peterleightonjones wrote:Hi,
I'm thinking of travelling around Peru's interior a bit but was hoping I could call upon your collective wisdom to figure out the best options to do so economically.
My preference is to take flights and from what I can see Star Peru seems to be the cheapest of the airlines? (LAN and TACA's flights are a no-go by virtue of their scandalous surcharges). I was wondering if there are any tricks to getting the best deals?
Peruvian Airlines, run by a drug baron, is another option.
Aside from flights, I would take buses if the prices were considerably better. However, all the websites for the bus firms seem pretty pathetic, often I can't even locate the prices and the itineraries! What is with Peruvian websites and the propensity for not advertising prices online?! I mean are you supposed to turn up on the day not knowing how much it will cost, or have to resort to calling them when there's no good reason why the info shouldn't be recorded electronically??
Yes, it's called travel, the basis of many peoples most treasured memories, and a profitable industry in the form of travel shows and articles. You could increase enjoyment yet further by losing any idea of a specific location to visit, as well as price and itineraries. Considering you are travelling for pleasure rather than business, you should relax!
I digress...what I really want to know is which companies people have had good experiences with and whether a return works out cheaper than two singles (logic would suggest yes i imagine)? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Into the mountains take Cruz de Sur, along the coast take Oltursa.
As for locations, I fancy either the jungle or Cusco but I'm aware that it's currently the rainy season....does this really put a 'dampener' on any trip to these places or would the weather conditions be bearable this time of year?
Rainy season makes land transport difficult as roads are washed out. Yet land transport and bus hopping offer a better sense of a connection to where you are and offers sights you would not otherwise see.
I'm also thinking of flying to Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador, or Argentina and making a trip around those places with my GF....in this case, where are the best flights usually to be found? I know that South American flights are very expensive in general but we wouldn't have enough time to take such a long trip using buses.
Ecuador and Bolivia by land, Chile and Argentina by air. That said, every single major city in Chile is exactly one night's bus journey from the next. You could save hundreds in hotels and loose no time at all in travel time if you can sleep on a bus.
Thank you very much in advance...[/quote]