One Week in Peru: The Perfect 7-Day Itinerary

Peru is one of the world’s great travel destinations — home to one of history’s greatest civilisations, extraordinary food, and landscapes ranging from the Amazon jungle to high-altitude Andean mountains. Seven days covers the essential arc: Lima, Cusco, Sacred Valley, and Machu Picchu.

Day 1 – Lima: Arrival & Miraflores

Arrive in Lima and head to Miraflores — the upscale Pacific-cliff neighbourhood that’s the most pleasant base for a first night. Walk the Malecón de la Reserva cliff path for views over the Pacific and the paragliders launching from the cliffs.

Lima’s food scene is now internationally recognised as one of the world’s best. First dinner: Central (ranked #1 in Latin America, €80–120/person — book months ahead) or, more accessible, Maido (Nikkei fusion), Astrid y Gastón, or one of the dozens of excellent cevicherías that define Lima’s daytime food culture.

Ceviche — raw fish cured in lime juice with chilli and red onion — is Peru’s signature dish, and Lima’s is the world’s best.

Day 2 – Lima: Barranco, Museums & Food

Morning: the Barranco neighbourhood — Lima’s bohemian and most atmospheric district, a cliffside enclave of colonial mansions, art galleries, and restaurants. The Puente de los Suspiros (Bridge of Sighs) and the cliff walk along the Bajada de los Baños are the most photogenic corners.

The Larco Museum in Pueblo Libre is Peru’s finest archaeological museum — extraordinary pre-Columbian gold, silver, and ceramic collections spanning 5,000 years of coastal cultures. Don’t miss the storerooms (open to the public) filled floor-to-ceiling with uncatalogued artefacts.

Evening: a Lima ceviche tour — hit La Mar or Chez Wong for the ceviche, then walk the street food stalls of Surquillo Market for anticuchos (beef heart skewers) and picarones (sweet potato doughnuts).

Day 3 – Fly to Cusco: Altitude Acclimatisation

Fly to Cusco (1.5 hours from Lima). At 3,400 metres above sea level, altitude sickness (soroche) is a genuine risk — symptoms include headache, nausea, and breathlessness. Do nothing strenuous on arrival day.

Cusco afternoon activities: walk Plaza de Armas (the Spanish colonial main square built on top of the Inca Huacaypata), see the Cathedral (built with stones from the Inca fortress of Sacsayhuamán), and visit Coricancha (the Temple of the Sun — once lined with 700 solid gold panels, stripped by the Spanish and a Dominican convent built on top).

Drink coca tea (widely available, mildly helps altitude symptoms), eat lightly, and sleep early.

Day 4 – Cusco & Sacsayhuamán

Feeling more adjusted, explore the San Blas neighbourhood — Cusco’s artisan quarter, a hillside of narrow cobblestone lanes and whitewashed workshops. The Mercado San Pedro for breakfast (local fruit, quinoa soup, and freshly squeezed juice).

Walk uphill (or take a taxi) to Sacsayhuamán — the Inca fortress above Cusco built with stones so precisely fitted that nothing bonds them. The largest stone weighs 300 tonnes. No mortar. No iron tools. How the Incas moved and shaped them remains incompletely understood.

The view over Cusco’s terracotta rooftops from the fortress is extraordinary.

Day 5 – Sacred Valley

Hire a driver or take a guided day trip through the Sacred Valley — the agricultural heartland of the Inca Empire, a river valley between Cusco and Machu Picchu with ruins, markets, and villages at lower altitude (3,000m — a relief after Cusco).

Key stops: Pisac (Inca terraced citadel above the valley, and Pisac Market — one of the Andes’ most colourful artisan markets, best on Sundays); Ollantaytambo (a functioning Inca town with original Inca stones still used as walls and irrigation channels — the most complete surviving example of Inca urban planning).

Stay overnight in Ollantaytambo — the base for the train to Aguas Calientes.

Day 6 – Machu Picchu

Take the early Peru Rail train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes (1.5 hours). Then bus up the switchback road to Machu Picchu (25 min).

Machu Picchu sits at 2,430m on a ridge between mountain peaks, the ruins of an Inca city that was never found by the Spanish Conquistadors and was only brought to world attention in 1911. The scale and setting are extraordinary — terraced agriculture, temples, and stone houses fitted together without mortar, with mountains rising on all sides and clouds moving below.

Book your entry ticket well in advance (government-mandated timed entry — limits of 3,000 visitors per day are enforced). Sun Gate (Inti Punku) is a 1.5-hour walk from the main ruins for a classic aerial view.

Return to Aguas Calientes for the night.

Day 7 – Return to Cusco / Lima

Morning: optional second visit to Machu Picchu at sunrise (worth it if you can). Train back to Ollantaytambo, then bus to Cusco. Evening flight back to Lima.

If time allows, a final evening in Lima’s Barranco neighbourhood with a last dinner of ceviche before your international flight.

Practical Notes

Altitude: Give yourself a full day to acclimatise in Cusco. Avoid alcohol for the first 24 hours. Drink coca tea. See a doctor if symptoms are severe.

Machu Picchu tickets: Book at machupicchu.gob.pe as far ahead as possible. Peak season (June–August) sells out months in advance.

Best time: May–September (dry season) for Machu Picchu — clearer views, less rain. Avoid June–August if you want fewer crowds.

Currency: Peruvian Sol (PEN). €1 ≈ PEN 4.