This will be my first trip to South America. I am in my early 60s. I have visited Tibet and took the altitude medicine and not have altitude sickness. My other trips were always through a travel agent. The travel agent I used for many years is no longer in business. That begins my problem----I was thinking of 8 to 10 days total. 2 nights in Lima, 3 nights in Cusco, 1 or 2night in Machu Pichu 1 night in Cusco and then home. (chicago, Il usa). It has been very difficult to find someone to give me advise and helpful and accurate information on this trip, I have done some research and found May would be a good (weatherwise) to visit. I have mixed feelings on staying in the Sacred Valley but I do want to see the Pisca sunday market and go to MASS at the Catherdal there. I am wondering if I should be seeing other things or towns in that area. My trips are usually kept to 1 or 2 locations for the entire time but Peru seems to demand other plans. Again I am confused and would like some feedback regarding names of agents I can book with and personal experience in relationship to this trip.

Hi Carrie - we had a great time in the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu - following is a link to our blog which will give you a sense of the itinerary - we did:

- arrived Cusco/transferred to Ollantaytambo for 4 nights - did daytrips to the various Sacred Valley sites from there
- train to Aguas Calientes - 2 nights in Machu Picchu
- 3 nights in Cusco (could have been less)
- 2 nights Lake Titicaca


http://lizandrichardsa.typepad.com/l...lake_titicaca/

We booked via a local guide/travel planner in Cusco by the name of David Choque - he did a wonderful job and the prices are reasonable. His company is Cusco Top Travel & Treks

http://www.cuscotoptravelperu.com/

Email address is

[email protected]

Happy to answer any questions..............

We also used David Choque for our trip to Peru -- I highly recommend him. We went the last 2 weeks of April and weatherwise that was a good time -- also I believe less tourists at that time. We spent 2 nights in Lima and then flew to Arequipa and from there did an overnight in the Colca Canyon. We did this portion of the trip on our own. From Arequipa we flew to Cusco where David met us at the airport and drove us to Pisac where we spent the day and night. David met us the next day and took us to the ruins in Pisac which are outstanding.

We then went with David to Ollantaytambo and stayed there a total of 3 nights. We loved Ollantaytambo--its a lovely village and great to explore. We took the train to MP and David arranged for a guide to meet us at the train station in Aguas Calinete. We spent the day in MP and returned that evening to Ollantaytambo. Next morning a driver picked us up and we then met up with David in Cusco. We spent several hours that day with him in Cusco and then another day touring the area with David.

We had already pretty much planned out our trip when we decided to use David. He was wonderful. He personally checked each hotel for us and spoke with the desk to ensure we had "good rooms." We corresponded with him mainly thru email, but he did call once to ask some questions related to our ages, fitness, preferences etc. He very much tailored what we did and the pace to our needs. He is a delightful man, spent time in the US and speaks excellent English.

Enjoy your planning.

Yestravel Thank you for you insight. How do I contact David Choque?

yestravel I am sorry about the above question. I just realized the info was on the previous response. I am still learning----first time on fodors.com

carrie07, no problem -- Fodors can be a great help in planning. Be happy to answer any other questions u might have.

I used Peru Best Tours to make my travel arrangements. The did an excellent job custom creating my journey.

I am still working on my trip report but I did.

Day 1 Lima
Day 2 Paracas / Nasca
Day 3-5 Cusco
Day 6 MP
Day 7 Cusco
Day 8-9 Chiclayo
Day 10-12 Trujillo
Day 13-15 Lima - with Day trip to Caral.

Just tell them what you want and they will get back to you with an itinerary and price. What I liked is they had a driver and guide (english speaking) every stop of the way for me. And gave me a cell phone to call them if some thing went wrong.

Just another thought about your travel. Traveling out of Cusco is very subject to weather delays. I would make sure you fly back to Lima the day before your flight leaves. There are some lovely places to see in Lima so it won't be time wasted.