fball

Please excuse the length of this topic...
I am in the process of finalizing our planned trip to Peru for mid-June. I would really like help with our itinerary. We are a family of 5 - my husband & 14 year old daughter are arriving in Lima from NY (great flight $230 RT!! each) on 6/16. We are staying the night in Lima & will be taking the 7 day Manu trip with Pantiacolla tours leaving on 6/20. We are meeting up with our 23 year old son & his girlfriend on 6/26 in Ollantaytambo & will all be leaving on 7/3.
My first question is: we have from 6/17 until 6/19 (when we need to be in Cusco) & wonder what the best use of our time would be. We live in San Francisco & love wildlife viewing. I would like to see the condors in Colca Canyon but that seems like pushing it, time wise. I thought going to Paracas & Islas Ballestas would be doable & allow us to return to Lima in time to fly out for our pre-trip meeting with Pantiacolla. Does anyone have suggestions? Is there time for Arequipa/Colca or should we do Paracas?

My second question involves our time in & around Ollantaytambo. We had planned to spend from 6/26 until 7/2 in this area, with a one day trip to Machu Pichu. All 5 of us love to hike but are not planning to do "the" Inca trail to MP, but rather hike various other trails in the area. It seems like a bit long to spend in Ollantaytambo given the size of the town but my children seem taken with the idea of staying in one spot. I am considering Apu lodge or KB's. Any suggestions for additional places to stay, hiking trails & tour guides? As you can probably tell, we are not ones to join organized tours & prefer to wing it on our own.

My third & last question involves air fare. I am wanting to book on Lan Peru due to the great variety of flight times available but do not want to pay the non-resident fee of $1300 for three of us to fly from Lima to Cusco. Additionally, Star Peru's site is down & phone busy. Is there a good Peruvian travel agent someone has used? I am hoping qwovadis & others will read my questions & respond. Your responses are always very helpful. Any suggestions are highly appreciated!

fball

Please disregard my question re. airlines. I found a previous response from qwovadis suggesting traficoperu.com & have found the necessary flights at a reasonable price.

qwovadis

Arequipa too far in the time you have

You could tour Paracas Ballestas

Doubletree Hotel is very nice there o/n then

Ica perhaps for dunes wineries then

overnite at the Hotel of the Lines

and fly the Nasca Lines then back to LIM

www.cruzdelsur.com.pe VIP seats best bus


In www.ollantaytambo.org

hiking the fortress is great there

www.apulodge.com my fav for other area hiking

check their web site for trails



Have fun!

qwovadis

www.mysteryperu.com

good agent in that area

if you do not want to DIY

fball

Thank you very much for your response qwovadis. I really appreciate your suggestions & willingness to share your knowledge. Will reserve the Doubletree & check out Hotel of the Lines. We were planning to use the Cruz del Sur line based on your previous recommendations. I'm glad to hear you like the Apu Lodge. Thanks again for your suggestions.

fball

Just checked Doubletree. It's out of our price range & beyond what we really need. Do you have any other suggestions, qwovadis? We aren't too interested in the Nazca lines. Would two nights in Paracas be too long?

mlgb

Have you included any sightseeing time for Lima itself? There are some good museums, the old colonial center, a World Heritage site (kids usually like catacombs!), Huaca Pucllana (they have English tours included as part of the reasonable admission and a trendy restaurant), Magical Water Circuit (fountains at Parque de la Reserva).

InLima, try Antigua Miraflores Hotel, Fodor's recommended.

Make sure traficoperu did not sell you Base Fare tickets on LAN. You could get stuck with a hefty fine. You need at least Base Plus class.

In Ollantaytambo, you might look at the biking tours of all levels offered by KB Tours (same owner as KB Tambo).

fball

Thank you mlgb for your suggestions. I spoke with traficoperu & will use Taca or Star Peru instead. That looks like a lovely hotel. I am now trying to figure out buses on Cruz del Sur to Paracas/Pisco. I can see why people use travel agents. It's hard to figure out the logistics of moving around without missing a flight or connection somewhere. We are going to do some sight seeing in Lima but will be flying in from NY so will probably do the Lima part at the end of the trip. We are planning a bike tour with KB.

mlgb

Please post your info if and when you find out about the busses for Pisco/Paracas..I am hoping to do this also in May. But it isn't clear to me if you have to spend an overnight in the area because the tours that include the peninsula leave only in the morning? Or take a 3:30 am bus...or perhaps hire a driver?

Th following agency is in Fodors Peru(2008)for Paracas and Ballestas. (Click on the Spanish language flag to enter) website seems to be working..they send you on the 3:30 am bus from Lima!

www.paracasoverland.com.pe

mlgb

I topped Diane60030's report which starts with some very detailed info on her trip Lima-Paracas-Nazca-Lima..in one day! She used PeruBest to book her transfers, tours, etc, although on Day1..no driver...hence the marathon.

fball

mlgb - I think you would have a hard time doing Pisco/Paracas in one day unless you hire a driver or do a tour. By the way, the Antigua Miraflores Hotel website has a trojan virus! Be careful using it. I was able to book Lima - Cusco on Star Peru for $108 pp. LAN was $461 pp & TACA $162. Traficoperu would not have been any cheaper than Star. Thanks again for your suggestions.

Diane60030

The busses leave for Paraces and Ica on a fairly routine schedule. The early morning ones are really more for the day trip tourists. Or the ones that are moving through Paracas on their way to other places.

If you are going to overnight in the area I would recommend staying in Ica. Paracas is more of a summer place for Peruvians (their summer not ours) so many of the restaurants and such are shut down for the winter.

I know there are more extensive tours than I did of the area, but I can't find my notes on them. Look for Ica when you search.

fball

Thank you for your responses. I will check out Ica. Of course, it hadn't occurred to me that it's a summer resort area. Thank you Diane60030 for pointing that out.