I know that airfares are high - LAN and Avianca are both about $438 CAD for the return flight. There are 2 of us, so that's getting up there. (Unfortunately our dollar has fallen recently and I wish I had bought earlier.) I looked at Peruvian Air and that is a little less (I figure it's about $360 CAD each) for "class O" tickets (which are the cheapest). But I also have heard that there are tickets that foreigners are not allowed to buy - would that be class O? How does one know?

We're not going until late April, but I think it's unlikely that our dollar is going to recover that quickly

Seems Peruvian don't charge extra for foreigners http://www.peruvian.pe/en/flight-off...-lima-to-cusco

Also try Star Peru, I don't think they have extra charges.

The other thing is, do you have airline miles? With American you can fly on LAN and I believe Avianca is Star Alliance (United/Air Canada).

We had Aeroplan miles but that is what we used to get our flight from Toronto to Lima. So even if we could get a flight with points, I don't think we have any. I had to book the flights to Lima months ago, before we had even considered our itinerary. Since then I decided to cut back to a 3 day work week (kind of ease into retirement) so I am looking to save some $ but still have a fabulous trip.

Just checked and we need 25,000 Air Canada Aeroplan miles to get 1 'free' return flight within South America. So I don't think that's going to work this time around. Too bad!

Our agent in Cusco paid much less for our flights. This may be one of those times when it pays to use a local agent.

Or, it may be the time of year that they are flying. Or how far in advance they are booking.

Our trip is in late April. Fares seem to be the same as what they were when I looked a few months ago, but as I said our CAD $ has continued to fall. We aren`t using an agent, just booking on our own.

I would hold off and keep checking to see if there are any sales further into 2015. Check all four of the providers.

Some good news and some bad news.

The good news is that I've been able to change our Air Canada flights to add on the Avianca flight from Lima to Cusco. We'll have some time to cool our heels in Lima as we'll get into Lima after midnight and won't be leaving for Cusco until the following afternoon, but that's ok. (I've booked a B&B in Lima for the night we arrive - I think that migb might have provided the name of a place near the airport?)

The bad news is that there was no availability for the return flight (via Aeroplan) from Cusco to Lima - not for the day we want, the day before or the day after, so we'll have to book that and pay for it separately. I won't save as much as I might have once you consider the Aeroplan change fees and additional taxes for the 2 of us, but maybe we'll come about $250 ahead. Every bit helps!

This is what happens when you book months in advance and haven't settled on any kind of itinerary.

Thanks though for all the suggestions. I really hadn't thought about changing our Aeroplan reservations until now.

I guess that's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

The guest house that I've used near the airport is this one

http://lima1night.com/

Not a neighborhood you'd walk around in but very nice and reliable hosts. You'll be able to shower, close your eyes for a few hours, and they include breakfast and transfers in the price.

That's the place we've booked. Thanks for the recommendation.