If you are looking for tips to keep the Peru trip costs as low as possible and you want to know how much budget you need, then you are on the right page. In this article, we share how much a trip through Peru costs and how high your daily budget in Peru should be depending on what kind of traveler you are.
We traveled through Peru for 3.5 weeks and spent $68 per day, and share in detail how we did it in this article.
Peru is not expensive to travel through, of course, there are places like Machu Picchu that are more expensive compared to other places. So it depends on what you are going to do in Peru.
Before you decide to travel to Peru, it is important to know how much budget you need when traveling to Peru. This partly determines whether or not you will travel to Peru.
Our tips, categories, and our personal Peru trip cost are based on the trip we made through Peru. So keep in mind that when you travel to other areas or do other activities, the trip to Peru cost will be cheaper or more expensive.
Trip to Peru cost per day?
Good to know is that when you travel to Peru on a tight budget you can still have a great vacation. For $35 or less per day, you can stay in good hostels, eat at local restaurants, and see a lot of the country by doing activities on your own.
Budget traveler: if you have a tight budget and you pay close attention to what you spend, $25 – $35 per person per day may be sufficient.
Mid-range traveler: If you want it a bit more luxurious where you do a few more expensive activities or stay at nicer accommodations, plan a budget of $35 – $70 per person per day.
Luxury traveler: when staying in the best accommodations in Peru and you want comfort during your vacation in Peru you spend above +$100 per person per day.
The amounts don’t include airline tickets. Flight costs are very diverse. We always use Skyscanner and recommend it!
| Sleep | Food | Transport | Activities | Miscellaneous |
| Dorm: $4 – $8 | Street food: +$1 | City bus/taxi: $1 – $2 | Salkantay trek + Machu Picchu: +$385 | Travel guide: $24 |
| Budget room: $10 – $30 | Mid-range: $4 – $8 | Regional bus: $6 – $12 | Colca Canyon tour: $439 | Travel insurance 3 weeks: $120 |
| Mid-range: $40 – $70 | Fancy food: $14 – $35 | Bus Lima – Huacachina: $7 | Ballestas Islands: $12 | Water bottle: $78 |
| Luxury hotel: $120+ | Local beer: $1 – $2 | Domestic flight: +$60 | Paracas National Reserve: $5 | Sleeping bag: $30 |
Below you can read each Peru trip cost category in more detail.
Peru trip cost: Accommodation
There are several options to keep your travel costs for Peru as low as possible. First of all, you have to decide for yourself whether you want to stay in hostels or hotels. When you travel alone, we recommend staying in hostels, where it is easier to meet other travelers and it is also cheaper. If you are traveling as a couple, it may be nicer to stay in a hotel. We are not saying that you should skip hostels as a couple. We always like to stay at hostels and hotels during our trips because hostels are ideal for meeting other travelers, this is difficult in a hotel.
Staying in hostels and hotels in Peru is comparable in price to surrounding countries. If you stay in a dormitory, this will cost you about $4 to $8, a double room $10 to $30 and if you want more luxury, you will spend more than $40 per night.
The most important tip we can give to keep your Peru travel budget as low as possible is to book the accommodations as far in advance as possible. This gives you more choice so you can find options that fit within your budget. If you are late with your booking, only accommodations may be available that do not match your wishes.
Check our favorite hotels and hostels in Peru here.
Peru trip cost: Food
The food in Peru is delicious. You can eat at trendy restaurants or in authentic local places. This makes it a great travel experience. If you eat locally, which you probably will do, the food and drinks are delicious and cheap.
Many hotels and hostels in Peru include breakfast. This is usually basic and includes cereal, fruit, yogurt, and toast. It’s okay to start the day.
For lunch, you spend about $2 at a local tent for a sandwich with fresh juice. You can also eat at a nice restaurant, which costs you an average of $12. If you want to save money on food during your trip to Peru, we recommend that you regularly go to a supermarket. You can buy fresh fruit and snacks that are especially useful during the many hikes that you will do in Peru. All in all, you can eat in Peru very cheap to very fancy. It doesn’t mean that if you spend a lot of money on food that you will eat better. You can eat delicious for affordable prices.
Dishes that you should try when you are in Peru:
- Ceviche: Ceviche is perhaps Peru’s most famous dish. Ceviche can be found all over Central and South America, but in Peru, you eat the best Ceviche. This dish consists of fresh raw fish marinated in lime. Recommend to eat this when you are close to the coast, like Paracas.
- Lomo Saltado: Whereas ceviche is the most famous dish, Lomo Saltado is the most delicious dish in our opinion. Lomo Saltado consists of pieces of beef, onions, and tomatoes. This is prepared in a wok with soy sauce. This is served with rice or French fries. You can also order it with chicken or alpaca.
- Cuy al Horno: Cuy al Horno is a guinea pig from the oven. A special dish for the local population and very special to eat yourself. The Peruvians eat this dish at special events, such as a birthday. You regularly see this dish on the menu because tourists want to try it.
- Rocoto Relleno: This is a spicy pepper filled with meat and vegetables. Often it is served with French fries. A delicious dish if you like spicy food.
Looking for an itinerary through Peru?Read more here.
Peru trip cost: Transport
Peru is a large country, so it is best to visit a certain area in Peru if you are short on time. This has the advantage that you travel less and can enjoy more of the country. Also, places which you like to visit in an area are closer to each other, so you can often use the bus, which is the best way to travel economically.
We have traveled through the south of Peru, this is a beautiful area to travel to because there is so much to see in a relatively small area. This keeps the transport costs low. Read here ourPeru itinerary if you want to know more about it.
All public transport tickets can be foundhere at Bookaway. We used Bookaway to book all our bus tickets. They are easy to use and book, we have had good experiences with them.
We recommend using a bus for all destinations except when traveling from Lima to Cusco or vice versa. In this case, it is better to use the plane. The bus takes a long time and the price for the plane is the same.
During our trip, we only used the bus company, Cruz del Sur. The buses are extremely good because the seats are really good and you have enough legroom. Also, the air conditioning is great, it’s not too cold like in many other buses.
The best advice we can give is to use the night bus for long distances. This saves you a lot of time because you travel at night and can do something during the day. Also, you don’t need to book a room which saves you money. Long distances from Huacachina to Arequipa or from Puno to Cusco, for example, are perfect times to use a night bus. It is important to buy a ticket on time because if you want to do this on the spot, all places maybe already fully booked. A ticket costs on average $30.
For shorter distances, you can use the regional bus. These are fine and cost an average of $10. For short distances, you can use a taxi.
If you travel to Peru by plane and you are looking for a car to rent, you can rent it throughRentalcars. We use Rentalcars when we want to travel by car to discover new destinations. They’re easy to use and book with.
Are you planning a trip to Peru? Our Peru travel guide will help you plan.
Peru trip cost: Activities
In Peru, there are countless excursions and activities, the costs of which are also very diverse. It’s impossible to cover all of this in this article. If you follow our Peru itinerary there are several excursions you can do. These are the most popular and fun activities you will find in Peru. For example, paragliding in Lima costs $84, entrance to Ballestas Islands and Paracas National Reserve $18, sandboarding in Huacachina $16, the 5-day Salkantay trek with the final destination on Machu Picchu costs $385 and a 3-day trek through the Colca Canyon $439.
In general, you can do a lot yourself in Peru and you don’t have to spend a lot of money to do crazy things. The multiple-day excursions that you can do are very affordable. For example, the Salkantay trek costs $385. This is $77 per day. If you want to eat independently for 5 days, accommodations, transport, and access to Machu Picchu then it is not as expensive as you initially think.
Peru trip cost: Miscellaneous
How much you spend on other costs is of course very different per person. Here you can read some points that we always use during our trip and that we recommend.
A travel guide provides you with detailed information about the country, weather, and culture. We always use Lonely Planet.
A water bottle is always handy to have with you. We use aCrazycap, this is a water bottle that kills all bacteria in the water using UV. This allows us to drink tap water anywhere in the world through this bottle. So we never have to buy water and can always drink tap water safely without problems with our stomachs. It is a one-time amount, but in the longer term you have this out.
Finally, you can also buy asleeping bag, the advantage of this is that you always sleep in “your bed”. If you find it annoying to sleep in unknown beds and do you like hygiene, sleeping in a sleeping bag is a good solution.
Travel insurance
World Nomads travel insurance policies offer coverage for more than 150 activities. Get a quote, make a claim, or buy or extend your policy while on the road.
How much did Peru cost us per day
- Accommodation $21
- Food $20
- Transport $14
- Activities $13
Total: $68 per day per person (amounts are rounded). This doesn’t include airline tickets and other costs. The airline tickets were $960 for us. Total costs per person: 25 (days) x $68 + $960 = $2660.
We have always stayed in great hostels and hotels, enjoyed good food, did awesome tours such as the 3-day Colca Canyon tour and the Salkantay trek. We have divided the costs of the multi-day tours evenly over the categories because everything is included with these tours.
Accommodation: If you want to travel cheaper than we did, you can do that by staying in cheaper accommodations. We do not recommend this. Cheaper accommodations are usually located outside the center or the facilities are not good.
Food: If you take the breakfast option at the accommodations we recommend on thislist, you won’t spend a lot of money on food. It is possible to save money by eating in cheaper restaurants or cooking food yourself during your trip.
Transportation: If you visit a certain area in Peru like we did with the south and you buy the bus tickets in advance atBookaway, then the transport costs will not be high.
Activities: If you read all the articles we have written aboutPeru, you will read that there is a lot to do in Peru. You can save money by doing fewer activities. Our advice is not to do this. After all, you travel to Peru to gain travel experiences.
Trip to Peru cost FAQ
1. How much does it cost to travel to Peru?
Traveling through Peru is not expensive. For example, if you are a middle-class traveler, traveling for 3 weeks in Peru will cost $1810 per person (if you are traveling as a couple).
For accommodations, food, transport, and activities you spend 21 days x $60 on average = $1260. The flight costs are approximately $550 per person (flight from the United States to Lima).
2. How much does it cost to go to Peru for two weeks?
Of course, it depends on what you’re going to do. But in general, if you are a mid-range traveler, a two-week trip in Peru will cost +/- $1670 for couples per person.
We spent $68 on accommodations, food, transport, and activities, but going for two weeks means you’ll want to see and do things in a shorter period, so the average cost is higher. That’s why you spend $80 per person per day.
For accommodations, food, transport, and activities you spend 14 days x $80 = $1120. The flight costs are approximately $550 per person.
3. How to visit Peru on a budget?
It is possible to make an awesome trip to Peru with a limited budget. You need to do the following to spend +/- $32 per day.
Stay in hostels and book them well in advance. This gives you the most choice so that the cheaper hostels are still available. When you do this you spend +/- $6 per day.
To keep the costs for food low, book a hostel including breakfast. This means you only have to buy food in the afternoon and evening. Eat where the locals eat. Often it is, the simpler from the outside, the better the food and cheaper. If you are going to cook for yourself, you will spend about $10 a day on food.
For transport, it is recommended to choose a specific area so that distances between different places are as short as possible. You can also choose to visit only a limited number of destinations so that the transport costs remain low. If you do this, you spend $7 per day.
Sometimes it is necessary to pay an entrance ticket for sights, but you can do most activities yourself, $9 per day is sufficient.
4. How much money should I take to Peru?
Bring $330 with you so you can pay for the first expenses when you arrive, such as the bus, taxi, food, and accommodations. Then it is advisable to go to the local bank and withdraw money. Exchange rates are a lot better than when you exchange money at home.
In every village or city, there is a bank where you can withdraw money. So it is not necessary to take a lot of money with you in advance when you go to Peru.
Conclusion costs of travel in Peru
We hope our article has helped you show that Peru is not expensive to travel to. Once you have determined how much budget you need for Peru, you can start planning your trip. We made a Peru itinerary to help you create your route. In our itinerary, you can find per destination detailed articles.
If you want to know more about Peru in general and how to prepare yourself, it is recommended to read this Peru travel guide. In this travel guide, you read what the best places are to visit in Peru, which period is the best to travel, which items are essential to take with you and more useful information.
What do you think of our budget tips for Peru? Share your thought in the comments below!
Did you enjoy this article? Then save it to Pinterest for later!
