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All post-trip commentary will be in bold!
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April 12th (Saturday):
- Depart from Raleigh at 7:03am
- Arrive in Miami at 9:14am
- Possibly leave airport and explore a bit…
- Depart from Miami at 5pm
- Arrive in Lima, Peru at 9:40pm (Santi will pick us up) We have a friend who lives in this country and was able to come pick us up
- ARRANGE A PRIVATE TRANSFER: https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g294316-d27513378-Private_transport_from_or_to_Lima_s_Jorge_Chavez_airport-Lima_Lima_Region.html
- This is only $27 for the whole group
- The city of Lima around the airport is very dangerous, and taxis can be unpredictable. It is definitely worth the extra $10 to book a private transfer
- While in Lima, make sure to stay in the Miraflores district!
- NIGHT LIFE
- Saha Terraza Cocktail Bar
- The Bunker (Modern Disco)
- Casino Golden Palace
- Ayahuasca Restobar (Bar with history of Peru)
- Mama Africa (Dance club)
- We were exhausted after the long day traveling, so we unloaded our stuff at the Air B & B, and then our friend, who grew up in Peru, brought us to a classic peruvian sandwich spot that all the locals love: La Lucha Sanguchería
- This is a popular Peruvian sandwich spot known for sánguches criollos (classic local fillings) served on fresh bread, plus juices and sides.
- Each entree item was about 15 Sol = $4.50
- There are a ton of these all around the Miraflores area in Lima. The one we went to was a 3 minute walk from our hostel.
- Hostel: Pariwana Miraflores https://pariwana.com/es/
- Around $10 per night for a mixed dorm room
- Overall super convenient location. In the heart of Miraflores, right next to everything! A steal for $10 per night.
- Will have to be okay sleeping in a room with 13 other people, bring earplugs just in case and an eye mask for sleeping
- Can book a private room but it is $60 compared to $10
- Super fun vibes at this hostel. They do different themed nights every night of the week! Movie nights, different themed parties, and many different activities in which you could book through the hostel!
- Bunk beds were all out in the open and did not have curtains for privacy like the next hostel we went to
- Bathrooms were a little small, but they were kept clean and did the trick!
April 13th (Sunday)
- Spend the morning and afternoon exploring Miraflores
- Things to do in Miraflores during the day
- Surf beaches
- Walk along the beach and there will be countless little surf huts with people offering guided surfing lessons or just surf board rentals!
- To rent a surf board ranges from about $6-$15!
- Huaca Pucllana – a 1,500-year-old, 24-meter-tall adobe pyramid in, built by the pre-Inca Lima Culture
- Walk El Malecon – scenic clifftop walkway with delicious restaurants and all kinds of shops. We can also rent bikes!
- While walking from our Air B & B to the El Malecon (on the coast), we stopped at a very good local coffee shop that had super cool aesthetics. It was called Puku Puku Cafe!
- Once you make it to El Malecon, spend your time adventuring throughout the entire walkway along the coast. We did this exploring different shops, looking at murals, and then made our way all the way down to the beach to get a tan and swim in!
- Love Park – famous statue and park with views of the ocean from the edge of the cliffs
- Paraglide off of Lima cliffside down to pier
- Explore historic sites
- Swim with sea lions
- https://www.paracasexplorer.com/en/tour/nadando-con-leones-marinos/
- $70 10am-1pm (stop at other islands along the way with penguins)
- John F Kennedy Park and 7th of June Park
- Both of these parks were right near our hostel in the center of Miraflores. Gorgeous well kept parks with cathedrals lining them. Live music with locals dancing around care-free is very common! There are also locals who sell their artwork here!
- Centro histórico de Lima – 20 min drive outside of Miraflores. Large police presence which makes it relatively safe. Be careful for petty theft. Uber to this location do not walk.
- Barranco (romantic district) – Lima’s romantic, bohemian heart, renowned for its colorful 19th-century mansions, street art, and coastal charm. Also about a 20 min drive outside of Miraflores.
- Surf beaches
- Uber back to Lima airport (make sure it has good reviews) We chose uber and were fine, it is definitely safer to do this going from Miraflores to the airport compared to the opposite way around. Super easy to book a private transfer if needed. Link was listed above.
- Fly out of Lima at 8:30pm through LATAM Airways
- Arrive in Cusco at 11pm. Cusco is a tiny little airport. Cusco is a very safe city with many ubers operating there, and so we were not worried about booking ahead of time with a private transfer. Got picked up right after landing and the ride was about 20 minutes to our hostel and costed no more than $10. For our group, that is $2 each!!
- Cusco is very high in elevation, and you could feel it when first arriving. Make sure to drink plenty of water!
- Take Uber to Black Llama Hostel Cusco (https://www.blackllamahostels.com/)
- About $15 per night with breakfast included
- These ones had private bunk beds with curtains, lights, charging ports, and your own space to lock up luggage.
- This hostel put our last one to shame… Super cool interior with an amazon-vibe lounge area with a cafe
- They hosted a bunch of different events, one night having a tattoo artist come by
- One of my favorite parts was the little courtyard in the center of their complex that had a perfect view of the mountains
- We ended up hanging out in the lobby for a bit and then passed out
April 14th (Monday)
- Wake up around 6:30am
- Get dramamine if you get motion sick easily for the bus ride.
- Uber from hostel to Wanchaq Station in Cusco (about 10 mins from our hostel, super cheap again!)
- Take bus at 7:50 am to Station Ollantaytambo (Where we will take the train) and arrive at 9:50 (all instructions listed below, but hit this link here: https://www.perurail.com/train-services/perurail-expedition/, and you will be able to very easily book a round trip through this website. It mentions all of the stops I will list as well and is very clear. The only thing it does not mention is the stop at Huaypo)
- On the way to Station Ollantaytambo the bus will stop in Huaypo which is just about at the midway point of the bus ride (1 hour). Here they have bathrooms and snacks for purchase along with a pretty view of a lake, llamas, and some mountains! Side note: I LOVED Cusco, but this is the point at which I started to feel like the locals really just wanted my money. I thought the bathrooms were free and the lady who owned the property started to absolutely lose it over essentially a quarter in USD. When walking down the streets of Cusco it will get very annoying after a while of them trying to stuff their merchandise down your throats for a profit. I understand it is how they provide and put food on the table, but in most foreign countries I have been, they are way less aggressive about it.
- Once at Station Ollantaytambo, you will then have a few minutes to make an order at the coffee shop right on the train tracks or look at the small mountain town of Ollantayambo for a bit (train took about 10-15 min to arrive after we got to the town on the buses)
- Hop onto the official PeruRail train and arrive in Aguas Calientes around noon (another 2 hour ride, which makes the total journey 4 hours long) This train was actually super updated and comfortable. The train itself had really cool designs on it, and we had some spectacular views while we went further into the Amazon.
- Aguas Calientes is a smaller mountain town where Machu Picchu Station is located.
- It is also a short walk from where the Machu Picchu hike begins (depending on the type of hike you chose for your Machu Picchu trek)
- Once arriving we dropped our stuff off at our hotel called Inkas Land (https://www.booking.com/hotel/pe/inkas-land.html?aid=318615&label=New_English_EN_PA%3A_Pennsylvania_23537843065-H197jDE2w1KCYD4w2O_3AQS217246589643%3Apl%3Ata%3Ap1%3Ap2%3Aac%3Aap%3Aneg%3Afi55767060311%3Atidsa-303472602395%3Alp9007347%3Ali%3Adec%3Adm&sid=7ebf365b7661d046e37d8c943440c8f6&dest_id=-353770&dest_type=city&dist=0&group_adults=2&group_children=0&hapos=1&hpos=1&no_rooms=1&req_adults=2&req_children=0&room1=A%2CA&sb_price_type=total&sr_order=popularity&srepoch=1770075473&srpvid=be38beb2e46f09edf552d35e1c77ea1a&type=total&ucfs=1&)
- Each room is $35 and we had 2 in one room and 3 in the other. Dividing it up makes it very cheap, being $12 – $17.50 each per night. This was our first time on the trip getting our own rooms and showers which was very nice. This was not any boujee type of accommodation, but I thought they kept things clean and it was in a great location in the center of town
- After dropping off our stuff we explored the town and went through the big market they have through the center of the town to get souvenirs!
- The town was out of a movie. The huge Urubamba River roaring through it with huge mountain peaks surrounding all of us while we were down in the valley was such a crazy view.
- We decided to get a full-course buffet after our long journey, and it looked spectacular. However, our eyes deceived us and it was extremely mediocre. It was called Toto’s House. The food from the real menu did seem to be higher quality and people seemed satisfied with it, so just don’t get the buffet if you go.
- We then decided to get a spontaneous massage (we had one booked for tomorrow too after our hike), they were so cheap we could not resist. They were about $35-$40 each (compared to $100 here in the US).
- Eat at Ponchos Peruvian Kitchen for dinner! Amazing reviews!
- MUST GO HERE! WE HAD SUCH A GOOD TIME! Everything was phenomenal, the food, the drinks, the atmosphere, 10/10.
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