Peru Itinerary for 7, 10 or 14 Days: Day-by-Day Routes That Work

The best Peru itinerary for a first trip is 10 days: 2 days in Lima, 2 on the south coast (Paracas and Huacachina) and 5 or 6 in Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. With 7 days, choose Lima and Cusco. With 14 days, add Nasca, Rainbow Mountain or a less-visited region such as Ayacucho.

Below are three routes that work, day by day, with realistic travel times. If you want to move the pieces around, our free Peru trip planner builds the route for you: pick the regions, swipe the experiences you like and it fits them into your days.

7 days in Peru: Lima and Cusco

1. Day 1, Lima: historic centre, the San Francisco catacombs and a ceviche lunch. Sunset on the Miraflores clifftops.
2. Day 2, Lima: a food tour through a local market, then Barranco in the evening.
3. Day 3, fly to Cusco and go down to the Sacred Valley: the flight takes about 1 h 20. Sleeping in the valley first, at about 2,850 m, helps you adjust to the altitude.
4. Day 4, Sacred Valley: Pisac market and ruins, Moray and the Maras salt pans.
5. Day 5, Machu Picchu: train from Ollantaytambo (about 1 h 30) and visit to the citadel. Return to Cusco by train in the evening.
6. Day 6, Cusco: San Pedro market, the historic centre and Sacsayhuamán.
7. Day 7: flight back to Lima and your international connection.

10 days in Peru: the classic route

This is the route most first-time visitors enjoy the most, because it mixes food, desert, ocean and the Andes without rushing.

1. Days 1–2, Lima: centre, Barranco and a Lima food tour.
2. Day 3, Paracas: about 3.5 hours by bus. Afternoon in the Paracas National Reserve.
3. Day 4, Ballestas Islands and Huacachina: morning boat to see sea lions and penguins, a pisco winery in Ica and dune buggies at sunset. More details in our guide to the Paracas and Huacachina trip.
4. Day 5: back to Lima and fly to Cusco, or fly the next morning.
5. Days 6–7, Sacred Valley: Pisac, Moray, Maras and Ollantaytambo.
6. Day 8, Machu Picchu.
7. Days 9–10, Cusco: the city, Sacsayhuamán and a day trip to Rainbow Mountain or Humantay Lake if you feel well with the altitude.

14 days in Peru: add the less-visited side

With two weeks, follow the 10-day route and add one of these:

• Nasca (2 days): the flight over the Nasca Lines and the Chauchilla cemetery, after Huacachina.
• Ayacucho (3 days): colonial churches, the Wari ruins, the craft town of Quinua and the turquoise pools of Millpu. Just a 1-hour flight from Lima.
• Pasco (3 days): the Huayllay stone forest and the Austro-German towns of Oxapampa and Pozuzo, on the edge of the jungle.

We cover these in more detail in hidden places in Peru most tourists miss.

Tips to make any itinerary work

• Go up in altitude gradually: sleep in the Sacred Valley before Cusco and take it easy on day one.
• Book Machu Picchu tickets and trains early, especially from June to August.
• Leave a free half day in Lima before your international flight, in case of delays.
• Do not try to see everything: two regions done well beat four done in a hurry.

Already have a route and want a second opinion? A CustomPeru planner can review it or plan it with you in a live planning session.