(at least the route I recommend)
Step 1: Fly into Lima & sign up for PeruHop
Time recommended: 3-5 nights
Fly into Lima and stay a bit!! This city tends to be overlooked when arriving in Peru and many people I traveled with shared with me that they did not like Lima. Personally, I largely disagree. Especially if this is your first solo trip, you are going to need some grounding when you first arrive and to gain your bearings. I stayed in total 6 days in Lima, 3 when I first arrived and 3 on my way home.
Check my What to do in Lima post for recommendations!
After adjusting to Lima, utilize the full extent of PeruHop. I did the “To Cusco without the Lake” trip for $199. I found this to be an amazing deal as it included various meals throughout the journey, the ability to book excursions such as hikes and hostels through them at a discounted rate, and free excursions such as slave tunnels, a pisco tour, and much more. The guides gave us inside tips of where to go, what to see, and helped us translate when necessary.
Step 2: Arrive in Paracas
Time recommended: 2 nights
Paracas is a beautiful little beach down in Peru. It offers the Isla Balensestas Tour, known as the pour mans Galapagos, and the Golden Shadows Trek in Paracas National Reserve. While it is a small town, I recommend staying at least 2 nights to see everything. I could have stayed here for over a week relaxing but I did not have the time.
Step 3: Arrive in Huacachina
Time recommended: 1 night
Haucachina is a desert oasis within Ica, Peru. It is famous for the sand bugging and sand surfing which is an absolute blast and fairly inexpensive. With it being separated from the rest of Ica, there is not a whole bunch to do. My recommendation is, upon arrival after situations into your hostel, do a sunset buggy ride with sand surfing. It was absolutely beautiful to watch the sun set over the desert and a great way to lead up to the rest of your night. With it being a small oasis, hostels are limited. Staying at Wild Rover is almost a must as it is such a fun party hostel. There is a pool and games and our night was glow in the dark themed. There was free shots provided by the party promoters and once the hostel bar closed, the backdoors opened up to a club where everyone files in with the locals. While it being a fun night, only one night is needed here to see and do everything. However I did meet a group of people who had been there for over 3 weeks just partying, whatever your looking for!
Step 4: Bus through Nazca to Arequipa
Time recommended: n/a
Theres not all too much to do in Nazca. There is the Nazca Lines which is pretty cool that you can take an airplane to get an ariel view but ultimately I do not think it is worth it. Only an hour after leaving Huacachina, PeruHop will stop at a pisco tour. Pisco is a high-proof spirit. While you do not have to drink, I definitely par took. I even volunteered first for a competition (not knowing it was a shot competition). This was honestly one of the most fun days I had with the friends I was traveling with and bonded us quite a bit. After the tour and after buying numerous bottle of pisco for our bus ride, we were hammered in Nazca. There was no way we were going to get on a flight, and did not want to pay for it, so we got about 45 minutes to climb the viewing tower and look over the lines. It was pretty cool but nothing worth staying a night for.
The bus to Arequipa was quite hellish. While we stopped for a free lunch, we had a 11 hour bus ride from Nazca to Arequipa. We were all quite hungover and dehydrated so definitely stock up on water for these bus rides. When we finally arrived in Arequipa, PeruHop split us up by hostels and provided us individual transportation to them which was amazing after such a long journey, be beware, you arrive in Arequipa at around 5am… you have a whole day ahead fo you!
Step 5: Arequipa
Time recommended: at least 5 days
Arequipa itself is a cute city with a lot of history. This is the base point for the Colca Canyon Trek which I cannot recommend enough. Upon arrival, budget at least one or two free days to catch up on sleep before embarking. I did the 2-day 1 night Colca canyon trek booked through PeruHop and it was amazing. When you arrive back in Arequipa, I recommend another 1-2 days of rest because my legs were definitely in pain and needed it!
Step 6: Bus to Cusco
Time recommended: at least a week and a half (wish I stayed at least 3 weeks just in Cusco)
The bus from Arequipa to Cusco is a long one taking us about 13 hours with stopping for meals and bathroom breaks. Stock up on snacks and water and being card games to pass the time! Check my other blog post on what to do in Cusco because there is far too much to touch upon in this section! This is the base point for so many treks including the 4 day one to Machu Picchu so plan your time wisely if it is scarce.
Overall: The bus rides are long, however, they are beautiful. It is an inexpensive way to truly see the country and I absolutely recommend taking a bus from Lima to Cusco rather than flying if you have the time. There are so many wonderful experiences to have and you meet so many people in the same situation as you.
Step 7: where next?
From here, I took a bus into Bolivia which I highly recommend continuing your travels through South America. If you are heading back home and flying out of Lima, take a quick flight from Cusco back to Lima. If you have time, I recommend heading north of Lima to Huaraz to experience some beautiful views and mountains or even all the way up Mancora for some beautiful beaches if you plan to travel into Ecuador.