PERU

ABOUT PERU

An ancient stronghold of the Incan Empire, housing a section of the Amazon rain forest, Peru stands tall and proud in South America. Peru is INFAMOUS for its world wonder -- Machu Picchu -- but there is so much more that this country has to offer. When I visited the summer of 2019, I had the incredible opportunity to see all three of these locations in depth, alongside the ancient city of the Inca, Cuzco. Peru has a lot to offer, take cooking or art classes in the heart of Cuzco, or explore the outskirts of the city on hikes or horseback riding (my personal favorite)! The night life is enjoyable and full of tango.

Check out some of my favorite adventures from Peru!

Travel Tips - Peru

Lodging

For my trip to Peru, I had the organization International Volunteer’s HQ, coordinate a host family stay for me. I absolutely LOVED staying with my host family. You get to learn an entirely different side of the culture in which you are immersed. I shared a room with several other volunteers near the heart of Cusco. If you are not looking to volunteer in Peru, I would recommend booking through Expedia or looking at Hostelworld.

Transportation

Similarly, since I traveled with International Volunteer’s HQ, the organization arranged all of my transportation which was incredible! Otherwise, there are countless buses you can arrange, and I did most of my commuting with Uber.

Activities

There is no shortage of incredible things to do in Peru but here are some of our favorites:

Visit the infamous World Wonder of Machu Picchu
Explore the wondrous Lake Titicaca
Hike up the 14er Lake Humantay

THINGS TO DO

Visit the infamous Machu Picchu

Explore the wondrous Lake Titicaca

Hike up the 14er Lake Humantay

Trip Highlights

Machu Picchu

One of the UNESCO's world heritage sites, Machu Picchu stands at 7,972 feet deep in the Andes of Peru. I took a bus early in the morning from Aguas Calientes so that by the time the sun broke the horizon, we were at the foot of Machu Picchu. After a short winding hike through dense foliage, the trail breaks out to a hillside overlooking Machu Picchu. Walking through the ruins was a remarkable experience, with a guide to navigate the Incan history along the way certainly made this excursion a must do if you ever visit Cuzco or the surrounding cities.

You can get tickets here.

Lake Titicaca

Located in Puno, Lake Titicaca borders Bolivia to the east and Peru to the west. This lake is infamous for their floating islands, which are made out of bundled totora reeds. I had the opportunity to visit several of these islas, where my tour group and I were able to visit one of the families in this island community and see the inside of their homes. I would HIGHLY recommend taking a tour to these islands for a different experience other than the ancient ruins that Peru offers.

Here are some options for tours from Cusco.