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If you are attempting to travel on the low budget with the cheap hotels and much walking - I would advise you that any Latin American travel would be risky for a single woman. If you have some extra $$ and will stay at the more upscale hotels and participate in purchased tours - you will have no problem. Definately stay to the more common places, never travel in taxis (take the public bus), no dark streets, and buy the South American Handbook by Footprint books. - Enjoy
If you are attempting to travel on the low budget with the cheap hotels and much walking - I would advise you that any Latin American travel would be risky for a single woman. If you have some extra $$ and will stay at the more upscale hotels and participate in purchased tours - you will have no problem. Definately stay to the more common places, never travel in taxis (take the public bus), no dark streets, and buy the South American Handbook by Footprint books. - Enjoy
I totally agree.....very wise you are....some stellar, and direct advice!!
Tell us more about this book ( on my thread please ) and maybe post some links, info? A picture of the cover?
Ok so tell us "what happened" while you were down here? better yet, did you see my thread "Ever have a harrowing experience in Latin America?" if...so, or maybe you just did a few dumb things or silly things ( I certainly have had my share! ) and got burned. Did you learn from it? If so, please share with us on that thread and also share how you could've/should've done things differently.
There's a lot of "pie in the sky" rosy pictures painted here in this forum about Latin-american living, frankly some of which is valid and alot more of which is just BS shared by folks who have never lived here...as in....the real world.... However I thought people on the thread researching and thinking about heading down here to live/visit could be helped by folks sharing some practicalities of their experiences traveling and/or living here..
Some good advice here. The most dangerous thing we saw in Lima is traffic...do not drive there. We were in Cusco and Machu Picchu in January and weather was fine but be prepared -- we had a little mist and drizzle on one day at Machu Picchu. If you can do it, spend 2 days at Machu Picchu...1st day with a guide and 2nd by yourself and a good camera with a sack lunch or water and a snack. Don't miss Ollantaytambo or the city market in Cusco....try the local foods. You will enjoy it.
Some good advice here. The most dangerous thing we saw in Lima is traffic...do not drive there. We were in Cusco and Machu Picchu in January and weather was fine but be prepared -- we had a little mist and drizzle on one day at Machu Picchu. If you can do it, spend 2 days at Machu Picchu...1st day with a guide and 2nd by yourself and a good camera with a sack lunch or water and a snack. Don't miss Ollantaytambo or the city market in Cusco....try the local foods. You will enjoy it.
Agree that traffic is the most dangerous thing about Peru. On the taxis, make sure you hire a legititmate taxi service as there are plenty of scams that are dangerous as well.
As far as traffic in Lima or basically every city in Peru is loaded with too many vehicles, now-days everyone seems to have a car. The majority of the vehicles ones sees there are new, it's not what it used to be 15 years ago. People in general are better dressed and the place is booming economically. The unemployment rate is at 3% lower than 99.9% of US cities, that translates into less crime since most people have a job.
In Peru or any other place in the world the best advice it to try to blend in with the general population, wear similar clothing , actually dress down a bit. Learn the language, as much as possible, and move as if you were on mission, always be aware of your surroundings.
Use your sixth sense judging people, most people everywhere are good people, so it is good to act naturally, the conversation should be based about them not about you in the beginning.
This is an issue all over latin america that I've seen......except for Chile.....traffic in Chile is MUCH more orderly....at least when compared to Argentina that's for sure.
well, i returned from Peru a couple of days ago. Was a total of 2 weeks in that country.
My experience overall is that i LOVED it!
I agree with what many people have said here about traffic: people seem suicidal there. Seriously, they made Buenos Aires look like Canada. That was the worst there, we had one cab driver who took us from the airport to the Lima hotel in Miraflores that we spent time in back and forth, and we called it the "death cab". Never in my life i ve been in a car with someone driving that suicidal. It was like the guy was blind or something.
And dont even get me started on those vans that go from Cusco to the ruins "nearby": Ollantaytambo, Pisac, etc. Sometimes a 2-3 hour trip from DEATH. They go into the mountains, and in the curves they accelerate! When you get to those places, you feel like you just escaped death in those vans. Really insane.
Other than that, i LOVED the country. Cusco is wonderful, such a beautiful city! All the ruins i ve been too (including of course Machu Picchu) are breathtaking. Pisac ruins are the ones i ended up more impressed with. I mean, of course Machu Picchus are the best, but i didnt expect Pisac to be SOOO awesome. Recommend it much more than any other, except for Machu. People talk on and on about Ollantaytambo (and all the tour guides and hundreds of people are there) but Pisac are much more impressive and almost unvisited so you wonder around the mountain almost by yourself. Amazing.
The FOOD is also incredible, the people really nice, and Cusco is a city i was very impressed with. So so so beautiful and with so much history in it. It remind me of Rome, but colonial, with the indigenous history, with the garcia marquez realismo magico, and the nice peruvians instead of the rude romans. win win.
I definetely will go back. Peru is a beautiful country.
I'm so glad you liked Peru. I loved the place and the people. Yes...the traffic in Lima is an insane adventure. I never saw anyone stop a stop sign. Speed bumps keep traffic a little under control in places. I also never saw an accident or many dented cars. Traffic in Rome is orderly and well managed compared to Lima. Lima has over 400 bus companies and something like 43 districts with each district having its own mayor so I wouldn't expect traffic problems to be improved by a mass transit system anytime soon. There is safety in numbers when walking -- seems like pedestrians stay in little herds when out in traffic. Cusco was much better because most people are on foot but there are strikes that will shut down traffic sometimes.
I'm so glad you liked Peru. I loved the place and the people. Yes...the traffic in Lima is an insane adventure. I never saw anyone stop a stop sign. Speed bumps keep traffic a little under control in places. I also never saw an accident or many dented cars. Traffic in Rome is orderly and well managed compared to Lima. Lima has over 400 bus companies and something like 43 districts with each district having its own mayor so I wouldn't expect traffic problems to be improved by a mass transit system anytime soon. There is safety in numbers when walking -- seems like pedestrians stay in little herds when out in traffic. Cusco was much better because most people are on foot but there are strikes that will shut down traffic sometimes.
Thank you! I was gonna say that i havent seen an accident either, until i remember i did... in the streets of Lima. One of those buses crashed the back of a car and we heard the sound of something breaking while walking on the street. The bus just went forward and continue driving (?), while the car driver was left there with his car broken like it was the most normal thing. People seem nonchalant like that was a normal occurence. We were shocked because crashing someone from the back and then running away would guaranteeed at least a lot of shouting here in argentina, but it seemed like it was nothing there. Maybe peruvians are too relaxed or laid back.
Anyways, i agree, the traffic is just insane overall, im just glad i made it accident free. Peru is a beautiful country anyway, i recommend it to anyone who wants to go somewhere beautiful, adventurous and different.
My sister went to Peru last year inlate March and she loved it. She went to Lima, Cuzco, and Puno. She went to Machu Picchu and said it was amazing. When she went there the weather was nice, it was in the 70's (Fahrenheit) or a little above 20 degrees Celsius. She didn't go to any of the beaches in Lima though, but she went to a lake in Puno. She liked all of the cities she went to, but she liked Lima the best. She said that she would definitley go to Peru again.
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I was gonna say that i havent seen an accident either, until i remember i did... in the streets of Lima. One of those buses crashed the back of a car and we heard the sound of something breaking while walking on the street. The bus just went forward and continue driving (?), while the car driver was left there with his car broken like it was the most normal thing. People seem nonchalant like that was a normal occurence. We were shocked because crashing someone from the back and then running away would guaranteeed at least a lot of shouting here in argentina, but it seemed like it was nothing there. Maybe peruvians are too relaxed or laid back.
. Peru is a beautiful country anyway, i recommend it to anyone who wants to go somewhere beautiful, adventurous and different.
