Motorcycle trip

Peru

It depends on how much time you have. For Peru alone, Inca Treasures and Andean Peaks is a 13-day loop from Arequipa through the Colca Canyon, Cusco, Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca. To ride across the continent, the 46-day Transcontinental links Peru to Tierra del Fuego through Bolivia, Argentina and Chile: from Arequipa to Ushuaia, or from Ushuaia to Arequipa heading north. For lower Andes, check out our tours in Ecuador and Colombia.

Inca Treasures and Andean Peaks costs $5,590 per rider and $4,690 per passenger for 13 days, with the motorcycle, gas, lodging, all meals on riding days and the day at Machu Picchu. The 46-day Transcontinental costs $15,690 per rider and $6,990 per passenger, without meals, gas or site entrance fees. On both tours, you book your own international flights.

In the Andes, the dry season runs from May through September and the heart of the rainy season from December through March. Inca Treasures and Andean Peaks is ridden from April through October: our departures fall in late April and May, then in September. The Transcontinental crosses Peru in January, leaving Arequipa in the rainy season, and the northbound trip reaches Arequipa at the very end, in mid-April. At altitude, nights stay cold year-round.

All three of our tours through Peru are rated Sustained and are for experienced riders in good physical shape. Expect mountain roads that are often damaged, stretches of gravel, changeable weather and, above all, altitude, which wears you out more than you would expect. The Transcontinental adds the sheer length of the trip and longer days on dirt roads outside Peru. An off-road training day in France is a good way to prepare.

US citizens need no visa for a tourist stay; your passport must be valid for at least six months after arrival. Our help center asks you to carry an International Driving Permit, available from AAA, with your motorcycle license, and on the Transcontinental it is mandatory to ride into Chile. Other nationalities should check before booking. Everything is in our help center: Preparing your trip to Peru.

Everything starts in Arequipa, in southern Peru, which you reach by air, usually with a connection in Lima. You book your own flights. On Inca Treasures and Andean Peaks, our team meets you at Arequipa airport and takes you back there on the last day. The Transcontinental starts in Arequipa and ends in Ushuaia, or the reverse heading north, with no airport transfer included. In Lima you pick up your checked bag before the domestic flight, so allow plenty of time between flights.

Our tours ride the southern Peruvian Andes, from Arequipa to Cusco and Lake Titicaca, on routes our teams know well. The main risks are on the road itself: mountain curves, broken pavement, altitude and long stretches far from medical help. Each group rides with a tour leader, a mechanic and a support vehicle, and our team can be reached 24/7 in an emergency. Before you go, check the U.S. Department of State travel advisory and country information for Peru, and enroll in STEP, the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program.

Yes, it is the real challenge of a motorcycle tour in Peru. Arequipa sits at about 7,500 feet, but the road soon crosses passes above 14,700 feet, and you often sleep above 11,000 feet, all the way to Lake Titicaca, at about 12,500 feet. Rest days help you adjust, and on Inca Treasures the support vehicle carries an oxygen bottle. Drink plenty of water, talk to your doctor and read our health tips for Peru.