kevin109

Hello everyone,

I'm going on my next trip. The last trip I took parents to New Zealand and sydney and the advice given here was invaluable and insighful.
This time I'll be going to Peru with a buddy, both in our late 20s. Please give advice on the itinerary, particular timing

Day 1: arrive in Lima @1400, hang out w/ friends
Day 2: lima
Day 3: leave early am to Ica, 4 hrs. Sandboarding in huacachina,
where to spend the night?

Day 4: to nasca 4 hours. flight over lines, Night bus to Arequipa ( 8 hours)
Day 5: Arequipa
Day 6: arequipa
Day 7: arequipa...white water rafting?
Day 8: bus to Titicaca (6 hours)...home stay
Day 9: boat tour, kayaking? night bus to Cusco (8 hours)
Day 10: sacred valley
Day 11: sacred valley, overnight in ollantyambo
Day 12: start of 2 day trek, night in AC
Day 13: Macchu picchu...to cusco
Day 14: cusco
Day 15: cusco (visit to pisac sunday market)
day 16: am flight to lima, back to LA

Thanks everyone!

yestravel

If u visit Arequipa try to go to Colca Canyon -- is that where u will do the white water rafting? u can do a day trip into the Canyon which I think would be very rushed or spend a night or two in the Canyon.
I'd be careful having your flt from Cusco to Lima on the same day as your departure back to the States. Apparently fog can cause flight delays. The day we flew back to Lima, all the flights in the am were cancelled due to Lima being fogged in. Not sure if all those on earlier flights got out that day or not.

Jeff_Costa_Rica

You don't say what time of year you're going. The fog in Lima is mostly a problem in the winter (our summer).

Your itinerary looks good and fun. I've always wanted to do the sandboarding thing there. Next time.

yestravel

Our experience with the fog was in late April -- Peru's Fall.

mlgb

We had delays in their summer (January) it wasn't fog it was either wind or rain that caused flight cancellations. If the PM rains in Cusco cause flights to be cancelled, then there are no planes for the return from Cusco the following morning, even if the weather is good. So the advice to take an early flight works applies in the Lima-Cusco direction, not necessarily the reverse.

So I agree with the advice to return to Lima the day before.

robertino

Your itinerary looks really good. My only suggestion would be to subtract a day from Arequipa and add a day to Cusco.

Jeff_Costa_Rica

The major problem is almost always conditions on the Cusco end rather than Lima. There are no flights in or out of CUZ after about 2 or 3 p.m. because the wind starts to pick up as the afternoon goes on, making it unsafe for planes to take off or land. CUZ is the only airport I've ever been in that specifically posts signs warning you about the possibility of bad weather disrupting flights. No matter where you fly, you always know that's a possibility. At this airport, they make a point to warn you.

Supposedly, none of this will be a problem in three or four years when the airport moves out to the Sacred Valley between Chinchero and Urubamba. No more high winds, no more tricky approaches, a longer runway, and they're even talking about the possibility of non-stop flights from the U.S. without needing to connect in Lima. Plus, it should be a nice airport. The present terminal is old and cramped.

mlgb

LAN now has a few flights leaving Cusco after 4pm, I wonder how often they are cancelled though!

qwovadis

Looks fine do Colca Canyon tour when in Arequipa

www.cruzdelsur.com.pe PE best bus

www.bothyhostel.com best Arequipa Puno hostels

www.barrancobackpackers.com Lima best

www.lokihostels.com Cusco

Take Diamox(acetazolamida) to prevent altitude illness

Have fun,

althom1122

When you say home stay on day 8, are you referring to a home stay on one of the islands in Lake Titicaca? If so, I don't believe it would be possible to do that the same day as the bus ride. You won't arrive in Puno until late in the day, and the home stay options (at least the ones I'm aware of) leave Puno in the morning. I don't think you're allowing enough time for Lake Titicaca. It's hardly worth the travel time for such a short stay. You could certainly do a day trip on the lake on day 9, but I don't think you can fit in a home stay.

kittest

Maybe he means a homestay in Llachon, where the kayaking is. I think that would work, although is anybody going to feel like kayaking the next day after the sudden rise in elevation to Lake Titicaca?

althom1122

Agree, kittest, re the altitude! We'd been in Cusco so were already somewhat adjusted to the altitude, but when we arrived in Puno, we both had headaches. I remember checking into our hotel room, lying on the bed, and saying to my daughter, "I think the room is spinning." She said it seemed like that to her, too. And the next day when we headed for our home stay, the hike up the hill left me literally breathless. Kayaking would have been tough.

PeterPG

Day 3: leave early am to Ica, 4 hrs. Sandboarding in huacachina,
where to spend the night? Depends in part on age and interests. Huacachina has places to stay, probably particularly inviting if you are young and/or like lively place and don't mind noise; and, if a photographer, could walk back into the dunes at will, early or late. I enjoyed the sandboarding but really liked the hacienda we stayed in, in town. See http://kojin.wordpress.com/2008/10/23/xxix-lima-to-ica/

Day 4: to nasca 4 hours. flight over lines,
A word of advice: don't bother with camera flying over nasca. won't get anything good, distracts from seeing the place -- and i'm a photographer. if want explanation see http://kojin.wordpress.com/2008/10/2...ca-18-19-june/

Day 5: Arequipa
Day 6: arequipa
make sure to see Monasterio; consider visit to Juanita; consider reading Johann Reinhard's book about finding her. It's a good intro to Arequipa and Peru, and a fun read.
http://kojin.wordpress.com/2008/10/2...ipa-i-20-june/
Day 8: bus to Titicaca (6 hours)...home stay
Agree with earlier posters: if you mean the home stay on the islands -- Amantani or Taquile, that's usually an 8 a.m. departure and a return late the following afternoon. Worth your consideration -- see the three posts starting at http://kojin.wordpress.com/2009/01/1...le-10-11-sept/ for detailed description of that, how to do it, pix, etc.

Day 9: boat tour, kayaking?