14 Days in Peru

This two-week route follows Peru’s classic southern loop from the Pacific desert up to the high Andes, suited to backpackers on a first big trip who like variety and a social hostel scene. The pace is moderate: one overnight bus, a two-day canyon hike and several rest-friendly stops in between. You’ll travel by long-distance bus, a tour transfer between Colca Canyon and Puno, local boats on the coast and on Lake Titicaca, and the train to Aguas Calientes.

Days 1-2: Lima

Recover from your flight in Miraflores or Barranco and give Lima two easy days. The Larco Museum in Pueblo Libre holds thousands of pre-Columbian ceramics, open storerooms included, in a mansion with bougainvillea-covered gardens. In Miraflores, Huaca Pucllana rises in layers of hand-made adobe bricks in the middle of apartment blocks, and the site restaurant makes a good dinner splurge with the pyramid lit up beside you.

Days 3-5: Paracas and Huacachina

A 3.5 to 4 hour bus south puts you in Paracas, a small bay town of fishing … read more 👉

This two-week route follows Peru’s classic southern loop from the Pacific desert up to the high Andes, suited to backpackers on a first big trip who like variety and a social hostel scene. The pace is moderate: one overnight bus, a two-day canyon hike and several rest-friendly stops in between. You’ll travel by long-distance bus, a tour transfer between Colca Canyon and Puno, local boats on the coast and on Lake Titicaca, and the train to Aguas Calientes.

Days 1-2: Lima

Recover from your flight in Miraflores or Barranco and give Lima two easy days. The Larco Museum in Pueblo Libre holds thousands of pre-Columbian ceramics, open storerooms included, in a mansion with bougainvillea-covered gardens. In Miraflores, Huaca Pucllana rises in layers of hand-made adobe bricks in the middle of apartment blocks, and the site restaurant makes a good dinner splurge with the pyramid lit up beside you.

Days 3-5: Paracas and Huacachina

A 3.5 to 4 hour bus south puts you in Paracas, a small bay town of fishing boats and seafood shacks. Spend the afternoon in the Paracas National Reserve, where the desert ends at red cliffs and the maroon sand of Playa Roja. The next morning, take the two-hour boat trip to the Islas Ballestas to see sea lions, Humboldt penguins and guano-covered rocks crowded with birds, passing the giant Candelabro figure etched into a hillside. Continue an hour inland to Huacachina, a lagoon ringed by sand dunes, for a sunset dune buggy and sandboarding run, then take the night bus to Arequipa on day five.

Days 6-7: Arequipa

The overnight ride takes 12 to 13 hours, so treat day six as a slow one. Arequipa is built from white volcanic sillar stone under the cone of El Misti, and at 2,335 meters it starts your altitude adjustment. The Monasterio de Santa Catalina de Siena, a walled convent town with lanes painted in blue and terracotta, is worth two unhurried hours, and the San Camilo market is the place for a cheap lunch and fresh fruit juices.

Days 8-9: Colca Canyon

Head into Colca Canyon on a two-day trek, either with a budget group or on your own from Cabanaconde. Stop at the Cruz del Cóndor viewpoint for the morning thermals, then drop roughly 1,100 meters to the palm-shaded Sangalle oasis for a night by the pools. Climb out at dawn and take the tourist transfer from Chivay over the high puna to Puno, passing vicuñas and flamingo lagoons.

Days 10-11: Puno and Lake Titicaca

After the long transfer, Puno at 3,830 meters is a place to slow down. Give one full day to Lake Titicaca, combining the reed islands of the Uros with Taquile, where the men knit their own hats. Keep the second evening free before the 6 to 7 hour bus to Cusco.

Days 12-14: Cusco and Machu Picchu

Cusco will feel easy after Puno’s altitude. Walk up to Sacsayhuamán Archaeological Park for the zigzag walls and a city view, then take the train to Aguas Calientes on day thirteen. Ride the first shuttle bus to Machu Picchu on day fourteen and return to Cusco by train for your flight home.

On the way out of the Colca Canyon, ask your transfer to stop at Sibayo, a stone-and-thatch village by the Colca River that most tours drive straight past.