Peru 7-Day Itinerary: Two Ways to Spend One Week

It is still dark in Aguas Calientes when you join the line for the first bus up. The Urubamba roars under the bridge, the café shutters are half open, and the mountains above town are black shapes against a sky just starting to pale. This morning, day five of seven, is the one the whole week is built around, and everything before it is there so you arrive rested.

Short answer: A 7-day Peru itinerary fits two regions: Lima and the Cusco area. Our pick is 1 night in Lima, 2 in the Sacred Valley, 1 in Aguas Calientes for Machu Picchu and 2 in Cusco, flying home on day 7. Swap two Cusco days for Paracas and the Nazca Lines if the coast matters more.

A week is the most common length for an American vacation in Peru, and it is enough if you choose well. The mistake is trying to squeeze in Lake Titicaca. Puno is about ten hours by road from Cusco, so the lake eats three days of a seven-day trip and leaves Machu Picchu pressed against a flight. Below are two complete weeks, one built for altitude and calm, one built for variety, plus what an eighth day buys you.

Version A: valley first, Cusco last

Version A spends six of the seven days in the Cusco region and sleeps low before it sleeps high. It is the week we recommend for travelers over 50, for anyone nervous about altitude and for first-time visitors who want Machu Picchu without a 4 a.m. van.

1. Day 1, Lima. Land, transfer to Miraflores and sleep near the ocean. If you arrive before dark, walk the clifftop parks above the Pacific and eat early.
2. Day 2, fly to Cusco, drive down to the valley. Take a morning flight, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Do not stop in Cusco. Drive about 1 hour 30 minutes down to Urubamba or Ollantaytambo, at 2,792 to 2,871 m, and spend the afternoon resting.
3. Day 3, the Sacred Valley. Pisac's terraces in the morning, lunch in Urubamba, the Ollantaytambo fortress in the afternoon. Sleep in the valley again.
4. Day 4, train to Aguas Calientes. A late-morning train from Ollantaytambo along the Urubamba River. Afternoon free in town, early night.
5. Day 5, Machu Picchu. First bus up, a guided Circuit 2 visit of about 2 hours 30 minutes, the afternoon train back and the drive up to Cusco, about 3 hours 30 minutes in all.
6. Day 6, Cusco. Qorikancha, the cathedral, San Blas and Sacsayhuamán. By now the city's 3,399 m (11,152 ft) feels manageable.
7. Day 7, fly home through Lima. A morning flight to Lima connects to the evening departures to the United States.

What you give up: the coast, the Nazca Lines and the high day hikes. What you gain: three nights below Cusco before you sleep there, and a Machu Picchu morning with nobody rushing you to a van.

Version B: the coast and Cusco in one week

Version B adds Paracas, the Huacachina dunes and a flight over the Nazca Lines, and pays for them with the Sacred Valley nights. It suits travelers who want variety and handle altitude well. Our 7-day Peru package with Nazca and Machu Picchu, from US$900 per person, runs this version.

1. Day 1, Lima. Airport pickup, Miraflores and the historic center.
2. Day 2, Paracas and Huacachina. Morning boat to the Ballestas Islands, the dunes in the afternoon, night in Nazca.
3. Day 3, the Nazca Lines. A short flight over the lines in the morning, then the bus back to Lima.
4. Day 4, fly to Cusco. Qorikancha and Sacsayhuamán in the afternoon, night in Cusco.
5. Day 5, Sacred Valley and the train. Chinchero, Moray, Maras and Ollantaytambo, then the train to Aguas Calientes.
6. Day 6, Machu Picchu. Guided visit on Circuit 2, train and road back to Cusco.
7. Day 7, fly home.

Here is the honest trade-off. Days 2 and 3 are long road days, and your first Andes night is in Cusco at 3,399 m, straight from sea level. If that worries you, the 6-day version without Nazca, from US$880, keeps the Ballestas Islands and drops one road day.

The two weeks side by side

The table compares where you sleep each night in both versions, with the altitude of each bed. Read the altitude column first. Version A climbs step by step, Version B jumps from sea level to Cusco in one flight.

With one more day: an 8-day Peru itinerary

Spend an eighth day on one high day hike from Cusco, after Machu Picchu. In Version A, add Humantay Lake (4,200 m, 13,780 ft) or Palccoyo, the gentle rainbow mountain, on day 7 and fly home on day 8. In Version B, add Rainbow Mountain, which is exactly what our 8-day package with Rainbow Mountain, from US$1,190, does on day 7.

Do not spend the eighth day on Lake Titicaca. One extra day gets you to Puno and not much further, and you would fly home from Juliaca after a single afternoon on the water. With two or three more days, read our 10-day Peru itinerary instead.

Flights and bookings for a one-week trip

Book three things first, in this order: the Machu Picchu ticket for your date and hour, the train that matches it, and the Lima to Cusco flight. The ticket and the train sell out in June to August. The flight rarely does. Our packages include the ticket, the train and the bus up, and leave the flights to you with our advice on times. International flights and the Lima to Cusco leg are never included in our package prices.

Buy a morning flight into Cusco. In our experience the afternoon flights are the ones most hit by weather delays in the rainy months, and a morning arrival leaves you the rest of the day to adjust. For the full picture of trip lengths and what each costs, see our how many days in Peru guide and the Peru itinerary planning guide, which explains why altitude decides the order.