Itinerary help

We liked Paracas (not far from Pisco). The Ballestas Islands boat tour is great and so is the Paracas Reserve which we explored by bike.

In Huacachina (close to Ica) we liked the oasis and the dunes. You can go on a dune buggy/sandboarding tour.

The weather on the coastal part of Peru is definitely better in that season. It is the season when Peruvians go to the beaches for their holidays.

Yes, I wrote Pisco Area but meant all the locations you mentioned. Would you recommend this area over Huancayo?
On the way from the coast to Ayacucho is it possible to drop off half way, at Rumichaca, and take another bus to Huancavelica? It should save time.
Thanks

PS Was La Oroya interesting to visit? I know about environmental issue there

Ahhh wait I'm late to this discussion. We have visited different parts of Peru 3x over the last 5 years over Christmas break, and I can honestly say the ONLY time I remember rain was at Machu Picchu. And that was torrential. Your dates are very similar to what we travel (school break?). Last year we traveled the central Andes to some of the places you mention. We went South to North, from Ayachucho to Huaraz. Sorry I can't help with the leg to Cuzco. From Lima to Huancayo the views are spectacular and you could break the trip in Tarma (not La Oroya), which is a wonderful place that foreign tourists seem to skip. The climate is pretty perfect there. The drive from the main road down into Tarma is really beautiful. La Oroya is a cross roads kind of place. After Tarma you could stop in Huancayo, but it is not a tourist sort of town. It is a city. The attraction lies outside the city, so if you don't have time to get into the hills, then it's really not worth a stop. Sorry Huancayo. If you do have a second night, find Incas del Peru and do a full day trip to the glacier nearby. It is spectacular. You can walk right up to the glacier…with a bit of effort. Incas del Peru has a good website so you can see photos. Huancavelica, on the other hand, is a lovely town and you can walk right out of the center square up into the hills. The setting is fantastic. Since you will be there over the holidays you will see dancing in the streets which is really fun. You might be the only tourists in town. Huancavelica to Ayuchucho is quite far, but very possible to make in a day and there are multiple routes. The LP does NOT give clear directions. If you take a bus, you will go out of your way through Izcuchaca (but it might be an easier trip). We traveled on Christmas day, and there were no busses, so we took shared taxis. Huancavelica>Lircay>Julcamarca>Ayachucho. It is the most direct route and has some unpaved bits (Huancavelica to Lircay), and lots of great views with alpaca. One note on Julcamarca: not a place to spend the night. It is very high altitude and I don't think there were any hostels. So set out early. Ayachucho is really a nice town. There are very decent restaurants and accommodation and interesting walks to take out of town.

As you can tell I love the central Andes. There really are not "sights". Its about wandering around and talking to people (how is your Spanish?). People loved coming up to us to say hi and have themselves photographed with us. Even the police wanted to be photographed with us. It was nutty. You could decide about the route to the south from Ayachucho once you are there. Through Pisco and the coast will be much faster. Once you are on those Andes roads for a bit you might be ready for some asphalt. We met a German girl who had biked from Cuzco to Ayachucho and she said it was pretty rough…but she was on a bike. :-0. Have fun!

One more note..sorry to be long winded. If you do the coastal route and then up to Huacavelica, you can probably take collectivos or shared taxis in stages. Look at the route through Santa Ines. We took many shared taxis in the central Andes because sometimes the bus only goes once a day and very early. Also consider getting the Footprint guide. It is much better for the less touristed areas of Peru.

Thank you schnecken, this is very helpful. I will skip Huancayo then and go to Huancavelica via coastal route.

Anyone knows if the buses between Ayacucho and Cusco will be running the night between 1 st and 2nd of January?...and if it is advisable (hangover drivers?)..

They will be running but a bit more modified. We have found that the most difficult day of travel is mid dec 24-mid dec 25, so you will miss that. Things are bit slow morning of jan 1, but then by evening they are fine. The thing to keep in mind is the bus will be very full with locals heading home so book a seat. But New Years is not as huge as we have at home. People buy yellow underwear and have a big family dinner the night before. One thing to consider (and maybe you can't do since you are going to Arequipa) is that Jan 6 is the feast of the Epiphany which is actually a bigger celebration than Christmas in some places. Ollytaytambo has a festival Jan 5-8 that is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, in Peru on that day. People plan their trips around it and it is really pretty incredible. If you can switch your trip order and see it, it is worth it. http://www.apus-peru.com/trip-planning/ollantaytambo_january_events.html

That is good news! I should be in the area on the 5th.
Itinerary looks as follows:
27 dec: Paracas area
28 dec: Paracas area
29 dec: Huancavelica
30 dec: Huancavelica
31 dec: Ayacucho
1 jan: Ayacucho
2 jan: Cuzco area
3 jan: Inca Trail
4 jan: Inca Trail
5 jan: Cuzco area
6 jan: Arequipa
7 jan: Arequipa
8 jan: Lima

Dec 31 will be a good time to be in Ayacucho. There will be other tourists celebrating. In Huancavelica you would be alone. ViaVia is the hangout in Ayachucho although there are less expensive places to stay (we stayed at Hostel Tres Mascaras). Try to visit Quinua and Huari (if you like ruins) but early in day. Rides back are hard to find. If you can spend that night of the 5th in Olly you should (instead of Cuzco). The dancing will start late afternoon and go into the night. Be prepared for an ungodly amount of tourists in Cuzco and MP. It is very, very busy then with the overlap of Northern and Southern holidays. Visit MP in at the afternoon if you can. Everyone knows about that early arrival thing. Chaos. You realize that is a 20 hour bus ride from Ayacucho to Cuzco? Are you stopping in Andahuaylas?

I am not sure what time you will arrive in Cusco but two days for Cusco and the Sacred Valley is not much. There is so much to see and do in that area. Cusco of course. The ruins north of Cusco (don't miss Sacsayhuaman). Ollantaytambo (ruins, granaries...). The Pisac ruins. Chinchero. Moray. The Maras salineras...

Also you only have one day for Arequipa and one day for the Colca Valley. You can take a one day tour but be aware that will be a very long day. Tours leave 2:30-3:30 am.

The itinerary sounds great but I think it might be too much.