The Ultimate 10 Day Peru Itinerary

3 months ago 46

Who says question to astonishing places, specified arsenic Peru, is lone for the radical that are consenting to discontinue their jobs conscionable to get the time?

Contrary to what you mightiness think, you don’t request to discontinue your 9 to 5 to spot Peru, and it’s imaginable to spot the highlights successful conscionable 10 days.

We recognize the situation of lone having a fewer abrogation days successful a year, and we’re present to assistance you find a mode to marque it work.

In this guide, we person shared the eventual 10 time Peru itinerary for those who lone person a abbreviated abrogation clip and privation to get the astir retired of their trip.

Table Of Contents

At A Glance: Our Peru Itinerary For 10 Days

woman posing with arms outstretched successful beforehand of Machu Picchu

For those who are abbreviated connected time, present is simply a unsmooth overview of our 10-day Peru itinerary. This should springiness you an thought of what to spot and expect.

Day 1 – Arrive successful Lima. This time volition beryllium astir recovering from the formation and relaxing.
Day 2 – Explore Lima, including unfastened apical autobus circuit of the metropolis sights.
Day 3 – Catch an aboriginal formation to Puerto Maldonado. This is the archetypal time of a 4 time escapade with Wasai. Spend the evening walking the streets and relaxing by the Madre de Dios River.
Day 4 – Wake up astatine 4am to spot a Parrot clay lick, past precocious greeting instrumentality a 4 hr vessel thrust to the Wasai Tambopata Eco lodge where you volition travel heavy successful the Amazon Rainforest.
Day 5 – Spend successful the Amazon. See the Macaw clay lick, hiking and kayaking.
Day 6 – Spend successful the Amazon. Go zip lining, histrion climbing and hiking.
Day 7 – Catch an aboriginal vessel thrust backmost to Puerto Maldonado and drawback an day formation to Cusco. Spent the remainder of the time exploring Cusco and adjusting to the altitude.
Day 8 – Tour of the Sacred Valley including the Pisaq Market, hiking the Sacred Valley and Ollantaytambo. Catch a precocious day bid thrust from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes.
Day 9 – Visit Machu Picchu! Late evening, instrumentality to Cusco.
Day 10 – Catch a greeting formation to Lima, spent the time astatine 1 of the parks, and depart location successful the evening.

10 Day Peru Itinerary

Now let’s dive into the 10-day itinerary successful afloat detail.

Day 1 & 2: Lima

When searching for flights to Peru, you volition apt alert into the superior metropolis of Lima arriving precocious astatine night.

This metropolis is simply a vibrant, engaged and crowded superior and I wouldn’t program connected excessively galore days here.

If you program your precise archetypal time successful Lima, you volition person plentifulness of clip to drawback up connected immoderate slumber from your precocious accomplishment the nighttime earlier and deed the highlights of the city.

From Lima, you tin scope the Nazca Lines, Ballestas Islands and Huacachina Sand Dunes by bus.

Nazca Lines: These are intriguing past geoglyphs etched into the godforsaken level of confederate Peru, depicting assorted animals, plants, and geometric shapes, believed to person been created betwixt 500 BCE and 500 CE.
Ballestas Islands: Also known arsenic the “Poor Man’s Galapagos,” these islands disconnected the seashore of Peru are a haven for divers marine wildlife, including oversea lions, penguins, and galore vertebrate species, offering fantastic opportunities for wildlife reflection and photography.
Huacachina Sand Dunes: A stunning godforsaken oasis adjacent the metropolis of Ica successful Peru, surrounded by towering soil dunes that pull thrill-seekers for adrenaline-pumping activities specified arsenic dune buggying and sandboarding.

To sojourn these areas you request to program a minimum of 2 days with an overnight, which would mean skipping Lima disconnected your itinerary, but it truly depends connected what you similar to do.

A time travel to the Nazca lines tin beryllium done if you are truly abbreviated connected clip and can’t unrecorded without them. It volition beryllium a agelong day.

It isn’t feasible to harvester Ballestas Islands and Huacachina with the Nazca Lines connected a time trip, truthful you volition request to take which of these time trips dependable much enticing to you.

Tour Ideas:

Day 3: Puerto Maldonado

After your clip successful Lima, you’ll privation to caput to the adjacent destination. For us, it was Puerto Maldonado to spend 4 days successful the Amazon Rainforest.

The formation clip from Lima to Puerto Maldonado is lone 1 hr and 40 minutes, truthful if you drawback an aboriginal formation you person plentifulness of clip to research Puerto Maldonado successful the afternoon.

We wanted to sojourn the Amazon Rainforest for 4 days, but you tin opt for 3 days and 2 nighttime options, which springiness you an other time successful your itinerary.

If you determine to walk little clip successful the Amazon, you could caput to either Lake Titicaca, 1 of the largest lakes successful South America and the highest navigable assemblage of water, oregon Colca Canyon, the deepest canyon successful the satellite known for its trekking.

It truly depends connected what you privation to spot and do.

Day 4-6: Amazon Rainforest

macaws connected histrion successful a forest

We chose to instrumentality a transformative four-day Amazon escapade with the Wasai Tambopata Lodge successful Peru, which takes you into the bosom of the world’s largest rainforest, The Amazon.

This immersive acquisition offers a harmonious blend of eco-tourism, wildlife observation, and taste exploration.

The itinerary included trekking done the lush jungle trails, visiting the largest Macaw’s clay lick, camping successful the Bahuaja Sonene National Park, and embarking connected a motorboat travel up the Tambopata River, arsenic good arsenic sitting astir Lake Sandoval.

Amazon Basin Jungle, Suspended span betwixt 2 large trees,

Throughout the acquisition we were surrounded by the divers flora and fauna of the Amazon portion besides enjoying the comfortableness and hospitality of the beauteous Wasai Amazon Lodges, which were small eco-friendly treehouses.

Of course, determination are galore Amazon tours from Puerto Maldonado, but we urge you publication 1 successful beforehand to debar disappointment arsenic they are rather popular.

Check retired this 3 time / 2 nighttime circuit of the Amazon from Puerto Maldonado here.

Day 7: Puerto Maldonado to Cusco

Aerial presumption of streets and houses successful Cusco city, Peru.

After spending clip successful the Amazon, caput backmost to Puerto Maldonado and drawback a formation to Cusco. The formation clip is little than 1 hour, but bash effort to drawback an aboriginal formation truthful you tin walk clip relaxing successful Cusco and adjusting to the altitude.

If you usually unrecorded astatine oversea level, you’re going to request to instrumentality it easy. Cusco sits astatine 3,399 meters supra oversea level, and altitude sickness is not uncommon here.

Day 8: Sacred Valley, Pisac, and Ollantaytambo

Spend the time exploring Peru’s Sacred Valley of the Incas, wherever past past and beauteous landscapes converge. The thrust retired to the Sacred Valley is astir astir 1.5 hours from Cusco, truthful you tin easy acceptable each these attractions into 1 day.

We started our time by exploring the Pisaq Market, a bustling hub of section crafts, textiles, and produce, wherever we picked up immoderate souvenirs and learned astir the traditions of the Andean people.

While successful Pisac, rotation done the intricate Pisaq ruins, an archeological tract that erstwhile belonged to the Inca assemblage and was built successful 1440. The Inca ruins are accessible by a steep hike from town, but it lone takes astir 90 minutes.

Afterwards, caput to the awe-inspiring Ollantaytambo, different past colony successful the Sacred Valley, wherever imposing terraces and chromatic structures basal arsenic a testament to the ingenuity of Incan engineering.

After each that exploring, instrumentality immoderate clip to soak successful the breathtaking vistas of the Sacred Valley, wherever emerald fields and jagged peaks make a beauteous backdrop.

Check retired this full-day guided circuit of Pisac, Ollantaytambo and The Sacred Valley from Cusco.

Day 9: Machu Picchu

Perhaps the astir important tract to spot connected immoderate travel to Peru is Machu Picchu, 1 of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Most radical opt to sojourn Machu Picchu by 1 of the treks, astir famously the Inca Trail oregon the Salkantay Trail. Both of these treks instrumentality betwixt 5 and 10 days, truthful you don’t person clip to bash these celebrated treks, but you tin opt for a 2 day, 1 nighttime hike if you’re timing allows.

Alternatively, instrumentality a full-day circuit from Cusco. You utilized to beryllium lone capable to sojourn with a guide, but they changed the instrumentality and you tin spell without a usher and conscionable bargain the entranceway ticket.

However, we highly urge you get a usher truthful you person idiosyncratic determination to archer you what you’re looking at.

Macchu Picchu tours

Day 10: Lima and Home

sculpture connected h2o astatine lima park

On the last day, alert backmost to Lima earlier catching your formation home. If you person clip betwixt flights, you tin permission your luggage astatine a locker astatine the airdrome and research much of Lima earlier you leave.

Or you could simply beryllium successful a barroom astatine the airdrome and bask immoderate past Pisco Sours earlier your agelong travel home.

Tips for Planning A Peru 10 Day Itinerary

The champion mode to program Peru question is to make a database of attractions, oregon bucket database items, that you privation to see, and program outwards from there.

Your items correspond the things you are not consenting to miss connected during your Peru trip. It’s not imaginable to spot everything successful 10 days successful Peru, truthful identifying your Peru must-sees is precise important successful the readying process.

Some attractions that radical often enactment connected their bucket database are:

Lima
Nazca Lines
Lake Titicaca and the Floating Islands
Machu Picchu
Sacred Valley
Cusco
Amazon Rainforest
Colca Canyon
Ballestas Islands
Rainbow Mountains
Arequipa
Chinchero, Moray, and Maras Salt Mines
Uros Islands
Urubamba River
and Huacachina Sand Dunes.

The Sacred Valley and the Inca ruins of Pisac

My biggest portion of proposal is to judge that you can’t spot it each and trying to WILL pb to a rushed, unpleasant question to Peru.

Some different things to support successful caput portion planning:

What clip of twelvemonth are you going? Remember that Peru is the Southern Hemisphere, and the champion clip to sojourn is during the wintertime (May – September) which is the adust play successful Peru.
What volition the upwind beryllium like? The rainy play successful Peru is December until March, and erstwhile it rains, it rains.
Should you program for altitude adjustment? If you haven’t been implicit 2,500 meters before, hole for altitude sickness and bring due meds, conscionable successful case.

Getting Around Peru

Due to your constricted fig of days, flying becomes your astir logical option. The lone objection is taking the autobus to sojourn to the Nazca lines, Ballestas Islands and Huacachina Sand Dunes.

Bus rides are disposable passim Peru that volition get you to and from Cuzco, Lake Titicaca and Colca Canyon but they instrumentality galore hours, deliberation 30+, owed to the terrain. Those beauteous mountains you came to spot marque transverse state question hard and slow.

With lone 10 days successful Peru, that leaves flying arsenic your champion option.

Luckily, Peru operates a fewer antithetic airlines wrong the state that you tin prime up for inexpensive prices if you program ahead. The 3 airlines to hunt are:

Star Peru
TACA
LAN

We utilized Star Peru for each of our inter-country flights which included: Lima-Puerto Maldonado, Puerto Maldonado-Cuzco and Cuzco-Lima.

When we arrived successful each caller spot we utilized the section transportation. Taxis successful Lima and Cuzco, Tuk Tuk’s successful Puerto Maldonado and enactment galore miles connected our feet.

Local prices are beauteous tenable and casual to find portion you are retired and about. If we needed to get from a large spot similar the airdrome to the metropolis center, we hailed a taxi but if we wanted to spot different tract nearby, we walked.

HOT TIP: Do not effort to publication tickets that are designated for Peruvians lone – it volition beryllium tempting arsenic they are importantly cheaper – but they volition not grant your summons astatine the airdrome during cheque in.

Guided Tour of Peru

If you don’t privation to question Peru independently, determination are radical circuit companies that connection large deals and itineraries connected Peru escorted tours.

See avalaible Peru tours connected Globus, and Cosmos and usage our peculiar discount below.

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Where to Stay successful Peru

small colony of Aguas calientese connected stream successful jungle

With lone 10 days successful Peru, choosing your accommodation’s determination is truly important.

You privation to marque definite you are successful the heavy of things and adjacent to the main attractions to maximize your days.

This unsocial volition assistance you to not consciousness rushed and contempt what you whitethorn perceive from people, it is imaginable to find reasonably priced accommodation successful the main areas of each metropolis successful Peru.

Speaking from our experience, I would urge the pursuing places to enactment successful Peru (all backstage rooms with bath):

Lima: Miraflores is simply a cleanable country with galore attractions. You tin get a country astatine a guesthouse oregon hostel for astir $20 per night.

Puerto Maldonado: We stayed astatine a spot adjacent the Madre de Dios arsenic portion of the escapade bundle we booked for the Amazon. However, we researched galore autarkic hostels that were successful bully locations, adjacent the stream for astir $10-$25 per night.

Cusco: We stayed astatine the Hostal Inti Wasi and the determination was amazing. We were close adjacent to the Plaza de Armas. You volition beryllium successful the bosom of Cusco if you enactment here, wrong casual walking region to galore shops, nutrient and sights. They besides stored our excess worldly erstwhile we went to Machu Picchu. Cost was $35 per night.

Aguas Calientes: This small municipality is loaded with places to enactment connected immoderate budget. You are astatine the ft of Machu Picchu and that comes with a price. We ended up astatine a tiny edifice adjacent the bid presumption for $50 per night. Your different enactment is hiking the Inca Trail. You would person clip to bash the 2 time / 1 nighttime hiking tour, which includes lodging erstwhile you book.

What Does it Cost to Travel successful Peru?

Turquoise Llanganuco water successful Cordillera Blanca astatine sunny day, snowcapped Andes, Ancash, Peru

How overmuch you walk connected your 10-day travel to Peru volition mostly beryllium connected however overmuch you are consenting to skimp connected luxuries. Everyone has antithetic tastes, but you tin prevention drastically by foregoing bully hotels and choosing a hostel furniture instead.

Our fund was $4,000 USD full for 2 radical implicit 10 days. You could easy bash it successful $1,000 USD per person, if you publication cheaper accommodation and take buses implicit flights – though you won’t beryllium capable to acceptable successful arsenic overmuch into your itinerary this way.

To assistance you estimation your costs, we spent:

$1,020 getting to Peru
$700 connected inter-country flights
$115 connected 4 nights of accommodation
$1,279 connected tours that included 4 nights of accommodation
We spent our past nighttime successful the airdrome and erstwhile it was each said and done, we came location with $500
Our full spent was $3500, $1750 per person.

Final Thoughts

Cute and chic alpacas adjacent up, Ancash peruvian Andes

So determination you person it, this is however you tin walk 10 days successful Peru. As you tin see, you tin inactive tick disconnected a batch of bucket database items connected this itinerary, adjacent if you bash request to marque immoderate sacrifices.

Of course, you tin alteration things retired to however you spot fit. We emotion quality and wildlife, truthful we opted to walk much clip successful the Amazon, but you whitethorn determine to walk little clip successful the Amazon to sojourn much places.

We anticipation this usher helped you program your itinerary and gave you immoderate inspiration for wherefore you should sojourn Peru for 10 days.

Bio: Lina from Divergent Travelers has been traveling for 12+ years, solo and with her spouse David, portion moving afloat time. They person visited 31 countries and are hoping their stories volition not lone animate those of you that are reasoning astir the jump, but besides go a spot you tin sojourn for enactment and accusation successful readying and realizing your dreams! You tin travel their adventures connected their blog and connected societal media with Facebook and Twitter.