Discover Peru

Peru sits on the central western coast of South America, facing the Pacific. It lies wholly in the southern hemisphere but reaches to within about 3.3 kilometres of the equator at its northern extreme, and covers 1,285,216 square kilometres. It borders Ecuador and Colombia to the north, Brazil to the east, Bolivia to the south-east and Chile to the south — five neighbours, and the Chilean border is the one that shaped the modern country. The 2025 census recorded 34,157,732 people. The capital is Lima, the main language is Spanish, and Quechua and Aymara are co-official in the areas where they predominate. The country is divided into 25 regions.

Three zones, and everything follows from them. The costa, to the west, is a narrow and largely arid plain broken only by valleys cut by seasonal rivers — Lima is on it, and it is desert. The sierra is the Andes: the Altiplano, and the country's highest peak, Huascarán at 6,768 metres. The selva is flat terrain under Amazon rainforest extending east, and it is almost 60 per cent of Peru's territory — the Amazon, Marañón, Huallaga and Ucayali all run through it. Peru claims an exclusive economic zone of 857,000 square kilometres on top of the land.

Peru has one of the longest histories of civilisation of any country, tracing back to the Caral–Supe civilisation of the 10th millennium BCE — the earliest civilisation in the Americas and one of the cradles of civilisation anywhere. The earliest evidence of human presence is dated to about 12,500 BCE at Huaca Prieta. The Chavín culture ran from 1500 to 300 BCE, the Moche peaked in the first millennium CE with irrigation, ceramics and metalwork, and the Chimú were the great city builders of the pre-Inca world.

The Incas emerged in the fifteenth century and, in the span of a century, built the largest empire in the pre-Columbian Americas from their capital at Cusco — from southern Colombia to northern Chile, between the Pacific and the Amazon, between 1438 and 1533, by conquest and by peaceful assimilation both. They began as one of the small and relatively minor ethnic groups, the Quechuas.

It ended in December 1532, when conquistadors under Francisco Pizarro — supported by Chanka, Huanca, Cañari and Chachapoya auxiliaries who had their own reasons — reached Atahualpa, the last Sapa Inca, who had just won a civil war against his half-brother. This was the Spanish conquest, not the Spanish Inquisition, which is a confusion the internet repeats endlessly. The Indigenous population then collapsed, overwhelmingly through epidemic disease, exploitation and social upheaval, and Viceroy Toledo reorganised the country in the 1570s around gold and silver mining worked by Amerindian forced labour.

Peru remained a royalist stronghold while the rest of South America fought for independence, and independence was proclaimed in 1821 and completed in 1824 only after the campaigns of San Martín and Bolívar and the decisive Battle of Ayacucho on 9 December 1824.

What most visitors come for is Machu Picchu, reached by train from Cusco or on foot, and Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, shared with Bolivia. Both sit high: altitude is a genuine medical consideration here, not an inconvenience, and it arrives fast — Cusco is at about 3,400 metres and Puno higher still.

One practical warning before you arrive. Counterfeit sol and US dollar notes are a growing and serious problem and are widely distributed, including by banks, casinos and local stores. Check what you are handed, and never change money on the street.

What are the emergency numbers?

105 police, 116 medical assistance and fire, and a tourist police WhatsApp line on +51 980 122 335.

What is the counterfeit-money problem?

Serious and growing, in both sol and US dollars — and counterfeit bills are widely distributed, including by banks, casinos and local stores. Check what you are given. Avoid street moneychangers, who may carry fakes or work with pickpockets.

Are taxis metered?

No — licensed taxis are not metered, so agree the fare first, and expect that the driver may not have change. Use authorised cabs from inside airport terminals and bus stations rather than hailing: criminals posing as taxi drivers rob tourists on the routes to and from Lima's Jorge Chávez airport and at bus terminals.

Will strikes affect my trip?

They might. Strikes occur frequently, often with little or no notice, and expand quickly from one region to another, and they can cut your ability to reach or leave isolated destinations including Machu Picchu. Trains there are disrupted by demonstrations, strikes and derailments.

Where should I not go?

Avoid all travel to parts of the VRAEM in Apurímac, Ayacucho and Cusco. Avoid non-essential travel to the Upper Huallaga River Valley, to within 20 km of the Colombian border, and to within 20 km of the Ecuadorian border, where there are landmines and unmarked minefields — except the Tumbes crossing and the Panamerican Highway.

How bad is the altitude?

You are at risk above 2,500 metres, and in many Peruvian tourist areas altitude changes quickly — Cusco, Puno, Lake Titicaca, Huaraz, Ayacucho and the Colca Canyon are all named. It can be life-threatening and may need immediate evacuation. Do not ascend quickly, and do not exercise or drink alcohol before you have acclimatised.

What about medical care?

Private hospitals and clinics in the cities are well staffed and equipped; public and rural facilities lack basic resources, and most providers speak only Spanish. Expect to pay immediately, in cash or by card, or to prove your insurer will pay, and note that a serious problem in a remote area may need evacuation within the country.

Is coca legal?

The leaf is legal in Peru and widely used. Carrying it out of the country is not, and it will test positive for cocaine metabolites.