Peru Vacations 2024 & 2025 - Tailor-Made from Audley Travel US (2024)

In Peru you should try ceviche (fish marinated in lemon juice and hot peppers), causa (potato casserole), and lomo saltodo (stir-fried beef). Seafood is popular in coastal areas, and in the highlands most dishes are based around corn and potatoes. Cuy (roasted guinea pig) is an Altiplano delicacy.

In the highlands, you might also be offered tea made from an infusion of coca leaves, which can help alleviate the effects of altitude sickness, while Peru’s most renowned drink is pisco, a white grape brandy.

In Peru, you can explore the lost city of Machu Picchu, visit the floating islands on Lake Titicaca, watch condors soar over the Colca Canyon, or venture into the Amazon.Although Machu Picchu is the most renowned of Peru’s archeological sites, the country is littered with the remains of other ancient cultures including walled citadels, pyramids of the Lambayeque people, and the gold-laden tombs of the Moche culture.

If you’d prefer something more active, you can go white-water raftingdown canyons, mountain bikingin the Sacred Valley, or take a trip into the Peruvian Amazon to canoe along waterways to the soundtrack of monkeys’ howls and whoops.In the towns and cities, you can visit traditional markets, explore Inca temples and Catholic convents, and get an insight into Peru’s rich culture and history in museums covering everything from Inca gold to the works of contemporary Peruvian photographer Mario Testino.

Peru offers a wide range of places to stay from sleek, modern hotels to historic townhouses and rustic lodges. You’ll find a choice of historic properties in the cities and you could choose to relax in the quiet cloister of a restored conventor 16th-century manor housein Cuzco.

In more rural destinations you’ll find options such as this sophisticated hotel and spain the Sacred Valley, private casitas with a plunge poolin the Colca Canyon, or a luxury lodgeon Lake Titicaca. In the Amazon, places to stay are generally simpler with thatched stilted cabinsor a trip on an Amazon river cruisea possibility.

For some more ideas, browse our collection of places to stay in Peru.

Peru’s key highlights include Machu Picchu, the Colca Canyon, Lake Titicaca, and Cuzco. The country’s star attraction is the abandoned city of Machu Picchu, which perches on a high mountain surrounded by lush peaks. It’s a formidable sight, but extremely popular and we recommend complimenting your visit with less-visited Inca sites in the Sacred Valley.

You’ll find more Inca treasures in the imperial capital of Cuzco, while Arequipahas a swathe of Baroque cathedrals and convents. Tranquil Lake Titicacais cradled by mountains and home to traditional communities, while the drama of the Colca Canyonis matched by the soaring condors overhead. Hot, humid, and verdant, Peru’s southern Amazonis the place to canoe down river and spot scarlet macaws, tapirs, and capybaras.

Along with the Inca Trail, Peru has a variety of other rewarding treks through the Andes. The Inca Trail, a four-day hike through the mountains to the lost city of Machu Picchu, is the most popular route in the country.

Alternatively, you could head through lush forest to the Gocta Waterfalls in northern Peru, take on a multi-day hike through a landscape of highland lakes and snow-capped passes on the Salkantay trek, or the five-day Ausangate circuit through untouched highlands to the Rainbow Mountain. For more information and ideas, take a look at our guide to trekking in Peru.

The best way to get around in Peru is by road or rail. Peru’s scenery is dramatic and within a day’s drive you could travel from the coastal desert through the snow-capped Andes and down into the jungle.

We can arrange a private driver and guide to take you between destinations or you could travel by train on some classic routes through the country such as the spectacular Andean Explorer. Internal flights are also an option for longer distances.

US citizens don’t need a visa to visit Peru for stays of up to 90 days, however you’ll need to show evidence of return or onward travel.

Citizens of other countries should check their visa requirements. We recommend using our partner Visa Central.

You’ll need a reasonable level of fitness to hike the Inca Trail. Although the trail itself is not too challenging, and you can hire porters to carry your bag, the altitude makes the hike feel tougher than it would at sea level.

The most popular route covers 43 km (27 miles) over four days, and you can expect to be walking for about six hours each day. If you exercise regularly or are a regular walker and leave yourself a few days to acclimatize before attempting the hike, you should be fine on the trail.