While you may have your trip to Peru mapped out already, there are a few practical details that are best considered before the wheels touch the ground in Lima, details that will almost guarantee that your health, belongings, and wallet are as prepared as you are for the adventure ahead. Read and take note of these five Peru travel tips in the months leading up to your trip:
1. Make sure you’re up-to-date on your vaccines.
Vaccines
Make sure to schedule an appointment with your doctor well in advance of your trip to confirm all of your routine vaccinations are up-to-date, as well as to get vaccinated for any others you may need based on your personalized Peru itinerary. If you’ll be traveling to the Amazon for example, a Yellow Fever vaccination and malaria pills are in order. Planning to visit remote regions of Peru on an outdoor adventure tour? Perhaps a rabies shot would be a good idea. For the latest list of travel health notices, it is a good idea to check the information on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
2. Arrive equipped with the right medications.
Right Medications
Nothing sours a trip more than a splitting headache, upset stomach, or clogged sinuses. That’s why we also recommend that our travelers bring their preferred cold, headache, and anti-diarrhea medication with them. If you’ll be visiting Cusco, Puno, or even Arequipa during your tour of Peru, you may also want to pack some altitude sickness medication to avoid the drowsiness, headaches, and off chance vomiting that occurs for some at altitudes greater than 8,000 feet above sea level.
3. Get yourself some travel insurance.
Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is always a good idea. You never know when the airline will lose your luggage or if your trek to Machu Picchu will result in an unfortunate visit to the local hospital. Odds are your Peru vacation will go off without a hitch, but the satisfying relief of knowing your trip, valuables, and health have some back up is priceless, not to mention very inexpensive to secure.
4. Set your phone up to work abroad.
Phone Abroad
There’s nothing like being able to hail an Uber or whip out Google Maps without the annoying step of locating the nearest wifi. Having a phone that can make calls, send messages, and surf the internet at any moment is something some travelers fail to think about in the excitement of prepping for their Peru adventure and the cost to set your cell phone up to function abroad is getting cheaper and cheaper. Pencil in a visit to your cell phone provider in advance of your trip to see what’s possible.
5. Bring more than one credit card and always try to have some small bills handy.
Credit Card
Our final Peru travel tip will save you from a few unsavory situations in taxi cabs, at restaurants, and while shopping. In Peru, it’s common that restaurants and shops may accept your Mastercard and not your Visa,or that your taxi driver has change for 10 soles but not the 50 soles the ATM spit out you by the dozen. While traveling in Peru, try to have two different credit cards on hand at all times as well as some small bills for tips, small purchases, and taxi fares.
Have you read part 1 of this series? In it, we share more useful Peru travel tips for a seamless experience in Peru, from start to finish.
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