2.5weeks Santiago - PERU - Santiago

Not really much time to see too much in 2.5 weeks. Try to spend 2 days or so checking out the sights in Cuzco. The main cathedral is amazing inside. Go to Saqsaywaman on the outskirts of town. Magnificent rock work.

If possible go to Arequipa (by plane from Cuzco). I really thought the girl mummy (Juanita) in the museum there was an intriguing sight. A girl from 500yrs ago frozen atop a 6000m peak and now behind glass in the museum . Also nice facing stone and buildings in Arequipa, in the shadow of a huge 5800m volcano.

From Arequipa you can take a night bus to Nazca (about 9 hrs I think). I day in Nazca on the aerial flight then bus to Pisco (possible stopoff in Ica if you want to do a dune buggy trip) to see the Ballestas islands (lots of seabirds). Then bus 3 hrs to Lima. 2 days seeing some sights in Lima.
Fly to Santiago. If you have spare time then go to Valparaiso for the day to see the elevadors.
That's what I would do.

u have 2.5 weeks in total? are u sure you're going to do the salkantay hike - isn't that the 5 day one?

once u cross the border from chile into tacna you're still quite a ways from cusco, and theres no flight so you'd have to bus, so i don't think there would be time to really visit anywhere else in peru - maybe puno which is only 6 hours away, but you're going to want a few days there.

santiago to the peruvian border is something like 28 hours on bus, although u could fly to Arica instead. flying Lima to Santiago will cost a fortune, prob around $400, but if your budget isn't an option i suppose u could fly santiago -> lima, lima -> cusco, if the flight times worked out that would prob be quicker than flying santiago -> arica, crossing the border and then busing to cusco (which i don't even think u could get a direct bus for - i think u would have to bus to arequipa (6 hrs) and then bus or fly to cusco from there)

you've got a lot of terrain to cover but if u can afford to fly it'll be easier. if u can't fly i think you're looking at a lot of your trip time being spent on buses

Hi there
You can spend 8 days in Chile , from San Pedro de Atacama to Arica for the Altiplano , and then continues tour trip from Arica to Arequipa, Cusco and Mapi. Exist a lot of agencies but for me the best is contacto@vientosdelnorteadventure.cl located in Arica, they can prepare all your trip from SPA to Mp.
Best Regards
White Tiger

Hey you

Here you are some tips in Peru - Chile

Since this thread and the people on it have been such a great help with all my queries over the past few months planning the first stop on my RTW trip I though I´d add a few tips and hints

Cusco, Peru
Stay in Hostel Picola Locanda (found it on hostelworld.com) excellent hostel just off main square. More like a bed and breakfast with private double room with shared bathroom coming in at around USD $20, room with private bathroom was $30. The breakfast was enormous all you can eat and they even packed a breakfast for us the day we left for the inca trail at 4am! Staff, kitchen and TV room all excellent and the place was spotless. Went on Inca Trail with Llama Path and the guides Jose and Alex were excellent even when I had to turn back. Had spent 4 days in Cusco and felt fine but then as soon as I started excerting myself on the trail my lungs just completely gave up and I could´t catch my breath so had to turn back. Met up with the group though on the last day so still got to see Maccu Pichu with my group!

Cusco – Peru
Hostel & Hostería Picola Locanda
Dirección:
Calle resbalosa 520
tel: (51) (084) 252551
e-mail: info@piccolalocanda.com
web site: http://www.piccolalocanda.com<BR><BR>Puno, Peru
Got tourist bus from Cusco for $25 which includes lunch and several stops along the route i.e. pre inca civilisation sites, gorgeous old church not far from Cusco and craft markets. Took about 8 hours including all stops. DO NOT stay in the Inka Rest hostel in Puno. Staff were nice enough but cleanliness and comfort were issue. Bathroom was filthy and mattresses super thin so you could feel every plank of wood beneath you as you slept in the bunks. I suppose you get what you pay for as the room was only $14...
Puno itself is not that nice and would advise only a short stopover to visit the lakes and islands. Did´t make it to Bolivian side but have heard its a lot nicer.

Arequipa, Peru
Was a welcome relief after Puno to stay in Casa de Avila Hostel (again found through hostelworld.com). We got Julsa Bus from Puno to Arequipa and cost about 25 soles. Casa de Avila was gorgeous old colonial building built around several huge garden courtyards. Private room with bathroom and cable tv (what a luxury) cost around $20 and again the place was spotlessy clean and the staff excellent. Courtyards great to relax in and read. Arequipa itself was a lovely city..really nice central Plaza de Armas.

Arequipa – Peru
Casa de Avila Hostel
Dirección:
Av San Martin 116, Vallecito
tel:
e-mail:
web site:

Tacna, Peru and Arica Chile
Got bus from Arequipa to Tacna with FLores bus company for 25 soles took about 7 hours. Once you arrive in the station in Tacna loads of touts offering collectivos to cross the border. OUrs cost us about 6,000 Chilean pesos and looked after all the documentation. Border crossing took about hour and half..it was busy cause it was a Friday evening. We stayed the night in Arica on the Chilean side in a residential area- Hostel Kolping for $30 private room and bathroom.

Iquique, Chile
Nice enough town with nice coastal walk and beaches. parts of the town are a bit rundown and felt a bit dodgy. Really nice pedestrial walkway in centre of town with a few nice restaurants. Stayed in Hostal Li Ming..Basic but clean ..no outside windows so was a bit dark but still noisy from street. Private room and bathroom was 14,000 pesos. Wouldn´t rave about Iquique..

Antofagasta, Chile
Took Turbus here from Iquique for about 12,000 pesos. Not a great place..just another city..only spent night.

La Serena, Chile
Really nice coastal town with fantastic beaches and coastal walks, really nice lighthous area with restaurants etc. Took the overnight bus here from Antofagasta 12 hours on Tur Bus semi cama for 19,400 pesos. Stayed in Hostel Marias Casa which is reccomened in LP. Gorgeous room with cable and private bathroom for 20,000 pesos. Again really nice courtyards etc to relax and read. Spent a couple of days here relaxing.

Valparaiso and Viña del Mar, Chile
Bus to Valparaiso cost a whopping 22,000 because the only one free was a cama bus with Tur Bus. Valparaiso not that nice but Vina del Mar gorgeous..really nice beaches where they rent parasols and loungers. Stayed in LaNona Bed&Breakfast www.bblanona.com Very nice and clean. Helpful staff. Private room with shared bathroom was USD $20 per night which is reccomened in LP too.


Santiago
Not much on here yet cause just arrived from Valparaiso yesterday on Condor Bus for about 3,000 pesos. Staying in Che Lagarto Hostel in the centre.
Hope this helps and thanks to all who answered all my queries over the past few months.

Good Luck....

Hey you

Here you are some tips in Peru - Chile

Since this thread and the people on it have been such a great help with all my queries over the past few months planning the first stop on my RTW trip I though I´d add a few tips and hints

Cusco, Peru
Stay in Hostel Picola Locanda (found it on hostelworld.com) excellent hostel just off main square. More like a bed and breakfast with private double room with shared bathroom coming in at around USD $20, room with private bathroom was $30. The breakfast was enormous all you can eat and they even packed a breakfast for us the day we left for the inca trail at 4am! Staff, kitchen and TV room all excellent and the place was spotless. Went on Inca Trail with Llama Path and the guides Jose and Alex were excellent even when I had to turn back. Had spent 4 days in Cusco and felt fine but then as soon as I started excerting myself on the trail my lungs just completely gave up and I could´t catch my breath so had to turn back. Met up with the group though on the last day so still got to see Maccu Pichu with my group!

Cusco – Peru
Hostel & Hostería Picola Locanda
Dirección:
Calle resbalosa 520
tel: (51) (084) 252551
e-mail: info@piccolalocanda.com
web site: http://www.piccolalocanda.com<BR><BR>Puno, Peru
Got tourist bus from Cusco for $25 which includes lunch and several stops along the route i.e. pre inca civilisation sites, gorgeous old church not far from Cusco and craft markets. Took about 8 hours including all stops. DO NOT stay in the Inka Rest hostel in Puno. Staff were nice enough but cleanliness and comfort were issue. Bathroom was filthy and mattresses super thin so you could feel every plank of wood beneath you as you slept in the bunks. I suppose you get what you pay for as the room was only $14...
Puno itself is not that nice and would advise only a short stopover to visit the lakes and islands. Did´t make it to Bolivian side but have heard its a lot nicer.

Arequipa, Peru
Was a welcome relief after Puno to stay in Casa de Avila Hostel (again found through hostelworld.com). We got Julsa Bus from Puno to Arequipa and cost about 25 soles. Casa de Avila was gorgeous old colonial building built around several huge garden courtyards. Private room with bathroom and cable tv (what a luxury) cost around $20 and again the place was spotlessy clean and the staff excellent. Courtyards great to relax in and read. Arequipa itself was a lovely city..really nice central Plaza de Armas.

Arequipa – Peru
Casa de Avila Hostel
Dirección:
Av San Martin 116, Vallecito
tel:
e-mail:
web site:

Tacna, Peru and Arica Chile
Got bus from Arequipa to Tacna with FLores bus company for 25 soles took about 7 hours. Once you arrive in the station in Tacna loads of touts offering collectivos to cross the border. OUrs cost us about 6,000 Chilean pesos and looked after all the documentation. Border crossing took about hour and half..it was busy cause it was a Friday evening. We stayed the night in Arica on the Chilean side in a residential area- Hostel Kolping for $30 private room and bathroom.

Iquique, Chile
Nice enough town with nice coastal walk and beaches. parts of the town are a bit rundown and felt a bit dodgy. Really nice pedestrial walkway in centre of town with a few nice restaurants. Stayed in Hostal Li Ming..Basic but clean ..no outside windows so was a bit dark but still noisy from street. Private room and bathroom was 14,000 pesos. Wouldn´t rave about Iquique..

Antofagasta, Chile
Took Turbus here from Iquique for about 12,000 pesos. Not a great place..just another city..only spent night.

La Serena, Chile
Really nice coastal town with fantastic beaches and coastal walks, really nice lighthous area with restaurants etc. Took the overnight bus here from Antofagasta 12 hours on Tur Bus semi cama for 19,400 pesos. Stayed in Hostel Marias Casa which is reccomened in LP. Gorgeous room with cable and private bathroom for 20,000 pesos. Again really nice courtyards etc to relax and read. Spent a couple of days here relaxing.

Valparaiso and Viña del Mar, Chile
Bus to Valparaiso cost a whopping 22,000 because the only one free was a cama bus with Tur Bus. Viña del Mar is not that nice but Valparaíso gorgeous it is a beautiful city built into the hills- right on the water. There's a lot to do there and one thing I really enjoyed was the stark contrasts between Vina and Valpo even though they are literally right next to each other. Vina is really modern which is great for shopping, movies, more 'western' restaurants/hotels/clubs, beach, etc. and Valpo has such character with outdoor museums, painted houses, quirky bars. Living on the coast is amazing, and the city of Santiago is only about an hour away. The people in Valpo are really friendly--lots of students tend to study abroad there, so I found the people to be really welcoming of the gringos. also, great public transpo that is super cheap (much more convenient than santiago). I absolutely fell in love with the chaos and beauty of the place...and I really liked the location because it wasnt a huge polluted city like Santiago...but it was big enough to satisfy any need you had. Stayed in LaNona Bed&Breakfast www.bblanona.com Very nice and clean. Helpful staff. Private room with shared bathroom was USD $20 per night which is reccomened in LP too.


Santiago
Not much on here yet cause just arrived from Valparaiso yesterday on Condor Bus for about 3,000 pesos. Staying in Che Lagarto Hostel in the centre.
Hope this helps and thanks to all who answered all my queries over the past few months.

Good Luck....

Hello

Hey jumporfall thank for everything,. We had a great time in La nona Bed&Breakfast in valparaiso. Breakfast & company was great.
We are in love of valparaiso. It is so unique and interesting and we really enjoyed our stay there. We will definitely recommend this place to anyone who is coming to Valparaíso.

Chloe, Stone & Elle. British.

Just a quick note on the comment on Inka Rest in Puno....we've just spent two nights there and loved it. By far and away the best welcome you're going to get in Peru, and the fact that they don't charge commission on the tours you book with them means you save loads on any toure to Taquile/Isla Flotantes etc. Couldn't recommend it highly enough...