5 of the Most Incredible Places to Travel to in Peru
Home to one of the world’s seven wonders, an abundance of llamas, colourful clothes and a rich culture and heritage. Peru has long been a tourist destination, and it continues to attract travellers from all walks of life and budgets from every corner of the globe. Peru travel truly is a magical experience.
It is such a beautiful, intriguing and colurful country. However, if you’re a traveller looking to get off the beaten track, then be warned, you will be sharing your experiences with thousands of other backpackers looking to experience a little of what the South American country has to offer. Long gone are the days of enjoying Peru in solitude. However, depending on which way you look at it this can all add to the experience!
When planning your Peru travel there are so many incredible places to see that it can make it hard to choose a route. Here are our top 5 spots to not miss out on!
Travelling around South America? Don’t miss How to Spend 3 Weeks in Brazil!
Visit Macchu Picchu
Located high in the Andes Mountains, Machu Picchu is a breathtaking site filled with terraces, temples, and dwellings carved into the landscape centuries ago. As one of the New Seven Wonders of the World!
How to get to and from Macchu Picchu?
Situated in the town Aguas Calientes, around 73km from the city of Cusco. There are multiple different ways to get to the historic city, some easier than others, these include:
Hiking the Inca trail
A glimpse at how the inhabitants would have got there hundreds of years ago. This 5-day hike takes you through some incredible places along the way, ending in Machu Picchu.
Take the train to Machu Picchu
The easiest and most luxurious way. The journey takes approx 2hrs as well as a 1.5-hour bus journey to and from Cusco to the train station. The train journey is beautiful and takes you right through the rolling hills alongside Machu Picchu. You can opt to go with either Peru Rail, Inca Rail or Hiram Bingham for a truly luxurious experience.
Take a bus to Machu Picchu
The budget option of a bus takes 6 hours and drops you where the last road ends before Aguas Calientes, from here hike for 3 hours alongside the train line.
Take the shuttle bus to Machu Picchu or hike
Once you are in Aguas Calientes you can either opt to hike up the many stairs to Machu Picchu, taking around 1.5 hours or get a bus up and/ or down. The bus costs $12 each way and can be brought in either Aguas Calientes or Machu Picchu.
You can opt to plan all of this yourself or book a tour. We booked a bus tour, which included our transportation, accommodation, lunch and dinner, entrance to Machu Picchu and a guide (which is mandatory to visit the Inca city). The tour costs $120 per person. However, after a few early mornings and a busy few weeks coming up during our Peru travel trip, we opted to pay for the train down with Inca Rail which cost an additional $65 each but was well worth it in our eyes.
An absolute bucket list destination. Machu Picchu is one of those places that we’ve seen thousands of photos of and yet those first glimpses still took our breath away.
You can read all about our trip to Machu Picchu here.
Hike up Rainbow Mountain
A relatively short journey outside the city of Cusco is Rainbow Mountain. The city’s second most popular tourist attraction and an incredibly unique spot. You have probably already seen tons of photos when searching Peru travel. Sitting at 5200 feet, Rainbow Mountain was only discovered in 2015 due to the ice that had been covering it, melting. Formed from layers of gold, lavender, red and turquoise it really is an amazing, unique thing to witness.
We visited here on a day trip from Cusco and hiked up to the view of the mountain. The hike up is hard, the combination of the altitude and the steep ascent means you have to take lots of breaks. But, the view at the top is so so worth it and one not to be missed when travelling Peru.
We visited here with Salkantay Trekking who were incredible. We had an extremely informative guide plus all of the extras you would expect from a super high-quality tour.
Rainbow Mountain is just one of the incredible day trips that you can do from Cusco. Cusco is an incredible city to visit and a great base for seeing the surrounding sights. If you’re looking for an amazing place to stay in Cusco then Viajero Kokopelli Hostel Cusco is a great option.
Planning on including Rainbow Mountain in your Peru travel route? You can read all about our trip here.
Marvel at the incredible Lake Titicaca
At 12,500 feet (3,810 metres) above sea level, Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world. Set in the Andes Mountains of South America, covering the border between Peru to the West and Bolivia to the East. It’s also home to some unique wildlife and several islands that have been home to communities for thousands of years. The unique thing about these islands? The islands are made of reeds! The man-made floating islands are home to the indigenous Uros people. They are created by stacking layers upon layers of totora roots and reeds.
Whilst here we did a boat trip which took us around the floating islands and to explore the little town of Puno. We spent 2 nights here which was plenty of time to experience the amazing Lake Titicaca whilst travelling around Peru.
Explore Huacachina Oasis
A hidden oasis in the middle of the desert? After seeing countless pictures on Pinterest, bucket list articles and other blogs, we couldn’t wait to visit Huacachina and for us, it did not disappoint. To one side of the oasis lies the city of Ica but, look the other way, and all you will see is an endless golden desert. There are plenty of activities that you can do here, however, after a hectic few days full of early starts and hiking in high altitude we decided to enjoy the tiny town from the pleasure of our sun loungers.
We stayed at Ecocamp which was amazing. A small peaceful sanctuary in the middle of Peru, which compared to a lot of the hostels and options of accommodation was actually something quite unusual. If you’re looking for something a bit more lively or ideal for a solo traveller then Hostel World also has tons of great options.
Of course, we couldn’t miss out on the incredible views over the desert. So, on our second to last evening took ourselves up to the top of the sand dune and enjoyed an incredibly beautiful sunset. Just be warned, the hike may look easy however, it is anything but! Sand will go EVERYWHERE and with every step, you take your foot will sink further and further into the sand. Making each tiny movement feel like a huge hike up. That aside, the view and experience were magical and simply cannot be missed when planning your Peru travel or trip to Huacachina.
Travel around Paracas National Park
A short bus journey from Ica (home to Huacachina) is the town of Paracas a coastal town on Perus West Coast and home to the stunning Paracas National Reserve. An incredible area where the desert meets the dramatic coastline. It’s home to some of Peru’s best beaches, the Ballestas Islands and possibly the most famous spot; Playa Roja. A dramatic cliff edge tinted with a gorgeous red.
We stayed two nights and managed to fit in a boat trip around the islands where we saw penguins and sea lions plus, a trip around the national reserve a beautiful spot to stop off at if you’re in Peru and planning some Peru travel.
Peru is a country packed full of adventure and is just waiting to be explored! From ancient ruins like Machu Picchu perched high in the Andes Mountains, Lake Titicaca with its unique wildlife and islands. To vibrant cities like Cusco overflowing with culture and history. Huacachina Oasis with its tranquil oasis surrounded by sand dunes and finally exploring one of Earth’s most beautiful ecosystems. To exploring deep within Amazonian Rainforest – there really is something incredible for everyone! You could honestly easily spend 2 weeks here or 2 months and still not even scrape the surface. So, what are you waiting for? The amazing South American country of Peru is just waiting to be explored!
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