The Perfect 7 Day Peru Itinerary
The clouds parting to reveal the mysterious Lost City of the Incas, Machu Picchu
In March we set out on one of our biggest adventures in a long time. It was our son’s first time to a new continent and my first trip to South America (6 of 7 continents now complete!). I’ve always been enthralled with Machu Picchu and the ancient civilizations of Latin America. I had been planning this trip for a while, since at least 2016. Peru was my plan for when we failed our final round of IVF but low and behold it was a success and now we got to take our little guy along for the ride. We had a limited number of days to work with over his spring break from school, but with some strategic planning we fit in so many amazing adventures. Peru is definitely one of best countries we’ve ever been. It has so many diverse landscapes, fantastic food, and wonderful people. This was a trip of a lifetime!
Just a warning this itinerary is not for someone who wants a lot of relaxation and down time. We were constantly on the go and traveling by car, boat, train, or plane most days! That being said I would not have cut a single thing out as it allowed us to see so much of this beautiful country. Ideally I would have added at least an extra day in each place if time would have allowed but now we just have many reasons for which to return again someday!
Causa rellena, a Peruvian layered potato dish that we enjoyed on our food tour in Lima
Day 1-2 - Lima - Hotel Antigua Miraflores - Exquisito Peru Lima Ultimate Food Tour - Choco Museo Mini Chocolate Workshop - Inca Market
Day 2-4 - Puerto Maldonado - Posada Amazonas Ecolodge on the Tambopata River in the Amazon Rainforest with Rainforest Expeditions
Day 4-7 - Cusco - Quintas San Blas by Ananay Hotels - Plaza de Armas - Peru Rail Vistadome Train - Aguas Calientes - Machu Picchu - Nature Hike with Llamas and Alpacas
*add an extra day for travel from and back to the United States on each end of the trip for 9 days in total
Sunset view from a canopy tower in the Amazon Rainforest
In future blog posts I’ll share more details of our experiences in the Amazon Rainforest and at Machu Picchu, but I wanted to mention a few other considerations to make if you are interested in following in our footsteps.
Air travel: I booked all of our international and domestic flights through LATAM Airlines. As with booking any flights, I did a lot of waiting and watching prices before finally pulling the trigger about 4.5 months ahead of our trip. We traveled during Holy Week which although isn’t during high tourist season, it can be a popular time for Peruvians to travel domestically so I wanted to make sure I had everything booked while there was still availability (the same goes for tickets to Machu Picchu!).
Staying in Lima: Unless you are a frequent traveler to Peru and are familiar with the city, the culture, and the language, I suggest looking for lodging in the the Miraflores or Barranco districts only as they are considered generally safe for tourists. That being said you always need to be aware and use common sense when traveling (or even in your own communities for that matter) to avoid being a victim of petty crimes and scams. Two other places I considered staying for our trip were Casa Port in Miraflores and Casa Republic Barranco.
Basic info:
Language - Spanish (84%), Quechua (13%), Aymara (2%)
Currency - Peruvian Nuevo Sol (PEN)
Taxi apps - Uber works fantastic in Lima
Tipping - around 10%
Vaccinations/prophylaxis: I’ll start by saying that although I am a medical professional these are NOT medical recommendations. This is just a quick jump start to get you familiar with what you may want to consider prior to traveling to Peru. I recommend visiting the CDC website ( https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel ), speaking to your primary care provider, or visiting a local travel clinic to help you make the best decisions for you and your health before your travel.
Typhoid
Yellow fever - not required to enter the country and not recommended for travel limited to Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, and the Inca Trail (consider for the Amazon Rainforest)
Malaria - not recommended for travel limited to Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, and the Inca Trail (consider for the Amazon Rainforest)
Altitude sickness - coca tea, soroche pills (like low dose excedrin migraine), or acetazolamide (a prescription you can obtain prior to travel)
Food tours: In my opinion a food tour is one of the best ways to start off your time in a new country. It’s such a great way to learn about the culture directly from the locals and get your bearings of the city. We did the Lima Ultimate Food Tour with Exquisito Peru which was a fantastic experience. It was a 4 hour walking tour where we explored the Barranco district while trying many fruits, chocolates, coffee, empanadas filled with aji de gallina, lomo saltado, anticuchos, ceviche, causa rellena, pisco sours, and ice cream. These were all full portions and we were stuffed by the end. This was also a very family friendly activity as our 6 year old thoroughly enjoyed it too! Another popular option is Lima Gourmet which offers both daytime and evening experiences as well as a cooking class.
Other things to do in Peru: There are so many things we just didn’t have the time to do so in case you are fortunate to have more time please consider some of these other sites and then of course let me know how amazing they are!
Lima - Plaza de Armas, Museo Larco, Callao Monumental, La Huaca Pucllana
Cusco - San Pedro Market, Sacred Valley tour, Colonial Aqueduct of Sapantiana Lake
Lake Titicaca
Arequipa (second largest city in Peru surrounded by volcanoes)
Huacachina (sand dunes - day trip from Lima)
Ballestas Islands (sea lions, seals, penguins - day trip from Lima)
Hike the Inca Trail (2 or 4 day trek to Machu Picchu - consider dry season May-Sept)
Colca Canyon
Nazca Lines
Rainbow Mountain
I hope you enjoyed this recap of our Peruvian adventure and that you get the opportunity to explore this beautiful place yourself someday! Visit my Instagram and Facebook pages to see more pictures and videos of our trip.
Hike with llamas and alpacas in Chinchero, a small town located about 40 km outside of Cusco
