Entry requirements | Organizing your trip | Visiting | Eating | Paying | Speaking |

Entry requirements

Passport and visa service

Visa Information of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Diplomatic representations

List of Peru's overseas diplomatic representations (in Spanish)

For more information

Organizing your trip

Means of transport recommended in town

Recommendation

The local bus network is cheap but not very comfortable; security is sometimes uncertain. For urban journeys, the use of standardized taxis (yellow) is very common. As these taxis do not have meters, you should always negotiate the fare and check that the company you have chosen is reliable.

Maps of urban networks

Maporama
Mapblast
UT Library on line

Means of transport recommended in the rest of the country

Recommendation

Several airline companies cover domestic links very well: Lan Peru, LC Busre, Star Peru, Aerocondor. Their fares are almost identical. There are 4 railway lines: Lima-La Oroya-Huancayo; Cuzco-Juliaca-Puno, Cuzco-Machu Picchu ; Juliaca-Arequipa-Matarani. There are several large bus companies: Cruz del Sur, Tepsa, Ittsa, Linea, Ormeno.

Rail companies

Peru rail

Flight from Tunisia

Distance between capital cities in km: 10 581
Flight duration between capital cities: 32h30 (via Madrid)

Airlines offering direct flights from/to Tunisia

Airline	Low-cost solution	From	To

Traveling by yourself

Recommendation

Except in the cities and on the PANAMERICANA highway the condition of the roads is generally bad. Mountain roads are difficult, or even dangerous as they are badly maintained and very steep. There are no problems in finding fuel. It is not advisable to drive by night. In case of a vehicle rental, take out an insurance policy for yourself and for possible damage caused to third parties before you travel. A good option is to hire a taxi driver through your hotel.They normally have access to friendly drivers who know the areas of interest and will even speak English.

Road maps

Map of Lima
Map of Cuzco
Map of Puno
Lima Metro Tren Urbano de Lima

Find an itinerary

General information about Peru, guide to local transport.

Visiting

Different forms of tourism

Historical

- The most important historic city in Peru: Machu Picchu.
- The capital of the Chimu Kingdom, Chan Chan.
- The Nazca lines, famous geoglyphs.

Cultural

The archeological complex of Chavin, one of the most ancient constructions in the Americas, declared a World Heritage Site in 1985.

Arequipa and the Colca canyon, declared a World Heritage Site in 2000.

Cusco, the navel of the world in the Quechua language, an important crossroads on the Inca roads which linked all of South America, declared a World Heritage Site in 1983.

Nature

The National Park of Huascaran, World Natural Heritage Site in 1985. 600 glaciers, 300 lakes and 27 summits which rise to about 6 000 meters.

The National Park of Manu (Puerto Maldonado), World Natural Heritage Site in 1987. A great tropical forest reserve in the world.

Thermal

The hot springs of Colcamayo on the Inca Jungle Trail, near Santa Teresa. Extremely pleasant after a day's trekking.

The hot springs of Aguascalientes, the nearest town to Machu Picchu (about 8 km away), ideal after the Inca Trail.

Beach

Cerro Azul: on Peru's central coast. The beach is very popular with surfers.

La Herradura: on Peru's central coast, in the Chorrillos region. A very popular beach.

Mancora: undoubtedly Peru's most beautiful beach, Mancora delights people with its heavenly peacefulness.

Winter sports

Not practised very much.

Outdoor activities

Trekking (the Inca Trail, the Llama Trek: Olleros-Chavin, the Valley of the Colca, the walk around the Alpamayo, the Trail to Choquerirao,  the Valley of the Cotahuasi, the heights of Taraco, Quebrada Santa Cruz).

Mountain climbing in the Andes (the White Cordillera, the Volcanic Cordillera, the Vilcabamba Cordillera).

Surfing (Organos, Cabo Blanco, Puerto Chicama or Malabrigo, Lima's beaches)

Canoeing (River Tumbes, River Santa, Apurimac Canyon, Rio Colca).

Cycling, climbing, kayaking, paragliding, fishing, diving.

Shopping

Manufactured goods are the best value for money, especially gold, silver and copper items, as well as textiles such as alpaca clothes and woven tapestries. Many tourists take home with them reproductions of pre-Columbian pottery and calabashes.

Tourism organizations

Peruvian Tourism Board
Comision de promocion del Peru para la Exportacion y el turismo
Directorio de operadores de Turismo en Peru

Eating

Food specialties

Pisco Sauer: Peruvian cocktail based on Pisco (grape spirit).
Papas a la Huancaina: potatoes in a spicy sauce.
El ceviche: raw fish marinaded in lemon, spices and red onions.

Drinks

Common Peruvian drinks are Inca Kola, chicha morada (a purple corn drink), masato (based on fermented yucca cassava). There are also a dozen local beers, including Cusquena, Cristal and Arequipena; there are some good wines and, especially, Pisco.

Paying

Domestic currency

Peruvian Nuevo Sol

ISO Code

PEN

To obtain domestic currency

The American dollar can be changed in bureaux de change and with informal traders in the street, and also in banks. The euro can only be changed in bureaux de change without commission or with informal traders in the street.

However, it is not advisable to take traveler's cheques in euros as these can only be changed in Lima, with commission. On the other hand, those in dollars can be changed at the Banco de Credito. You can withdraw money from an ATM with Visa or Mastercard. ATMs are found in all cities now.

Possible means of payment

The American dollar is commonly accepted. Credit cards are accepted almost everywhere in Lima, but much less outside the biggest cities. In small towns, ATMs are not always available. ATMs only take international credit cards.

Exchange rate on

Automatic Teller Machines (ATM)

To find out the locations of ATMs in in Peru, click on the link to your credit card: Visa, Mastercard or American Express

Speaking

Official language

Spanish and Quechua

Other languages spoken

This country is home to more than one hundred different languages. However, Quechua is the largest linguistic native group, followed by Aymara.

Business language

Spanish and English, of which, as a general rule, people do not have a sufficient grasp.

Getting some knowledge

Yes: Si 

No: No

Please: Por favor

Thank you: Gracias

Don't mention it: De nada

Good day: Buenos dias

Good afternoon: Buenas tardes

Good night: Buenas noches

Welcome: Bienvenido

How are you?: Como estas?

Very well, very good: Muy bien

Hello: Hola

Goodbye: Chao

See you soon: Hasta luego

I don't know: No sé

I don't understand: no entiendo

My name is...    Me llamo...

Free translation tools

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Last updates: May 2012