PERU
Peru
is a country in South America that encompasses a section of the Amazon forest
and Machu Picchu, an ancient Inca city high in the Andes. The region around
Machu Picchu, including the Sacred Valley, the Inca Trail, and the colonial
city of Cuzco, is rich in archaeological sites. On the arid Pacific coast of
Peru is Lima, the capital, with a preserved colonial center and important
collections of pre-Columbian art.
There
are many essential places to see in Peru, beyond the wonderful Machu Picchu,
although we cannot deny that this, by itself, already justifies a trip to one
of our favorite countries. Peru is one of the most popular trips in South
America, in which we will find Inca ruins, historical cities, the wild nature
of the Amazon, incredible landscapes of valleys, deserts and beaches, along
with one of the best gastronomies in the world, with ceviche as star dish,
which will make this trip exceed all your expectations.
Here
are the places you should visit if your destination is Peru
1.
Machu Picchu
Machu
Picchu, the lost city of the Incas and one of the seven wonders of the world,
is the most essential place to visit in Peru. This ancient Inca citadel
remained for centuries hidden among the mountains and thick vegetation, until
it was discovered by the American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911.
Machu
Picchu is located about 130 kilometers from Cusco, above 2,500 meters of
altitude between the peaks Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu, two magnificent
viewpoints of the ruins, to which you can climb, taking out the corresponding
entrance next to the ruins.
The
most mystical and spectacular way to get there is by doing the Inca trail,
traveling the more than 40 kilometers that in 4 days, through incredible paths
and steps of ancient stones, lush forests, valleys and mountains wrapped in
dense fog, will take us even the dream of many travelers.
Cuzco,
declared a World Heritage Site, is one of the most beautiful cities in America
and our favorite in Peru. This ancient capital of the Inca Empire preserves
very few buildings from this time, although in some of the colonial buildings
you can see Inca remains on its walls, such as the twelve-angle stone.
The
Plaza de Armas is the epicenter of the city, in which its cathedral stands out,
a place chosen by many inhabitants to spend a few hours in the afternoon,
enjoying the life of Cuzco.
Other
of the great attractions of the city are strolling through the beautiful
artisan neighborhood of San Blas, getting lost in the San Pedro market, seeing
the Inca remains of the Temple of the Moon or entering the Santo Domingo Convent,
built on the Temple of the sun.
3.
Iquitos
One
of the most important decisions, depending on the days available, is to include
or not the Peruvian Amazon in the trip and enter the jungle from Iquitos or
Puerto Maldonado.
After
the experience, we have no doubts, we recommend reserving between 3 and 5 days
to visit the Amazon, one of the most essential places to visit in Peru and
whenever possible, both for days and for budget, to do it in the area from
Iquitos.
Puerto
Maldonado is more accessible and cheaper than Iquitos, although over time it
has become a tourist attraction that can distort the true image of the immense
and wild Amazon.
Iquitos
can only be reached by boat or by plane from Lima, so being more isolated will
allow you to experience the most authentic Amazon, although as we mentioned
before, the price is more expensive.
4.
Lake Titicaca
Lake
Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, is located very close to the
city of Puno at 3,800 meters of altitude. This immense lake, in which its calm
blue waters blend into the sky, is one of the most essential places to see in
Peru.
To
tour the lake and visit the islands of Uros and Taquile from Puno you can take
a boat in the port, from where just over 5 kilometers from the pier you will
find the Island of Iros, built with totora, a typical aquatic plant of the
area.
The
houses and most of the items are made of this plant, and you can even sail on a
reed boat and although we generally found it a very touristy visit, we believe
that it is worth knowing its history and if you have time, it is a visit that
must be made in this area of the country.
Just
under 4 hours by bus from Lima is the Paracas National Reserve, located next to
the Peruvian coast and another of the best places to see in Peru. This national
reserve forms a unique ecosystem in the world, which combines a desert area
with a great marine diversity due to the great abundance of food in the form of
plankton.
It
is advisable to visit this protected natural area with a guide, especially so
as not to miss places such as the red beach, fossil deposits, the fauna and the
archaeological remains of the ancient Paracas Culture, explained by an expert,
which will bring you much closer to the history of this area of the country.
Very
close to Paracas there is another of the places to visit in Peru, the Ballestas
Islands, small rocky islands that on excursions are surrounded by small boats
that leave from the Paracas pier to see its large number of birds, the colony
of Humboldt penguins and sea lions.
6.
Arequipa
Arequipa,
known as the white city and built above 2,000 meters of altitude, in the desert
mountains of the Andes, is together with Cuzco, one of the most beautiful
cities in Peru, dominated by volcanic stone houses blanca, which together with
the historic center were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
7.
Oasis of Huacachina
Located
about 5 kilometers from the city of Ica, is the photogenic Oasis of Huacachina,
another of the places that enter all routes through the country and that is on
the list of the essentials to visit in Peru.
This
oasis located in the middle of the coastal desert, with emerald green waters
and surrounded by palm trees, is one of the few natural oases left in all of
America.
The
oasis has a hotel infrastructure to spend the night and many leisure activities
such as a buggy ride through the desert, practicing sandboarding from its high
dunes or simply walking to the top of a dune to contemplate the beautiful
sunset over the oasis.
The
Huacachina Oasis is located about 80 kilometers from Paracas and you can get
from Lima by bus from the Cruz del Sur station to Ica and there take a taxi to
the oasis.
8.
Nazca
One
of the great archaeological mysteries of history is found in the arid Nazca
desert. Between the years 700 a.C. and 200 AD the Nazca culture developed in
this area, in which its inhabitants created the Nazca Lines, removing the red
stones and leaving the white sandstone underneath, thus forming huge geoglyphs
with human, animal or geometric figures, only visible from the air.
Many
theories, from a huge calendar to religious ceremonies or the visitation of
extraterrestrials, have been written about the reasons why these huge figures
were created, without reaching any definitive conclusion or provable theory
today.
The
only way to see the figures is to fly over the Nazca lines by plane from its
small airport located next door. The flight because of the wind and the pilot's
maneuvers, is used to being moved, so it is advisable not to have breakfast
before, have something for dizziness and go prepared with the bag that they
will give you when you climb.
Other
visits that are very worthwhile in Nazca, is the Chauchilla Cemetery, a
necropolis from pre-Inca times, which is a perfect complement to the overflight
of the Nazca Lines.
9.
Sacred Valley
Between
Písac and Ollantaytambo, on the banks of the Urubamba River, is the famous
Sacred Valley of the Incas. Due to its climate and geography, this fertile
valley was one of the main sources of food supply of the Inca empire where the
archaeological ruins of several Inca settlements remain and where you can also
visit several traditional towns from the colonial era.
Pisac
with its artisan market and the Inca archaeological remains located on a
mountain is one of the most famous places in the sacred valley and that we advise
you, you cannot miss in Peru.
Other
essentials are the fortress of Ollantaytambo, the town of Chinchero, the salt
mines of Maras and Moray, one of the agricultural research centers of the Inca
empire.
The
best way to visit the Sacred Valley is from Cuzco by taxi or by booking a tour
with a guide in Spanish so you don't miss any detail of one of the most
incredible areas of the country.
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