I'm going to Peru this summer. Besides basic needs; what do I need?

Question

I'm going to Peru this summer. Does anyone have any ideas from past experiences of what I should bring along?

Answer 1

depends on what you are doing.....more info would be necessary.

but here goes.....

take sunscreen and a sun hat.  even though you may be high up in the mountains....you will need it.

you can always find clean water unless you are hiking the inca trail or something like that

people there REALLY like to meet you....conversate with you, invite, i was invited to someones house even.  have some little gifts.  decks of cards, or bring your favorite brand of mints to share.....and a photo or 3 of your family or house or whatever for converstation starters.  people there really are interested in you.

and they will ask you for your address (maybe later they may ask you for a favor)....

back to what you need.

layers of clothes.  when you are high up, it gets real cold at night, but the sun does shine strong in the day..

pack light of course, but in this case it is more essential because you will be lugging your pack in very high altitudes if you go to cusco and machu pichu, lake titicaca, or the desert highlands near arequipa.  the later at it's height is over 15,000 feet and lake titicaca is over 14,000 feet high.

make sure your camera has a strong strap that can go around your neck...and when in lima, don't put it there, leave it at your hotel, or hide it in your front pocket (not a coat pocket, but your deep pants pocket or zippered pocket)  if it is a small one, it may get stolen....people in lima will tell you exactly that.  besides, lima is not as picturesque as the rest of the country anyway.  if your camera is large, and your friends is small, just bring that one and tuck it away somewhere securely

peru has great wildlife.  a small pair of binocs might be cool if you like to look at that kind of stuff.

oh yeah, the previous poster was correct, no ripped bills.  ATM's are everywhere tho....just try to use one that is inside a locked enclosure at a bank location.

Answer 2

let's see:

passport, money (make sure it is NOT ripped, or they will not take it), money belt, TONS of sunscreen, I always brought water purification tablets, a hat, copy of your passport, anti diarrhea tablets, a good travel book, a good jacket (it is winter right now), and depending on where you are going, a sleeping bag or heavy blanket, as many of the hotels/hostels do not heat their rooms.

Most larger cities have nearly everything you will need.  The sunscreen is very expensive there,  make sure to get all your shots updated (yellow fever, hep c), and if you are going to go into the amazon, get the meds for malaria.

Answer 3

Well, I went to Peru last Summer around late May, so I might as well answer!

In Peru, a lot depends on where you are. We started in Lima. We had heard Lima was a horrible and dirty city with nothing to do and people urinating on the street. Not so. Lima is the city with the most vibrant LATIN culture and if you are driving around the better communities, it won't look that much different from a pretty good Spanish city. Lots of plazas, museums, palms, good roads, fancy shops, etc. Of course, there are shady areas as well, and we were recommended to stay inside our hotel. However, I felt safe at all times and on our last day of the trip (when we were back in Lima), me and  a girl on the trip went to a park close to our hotel and there was no trouble. In fact, a group of college students came up to us and interviewed us for a project on politics at their university. In Lima, it's always overcast. There's a rocky beach (no sand), and we were crazy enough to dip. While the city temp. around this time will be around 75-80, the water is cold due to the undercurrents on the Lima coast. Basically, the undercurrents constantly bring deep water, and the sediments buried there, to the surface near the beach. Hence, the water is somewhat dirty and cold.

We next went to Cusco. Cusco has very little Latin culture and much more indeginous/native culture. It's pretty great because there are no beggars here. Everyone is selling handicraft, including little kids (which is sort of sad, really, because they should be in school but have to sell things to buy food... Unless school is just out at this time, and then I'm an idiot). Some handicraft people will be persistent. Get this... When we arrived at the Cusco airport, a lady asked me my name and I told her. Then, she ended up at my hotel and called me by my name and wanted to sell me things. She was there for our entire 2 day stay, plus the day after we returned from Machu Picchu, and she remembered my name the whole time. It's a tactic to connect on a somewhat personal level and thus incline me to buy her stuff, in my opinion.

Okay, but Cusco can get freaking cold... Is what I'm trying to get to. I woke up at 5:30am once to go take a walk to the town center and back, and wore a long-sleeve tshirt... Little did I know it would be freezing or below. But it's decieving, because around noon it'll be around 70-80 again, and you'll need sunscreen no matter the temp in Cusco because you're like thousands of feet up and the UVs get right to you, no matter the temp. There are almost no clouds in Cusco, it seems. Just sun. Also, since Cusco is so high up and the air ir thinner, some in our group felt headaches and had to take half a day to acclimate. I didn't have such a problem, besides being a bit short on breath while going up stairs the first day. Remember, Cusco is about 2000 feet higher than Machu Picchu, actually, so when you take the train (if that's what you're doing) to go to Machu Picchu, you'll be actually going down.

Machu Picchu is beautiful, and sunny when we were there. Bring sunscreen. Drinks/beverages cost a lot at Machu Picchu, more expensive than in the U.S., because they know they have tourists coming.

We next went to Puno, right near Lake Titicaca. Puno is cold, as is lake Titicaca, until about 2pm. Also, Puno is the most shady place we've visited in Peru. No adults seem to be out past 10pm and all stores and hotels are gated shut. It just feels like an abandoned town after 10pm. The scariest thing is that me and a friend were walking around at about 10:30pm and we strayed off far from the city center and heard something that sounded a lot like gunshots about 3-4 blocks away. We just turned around and went back to the city center. There's a fountain and we actually danced there a bit (the friend is a girl) and then went back to our hotel and were there around 12. Of course, our hotel was gated shut and closed, and we weren't sure how we'd get in... We shook the gate and called for someone to open the door for a bit, and eventually the gaurds came out and we explained to them that we were staying at this hotel, so they opened up for us. Whew!

In Peru, especially in Cusco and Puno, there are loads of homeless (I presume) dogs running around. None we encountered were any trouble, as they're used to people. None of the dogs ran up to us and started barking, none of that at all. But just be aware, these dogs are like squirrels over here in the U.S. Just everywhere.

Answer 4

The US summer is Peruvian winter, bring lots of warm clothes and flu medicine

Answer 5

First, you must read about the weather:

http://www.geocities.com/perutraveller/c...

Pack a jacket, raincoat and hat and a sweater.  If you want to travel light just bring enough clothes for 5-10 days if staying for 2 weeks to a month, you can easily drop off your laundry at your hotel or laundromats. Do not forget your med kit w mosquito repellent,  anti diarrhea  medicine, water purification tablets, sunscreen, etc.  Do bring your walking shoes or hiking boots and your own equipment, but use your old backpack, do not attract robbers.

Must check if your ATM will work, ask at your bank and use a money belt to hide your card and money, but do not carry large amounts, try to prepay your tours at your hotel or with your travel operator.  Leave your jewelry at home, including your  expensive looking watch or sun glasses.

Don't forget your dictionary, but most tourist locations,  5,4,3* hotel  personnel and at upscale areas people do speak english, even your driver and maitre de; these places mostly hire the elite class.

Answer 6

Yellow fever jab might be worth thinking about especially if you want to cross into Bolivia.