In July 2025, we took a two-week road trip in Peru, driving from Arequipa to Cusco.
Logistics
There are a handful of car rental companies in Arequipa. The choice is more limited when doing a one-way rental. We went with Hertz - though the Peruvian website has online booking, ulitimately we were connected with a local agent over Whatsapp to confirm the booking. We couldn't drive manual, so we settled with the only available automatic car - a base Toyota Yaris.
Arequipa
We arrived in Arequipa on the morning of July 4th.
Colca Canyon
We left Arequipa on the morning of July 6th, hoping to day-hike the Chachani volcano before heading to Colca Canyon. The road looked all right on Google Maps, but the AR-109 turned out to be a rough dirt road shortly after leaving the city. We managed to get to the turnoff, but our little Yaris didn't have the clearnance to go further on the last stretch of the trek to the base camp.
Espinar and Acopia
We left Colca Canyon on the morning of July 8th.
