Hi folks, first time poster here. We are planning a trip to Peru with two young kids, who will be 4 1/2 and the other almost 7. This is a real adventure for us, and while the kids are younger than one might plan for a trip like this, we want to do it if only to continue giving them a global and diverse perspective. We are very well traveled, but they are not.

I've done some reading, but haven't had the time to do anything extensive. At this stage things are more complicated due to our hectic schedules, so we are looking in mid May to travel there for two weeks including travel days. So that might leave us more like 11-12 days on the ground in Peru.

I'd love help with planning the itinerary. Hotel points at helping pay for the lodging expenses, and it has had some influence on the itinerary.

Itinerary
Day 1/2 - Arrive at Cuzco, and head down to Urubamba (Sacred Valley) to stay at Tambo del Inka.
Day 2-3 - Visit various sites in the Sacred Valley (not sure which ones at must-see, but would love some recommendations, and also acclimatize over 36-48 hours.
Day 4(ish) - Take the train up and visit MP. I've heard it's worth considering staying in AC or somewhere close, to save on travel time and getting into the park early. How important is that? That means we'd have to check out of one hotel, and go to another, and return to the first.
Day 5 - Another free day in the Sacred Valley and surrounding area.
Day 6-7 - Cuzco - we have points to stay at a couple nice hotels there (maybe JW Marriott), and would explore the city.
Day 8-11 - What else can we add onto our Peru itinerary? We are content to only visit that part of Peru, but if there are other places we can easily visit, that's not too tiring/expensive, we would consider it. We'd like the entire trip to be about two weeks, if it's only 8-9 days, it might feel slightly short. But I'd appreciate your input. Perhaps we should just add an extra day or two in each area around MP/Sacred Valley?

Questions:
1) We are thinking of skipping out on Lima, in part due to lack of appeal but maybe more because of uncertainty/cost of flights. If I book from ORD to CUZ, and there's some scheduling change, the airline can help with that. If I book separate, and there's a problem, it's financially on us. If I could have it all, I'd probably spend a day or so in Lima at the end, but it's not a compelling pull for us.

2) Any places we definitely should visit, particularly scenic ones or places of interest for kids? I've heard about weaving/textiles that kids might like, and we would too.

3) Considerations for our young children, and also for a mostly vegetarian family?

Two things:

1. The JW Marriott in Cusco is a beautiful hotel (we didn't stay there, but someone else in our group did, so we visited the common areas)
2. We stayed in Ollantaytambo at El Albuergue (right at the train station) and loved it. Bonus - the restaurant at the hotel is excellent, even growing its own vegetables right out back.

thanks, yeah I would prefer to stay in Ollantaytambo by quite a margin for the town itself, but we’ve been saving spg points forever, and so am going to Tambo.

With 11-12 days to play with you could easily fit in Cusco, The Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu plus one other destination. Which one is really down to what particularly interests you and, possibly more importantly, the kids.

Arequipa is a wonderfully scenic city, usually with a lot going on in terms of fiestas, parades etc. Colca Canyon could also be included as an overnight trip from Arequipa. Some photos and detail of our time their in the Peru section of our blog @ https://accidentalnomads.com/category/peru/

Another option, which the kids would probably love, could be a visit to the Amazon for a few days. You could fly to Puerto Mandanaldo from Cusco and direct back to Lima.

4 days in the Amazon should be enough. 2 for Arequipa or 4 if you want to include Colca

I prefer Ollantaytambo to Urumbamba although we did stay in Urumabamba for a month whilst doing some volunteer work in Ollantaytambo and commuted daily. it is only 20-30 mins by taxi or collectivo (you should definitely do the latter at least once!). most people will stay in Urumbamba for the better hotels but it does have a pleasant main square. Ollantaytambo deserves a full day for the ruins and town.

With the time you have, I would probably just do a day trip to MP rather than spend a night in AC. Especially now that teh entry rule have changed and you have to choose either a morning or afternoon slot.

Some sites in the SV can be incorporated into your journey to or from CUSCO_URUMBAMBA. Moray, maras and chinchero are all worth a look. you could do worse than to hire a van and driver from Lima airport taxi transfers,taxi Jorge Chavez airport in lima, . From Cusco you could also include a trip to Pisac which has some incredible ruins and I think the animal sanctuary is on the way which is another thing the children would enjoy.


Vegetarian food shouldn’t be a problem in Peru but, if you don’t speak Spanish, it would be worth having a few phrases written down to show restaurant staff. the quality of the food is excellent and prices low by western standards. be sure to try Greens Organic restaurant in Cusco.

You do need to be careful with veggie food in Peru (may be better now) as sometimes for example the broths that things are cooked in are not veggie. And they may interpret 'carne' to mean beef only, or include cheese and dairy.

If you are at a big hotel I'm sure there will be something but you might want to bring some protein bars or powder as a backup.

I am exploring the Amazon, from Puerto Maldonado. It sounds a bit like the Wild West in terms of what one can do there with a family. Any suggestions? The debate right now is whether or not to do the Amazon or Lake Titicaca (we are split on this one).

Thnaks for the note in vegetarian options. We are good with dairy but the kids definitely wouldn’t want to touch anything that looks like meat. If there are specific dishes you’d recommend I’d appreciate it.

The problem is likely to be that things which COULD be made made with oil or just water (eg quinoa soup, beans, tamalitos or humitas) will sometimes have animal fat, fish or chicken broth added for flavor..is that okay as long as they don't see chunks of meat or fish?

There will be pizza and Italian places everywhere, so in a pinch there is always cheese pizza or pasta! As well as white rice and french fries served with everything.

Most hotels have a buffet breakfast so you should find lots of baked goods, probably fresh cheese and maybe yogurt, fruit and cereal.

There are also some awesome fruits, ice cream and desserts that you should try. Rice pudding which I don't mind having for breakfast is great when it's made with the raw brown sugar. It's usually pretty safe to have juices in the markets (usually milk is from the tetrapaks) .You can have it served in a plastic bag with a straw, if you don't want to worry about drinking from a glass.

I have no problem with there being some fat or broth added; we aren't religious about being vegetarian. I would actually prefer they eat fish (my wife won't touch it) but I think since they haven't had much they don't care for it unless it's cleanly incorporated within. We love fresh fruit more than just about anything else, and enjoy cheeses, but we try to be pretty healthy. Yogurt is great, too, so that's good to know.

Regarding the trip, at the moment we've decided to skip on the Amazon. We're really debating whether or not we would do Lake Titicaca. My wife is more into the idea than I am. I'm more interested in the train ride there than anything. The other option--and it might be that we also add this on top of Titicaca--is to go to the Colca Canyon. Is that a must-see, or are we going to be stuck on a bus most of the time? I worry about all the time spent on a bus or in transit, although train and boat sound more pleasant (to Puno and on the Lake).

Any kid friendly things to do in Lima, if we end up staying a night or two there at the tail end of the trip? I think I'm a bit researched out at the moment looking at countless websites on Peru--I'd rather get real world opinions from folks who've been there.

Colca wins hands down over Titicaca for me. The only way in and around Colca is by bus for most people. You can include hiking and riding as well, a visit to the condors etc.

Titicaca is a long way from Cusco by bus 6 hours on a scheduled bus, 10 on a tour bus like Inka Express with 4/5 stops along the way. The train follows the same route as the bus but no stops ( and ten times the price) Similar times and distances from Puno to Colca. Amazing scenery and some intersting stops. Lots of apalcas, flamingos etc. An alternative is to fly one of those legs.

if you really want to cut down the time in buses then why not just stick around Cusco, the Sacred Valley and explore the area at a slower paces. Add a few days In Lima at the end and you have the makings of a decent trip without too much travel. Some ideas for kids https://www.tripsavvy.com/things-to-...h-kids-1619829

Thanks for your input. What was the most enjoyable part of Colca, more so than Titicaca?

The scenery and the sheer scale of the Canyon. Seeing condors flying all around you is something you won’t see anywhere else (but sightings are not guaranteed). Don’t get me wrong, Titicaca is impressive, it is the world’s highest navigable Lake and it is more like an inland sea surrounded by mountains. The floating Uros islands are a bit theme park but the children would probably love being on an island made of straw, but that is just a half day trip.

The other thing to consider is the altitude. At 3800 m Titicaca will affect most people. It is the only place in Peru where my wife got sick from the altitude and that was despite being at altitude for several months previously. Most of the Canyon is several hundred metres lower which can make a big difference.

I think I might skip both Puno and Colca with the children and agree that you can spend a lot of time in and around the Sacred Valley.

I've always seen lots of kids at the fountains (Magic Water Circuit). Also if they like cats, Park
Kennedy (and Picarones Mary)

Meet Pablo Valverde, traditional picaronero | ...en Perú - Travel Culture History News

Kids in Lima https://www.tripsavvy.com/things-to-...h-kids-1619829

We stayed at the Marriott in Cusco on points and it was probably one of the nicest Marriotts we have stayed at. We considered staying on points in Urubaba but decided that we liked the looks of Olly better and we were very happy with our choice. I think if I were you, I would consider staying the night in Aguas Calientes-if you cash in points for a certain amount of nights they throw one in for free. I think I would just keep my room in Uru and take a day pack to Aguas for a paid night, hence not having to pack and unpack. I definitely think you could fill out your days in and around the Sacred Valley for longer than planned if you don't want to go anywhere else.

There is a special train from Urubamba to MP. I dont know if expense is an issue but I think it's costlier than the trains from Ollantaytambo.

Personally, I like "Olly" including the ruins there and the old town sector and it's especially nice in the morning and late afternoon.

If you want to burn points isn't there a nice Sheraton in Lima now?

I think I might give up a few nights at Tambo del Inka, go straight Cusco to Ollantaytambo for your first two nights.. Do a day trip to Aguas Calientes (with an afternoon entry to MP). The morning after you come back from MP, visit the Olly ruins. Then take a taxi up to Tambo del Inka.

Ollanta sounds really nice. Any recommendations on where to stay there, as well as Agua Calientes?

Apu Lodge in Ollantaytambo would be a good choice for a family. Huge rooms ( big enough for the whole family) , nice gardens and great views. Last time there we really enjoyed our stay at La Casa Del Abuelo Riverside. I think we booked on booking.com.

Many years since we have been to AC and things have change a lot I’m sure, but Gringo Bills was always a good bet or perhaps Casa Andina

We also stayed at Apu Lodge and loved it but it is not in the same category as Tambo del Inka. In Aguas we stayed at El Malpi and were very happy with it. We had our daughter with us and we had enough room in both hotels.

We visited Peru with our daughter, almost 2 at the time (and other places since). I'm not sure how often you travel with yours, but my best recommendation would be not to overplan. Plans seem to change quite a bit with kids along. The upside of many attractions around Peru is you can do a bit of walking, up and down hills, staircases. That's also a downside with a younger one. Both for getting worn out but also just watching to make sure they're not somewhere they can fall. (more of a problem with a toddler though).

Good plan to stay in the SV to start. Cuzco can present some altitude challenges, if not on them, then possibly on you. Either way, that can alter your plans too.

We liked Lima. But I can't say there was any thing specific that was kid oriented, though my daughter did enjoy watching the hanggliders.