Peru

Traveling

Entry requirements

Passport and visa service

Visa Informations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Diplomatic representations

Organizing your trip

Means of transport recommended in town

Maps of urban networks

Maporama
Mapblast
UT Library on line

Means of transport recommended in the rest of the country

Rail companies

Airlines

Traveling by yourself

Recommendation

Except in the cities and in the PANAMERICANA highway which goes along the coast from North to South, the condition of the roads is generally bad. There are no problems in finding fuel. It is not advised to drive by night. In case of a vehicle rental, subscribe an insurance policy for yourself and for possible damages caused on third parties. It is better to travel with the well-known bus companies. In the cities, the use of a taxi is easy.

Road maps

Find an itinerary

Visiting

Different forms of tourism

Historical

- The most important historic city of Peru: Machu Picchu (at about 80 km Northwest of Cruzco).
- The capital of the Chimu Kingdom, Chan Chan (the walls, streets and pyramids date from 1300).
- The Nazcas's alignments, famous vestiges, at 350 km South of Lima.

Tourism organizations

Peruvian Tourism Board

Living conditions

Health and safety

Health precautions

A certificate of vaccination against yellow fever is required for travelers who intend to travel in jungle areas of the country under 2 300 m.  The risk of malaria  P. vivax (70%) and P. falciparum (30%) is high in 21 of the 33 health districts, among them Loreto, Madre de Dios, Luciano Castillo, Jaen, Junin, San Martin, Ucayali, Cerro de Pasco, Piura, Ayacucho and Tumbes. The transmission of P. falciparum is limited to Luciano Castillo, Loreto, Jaen, Piura, San Martin, Lambayeque and Tumbes. The resistance of P. falciparum to chloroquine has been reported in Piura, Loreto and Luciano Castillo. Prevention is recommended in the areas at risk: C+P; in Luciano Castillo, Loreto and Piura, MEF.
To protect yourself against traveler’s diarrhea, you are advised to avoid the foods which present the most risk : dishes which are cooked and then eaten cold later ; sea food, meat, fish which are under-  or badly cooked, and raw vegetables and fruit which you have not peeled yourself. Drinking water must be boiled, filtered or drunk from sealed bottles.
Avoid walking barefoot on sand or wet/muddy ground. Contrary to what you might think, the differences of temperature (airplane, air conditioning,…) and the dryness of the air in the dry season, favor everyday respiratory infections (pharyngitis, bronchitis…). Insect bites (flies, mosquitos, midges,…) can transmit diseases such as cutaneous leishmaniasis, dengue fever and American trypanosomiasis (Chagas disease). Take an insect repellent with you. Be careful of Altitude Sickness for stays or walks at altitude. Climb very gradually.
Observe universal hygiene precautions. Avoid raw vegetables, milk, undercooked meat, etc. In practice, the tourist has little risk of contracting cholera if he observes basic dietary precautions.

For further information on sanitary conditions

For further information on safety conditions

Emergency numbers

Time difference and climate

Time and time difference

It is %T:%M %A in Lima (GMT-5 )

Summer time period

Map of the time zone

Type of climate

Average temperatures vary from 13 to 20° C from July to December, and from 20 to 30° C from January to June. The climate is globally very humid.

For further information

Average annual temperatures and rainfall

Eating

Culinary specialties

Pisco Sauer: Peruvian cocktail
Papas a la Huancaina: In Peru, the potatoes or papas, that are used to do the cooking have a yellow flesh. After they have been cooked in a spicy sauce, they are placed in a plate with the traditional hard-boiled egg rolled in a leaf of lettuce. Sometimes olives are added.
Anticucho kebabs: giblets mainly the heart of calf
El ceviche: raw fish marinaded in lemon, spices and red onions.
The Papaya.

Drinks

Dietary taboos

There are no dietary taboos in the country.

Paying

Domestic currency

Nuevo Sol

ISO Code

PEN

To obtain domestic currency

The currency is new soles, it is issued in coins of 5, 2, 1, 0.5 soles and in bills of 10, 20, 50 and 100 soles.

Possible means of payment

Speaking

Official language

Spanish and Quechua

Other languages spoken

This country is home for more than one hundred different languages. However, Quechua is the largest linguistic native group, followed by Aymara. Quechua does not represent any homogeneous linguistic community because it is divided into about twenty dialects.

Business language

Spanish and English

Getting some knowledge

Free translation tools

Babel Fish - Free English-Spanish-English traduction of texts and web pages
Systran - Free French-Spanish-French traduction of texts and web pages
Dictionarios.com - Free Spanish-Catalan-English-French Dictionary

Useful resources

To find an accommodation

To find an apartment

To find a job

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