Ideas for new places to visit in Peru

So ideally north Peru would be best for you. Probably the primo destination is Chachapoyas, where you can visit the Kuelap ruins and other archaeological sites. And the city of Cajamarca is nice too, in the mountains. And the coastal city of Trujillo is a must. It has a beautiful colonial center, plus the Chan Chan ancient city and Huacas del Sol y de la Luna archaeological sites, and also the nearby Huanchaco beach resort.

There's also the beautiful high Andes Cordillera Blanca region, that you see from the city of Huaraz. But December is probably not a good time for that, due to snow on the trekking trails.

And I really like the city of Ayacucho, which is in the Andes mountains a bit south of Lima, but nowhere near any of the other places I mentioned.

5 days isn't much time, so probably choose one place. But if you're trying to fit a lot in and don't mind rushing, you could combine Chachapoyas and Trujillo in that time, or Chachapoyas and Cajamarca.

I absolutely agree with mstep. Northern Peru is beautiful and around Chachapoyas there are many things to do. If you like hiking, you could easily spend your 5 days in the Chachapoyas area. There are the Gocta and Yumbilla waterfalls (amidst the 10 highest in the wolrd) and the Chachapoya civilisation where you can visit not only Kuelap, but as well the Sarcophagi of Karajia, the Mausoleum of Revash and the very good Museum of Leymebamba with its 219 mommies.

Hi MStep and NorthPeru, Thanks for the great suggestions. I am saving a trip to Huaraz for June/July timeframe. I am leaning towards Chachapoyas and Cajamarca if time allows. Having said this, what are your thoughts about a visit to the cultural Zone of Manu? I am wondering if I should save Manu for when I have a week and visit the Reserved Zone instead. Camping in the jungle sounds very appealing which it seems doable in a longer stay (my 5 days in December may not allow this?)
Regarding Chachapoyas/Cajamarca, is it ok to rent a car and drive yourself or should we go with a tour operator? Is it possible to just rent a car & driver? I am thinking about (day 1) arriving in Jaen 12:30 pm and immediately go to Yumbilla Falls on the way to Gocta Andes Lodge; (Day 2) Gocta Falls and enjoy the lodge in the eve; (Day 3) Early start, drive to Kuelap and afterwards either drive all the way to Cajamarca (7 hrs.) or stay in a town between Kuelap and Cajamarca. Is there something worth visiting between Kuelap and Cajamarca? Where exactly is the town of Maria and is it really that charming that would be nice to stay there?; (Day 4) Early start either visit something on the way or visit places in Cajamarca. What are the must see in Cajamarca?; (Day 5) Continue enjoying Cajamarca, depending on flight times, save a visit to the Cathedral/Plaza or easy to get to places for the last day. Does the itinerary seem feasible or is it too much? I read the road to/from Cajamarca & Chachapoyas is one of the most scenic in Peru?? If that’s not really the case, we would stay in the Chachapoyas area and visit Cajamarca on a separate trip. Trujillo and Northern beaches are also penciled in for a future trip. Thanks!

There is no car rental in Chachapoyas, or the airport at Jaen. The only car rentals you could find are in Tarapoto or Chiclayo / Trujillo, so rather far away... But if you come from Jaen, you might want to take a driver, as this will make it much easier to get around.

In the Amazonas region it is difficult to travel on a schedule with public transportation. Already to go to Cuispes to see the Yumbilla waterfalls, you will need transportation. However I don't think you can hike Yumbilla the same day than your arrival. From Jaen to Yumbilla it is about 3 hours and you'll arrive in Jaen around 1 pm. As the hike takes about 5 hours, it will be too late. You might want either stay overnight in Cuispes and do the hike the next day, or directly go to the Gocta Lodge and hike Gocta the next day.

From Gocta Lodge to go to Kuelap it is the same, you might want to take a tour with them (if they have one), otherwise you will have to take public transportation or pass through Chachapoyas to take day-tours.

In between Kuelap and Cajamarca, you have Leymebamba, a little village, where you have the Museum of Leymebamba with over 200 mummies from the Laguna de los Condores and some further explanation about the Chachapoya civilisation. You can't visit Kuelap and drive to Cajamarca in the same day. From Gocta Lodge to Kuelap it is about 2 and a half hours, the visit of Kuelap takes another 2 - 3 hours and to arrive to Leymebamba only, another 2 and a half hours.

From Leymebamba you can take the bus compagnie Virgen del Carmen that brings you to Cajamarca. The road is spectacular, but it will take you a whole day to get there.

I guess it would be much easier and less exhausting staying in the Chachapoyas region and not passing over to Cajamarca and leave that for another time.

I hope this is helpful for your planning.
Happy travels !

Get an Airbnb and live in the local people's house, try to learn how to make pisco sour and ceviche, enjoy your time and be like Peruvians. :D

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