I’m going for 23 days in September. I’ve already been to the south of the country about 10 years ago—the classic “gringo route.” This time I’ll head north. First, I’ll spend about 10–11 days focusing heavily on archaeology, traveling from Caral to Chiclayo via Sechín and Trujillo. Then I’ll spend around 8 days in the Chachapoyas area, leaving about 3 days at the end in Lima to rest.
I know it might seem like a slow and not very ambitious pace, but I like to take my time, explore museums and archaeological sites in depth, enjoy the food and walks, and see places that are a bit off the main tourist trail.
At first, I considered setting aside a few days to fly to Puerto Maldonado, but I ruled it out because the prices for tours and accommodation seem extremely overpriced, and the value for money doesn’t seem good. It doesn’t inspire much confidence. I’ve seen a lot of wildlife in Costa Rica, and it seems like in Peru I wouldn’t see much more—yet at safari-level prices!
I also ruled out Huaraz because I don’t want to exhaust myself with long bus journeys, and although I love the mountains, I don’t want to do hikes longer than a day. At those altitudes it would be very demanding, and acclimatization is necessary.
I also more or less ruled out Cajamarca because I’d rather have extra time in the other areas.
What do you think? Thanks!