Saturday, October 12, 2024

Peru backpacking itinerary

Travel itinerary for: South America, Peru

Season: May – April 2016

Theme: Backpacking | City | Culture | Hiking | Sceneries

Peru backpacking itinerary, This is my Backpacking itinerary for Peru, I traveled to Peru around May the 13th and left around the 27th of the same month. the weather was great throughout my trip.In each city you can spend a day or a month depending on what type of person you are. I am generally speaking a quick mover, below is how I did it, you can use this as a guidelines to give you a rough idea of how much time you need to spend in each city. Through out my trip I used night bus to transport from one city to another.

Peru backpacking Itinerary

Peru backpacking Itinerary
  • The Icon for the transfer method
  • The h for the number of hour of transportation time
  • am or pm is the time of departure from the city
  • The D for the number of days i spent in the city

Lima
4am 5h →

Arequipa
9pm 9h

Ollantaytambo
10am 1h

Paracas
11am 2h →

Cusco
11am 1h

Cusco
11pm 7h

Huacachina
6pm 0.5h →

Ollantaytambo
4am 2h

Puno
8am Tour →

Ica
7:30pm 12h →

AguasCalientes
6am 1h

LakeTiticaca
Tour →

Arequipa
8am 3h →

Machu Picchu
5pm 1h

Puno
5am 3h →

Colca Canyon
2D Tour →

AguasCalientes
7pm 2h

Bolivia

Peru backpacking Itinerary

peru-map-itinerary



Booking.com

I stayed at hostels all the time

I booked all my tour myself from the hostel, with regard to Machu Picchu see my Machu Picchu itinerary

Choose a safe area to Stay in in Lima
Plan your Machu Picchu tour in advance see my Machu Picchu itinerary

Walk in random area in Lima

PERU STEP BY STEP

Day 1-3 Lima

Day 1: Miraflores: I arrived to lima, Jorge Chávez International Airport, around 7pm, I pre booked a taxi through my hotel, Open Guest House. Which I recommend you to do for your safety.I spent three days in Lima, I used Miraflores as my base. Which was very safe, close to the beach and you can find many shops in the area, and nice supermarkets my favorites was Supermercado Vivanda, which stay open till let night.

Day 2 & 3: The Plaza de Armas: I took a bus from Miraflores to The Plaza de Armas, which is the center of Lime, Just ask any one in your Hotel or Hostel on which bus number you need to take. Once you get here you can choose what to do depend on what you want, its very easy to get information on what you can do from here. There is lots of museums and nice things to see just walk around and you will find them.

Top things to do in Lima

Accommodation in Lima

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
In Lima I stayed at the Open Guest House in Miraflores which was in a central location and a very safe area. I highly recommend stay around this area. Click here for a list of the hostel in Miraflores. 

Transport Lima to Paracas

On the third day I took a bus let night at 3:30 from lima to Paracas which is about 5 hours journey. I used Cruz del sur which was very comfortable. You should aim to get to Paracas around 7:30 as most tours in Paracas start around 8 am.

Day 4-5 Paracas and Huacachina

Paracas is a small village I only stayed in Paracas for 36hour in total, but I really liked it and you should visit it if you can. You should be able to book day tour in the same day of your arrival if you mange to get their before 8:00 am. Than the next day I booked a taxi to Huacachina in the afternoon. I spent the afternoon in Huacachina and I did buggy tours in the desert which was fun. Than I took a taxi to Ica bus station to catch overnight bus to Arequipa.

I arrived to Paracas bus stop around 7:00 am, I walk to my hostel Paracas Backpackers House. Which was about 20 mint walk. The hostel was very nice and clean. And you well find many traveller staying in, also it is about five minutes walk from the beach and their is a supermarket near by. I booked full day tour from the hostel once I arrived, to the Ballestas Islands, which start at 8:00am till around 10:00am than to the National Reserve (National Park) from 11:00am till 3:00 pm.

After an early run in the next morning, I booked buggy tours and arranged for transport to Huacachina from my hostel. I was in Huacachina from 1:00pm till 6:00pm the time was enough for walking around, talking photo and do the buggy tours. Than I took a 20 minutes taxi to Ica bus station to catch my bus to Arequipa.

Top things to do in Paracas and Huacachina

  • Ballestas Islands
  • National Reserve (National Park)
  • See the sunset in Paracas
  • Huacachina and buggy tours

Accommodation in Paracas 

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
In Paracas I stayed at the Paracas Backpackers House. Which was about 20 minutes walk from the bus station and 5 minutes walk from the beach and the main street. The hostel was very nice and clean. I highly recommend staying at Paracas Backpackers House. Click here for a list of the hostel in Paracas. 

Transport Ica to Arequipa

I booked my night bus from Ica to Arequipa from Cruz del sur bus stop in Paracas. one day before my departure date. Which is 12 hour journey. My bus departed at 7:30 pm from Ica and I was in Arequipa bus station for 8:00am the next day.

Day 6,7 & 8 Arequipa

I arrived to Arequipa at 8:00 am, booked a taxi from the bus station to my hostel, La Casona De Jerusalen Traveler´s Hostel, the hostel was very quite its ideal for a good night sleep, and it is in a central location. Once I arrived to the hostel I booked a two Days tour to Colca canyon from the same hostel for the next day. I also booked my departed tick to Cusco form Cruz del sur office near the plaza. Arequipa is a very nice city a good way to get a good overview of the city is through a bus tour. Than you can go by yourself to the area you interested in seeing. There are lots of thing to do and see in Arequipa, and Arequipa plaza de armas is a most.

Early on the next day, I was picked up by my tour bus to start the two days Colca canyon tour, which was a great experience. Depending on how much time you have, but I think you should do at lest the two day tour. On the third day I was back to Arequipa I wondered around in the city until my bus departed in the evening.

Top things to do in Arequipa

  • Bus Tour around Arequipa
  • Arequipa plaza de armas note: there are many museum near the plaza you can walk to it including Monasterio de Santa Catalina
  • Colca canyon tour and seeing the Condor

Accommodation in Arequipa

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
In Arequipa I stayed at Jerusalen Traveler´s Hostel. Which was about 5 minutes walk from Arequipa plaza de armas . The hostel was very quite and ideal for a good night sleep. I recommend staying here if you want to sleep well, otherwise its very quite and not ideal for meeting other traveler. Click here for a list of the hostel in Arequipa.

Transport Arequipa to Cusco

I booked my night bus from Arequipa to Cusco from Cruz del sur office in Arequipa. three days before my departure date. The bus journey was about 9 hours, I departed from Arequipa around 9:00pm and I was in Cusco at 6:00am. Than I took a taxi from the bus station to my hostel, about 20 minutes ride.

Day 9,10 & 11 Cusco

Costco is one of my favorites city Peru, its just have its own uniqueness. I spent three days exploring the city, I really encourage you to spent some time wondering around to explore the city. I stayed at Kokopelli hostel which was in a central location, try to stay around this area as everything is going to be around you from here.

This city is great and there is so much going on every day, I meet so many solo backpackers who meant to stay for few days and ended up staying for months, you got my point. Also there are many day trip which you can do from Cusco, because of my limited time I only managed to do some of it. The thing I really enjoyed the most was, walking from my hostel up to the Statue of Christ, you should definitely do it. There are few different route you can take to get to the top just ask around or use the map, if you going through sacsayhuaman you have to pay entrance fees. Also Convento de santo domingo and Qurikancha (Quri Kancha) temple is very nice and you can get a great view of Cusco from the top. Some thing I really wanted to do but I run out of time was a day trip to Red mountain valley, I think I worth visiting, let me know how was it, if any of you guys go.

Top things to do in Cusco

  • Cusco Plaza
  • Walking up to the Statue of Christ (about 2 hours walk)
  • Convento de santo domingo and Qurikancha (Quri Kancha) temple
  • Sacsayhuaman

Accommodation in Cusco 

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
In Arequipa I stayed at Kokopelli hostel which was in a central location, try to stay around this area as everything is going to be around you from here. The hostel was very lively and full with traveler, I loved this hostel as you can easily meet other like minded traveler. However its not ideal for a good night sleep as music will stay till let night. I recommend staying here if you enjoy parties and meeting other traveler. Click here for a list of the hostel in Cusco.

Transport Cusco to Ollantaytambo

You can easily book a taxi from Pavitos street, which is about 20 mint walk from Cusco main plaza.

Day 12 Ollantaytambo

After three days in Cusco I took a taxi to Ollantaytambo, you can easily book a taxi from Pavitos street, which is about 20 mint walk from Cusco main plaza. I made Ollantaytambo my base rather than Cusco to make my journey to Machu Picchu town (Aguas Calientes) easier as it is only 2 hour by train from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes). However Ollantaytambo is very small village but it quite nice and it worth spending few hours to explore it. I managed to go to the top of the Pinkuylluna mountain which has a very nice view, you can also visit the Archaeological Park in Ollantaytambo but I did not have time to visit it.

I stayed in Rumi Wasi Hospedaje hostel which I really likes because it was very traditional family own hostel, and its in Ollantaytambo center. Ollantaytambo center has only few shops in it and its about 15 mint walking from the train station. You can stay near the train station, as there are many hotel near by if you like but I prefer to stay in center. You can easily take a toc toc from the center to the train station, my train was at 5:00 am so I just tock a toc toc (small car) to the train station. Its cheap and they start work very early around 4:00 am.

Top things to do in Ollantaytambo 

  • Pinkuylluna mountain you can enter it for free
  • Archaeological Park in Ollantaytambo you have to pay fee (you can buy a general ticket which will allow you enter most site in Pure rather than pay each time)  

Accommodation in Ollantaytambo 

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
I stayed in Rumi Wasi Hospedaje hostel which I really likes because it was very traditional family own hostel, and its in Ollantaytambo center and its only about 15 minutes walk from the train station.  Click here for a list of the hostel in Ollantaytambo.

Transport Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu town (Aguas Calientes)

The main way to get to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) is by train. The two company that provide this service is PeruRail and IncaRail. See my Machu Picchu blog for the full details

Day 13 Machu Picchu 

Machu Picchu is a most do, and people normally use different route to get to Machu Picchu. Some travelers book 2 or 3 days hiking tour form cuscus or other surrounding area you can easily arrange for this from your hostel. However I took a taxi from Cusco to Ollantaytambo I spent the night in Ollantaytambo than I took the train at 5:00am from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes). Once arrive to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) I took a 20 minutes bus ride to the to the Machu Picchu entireness. I started by hiking to the top of Machu Picchu mountain which took about 5 hours, after that I want for a lunch break. Around 2:00 pm I started exploring the Machu Picchu city, then I left around 5:00pm back to the train station in Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) to catch my train back to Ollantaytambo where I spent than night their.

Top things to do in Machu Picchu

  • Machu Picchu mountain
  • Huayna Picchu mountain
  • Machu Picchu city
  • Short walk in Aguas Calientes

Accommodation in Machu Picchu 

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
I did not sleep Machu Picchu, however if you want to sleep in Machu Picchu, the only place you can stay in is Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes)  Click here for a list of the hostel inAguas Calientes.

Transport Machu Picchu town (Aguas Calientes) to Ollantaytambo

The main way to get in and out of Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) is by train. The two company that provide this service is PeruRail and IncaRail. See my Machu Picchu blog for the full details

Transport Ollantaytambo to Cusco

You can easily book a taxi from Ollantaytambo to Cusco, the trip will take around two hours.

Facts you need to know about Machu Picchu 

  • The main way to get to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) is by train. The two company that provide this service is PeruRail and IncaRail
  • The only way to book your Machu Picchu entrance ticket is through http://www.machupicchu.gob.pe/ or through arranged tour. Also their are three different types of tickets make sure you book the correct one.
  • Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) is the town where the foams Machu Picchu is.
  • Once you get to Machu Picchu town(Aguas Calientes) you need to take a 20 minutes bus to the Machu Picchu site entireness. Some people walk to the top but it take about 2 hour. The queues for the bus is very long, It could take up to two hours. so be their the earliest you can.
  • Once you inside Machu Picchu site. You have Machu Picchu city itself to explore, and you can hike the mountain Machu Picchu mountain or Huayna Picchu. Also you can go the sun gate
  • It take about 5 hours to go up and down to Machu Picchu mountain depend on how fit you are.
  • It take about 3 hour to see Machu Picchu city

Tip for visiting Machu Picchu  

  • I pre booked my train tickets and Machu Picchu entrance ticket about 4 weeks in advance online.
  • Take water and snacks with you
  • Sleep well the night before

Day 14 & 15 Puno

On day 14 I took 2 hours taxi ride from Ollantaytambo back to Cusco. I spent the day in Cusco, than I booked a 7 hours night bus from Cusco to Puno using CruzDelSur.

I arrived to Puno around 6:00 am. On arrival I I dropped my lodge at my hostel Inka’s Rest B&B and booked for full day tour from the same hostel to see Lake titicaca peruvian side. The tour guid picked me from my hostel around 8:00 am, so I had time to take a shower and have my breakfast. All I can say about Lake titicaca you most do the tour. I only did the one day tour which I think was enough but you also have the option of doing a two day tour where you sleeping over. I was back to to Puno in the evening, after break I meet few traveler in the hostel and we want out for meal. I also booked my bus for my next day adventure from my hosel. Early morning the next day around 5:00 am I was on the bus to cross the border to Bolivia.

Top things to do in Puno

  • Book a tour to see Lake titicaca peruvian side

 

Accommodation in Puno 

The most important thing to me is the location of my accommodation, therefore I always stay in a safe(just kidding) and a central location.
I stayed at Inka’s Rest B&B which was in a very good location and within a walking distance from the main area. The hostel is very good to meet other traveler and have a large common area, Also is quite at night so you can enjoy a good sleep. Click here for a list of the hostel in Puno.

Transport Cusco to Puno 

I booked a night bus from my hostel In Cusco to Puno using CruzDelSur. My bus left Cusco around 10:00pm and I was in Puno for 6:00am. Once arrived to Puno Bus station I booked a Toc Toc to my hostel.

Things you should buy before you go to Peru