Peru solo trip July 2025
 

This is just a rough draft day-by-day itinerary. I am trying to first figure out how many nights to reserve in each location.

Saturday: Flights from Detroit to Lima, arriving at 9 to 10pm? 1st night in Lima

Sunday: find a grocery store; Huaca Pucllana Inca site (9-5. Ticket includes a required 1-hour guided tour); other museum, various monuments, and/or view of the ocean. 2nd night in Lima

Monday: Museo Larco (9-7pm, private museum with decorative pots, Moche pots); various monuments; El Circuito Mágico del Agua (illuminated fountain open every evening, must buy a ticket). 3rd night in Lima

Tuesday: Museo Banco Central de Reserva del Perú (art museum, 9-5), Museo de Arte de Lima (10:30-6pm). 4th night in Lima

Wednesday: Museo Nacional de Antropología, Arqueología e Historía del Perú (9-7:30). 5th night in Lima

Thursday: Pachacamac Inca site (9-5). 6th night in Lima

Friday: Fortaleza del Real Felipe (9-4, take a taxi or uber, might be in a bad neighborhood), Museo Pedro de Osma (10-6). Evening Bus to Nazca. 7th night

Sunday: flight in a small plane over the Nazca Lines. If time, somewhere else. Possibly a guided day or part day tour that includes the flight and somewhere else? Bus to Arequipa leaving approximately 8:59 or 9:15pm? Or should I spend a night in Nazca? And or should I take the bus back to Peru and then a flight to Arequipa? 8th night

Monday: Drop stuff off at hotel; Arequipa: guided or unguided tour/ Museo Histórico Municipal Guillermo Zegarra Meneses (8-3 Mon or Tues); Casa de Moral (Peruvian coins and bills, 9am-5pm?), Monasterio y Museo de la Recoleta (includes Amazonian artifacts 9-1:30p, 3-5pm closed mon); Basilica Catedral de Arequipa (5-6pm). 1st night in Arequipa, 9th night total

Tuesday: Museo Arqueológico UNAS (8:30-1pm or 2-3:30); Museo Santuarios Andinos (Inca mummy, 9-6pm closed Mondays), La Mansión del Fundador? (restored mansion, 9-5?); Observatorio y Planetario Stellarium (5:30-9:30pm). 2nd night in Arequipa, 10th night total



Wednesday: flight to Cuzco. Drop stuff off at hotel. Guided tour or Museo Inka (9:15-4pm), Museo Histórico de Regional (8-5); Museo de Arte Precolombino (8am-10pm). 1st night in Cuzco, 11th night total

Thursday: Qorikancha (Inca ruins of a temple, 8:30-5:30, museum 9-6), Saqsaywaman (Inca ruins, 7am-5:30pm); Planetarium Cuzco (6-8pm)? 2nd night in Cuzco, 12th night total

Friday: train to Ollantaytambo. Ruins. 13th night, sleep in Ollantaytambo

Saturday: train to Aguas Calientes, bus the rest of the way to Machu Picchu. Train back to Cuzco.

Sunday: flights back to Detroit.

Does this itinerary look ideal, or should I totally rewrite it and try starting with flights to Cuzco and then putting Lima at the end?

Am I including too many museums and not enough time for outdoor scenery? I know I need to see the sunlight at least a little bit each day and if I go in July, it will get dark before 6pm.

Other details if this matters: I am a 41-year-old childless single man. At this time I am in good heath, although my great-grandfather with my same last name had a heart-attack and died 6 weeks before he would have turned 40. This will be a solo trip. So far in my adult life I took 7 solo trips to Europe, different countries each time, including a trip to Spain in 2022; I took a solo trip to Mexico City and the mountainous areas of south-central Mexico in 2023. An aunt insisted that Mexico is dangerous and that I shouldn’t go there; a week ago she insisted that if I go South America I need to go on a guided tour but solo would be unsafe. In Spain I got a horrifying virus that affected my digestive tract that was severe for a day, mild for another day, then I was approximately fully recovered. I suppose I could have got too dehydrated and needed a hospital or worse. I tested negative for coronavirus 2019. In Mexico I did not get sick. My mom claims that I am nuts and that solo travel is dangerous.

If necessary I could probably delete a day from Lima. My vacation time from work resets in the 3rd week of June; the earliest I could travel would be the last week of June; I am tentatively thinking of traveling in July; unless I am persuaded that winter in Peru would be a bad time to travel because the sun will set too early. Work is closed weekends. If I use all my 10 days of paid vacation, + the power of the weekends, I could stretch my trip up to 15 nights, just maybe 16 if I am away on the 4th of July (U.S. independence day). I probably want to skip the Amazon jungle biome ad stick with museum, major monuments, mountain scenery, ancient ruins, probably a view of the Pacific, and so on.

Are the Nazca lines worth it? If I go I want to do a flight in a small plane. The Nazca lines looks like the hardest supposed activity to fit in, for sure harder than Machu Picchu.

I’m no expert, but a quick glance makes me think your itinerary is reasonable —as long as you are flexible. As a fellow museum lover, my experience is that it can be difficult to plan in advance how long any particular museum will take.

I spent a month in Peru as a solo female almost entirely on my own in 2018. I only had guides for a very few things, as my preference is generally to explore on my own. I never felt unsafe or unwelcome.

You might find some useful information in my trip report— just click on my screen name and scroll through the list of my TRs to find it.

BTW, I skipped Nazca.

Hope that helps!

To be blunt, your itinerary does not look ideal and yes, you should rewrite it.

July is a pretty good time to visit Peru. It is the peak season as it is the cool dry season in the Andes so you can expect clear blue skies there. However, in Lima and much of the coast is affected by the Garua, the sea mist which blankets teh coast 24/7 for months. Making it cool , damp and grey.

"winter in Peru would be a bad time to travel because the sun will set too early" As Peru is close to the equator, sunset is pretty much the same year round - approx 18:00.



As far as your itinerary is concerned, it seems you have 15 nights in the country. With that amount of time, I would skip the Nazca lines and focus upon Arequipa, Cusco and the Sacred Valley and Lima. In the context of the time you have available, a week in Lima is way too much. Don’t get me wrong, I love the city and often spend several weeks there at the beginning or end of a longer trip to South America. You will definitely want to spend the nights of arrival and departure there plus a couple extra. I don’t think it matter much which end you place those nights.

Nazca is a pain to get to and I feel you would spend a disproportionately large amount of time getting there and away for a 30 min flight. I would skip it completely.

Arequipa is one of my favourite cities in South America. Again, in the context of the time available, I would probably allocate 3 nights there which would give you two full days of sightseeing. The Monasteria de Santa Catalina alone will take half a day. Not sure you would have the time but, take a look at Colca Canyon and see if that appeals. If so, you could spend a couple of nights there. The scenery is wonderful. Very easy to arrange from Arequipa. At 2400m above sea level Arequipa is good place to start acclimatising to the altitude which is v. important.

Cusco is fascinating city and was the centre of the Inca empire . To cover the main sites in the city and Sacsayhuaman which is just outside would take a couple of days. You can get the train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes to visit Machu Picchu, though I would suggest staying a couple of nights in Ollantaytambo which is a stunning Inca village with its own set of ruins and visiting from there. It is much closer and you could even visit MP as a day trip from there.

There are numerous sites in the Sacred Valley like Moray , Maras and Chinchero which are very much worth seeing and can easily be covered in a taxi tour between Cusco and Ollantaytambo. I will provide a link to our travel blog which covers our time in some of these. Other sites worth considering are Pisac, Tambomachay, Puka Puccara, Q’enko which could be done as a day trip from Cusco by taxi or bus.

​​​​​​Machu Picchu is clearly a highlight for many.you will need to book well in advance for July as tickets do g sold out. Book entrance tickets only on the official site. You will also need to book train tickets well in advance again use the official site. Bus tickets room AC to the citadel are not so critical brook n to sa IME on the day. A few years ago a new Erie was put in place to smooth visitor flows through the site ( I think it has recently changed again. You now have to buy tickets for a specific route(s) and time(s) Route 2 seems the most popular and some people book two slots either on the same day or adjacent days
In Lima the majority of people will stay in either Miraflores or Barranco. Both overlook the oceans and both are well served with accommodation, restaurants and shopping. For food, the main supermarkets are Metro and Wong. Wong being the more upmarket. Miraflores has most of the big hotels and is a bit more "upmarket" than the adjacent barrio of Barranco which is smaller and has more of a bohemian vibe. I prefer the latter. Best way to get around is by the Metropolitano lines.

In terms of safety , Peru is relatively safe in teh areas you are considering and assuming that there are no more civil disturbances as the re were a couple of years ago. Particular care should be taken around bus tractions and on public transport where pickpocketing is rife.not sure of the relevance of your virus issues, but if concerned about food safety , food hygiene is pretty good. I have probably spent over a year travelling in the country at one time or another and don’t recall getting sick. As with most places, drink only bottle or purified water.

In terms of health, do read up on altitude issues https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/altitude-sickness/ it needs to be taken seriously.

Here is Lanka to our blog which covers our travels in soomsof the places mentioned which you may find helpful.

Happy planning.

Crellston knows far more about Peru than I, so I urge you to take his advice to heart. That said, I don’t think he has as great an interest in museums as I do, so my thoughts about Lima are probably a bit different.

Have any of you done a flight in a small plane over the Nazca Lines? How was it? Yeah I know Nazca is out of the way and requires a long bus ride to and from and the flight is only about half an hour. I want to take this flight over the Nazca lines anyway if it can be done without too much trouble at least so I can show I didn’t let my mom keep me from doing it. She has a phobia of riding in a plane, she has never taken a plane flight. ... I want to avoid sitting around too long doing nothing waiting for a bus after the flight. I am willing to sacrifice seeing Cañón del Colca.

The best flights from Detroit to Lima that I found so far are on Delta. The plane arrives in Lima at about 9-10pm. Would it be better to put all my time in Lima at the beginning of my trip, or would it be better to take flights From Detroit to Cuzco, spending as little time in Lima as possible on the way? (Would it be better for my first sights I see to be in Cuzco at a high elevation, or in Lima near sea-level?)

Should I take flights from Detroit to Cuzco, spending as little time in Lima on the way as possible, making my first sights be in Cuzco at a high elevation? Or should I take flights just to Lima, making my first sights in Lima near sea-level?

This is what I currently want but I don’t trust that it is wise and I am willing to go against what I assumed I wanted: I suppose I want to put all my time in Lima at the beginning or end of my trip, not split my time in Lima, spending one or more nights in Lima at the beginning and another one or more nights in Lima at the end of my trip.

For comparison I spent 8 nights in Mexico City. I suppose that a lot, maybe most travelers would spend a maximum of 3 nights, usually just 2, in Lima, seeing at most one or two museums and just a few places in Lima, focusing mainly on outdoor scenery, Machu Picchu, Cuzco, hiking trails, and so on. Wouldn't it be a shame to skip even the major museums? Maybe I could skip the fort in Lima.

Thanks for all your input.

Just spent a month in Peru doing solo travel. I have contributed to some of your Rick Steves topics.

Several things:

Coming from a Delta hub gets you a lot more flexibility. LATAM and Delta are SkyTeam partners so you can avoid Lima more easy than other airline flyers. For example I met a Seattle woman who for a two week vacation flew on one ticket SEA>>LAX>>LIM>>CUZ then flew home on one ticket Arequipa>>LIM>>LAX>>SEA thus avoiding any overnight in Lima. Non-SkyTeam flyers have to fart around a lot with Lima which is nice enough and seemed entirely safe but the whole area around the airport is a dump and the distance with traffic to hotel and restaurant areas is unpleasantly far, especially when repeated. I live in a Delta hub but had American points to use so had to deal a lot more with Lima than was desirable, 3 separate stays.

Be sure to look at LATAM flights JFK or ATL or MIA to Lima, you don’t have to fly to Lima on Delta from Atlanta. There are many SkyTeam possibilities.

I did do Nasca, it’s a long way from anywhere. I took the bus in and out in between Arequipa and Lima. Because of motion sickness issues skipped the flight and did a ground tour, there is an overlook tower plus a few glyphs made to be seen from the ground. Personally enjoyed my visit but didn’t do the flight, I’m guessing that the mystique of the lines is partially derived from seeing them from the air, they seem smallish and something easily made when seen from the ground. The same kind of thing was made by North American Indians out of earth, animal effigies, especially in Wisconsin, I could tell you where to go look.

Health: I would say Perú is in the same category as Mexico, eat whatever you want, didn’t hear of anyone having illnesses issues from food. Tap water should not be drunk but I’ve read it’s more from heavy metals in the water not because pathogens in the water will make you sick.

Safety: Reading you mom’s comment, it’s a pretty gentle and honest population, the kind where taxi drivers will help you find change if needed. Tell your mother Perú is not Brazil or Colombia.

Avoid cheese and milk products that have not been cooked. Avoid raw fruits and vegetables except those that can be peeled.

I ate a lot of salads, with lettuce and tomatoes. As I said nearly everyone is doing it without issues. Pisco sours are made with raw eggs, I had 2. Bought a lot of milk (always sold in plastic bags if not UHT) and it’s all pasteurized. Eggs with cheese is a standard breakfast so ate a lot of cheese too.

Adding: I don’t think I was being reckless or lucky. Peru is not a country like say India with a lot of public defecation + swarms of flies and fetid open sewers in the street that are red flags for food borne disease. I didn’t see anything like that

I’m glad Tom was fortunate. I was not, nor was the board certified infectious disease specialist with whom I work, who did part of her training in Peru. Personally, I prefer safe to sorry when traveling, and I prefer expert advice.

Did you get sick while doing all you suggest? Then it was likely a virus passed from another person that made you sick and not food or water borne disease.

As detailed in my trip report, I wasn’t paying attention and ate cheese that had not been cooked. BIG mistake.

In Spain I did not eat any restaurant food. The last thing I ate before the disease popped up was some rice cakes I bought at a grocery store. I ate them on a bench outside, about 2 hours before the effects of the virus started. At other times I had fruit rinsed in tap water, pre-cut prewashed lettuce, and rinsed my mouth with tap water but then switched to rinsing with bottled water. In Mexico, I tried some restaurant food and some food from street vendors. I didn't get sick at any time in Mexico. About a year before my trip to Spain I had the about the same disease but I was in my apartment in Michigan and I tested negative for coronavirus.

In about August 2018 me and my dad took a flight in a little plane, at a small airshow/ open house event at a small airport that is just for charter flights and little planes, in Michigan. It might have lasted 20 minutes; I saw small lakes and didn't have any motion sickness.

The problem with many foods has nothing to do with contamination (although that can happen). It’s that you might never have built the immune system responses to bacteria that are common in other parts of the world.

Some interesting comments re food hygiene and health issues. I have travelled extensively throughout Peru over many years eating everywhere from street stalls and markets to high end restaurants. My wife and I volunteered for a couple of months at a small NGO in the Sacred Valley whose primary objective was to promote good food hygiene to the villages in the mountains. The person who set up the NGO Was w nutritionist who had written several books off the subject. Her opinion was that most people who fell sick with gastrointestinal issue did so because they failed to wash their hands before eating rather than the food itself. In the fast disappearing world of using cash to by stuff , cash was considered a particular culprit. There may have been more than one reason Shakespeare described it a "filthy lucre"

The reality is that most food borne viruses take 24-48hours to take effect so it is impossible for anyone to lay the blame on an illness on one particular food or restaurant. Unless of course they only eat one meal a day.

I never drink tap water anywhere other than my home country, not because I fear it is dirty but simply because all water contains some bacteria and if you are not used to it, your body may react accordingly. I am quite happy rinsing my mouth with tap water and do not shower with my mouth clamped shut as I have seen some suggest. As any good dentist will tell you; don’t rinse after brushing your teeth , it is far better to let the fluoride in the paste do it’s work!

My "rules " such as they are are to eat where the locals eat. Only eat freshly cooked food. Eat food that is supposed to be hot, hot. Not lukewarm. Don’t assume that high end hotels and restaurants are any cleaner than markets. They may well have all the washing facilities but unlikely that all staff use them all the time.

Never felt eating cheese was a problem , though I know unpasteurised is not advised fro pregnant women. Can’t stand milk so that isn’t an issue for me.

Agree with someone’s comment above re India - South America is way cleaner than there. I would also add Africa to the that. We lived in west Africa for a while and the hygiene standards there were non existent, we had to boil water for 20 mins AND filter it! Everyone got sick to one degree or another. Peru is not like that.

Lima is a colorful city but there isn't that many attractions to see. I would say 2 full days are enough.

Look how many museums and sights I found just from the guidebooks I looked at so far (Lonely Planet, Fodors, Rough Guide). Would you say a lot of travelers skip most of the museums in Lima? It seems like a shame to skip what I listed. Maybe I could skip the fort.

Now I am thinking of making Arequipa my first city and taking a day to see Colca Canyon. But just to make sure of something, isn't the canyon just as much out of the way just for a short viewing from a mirador as the Nazca Lines are out of the way just for a 30 minute overflight?

For comparison, in New York State, I went to Whirlpool state park, close to Niagra Falls. I walked on a trail that led from the top of the gorge down to the bottom of the gorge. It was supposed to be 1/4 mile of stairs, and then some unknown distance to a flat area where people were viewing the rapids, where I sat for 20 minutes and then hiked back. I managed ok but that is about the maximum amount of hiking I would want to do in a day; maybe I could do more after a good amount of sitting; I am in average to good health; I am not hardcore about treking but I am not super lazy either; I am not going to risk hurting myself going up or down a path that is too steep that doesn't have stairs.

One guidebook mentions a "Colcas de Chichinia Trek, 2 hour walk from the village of Corporaque...". Otherwise I haven't seen any advice for walking past some canyon scenery that would be less than the super hard core all day hiking guided tours but a little more physical activity that just being whisked around in a tour bus.

Nasca is 7-1/2 hours from Lima then about 10 hours to Arequipa so no, it is more out of the way than Colca. There are various private tour bus running Arequipa>>Colca area>>Puno that make it less out of the way. Lodges in Colca can hook you up. These come with a private tour guide who likely will know which Colca lookouts have been seeing the most condors.

I do not recommend a day trip from Arequipa, it’s a long way. Frankly don’t recommend a long hike either, it’s very high elevation and didn’t look like scenery improved with hiking into the canyon (but didn’t do it).

Yes, most visitors skip most of the museums in Lima. Most are time restricted (as are you) and need to prioritise the locations and sites they want to visit. Most visitors will spend 2-3 weeks in Peru and will view Lima simply as a waypoint on the way to somewhere else. Most will spend no more than 2-3 nights ( 1-2 days) there an incorporate whichever museums or sites they want into those days. Your original plan to spend 6/7 nights in Lima is a disproportionate allocatIon of the time you have available. Some museums will be great, most are average. If you choose to spend that amount of time there then fine, that’s your choice, but you will be short changing the rest of the country.

Like tom_mn, I would not recommend a day trip to Colca Canyon.. yes it is easily and cheaply arrange with any number of operators around the plaza in Arequipa. Most are on large tour buses and are strictly controlled itineraries. I could be wrong but I very much doubt you would have the time for even a 2 hour hike. It is at least two hours each way and tours start early at around 4-5 am.

if you want to include Colca you really need to allocate one, preferably two nights in a lodge in the canyon. Given the time you have, I would skip it.

I had the luxury of a longer trip and I am someone who can happily spend days on end in museums. I thought a few museums in Lima exceptional and am very glad to have visited them. That said, I believe I read that some have not re-opened after COVID, so I urge you to do some research before finalizing your plan.

With a country that offers as much as Peru, it can be difficult to decide what to skip!

FWIW, I’m also glad to have visited the Colca Canyon, but agree that it would not be a good day trip.

I believe the OP, like kja and me, is a museum lover (I call myself a "museum whore").

But I agree that more research is needed as many guidebooks and websites are out of date. OP will need to negotiate admission fees, often in local currency. And perhaps become more adept at using Uber and an overseas cellphone.

My favorite museums in Lima and surrounds are the Larco, the Amano, MALI (depending on special exhibit), Pedro de Osma, and I think the OP would want to go to the Inquistion Museum.
Smaller museums include the Central Bank Museum and Casa O'Higgins.

Sadly, I think MATE is permanently closed. I'm not sure what happened to the Gastronomy Museum in the old Post Office and there were other sites downtown that may not have survived COVID and recent civil unrest.

There is also Huaca Pucllana and the assorted cathedrals and churches around the Plaza de Armas. Some people like the catacombs.

I liked the Magical Water show "Circuito Magico de Agua" but it can be cold and chaotic.

There are also other archaeological sites and museums within a day's or overnight ride from Lima, which are probably more worth the time spent than Nazca, such as the Moche sites and museums near Chiclayo and Lambayeque.

Kja did a great trip report.

I agree that Arequipa is nice and I would fly there if you can afford it, instead of going by bus.

You will never even scratch the surface of what Peru has to offer in just 2 or even 3 weeks.

What a nice compliment, my fellow museum, uh, lover!

Inquistion Museum. THIS APPEARED TO BE CLOSED VERY LONG TERM.


Central Bank Museum. ASKED BUT WAS TOLD OPEN WEDNESDAYS ONLY (?)

Merced church in central Lima only open in the mornings.

What’s missing for Central Lima is a good current walking tour map with hours/days attractions are open. Generally there appears to be no good guidebook for Peru anymore. I used 2 and both lacked the specifics and helpfulness of guidebooks of old, like pre-2010, they almost seemed AI generated. Specifically a Rick Steves style book with walking tour maps and helpful information is not available.

I found the Moon Guide and Lonely Planet far more useful than other guide books for Peru, though it’s been a few years.

Sadly, the old days of useful guidebooks seem to have passed. The English language site Lima Easy is also not reliable, nor is PromPeru/ iPeru.

TripAdvisor is probably a good source, you can see if there are any recent reviews and sometimes there is a link to the website.

That is a shame that Inquistion Museum is gone, I tested on TripAdvisor and the link is dead.

If you stay at a good local lodging such as my favorite "3B Barranco" they often have up to date info.

I had time to read the entire thread tonight. Don't underestimate the "garua" during July. Can be extremely dense fog along the coast although a very strong El Nino may disrupt that (not predicted next year). If you do run in to heavy fog in Lima, I recommend avoiding long distance travel along the coastal highway. I experienced a truly frightening drive up to Caral one trip (although the site is amazing).

You are awesome mlgb! So nice of you to do that. :)

I started rewriting my itinerary. If I include one of the U.S. federal holidays, if I leave on a Friday, taking all 10 paid vacation days, I could make my trip 16 nights. I didn't finish the end of the trip. I tentatively cut my time in Lima down to 4 nights including the night I arrive and leaving on an evening bus but it will suck if I arrive in Nazca before 5am and I don't want to risk being too tired. I didn't finish the end of the itinerary but I am thinking of either adding a 5th night to Lima or adding in Puno by Lake Titicaca before or after Cuzco. I haven't figured out whether in Puno there is a good view of the lake, and Fodors guidebook that I got from the library printed in about 2015 says the port isn't a good place to be after dark. I probably want to skip Colca canyon because its a long bus ride just for one mirador or I don't want to do have pressure to hike uphill too fast on a trail that might be too steep at a high elevation while trying to keep up with a tour guide on the way out of the canyon if I did an overnight hiking guided trip.

Friday: Flights from Detroit to Lima, arriving at 9 to 11pm? Sleep in Lima. 1st night

Saturday: Museo Central (art museum, 9-5), Museo de Arte de Lima (10:30-5pm Sat), grocery store and/or Mercado Municipal Gran Mariscal Ramon and/or Bario Chino?, El Circuito Mágico del Agua (illuminated fountain open every evening, ticket required)? 2nd night

Sunday: Pachacamac Inca site (9-5). 3rd night

Monday: Huaca Pucllana Inca site (9-5, ticket includes required 1-hour guided tour); Museo Oro del Perú y Armas del Mundo (10-5). 4th night

Tuesday: Museo Larco (9-7pm, decorative pots, Moche pots); Museo Nacional de Antropología, Arqueología e Historía del Perú (9-7:30). Bus to Nazca leaving 9:10pm, arriving about 4:53am?? 5th

Wednesday: flight over Nazca Lines. Possibly another tour to nearby sights? Bus to Arequipa leaving at 8:59pm, about 10 hours 15 minutes. 6th night

Thursday: Drop stuff off at hotel in Arequipa; guided or unguided tour, or: Museo Arqueológico UNSA (8:30-1pm or 2-3:30), Museo Santuarios Andinos (Inca mummy, 9-6pm), Casa Tristán del Poso? (9-6), Plaza de Armas, Basilica Cathedral of Arequipa? (until 6pm but ticket sales stop at 5pm). Mirador de Yanahuara, Sleep in Arequipa. 7th night

Friday: Monasterio y Museo de la Recoleta (includes Amazonian artifacts 9-1:30pm or 3-5pm), Museo de Arqueologia de la UCSM (8:30-4), Monasterio de Santa Catalina? (9-5), Sleep in Arequipa. 8th night

Saturday: Flight to Cuzco leaving at 8am?? Drop stuff off at hotel. Guided tour or: Museo Inka (Until 1:45pm Sat, closed sun, 9:14-4pm Mon); Mercado Central (6-6pm, until 4pm Sun), Catedral? (6-8pm); Museo Histórico Regional de Cusco? (8-5), Qorikancha (Inca temple ruins, 8:30-5:30, museum 9-6). Sleep in Cuzco. 9th night

Sunday: Museo Histórico Regional de Cusco? (8-5pm), Museo de Arte Precolombino (8am-10pm), various stuff, other museum is time? 10th night

Monday: Sacsayhuamán area (Saqsaywaman {Inca ruins, 7am-5:30pm}, whatever other adjacent ruins on the Boleto Turístico if time); Planetarium Cuzco (6-8pm)? 11th night

Tuesday: Train or bus to Ollantaytambo (town with Inca fortress). Sleep in Ollantaytambo. 12th night

Wednesday: Train and bus to Machu Picchu (site open 8am-4:15pm) Bus and train back to Cuzco

I think this is the highlight of Arequipa, not a question mark. 4 hours.

Pretty much everyone does this trip by taxi or bus.

Most of the museums in Cusco are small and only a bit interesting, but did miss the Museo Inka because as you noted it is closed Saturday afternoon. The cathedral is rather expensive BTW and on another combination ticket, the religious one not the main one covering ruins and museums.

This a a great deal of running around, I would wear out doing this kind of pace.

I pretty much exp how the above comments.

Monasteria de Santa Catalina is a primary reason for visiting Arequipa rather than a maybe/ afterthought. Arequipa cathedral is magnificent from the outside but the interior is less impressive and wouldn’t figure highly in my plans

I appreciate that I may by some, be considered anti museum, but that is not the case. It is more that some of those museums in Cusco are really not that impressive. The centre of Cusco and Ollantaytambo are effectively "living museums" and are best enjoyed busy simply wandering the streets and alleys? Qoricancha is the exception. If by Central Market in Cusco you mean Mercado San Pedro, then that is a fascinating insight into local life. We spent many happy hours wandering there practicing our Spanish with the help of our tutors. There are also lots of other mercado in the city also worth a look.

Taking the train from Cusco to Ollantaytambo would be an expensive waste. Either take a local collectivo (10 n/s and 2 hours) for the experience or a taxi tour stopping of at some of the key sights of the SV like Chinchero, Moray and Maras. https://taxidatum.com/chincheros-maras-moray-taxi-tour/ $220n/s and 5 hours


Puno is nowhere near as dangerous as it was when I first visited some 15 years ago though you do need to take care around teh bus station and at night. The area around teh cathedral is fine and has some nice restaurants. Views of the lake are best on a boat trip covering Uros and Taquile. Reliable and safe operators include Allways Travel and Edgar Adventures . Alternatively, if your Spanish is good, go to the dock early and arrange a trip with one of the boat captains.

I don’t know whether you have ever been at altitude before but wise advice from Tom above. Trying to run around too much, especially in Cusco and Puno. You really should take it easy for a couple of days on arrival in Cusco as it takes most people that long to get used to the reduced oxygen levels. Slowly does it! It really takes a couple of weeks to become fully acclimatised.

This is a great museum to visit, a highlight, not on the tourist ticket.

Will say that in visiting the Cusco museums included in the tourist ticket, it’s hard to wonder why they didn’t have a native English speaker proofread the printed explanations on the displays. It’s often hard to discern the intended meaning.

Adding a general comment about electrical wall plugs:

I’ve never seen such accommodation to the various international plug types! Typical is a plug that accommodates both the US flat prongs and the European round prongs in the same socket. Usually there will be (in the same room/apartment) another outlet with a German/French Schuko recessed round prong with the grounded connection on the sides. We even stayed in an apartment that provided a third outlet type for 3 round prongs in a row, the Italian style outlet.

Only the Australians and Brits need worry about carrying an adapter.

Regarding a supposed: Train or bus to Ollantaytambo sometime early in the day leaving enough time to see the ruins, Sleep in Ollantaytambo. and the next day, train and bus to Machu Picchu (site open 8am-4:15pm) Bus and train back to Cuzco that evening, you suggest that:

"This a great deal of running around, I would wear out doing this kind of pace."

Are you sure this is too much crammed into too little time? Because you are only supposed spend a maximum of 4 hours inside the Inca site of Machu Picchu and if the ruins at Ollantaytambo are not bigger than at Machu Picchu, nobody would spend more than 4 hours there either. If I could take the train and bus from Ollantaytambo to the ruins of Machu Picchu the same day as my ticket to the site, and see the site, then after the site would my best use of the rest of the afternoon-evening be to sleep in Aguas Calientes (Machupicchu Puebla), take the train to Ollantaytambo and sleep there, or take the train back to Cuzco and sleep in Cusco?

Would you spend 2 nights in Ollantaytambo? I had thought one night would be enough.

Well I spent 4 nights in O. It’s scenic, has good restaurants (no real grocery store though). It would be a full day to see the ruins on both sides of town (main ruins get very busy in the afternoon). At the altitude both ruins are a lung gasping climb. Same for the S ruins above Cusco, it’s hard to breathe and takes a while to check things out.

There are a lot of transitions and passport checks getting to MP. Trains are not board at will, you have to line up and show passport. Trains do not allow baggage so you would have to find a vendor to store it if going on to Cusco. Arriving in MP town you are forced through a multilevel catacomb of shops, then the chaos of the shuttle, different lines in different places for each hour of admittance, and 2 passport checks here, in line and then boarding. Waits can be an hour. Then there’s the passport check entering the site. There can be hour long waits for the shuttle back down. Good luck threading back through the catacombs trying to find the train station entrance. Queue up for the train and passport check again.

It’s an exhausting enterprise to visit MP.

Does this non-detailed summary of an itinerary look too rushed, too lax, or reasonably doable?

If it seems like I am trying to cram in too much, I suspect that in actual practice I would miss whatever I don't easily have time for; I know I need to take breaks from standing or walking every so often but I don't want to waste gobs of time sitting and waiting either.

Does Ollantaytambo have a grocery store that is decent enough? I am afraid eating restaurant food too often isn't healthy.

Would the staff at Machu Picchu let me bring food into the site if I keep it concealed in a bag so I can eat it after I leave the site, or would I be safest just showing up with no food and hoping some restaurant food looks palatable? I rarely eat restaurant food even when I travel. It is all made with oil, salt, and/or sugar. I am not a foodie; I don't require my food to be highly seasoned or flavored. Are fruits like grapes or pears dangerous because they would have to be washed in tap water?

Saturday: flights to Lima. Arrive about 9 to 11pm. Sleep in Lima. 1st night
Sunday: Museum and/or various monuments; grocery store and/or a Mercado Municipal Gran Mariscal Ramon and/or Barrio Chino? Bus to Nazca leaving about 5 to 6pm, arriving about 12:30am. Sleep in Nazca. 2nd night
Monday: flight over the Nazca lines. If extra time, guided tour to other sites. Bus to Arequipa leaving at 8:59pm, about 10 hours 15 minutes. 3rd night on the bus
Tuesday: drop stuff off at hotel. Various museums and monuments. Sleep in Arequipa. 4th night.
Wednesday: Various museums and/or monuments. Sleep in Arequipa. 5th night
Thursday: Plane to Cusco; bus, taxi, or colectivo to Ollantaytambo. If time, ruins. Sleep in Ollantaytambo. 6th night
Friday: Train and bus to Machu Picchu. Bus and train back to Ollantaytambo. Sleep in Ollantaytambo. 7th night
Saturday: El Valle Sagrado guided tour if such a thing exists or unguided taxi tour - various ruins or sites, just sites best seen leaving from Ollantaytambo. Sleep in Ollantaytambo. 8th night
Sunday: Bus, collective, or taxi to Cuzco arriving approximately sometime before noon. Drop stuff off at hotel. Various museum and monuments. Sleep in Cusco. 9th night
Monday: Various museums, Qorikancha (Inca temple ruins). Sleep in Cusco. 10th night
Tuesday: Sacsayhuamán area, whatever other adjacent or nearby ruins on the Boleto Turístico if time. Sleep in Cusco. 11th night
Wednesday: Plane to Lima. Drop stuff off at hotel. Various museum(s). Sleep in Lima. 12th night
Thursday: Day trip to Pachacamac Inca site (9-5)? Or various museums. Sleep in Lima. 13th night
Friday: Various museums and sights. Sleep in Lima. 14th night
Saturday: Various museums. Sleep in Lima. 15th night
Saturday: Flights back to Detroit.