No, I don’t think it is worth from both sides. I much prefer the Bolivian side. Copacabana is a pretty, small town compared with the large city of Puno. It makes a nice combination with Isla del Sol which I also prefer to Tacquile. The Bolivian side lacks the Uros floating islands which many people seem to find overly touristy. For others the6 are one of the iconic sights in Peru.

As it is, you seem to have allowed for and overnight on both islands which I don’t think is necessary. In fact I don’t think I would bother with an overnight on either of the islands. With this in mind, if you wanted to visit Uro you could probably fit in a quick trip there before heading off on the bus to Copacabana.

If not I would head straight through to Copacabana and spend your time there with a day or half day trip to Isla del Sol, explore the town and miradors before heading off to La Paz.

Anyone have experience with these night buses?
Nazca to Arequipa
Arequipa to Cusco
Cusco to Puno

different night buses leave and arrive at different locations.
1. Does each city have a "better" bus station, whether for its safety or location that I should try to use?
2. Is there a noticable difference between 140 degree chair recline and 160 degree?
3. Are bus tickets a lot more expensive online? If yes, would your recommend I try to buy them in person once I'm there? A previous post said I should get them a week in advance so that would mean I would have to get them online.

I try not to take night buses if there is an alternative. I believe the Arequipa to Cusco route in particular had a reputation for armed robbery on the night buses.

I have taken night and day buses on all of those routes many times. I have probably taken in excess of 100 buses throughout the country over the years and have never experienced any problems with safety, armed robbery or anything else. There were reports of armed robberies on certain routes but I think that that was years ago. These days, it is more likely to be roadblocks due to protests or industrial action, but that seems to have calmed down from earlier in the year and is no longer a problems , at least on those routes. ( I have read of trains to MP being disrupted but think that that is ok now) Nowadays there are trackers fitted to the better buses, to monitor speeds and unscheduled stops etc. I would have no hesitation in using night buses but would only stick with the first line companies and only book first class/Ejecutivo/VIP/ Suite seats - usually on the smaller bottom deck where there is less swaying around.. It doesn’t cost a lot more and the additional comfort is well worth it.

1. I don’t know about "better" bus stations. Some companies operate from their own stations some operate from central bus stations. I would choose the bus line first and just accept whatever station that throws up.Puno and Arequipa used to be renowned for being unsafe but have changed radically in recent years and that is no longer the case. Though you should always take a extra care around bus stations anywhere. Only take taxis from official tax ranks inside or close to the stations.

2. Not enough to make it a deciding factor. I usually try to sleep with the seat semi reclined anyway.

3. IME no, there is little difference in price. We tend to go for extended periods so it is no hardship to spend the time finding our way to the bus station to buy tickets for a day or two ahead but that would take time, sometimes a lot of time out of a shorter trip.if you know your dates and times I see little point in waiting.

Choosing which bus to take, do bear in mind that you will usually arrive in the early morning. You may wish ask for early check in . IME most places will oblige if they have rooms available.

Whilst most buses will provide snacks/meals and drinks of some description, they are not great, so you may want to take your own.

thanks for the info crellston and mlgb, i arrived in Lima on Monday and am supposed to leave tomorrow. One big problem is that my airline did not send my luggage and it will only arrive in Lima tonight or tomorrow. If it's tonight, should be no problem. If it's tomorrow, I'm not scheduled to be in Lima anymore and don't really have the next three days finalized before i get to arequipo. Here's what I'm thinking
9/28 lima
9/29 lima to huacachina - do sunset buggy tour recommended above - sleep in huacachina
9/30 organized trip to ballestos islands/paracas reserve from huacachina - sleep in huacachina
10/1 huacachina to nazca for nazca lines, spend day there, night bus to arequipo
10/2 arequipo
10/3 colca canyon day 1
10/4 colca canyon day 2 - night bus to cusco

I will sadly only have one day in arequipo with this itinerary, but two nights in the same hotel might be nice in case i need a stable place to have the airline send my luggage. What do you think? I can also base myself in paracas or ica instead for those two nights and do the same itinerary. Assuming I really want to do the sand buggy tour, how would you advise me to do the next couple of days? Nothing has been booked other than the 10/4 night bus from arequipo to cusco.

Any help is appreciated. Luggage situation is stressful!

Shame about the luggage. I hope it shows up today.

I think you may be short of time to do all of those things. With the dune buggy tour being your priority I would perhaps skip the Paracas Peninsula. You could stay in Huacachina if that is your priority (or Ica where the bus station is located). It is short taxi ride between Ica and Huacachina. Your plan to do a tour from Huacachina to Paracas is not bad even with the backtracking, as you won't have to worry about missing the Cruz del Sur onward buses.

Also if it turns out that you can't find a tour to Paracas then you can just continue onward to Nazca,hopefully with your luggage.

Nazca flights are weather dependent, like the Ballestas boats, most likely to go in the morning and not guaranteed! There are a few land based sights in Nazca if they don't go, including a tower and being able to see one of the lines on the ground. I liked the aqueducts.

To be frank , I am not a fan of those coastal stops so I would be guided by mlgb. If it were me I would be waiting in Lima until my bags arrived and then decide. I just don’t trust airlines to do what the promise. One of the reasons I only travel with carry on!

additional days in Lima, Arequipa or Colca would be no hardship for me but then I am not travelling with children!
good luck. Hope it works out.

Thanks so much for the help mlgb and crellston!

quick update, my luggage thankfully arrived my last night in Lima which was very lucky for me given hurricane Ian. The next morning I took a 4 AM bus to paracas, walked into the first tour office I saw and signed up for ballestos islands, paracas reserve, huacachina sand buggy tour for that same day and it worked out well except it was of course a long, tiring day. The sand buggy tour was an hour 5:15-6:15 so i don't know if i got reduced time since it didn't start at 4 but it was fine.

At that same tour office in Paracas, I also signed up to take an early bus from ica to nazca and then did the nazca lines. I am now in Nazca about to start a tour of the aqueducts and some other sight and then I take a night bus to Arequipa where I will be four days (I am planning on 2 days arequipa and 2 days colca canyon tour, does that sound good?). I'm going to have a good 8 hours to kill after the tour and before the night bus but what can you do.

It was a very tiring last two days but who knows if I'll ever be back and I'm glad I saw what I did because I think they were all good times. crellston and mlgb, Thanks so much for the time, help and advice so far, I'm sure I will soon ask more questions though

Wonderful, so glad your bag arrived and that it is all working out.

Maybe you are also going to the cemetery?

There used to be a good seafood restaurant on the main drag not far from the bus station if you get back on time, Limon.

It ended up being the aquaducts, los paredones, and los agujas (?) i think. Sites right next to each other. Sadly no cemetery. I pretty much just let them pick. I may sitll have time, should i try to get to the cemetary?

A lot of people find the cemetery creepy. It was okay for me. I am interested in those burial practices. Site is not that big. It's farther out, maybe an hour each way?

Two days in arequipa then take a tour to Colca Canyon and spend one night, then second night you travel to Puno?

If you can get middaybus from Chivay to Puno instead of going back to Arequipa and taking a night bus, you will see some amazing scenery. Be sure to ask if the 1pm bus is back in service before booking.

I used Giardino in Arequipa as the tour agency. I believe they are still in business. There are many agencies in Arequipa but Giardino was nice because they took you by van to Chivay and to the condor overlook and not a giant bus. When I went I had them drop me at Killawasi in Yanque for a second night and then took a taxi back to Chivay for the onward bus.

I know tourism in Colca Canyon took a bit longer to get back up and running so not sure what is possible at the moment.

I'm doing arequipa to cusco to puno. No backtracking to Arequipa

Good

for arequipa, do you think i should do
1. arequipa city
2. colca canyon day 1
3. colca canyon day 2
4. arequipa and night bus to Cusco
or
1. arequipa city
2. arequipa city
3. colca canyon day 1
4. colca canyo day 2 into night bus to cusco

does one sound better or does it not really matter?

In the greater scheme of things it doesn’t really matter but, of those two options, I would go for the second option. Though the last time there we had friends with us and, based on their interests, we did a tour with Killawasi ( tours are something we rarely do) which picked us up in Arequipa after two nights, 2 nights CC at their lodge and then 4 M tour bus door to door to our hotel in Puno. Saved a lot of hassle and worked like a dream. We then took Inka Express tour bus to Cusco ( I don’t think that is running but I am sure there are others). On balance, I would rather spend extra time in Arequipa than Colca unless I were hiking.

Good to hear the luggage caught up with you! The weather is doing some crazy things at present. We are on the other side of the Pacific at present where we have been visiting family in Sydney and also some Fodors friends in Northern NSW. We got caught up in storms and torrential rains and were stuck on a farm for a couple of days because the road ps were flooded. Now in Hanoi where there has been two typhoons again causing torrential rain. I am beginning to take it personally 😉

crellston you do not have a good weather fairy along for this trip!

Please check to see if the 4M bus is running a daytime tour from Chivay to Cusco. Supposedly Mon Wed Friday leaving at 7am and. With the night buses you are missing a lot of scenery.
If it is running you should be able to depart Chivay on Wed 10/5 and arrive that afternoon. So then you can have tomorrow and Sunday in Arequipa and Monday and Tuesday in Colca.

When you get to Arequipa you should be able to find out if you have not already been in touch with a tour operator. If you talking to some tour operators ask if they will transport you out to the condors if that is one thing you wanted to do. They should be able to book you on the 4M bus from Chivay.

https://busperu4m.com/enroutesesruta...opup-299137OUR TRIP STARTS AT 07:00 AM, HEADING TO THE UPPER PART OF THE COLCA VALLEY, WE WILL PASS THROUGH TRADITIONAL VILLAGES SUCH AS TUTI AND SIBAYO, WE WILL MAKE A STOP TO APPRECIATE THE IMPRESSIVE CALLALLI CASTLES (ROCK FORMATIONS THAT LOOK LIKE MEDIEVAL CASTLES FORMED BY WATER AND WIND EROSION).

LATER, WE WILL PASS NEAR THE “CONDOROMA DAM”, AT THIS POINT WE WILL FIND 4737 MSNM, OUR NEXT STOP WILL BE IN THE “STONE FOREST” LOCATED IN THE AREA OF ​​YAURI (TRADITIONAL TOWN), CONTINUING OUR WAY TO CUSCO WE WE WILL STOP AT THE “LAGUNA DE LANGUI”, A MAGNIFICENT NATURAL MIRROR WITH A LENGTH OF 25 KM.

IN THE FINAL PART OF THE TRIP WE WILL STOP FOR 50 MINUTES SICUANI SO THAT PASSENGERS WHO WISH CAN ENJOY A BUFFET LUNCH (* LUNCH IN SICUANI: USD 15.00 DIRECT PAYMENT AT THE FELIPÓN RESTAURANT), WE WILL RESUME OUR TRIP AND LATER WE WILL PASS THROUGH THE VILLAGES FROM ANDAHUAYLILLAS AND URCOS, ARRIVING IN THE IMPERIAL CITY OF CUSCO AT 4:00 P.M. – 4:30 P.M.

SUMMARY

•  
  • Departure day: Mon, Wed, Fri
  • Time of departure: 07:00
  • Arrival Time: 16:00 – 16:30
  • Duration approx: 8 – 9hrs.
  • Exclusive Service for Tourists
  • Price: USD 75.00

TIME / PLACE OF SHIPMENT: 06:45 AM IN OUR TERMINAL LOCATED IN THE MAIN SQUARE OF CHIVAY (HOTEL LA PASCANA)

TIME / PLACE OF ARRIVAL: 16:00 – 16:30 HOURS APPROXIMATELY TO OUR POINT OF ARRIVAL LOCATED ON AV. 28 DE JULIO, SECOND WHEREABOUTS. (NEXT TO THE MORMON CHURCH)

INCLUDE STOPS, GUIDED ON BOARD OR SNACK.

I replied but it went to moderation.

Quick summary I recommend to ask agent if the 4M from Chivay to Cusco is running. In that case spend two days Arequipa two days Chivay and Colca, leave the morning of 5 October on the 4M day bus to Cusco. You will have sightseeing along the way and arrive approx 4-5 pm

Note that sleeping on the rim of Colca Canyon and some day hikes will help acclimate you for the Inca Trail, it is about the same elevation as Cusco.

Two good hikes are to Uyu Uyu (from Yanque near Killawasi) . Also San Antonio from Corporaque if you are able to go with Giardino they put you up one night at Casa de Mamayacchi (good warmup on first evening). If you are not on tour with them it is probably too far out of the way.

Thanks so much for encouraging me to say in Arequipa for 2 days. 1 day is definitely not enough!

So for Cusco, I have 2 days there, then 4 day inca trail, then 2 days after before overnight bus to Puno. What would you advise to do over those four days? I'd like to do the rainbow hike one day, sacred valley tour another. Should i spend another day at Macchu picchu or is the fourth day of the inca trail enough? Any advice on how to arrange those four days is very appreciated.

Glad you enjoyed Arequipa
Never have done the Rainbow hike, it appears to be a new "thing" since my time.
Sacred Valley Tour could be done over two days, that would include Pisac (hike up and/or down from town or both). Pisac church and town center (there is a colonial horno that is worth popping in to). Not sure if they are still doing the colorful procession of the local "mayors" on Sundays but that is worth trying to schedule. Pisac can be done from Cusco by bus or combi, don't really need a tour.

Ollantaytambo ruins including the granaries (longer hikes possible) and the old Inka town. Since you like hiking I would recommend sleeping a night in Ollantaytambo (possibly the day after the Inca Trail, ask your provider) and not do that as part of a tour which won't give you enough time. You can then hire a taxi for a tour/transfer between Olly and Cusco that stops at the following: (It used to be easy to find a taxi driver and often you can find others to share) many taxis are dropping off passengers for the train and want to take fares back to Cusco.
(Moray Circles and Salineras )
(Town of Chinchero)
There was a also a cute place where you tried Chicha and played Sapo, something like Descanso Bar, don't know if it still exists.

There are also the closer ruins of Sacsayhuaman and the sights within Cusco, self guided walking tour or public bus from Cusco.
There are some weaving villages up high in the mountains such as Patacancha and Chahuaytire that can be visited on tour. Probably don't go every day and would need to do some research on who to book with.

If you were to take the 4M Day bus that I referenced above, they stop at some of the other outlying villages and sights that can also be done on tours from Cusco or if you can find that kind of tourist bus from Cusco to Puno.

I liked a full day for MP but don't know what your tour includes and what might be roped off. Will you tour allow you to spend the entire day of arrival there? If so it might be enough since you are one way from the Sun Gate (down only, not up and down). Not sure if you would want more time if Huayna Picchu is open.