Lima, Peru and Quito, Ecuador

I have never been to South America and have over a year to put this together. Thought I would get an early start. The majority of this trip is the Galapagos and Machu Picchu but I plan to spend extra time in both cities. Any thoughts on sights and especially food in these areas?
Thanks in advance.

Cheers!
Marshall [cheers.gif]

For Galapagos… go with a boat that’s less than 100 people. Large cruise boats suck b/c u get to see half the number of sites/landings.

Are you hiking to MP? or training? We trained b/c we didn’t have 4 days to spend hiking.
Breathtaking, hike up Huayna Picchu, worth the short hike. (it’s the cliff u see in most cliche MP photos). We went up from the town to MP 2 times (once to see the site, the next morning for Sunrise, and hike up HP).

Peruvian food is ridonkulous… i didn’t have a bad meal my entire stay.

Lima is just ok… spent 1 day there, plenty
Quito is ok too… but again most of a normal city… nothing special
I really liked Cusco, but the altitude sickness can hit you… Affected me a bit (going up stairs was like hiking up a mountain)… didn’t affect 1 friend at all, and but another friend had to use oxygen tank periodically.

One of our bartenders lived in Quito for a year, I’ll ask him for local spots when he comes in.

My daughter is going to Peru for 10 days next month including hike to Machu Picchu. You can discuss with her when she gets back if you want.

Marshall,

Ask your doctor for altitude sickness pills. Don’t be brave like me. I didn’t have any trouble in Denver, but Cuzco and MP are twice as high, give or take. Drink plenty of water in the days before travel. It may help. When you arrive, all the hotels have coca tea. Retail stores also sell it. I don’t care what they say, you’d have to drink copious amounts to make you feel better.

Here’s the best advice, buy Deet and use it at MP. You’ll notice many people with huge welts on their body. You don’t feel those mosquitos, but they sure leave their mark.
If you use Deet, you’ll come down clean. FYI, the entrance fee to MP is for one day. If you want to go back the second day, you’ll pay.

From the what it’s worth department, MP is lower than Cusco/Cuzco. They spell it both ways. If I recall, it’s ~7500 ft vs ~11,000.

We flew in to Cuzco from Lima. It’s a short flight. If you have British Airwars Avios points, it’s a cheap redemption. Oh wait. Wrong board. neener
We spent a day there before heading out with our guide. This area is called the Sacred Valley (think Catskills), so there’s plenty to do. I did lots of reasearch on Lima and MP, but not the Sacred Valley. Oh well. Next time.

I’ll echo what Mark said. We walked up an ever so slight incline near the JW Marriott in Cuzco. Boy, were we out of breath. That’s a great hotel, but don’t base yourself there for MP.

Are you touring with a group, or doing it on your own?
Dan

Turns out my guy was there over a decade ago, probably moot now.

Good info so far…The trip is predominantly through National Geographic and Lindblad so a good portion is planned out. The altitude will be a bit of a problem although we have been to Colorado and Santa Fe over the last year or two. I did not know there were altitude sickness pills…will look into it.

Keep it coming! I know there are some very nice “Nobu” style restaurants in Lima. Any specifics?

Paul; Will definitely be talking with you.

Cheers!
Marshall [cheers.gif]

Definetely great food in Peru - I had the benefit of going with my brother in law who was born and raised there and now lives here. I will check with him on the latest and greatest. Of course don’t miss the Pisco Sours!
The altitude in Cuzco is challenging but you really only need to take it easy for first 24 hours until you are acclimated. There are some great sights in this area. We took a bus up a hill and then walked back down to town passing some spectacular sites including http://www.world-mysteries.com/mpl_9.htm an early construction sight with the most amazing masonry - really miraculous as you get close up. Passed through 3 or 4 different sites like this and some great views of Cuzco from high up the hill.
In Cuzco see if you can find this spot while you are there
DSC00534.JPG
It had the most adjoining rocks we could find - 11! Its famous.
If your plan is to take the train from Cuzco to Machu Picchu be sure to take the Orient Express. We made the mistake of taking the local train and while fine on way down - the trip back later the same night was an experience. Crowded, no food/drink, broke down twice in the middle of nowhere. We finally limped into a town and got off and hired taxi to get us back to our hotel. Left hotel at 5am that morning and got back at 2 am - long day but oh so worth it to spend the day at this magical place. Definitely one of the true wonders of the world. I got teary eyed the first time I walked around the corner and got a glimpse of the city - AMAZING!!
Have fun Marshall.

It’s been decades since I was in either city, but for me Quito is far more interesting, historically, culturally, and scenically. Lima, is a relatively flat, seaside city. Some nice beaches and seaside spots, but you have access to that kind of terrain where you live. Quito is unique, nothing like it anywhere in the U.S. Just one guy’s opinion.

BTW, you might want to go back and find Anthony Bourdain’s shows from both places.

You can also take the train to MP from this place. That’s what we did. http://wikitravel.org/en/Ollantaytambo If I recall, the train ride was 60 - 90 minutes (?) to the bus transfer location. From there, another 10 or so minutes.

Thanks for all the info so far. The Machu Picchu portion is pretty much handled by National Geographic and Lindblad. Does anyone have any experience with hotels and restaurants in Quito or Lima? The whole Peruvian/Japanese fusion movement seems very inviting.

Cheers! [berserker.gif]
Marshall

We stayed at the Sheraton Lima Hotel & Convention Center on points. It’s a nice property. Walkable to the historic part of Lima.

It’s been a few years since my last trip, but I really enjoyed Astrid y Gaston in Lima. I had a delicious chile relleno, stuffed with really high quality steak. And the dessert was one of the best I’ve ever eaten.

I also remember Cebicheria La Mar being quite tasty for lunch… although, looking at reviews now, it seems like a lot of people find it to be overpriced/over-hyped. Regardless of where you go, though, make sure you find some sort of cevicheria!

A lot of people I know swear by coca tea, in terms of combating altitude sickness. As long as you don’t have to return home and immediately take a drug test neener

Really looking forward to hearing how you like the trip. I drool over the NatGeo travel catalog every time it comes. If I found out I had 6 months to live, I’d sign up for the round-the-world on a private jet tour.

Thanks Jason…I already have http://www.astridygaston.com and http://www.maido.pe
on my list.


Alan; You certainly will. We booked this well over a year in advance since a friend of mine is single and is traveling with us. The Nat Geo/Lindblad group is not as prohibitive on their single supplements as other groups. However, my friend did get the last available single cabin and this is for October of 2015! [wow.gif]


Cheers!
Marshall champagne.gif

Marshall,

We went for Easter two years ago.

In Lima, in addition to Astrid y Gaston, I highly recommend Central Restaurante, it was a highlight of the trip. Possibly worth a trip to Peru just to eat there.

We stayed at the JW Marriott in Lima. Meh. It was fine, but a typical business hotel. It is, however, walking distance (a few blocks) to Central.

In Cuzco, my favorite restaurant was Cicciolina, with a pretty decent wine list (e.g., Catena Zapata svds). We also went to Chicha por Gaston Acurio (of Astrid y Gaston). It was good, but I liked Cicciolina better (better wine list too).

It sounds like you have Aquas Calientes/Sacred Valley covered, but we stayed in two great hotels. 1) Sol y Luna Resort in the Sacred Valley (fantastic!); and 2) Inkaterra in Aquas Calientes (also nice).

We stayed at the Monasterio in Cuzco (highly recommended).

Scot

How does a nice restaurant come to be named after both a notorious Italian adult actress / politician and Rio de Janeiro’s most famous strip club (named after the above mentioned Cicciolina)?

Scot; Thank you…We are also staying at Sol y Luna and the Monasterio as well as Sanctuary Lodge. I will look into the Central Restaurante. [thankyou.gif]



Cheers!
Marshall [cheers.gif]

Super! Those are fantastic places to stay and I’m very jealous. I think you will really like Sol y Luna. I grew up in Palos Verdes and the Sacred Valley reminds me of the southern California of my youth, but perhaps more verdant and then with the Andes (wow). E.g., pepper trees, eucalyptus, etc. Also, Sol y Luna has an equestrian program and I highly recommend a trail ride if you can squeeze it in (it is worth it). They also have two restaurants, the more casual has a pizza oven and the nicer restaurant is a good place to try some Cuy (you should at least try some).

Here is the address for Central Restaurante; you can make reservations online.

Have fun!

Scot

When i went to Argentina - this list guided me very well

Also - the doctors here in the US only give you motion sickness pills. The pharmacies in Peru have better stuff for altitude sickness. Please be careful, it TOTALLY sneaks up on you.