)
http://www.perujungle.com/

Thanx 4 T info !

october is still a good time to visit Peru, but if you have problems with your reservations you might try with a travel agency there is many in Peru, but your itinery matchs this one
http://www.peruvianinkatravels.com/andes-discovery.php

have a good time here in Peru