Huancayo Getting there & around

Getting there & away

Local transport

Taxi

Colectivo taxis for Huancavelica (US$8, 2½ to three hours) leave when full (four-passenger minimum) from the Terminal Terrestre.

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Land

Bus

As in many Peruvian towns, bus terminals are in diverse locations, but none are particularly far from the center. Bus services change depending on season and demand, as do the location of their offices – particularly for the smaller companies. In this section we do not list all companies, as some are less than reliable. Companies listed here are either the better options or the only options.

Bus links focus naturally on Lima. One-way ticket prices range from US$6 to US14. For US$14 you get a bed seat on a bus cama; for US$6 you get an ordinary seat. There are other levels of comfort in between the two. The best company for comfort would be Cruz del Sur (23 5650; Ayacucho 251), followed by Etucsa (23 6524; Puno 220), which has somewhat more frequent departures. Next is Mariscal Cáceres (21 6633; Real 1241). Check each company’s buses, or at least brochures, before deciding. If you are in a hurry, Comité 12 (23 3281; Loreto 421) has colectivo taxis to Lima (US$14, five hours).

For Ayacucho (US$7.50, 10 to 12 hours) the recommended service is Empresa Molina (22 4501; Angaraes 334), with morning and night departures on a mostly rough, unsealed road.

Huancavelica (US$3, five hours) is served most frequently by Transportes Ticllas (20 1555; Ferrocarril 1590) with six daily buses. Expreso Lobato (75 2964; M Muñoz 489) has comfortable overnight buses via Huancayo to Huancavelica. Others include the nearby Turismo Nacional, Expreso Huancavelica and Transportes Yuri, with late-night buses only.

Transportes San Juan (21 4558; Ferrocarril 131) has minibuses almost every hour to Tarma (US$2.50, 3½ hours) and can drop you off at Concepción or Jauja. It also has services to La Merced (US$4.50, five hours), with stops at Jauja and Tarma. Los Canarios (Puno 739) serves Tarma (US$2.50, three hours).

For Satipo (US$4.50, eight to nine hours) the best service is Selva Tours (21 8427; Ferrocarril 1587) with four daily buses.

Turismo Central (22 3128, Ayacucho 274) has buses north to Cerro de Pasco (US$3.50, five hours), Huánuco (US$6, seven hours), Tingo María (US$8, 10 hours) and Pucallpa (US$14, 22 hours).

Inexpensive minibuses for Jauja (US$1.60) leave from a depot on Calixto.

Train

Huancayo has two train stations in different parts of town linked by an unused section of track. A special tourist train, the Ferrocarril Central Andino (22 2395), runs up from Lima between mid-April and October for US$55 round-trip. It leaves Lima at 7am Friday and arrives in Huancayo 12 hours later. It returns from Huancayo at the rather inconvenient time of 6pm Sunday, arriving back in Lima at 6am Monday. For this return night leg bring along warm clothes and perhaps a blanket and a neck pillow.

It’s a fabulous run, passing through La Galera (4829m), the world’s second-highest station (the Tibetans are the record holders), on a single-gauge track and is popular with train enthusiasts the world over. The best way to book it is to visit the Incas del Perú website www.incasdelperu.com, where there is an online booking form.

The Chilca train station (21 7724; www.fhh.com.pe) for Huancavelica is at the southern end of town. It’s a fair hike so take a taxi. From here, expreso services depart for Huancavelica at 6:30am Monday to Sunday (five hours) and ordinario services depart at 12:30pm Monday to Saturday (five to six hours). Tickets are about US$2.50/3/4 in 2nd/1st/buffet class. The buffet class is reasonably comfortable with padded seats and has guaranteed seating; 1st class has reserved padded seats with perhaps a tad less padding while 2nd class offers wooden bench-type seats and no seat reservations. The ticket office is open from noon to 6pm on the day before travel and at 6am on the day of travel.

On Sunday and Monday, there’s a faster autovagón (electric train) that leaves at 6pm (US$4.50, around four hours).

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