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So my best friend asked me what I was doing this June . . . and I said "I dunno, working." And then she said, "Well, do you think you can take some time off? Because I kind of want to go to Machu Picchu." And I said, "OK! YEAH!"
Sooo . . . know anyone who's gone? We'd like to hike in. If I could find a company that would allow us to do the last few miles in the dark in the early morning of the last day so we could watch the sun rise over the city before the tourists arrive, that would be AMAZING. Also, we are somewhat limited in the finances department. As in Cat is in med school and I teach test prep part-time/ do other odd jobs. Prices for guides seem to be all over the place, like from $360 to over $2000. Both include guides, tents, three meals a day, park entrance fees . . . and yet there is a $1,600 difference. Hmm.
Plus, you know, flights to South America. And I dunno what else.
Any advice would be way beyond what I've been able to find out googling stuff, and much appreciated.
Posts: 471 | Registered: Jul 2005
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kq, they do have a bottle of emergency oxygen in the first aid kit, at least for the tour operation I'm leaning toward, perutreks.com I'm also thinking that I'll just start driving up to Estes Park in the months before I go and running around up there to get in good shape for altitude. Well, higher altitude, I'm over a mile high here in Boulder.
Ergh, I took malaria pills when I went to Honduras. They were secretly "suck all the moisture out of your body and give you psycho dreams" pills. Icky. But having little critters in your blood would be worse . . .
Yeah, pH, I did a quick search on Expedia and got about $1100 for the ticket too. Luckily it looks like it's cheaper once you're down there, for hotels and stuff.
On a totally unrelated note, does anyone know anything about robbing banks?
Posts: 471 | Registered: Jul 2005
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When you say hotels are cheaper, what sorts of hotels do you mean? Because after my adventures with no working light or hot water in the bathroom in Cannes, along with no heat in January, I have a strict no-budget-hotels policy when staying somewhere outside the country.
pH - Check out andeantravelweb.com. You can click on a city, such as Cusco, and you get a nice list of hotels by price. Hot water seems pretty standard even at the hostels. I plan on staying somewhere in Cusco with hot water, electricity, access to drinkable water, within walking distance of cool stuff, safe . . . I think the key is going to be doing research ahead of time. I kind of like to stay in budget hotels when they're family run and have workign toilets and hot water. Feels more like I'm somewhere other than a tourist hotel. But if they don't have basics, all I want is a boring place with hot water!
Posts: 471 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Hiking there along the Inca trail would be a wonderful idea.
Be aware that the surrounding countryside has been under control of the Shining Path in the past. You should get up-to-date information on where it is safe/not safe for tourists to go.
Build PLENTY of flexibility into your travel plans. Do not expect anything to happen at the scheduled time. Be where you are supposed to be if you can, but then don't get worried if you have to wait an hour, or two, or 24 to actually continue on to your destination.
The airports are FULL of pickpockets. Make sure you keep your passport/ID, credit cards and money in one of those carriers or at least in a front pocket.
Flying in/out of Cuzco is an adventure. If you can do it, schedule an early morning flight over the mountains. Why? The turbulence builds to hellatious proportions as the sun heats the high places and they sometimes stop the flights, but what is worse, sometimes they don't stop the flights.
I figure you probably won't be taking trains, but if you do...As much as it might sound like fun to take the trains with the "locals" in order to absorb more of the local flavor of the country. Don't do it! You will be stuck on sidings for hours. The trains stop seemingly at random to pick up people anywhere along the route. And the quaintness of riding with farm animals wears off rather quickly.
Traveling by car with a driver and interpreter is actually a very affordable option there. I rode in a Mercedes with two other adults in the back seat and we had a grand old time. Our driver was a maniac and got offended when I put on my seatbelt, but they just chalked it to my being a crazy American. Roadblocks are common there! Seriously a pain. You never know who is stopping you. Could be police. Could be Government troops. Could be rebels. Could be people trying to sell llama wool blankets.
DO NOT just do Macchu Picchu. There's so much to do in/around Cuzco, for example. And Lima. Even the Amazon is not that far away. I know the hiking sounds really cool, but if you spend all that time hiking in monotonous terrain, you may miss some amazing things. Other Inca towns are in that area too. It's just amazing.
Go to one of the open air markets on market day too!
Once in the country, everything IS pretty cheap except in Lima, and even there, a lot of stuff (like transportation) is cheap. It's just the high price of some things that'll surprise you.
Have a wonderful time. Be safe!
Enjoy!
Do NOT read the book Alive before flying over the Andes at mid-day. Or...maybe you should.
Posts: 22497 | Registered: Sep 2000
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