The Peruvian topography is one of the wonders of the world with its mountains soaring up as high as 22,000 feet and lush and thick rain forest parts of which hasn’t been set foot in by humans ever. When it comes to coastal areas it is not always the same either. Some come with rocky terrain whilst some portions of the area are stretches of sand dunes as far as your eyes take you.
In the age of the internet, it is not difficult to find a travel guide to any place of your choice. So, today we are going to discuss some of the key pointers that you need to understand before you make your trip to the ancient Incan city. I wouldn’t want you to make some bad choices just because you didn’t have the time (or inclination!) to read through a whole long article which you have found in the travel guide. I promise to keep it short and precise for our readers who are fond of traveling, but not so much with reading.
- Transportation in Peru
The uneven terrain that makes the place such a wonder is the very thing that makes it difficult to traverse through. There have two tragic bus accidents in 2018 which have taken down the reliability of the bus network of the country quite a few notches, but buses in this region are punctual and depots can be found in most of the towns of the country.
Peru has two rail lines – Central Railway and Southern Railway and both of these lines have pulled off an ingenious mechanical feat of cutting through the Andes to make trains pass. It may sound dangerous and maybe it is to some extent, but for the absolute spectacle of the scenery that you witness, it is recommended that you travel by Peruvian trains at least once or twice.
Peru is a developed country and air connectivity is good in the entire country. The best airlines in the region are LATAM, Avianca, Peruvian Airlines among others. Do not forget to use your mileage currencies to bring down the prices of the overly-costly domestic flights as you will be paying a much higher price than the locals as you’ll be paying in converted currency. Avianca is a member of the Star Alliance, LATAM is a part of OneWorld alliance and there are great offers for the British Airways Avios as well for short-haul flights within the country, so please make use of all these and more.
- Book Your Airport Hotels right away
Multiple flights from the US to Lima arrive quite late at night, and people who are visiting on a tight-schedule would want to take a connecting flight to another destination like Cusco or Iquitos early the next morning. Booking your night stay at the airport hotel is the most practical and restful idea as far as your itinerary is concerned. So, don’t wait till you reach to an unknown country, or don’t even wait till there is availability of better offers. You can get offers right away when you’re booking your flight tickets.
A forewarning here, because it’s the only decent hotel close by, it tends to book up early, that is why you need to hurry without waiting for better prices to show up, because if you miss your chance you have traveled both ways more when you’re staying further away from the airport and have an early connecting flight the next morning.
- Don’t consume tap water
There is a chance that the tap water will not be good enough for you to drink and be okay with the next morning. So don’t make yourself sick before you have even started with your tour.
Most hotels will leave you bottles of water in the bathroom for brushing your teeth, and of course, you can get some for yourself as well. But don’t be scared to ask for additional bottles either, as most of the hotels are ready to oblige anyway.
Further precautions include making sure the ice in your drink is from purified water and with the risk of sounding like your mother, please wash your fruits before consuming those. Also, beware of gulping down water accidentally while taking a shower.
- Go to Machu Picchu Before Cusco
The main idea is to acclimatize yourself in Machu Picchu, as Cusco is even further high up in the Andes; it is a good idea to visit the world famous Mach Picchu hilltop first.
If you planning to stay over, there is no place better than the Sacred Valley which is about 9,400 feet above sea level. There are plenty of cultural and adventure activities to keep you busy, like visiting the sun temple and you’ll have a better time adjusting to the thin air especially if you have a history of breathing trouble as I do, take it easy.
- Try the Coca Tea and the Andean mint tea
Peruvians and their forebearers have used coca leaves to flight altitude sickness for centuries, if not millennia. Locals chew the leaves or make a tea from it, which you will undoubtedly be offered many times while there. Just don’t try it too close to sleep time because it’s the stimuli will keep you up at night. If you must, try some Andean mint tea in the evening. It’s tasty, it’s soothing, and it possesses a lot of the altitude-sickness easing properties as coca.
- Keep a check on the voltage while charging
Peru is slightly higher on the voltage side in terms of electrical sockets than in the US. While it is 120 volts in the US, it is 220 volts in Peru. While that charges your iPhone way faster, it tends to heat up a bit too. That’s why, to be on the safer side, unplug the charger from your devices as soon as the phone is cent percent charged to avoid any accidental occurrences.
