I’ll admit that I started packing for Peru about a month before my trip. Since it is a different climate in the Southern Hemisphere, I had plenty of winter clothes I could lay out, not needing them in the humid Georgia spring. But this was a tricky one to prepare for. My trip had a mix of climates and activities and I wanted to be as lightweight as possible, but ended up bringing a few things “just in case.”
This post contains affiliate links that can earn this website a small income. They will not cost you anything to use.
I packed my Outdoor Products Artemis 35L (reviewed on Her Packing List) and instead of my trusty PacSafe Slingsafe, I brought a smaller REI day pack borrowed from my sister as well as a Baggu tote bag that could hold the daypack when necessary. I did purchase a few items specifically for this trip, but also borrowed a number of items from my sister. I’ve noted below whether or not I actually needed each item over the course of the two weeks.
Clothing and Accessories
2 pairs of leggings- one was fleece from Columbia (purchased on Steep & Cheap) for those cold nights in Cusco and the other was from the Under Armor outlet
1 pair of jeans- high rise from Gap and worn multiple times
1 dress- long black dress with slits from Alternative Apparel purchased for my Mexico trip and worn in sunny Paracas
1 jean jacket- worn almost every day, secondhand from a Shoreditch market
1 rain jacket- from the Eddie Bauer outlet years ago, folds up
1 pull over jacket- Pearl Izumi light fleece jacket
1 Montbell down jacket– borrowed from my sister and worn on the Inca Trail
1 long sleeved shirt- one of those running shirts I got for free from a race
2 short sleeved shirts- grey and mint from Alternative Apparel sample sale
2 tank tops- also Alternative Apparel, black and red
1 baseball hat- ATL hat from The Lion’s Drawer on Etsy
1 swimsuit- purchased from Bare Necessities, but only worn once or twice on this trip by the pool in Paracas and Huacachina
2 pairs of shoes- Nike Sneakers and Birkenstock rubber sandals, which I found were to be all I really needed
1 winter hats and gloves- Both purchased for cheap years ago, but I didn’t end up needing the gloves. I probably could have left the hat too.
1 Buff and 1 bandana- needed for Inca Trail and dune buggying!
1 Turkish towel– used as a blanket, scarf, sarong, and towel
1 pair of Toms sunglasses
1 “real” bra, 1 sports bra + 7 undies, and 2 pairs of socks, including cushioned hiking socks from Darn Tough
1 plastic poncho– not needed at all as I got one from my Inca Trail outfitter
Gear, Electronics, & Etc.
Black Diamond folding trekking poles– I ended up having to check a bag because of this, but I was glad to have these on hikes because of my joints and general clumsiness.
Eagle Creek packing cubes
Headphones
Journal
Travel pillow- I don’t usually bring one, but I knew I’d be sleeping on floors, buses, and in tents
3 water bottles- I bought an extra Platypus collapsible bottle (also on S&C) so that I would have 3 1-liter bottles for the Inca Trail
lock
passport (duh)
Laptop with chargers and converters
iPhone and Sony Xperia– I use both for taking pictures
Canon DSLR and Podo- The latter was unused and I tended to use my smartphones more than my heavy DSLR
Snacks- Gatorade powder, chicken jerky, dried mango
Toiletries and Medications
Contacts/glasses
Medicated lotion
1 travel hairbrush and hair ties
Small amount of makeup
Face wash
Razor
Deodorant
Nail clippers
Epic Wipes– So glad to have this instead of cold showers on the Inca Trail
Meds (including Pepto Bismol, rehydration salts, Ambien, ibuprofen, antihistamines, bandaids, sunscreen)
Diamox- My friend who had recently been to Peru gave me some, but I kept forgetting to take it
travel insurance– I didn’t need to claim, thankfully!
Hot Hands hand warmers and a small hot water bottle- it wasn’t cold enough to need either
Witch hazel
Ear plugs- a MUST for shared dorms with people doing early morning hikes
Dr. Bronners- used to wash clothes in the sink
Solid shampoo
You, like me, felt we overpacked. I went for 18 days taking clothes that I didn’t mind leaving behind. Wore my heaviest clothes on the flight over. Then after leaving my clothes, except for what I wore home, I had room for my “treasures”. Peru has incredible finds on scarves, pottery, manta and handcrafted clothing. Fortunately the lady that cleaned my room was my size and appreciated my discarded clothing. This will work in third world countries. While hiking the Inca trail the sole of my hiking boot needed repairing. I found someone in Cusco to repair for one sol. ( I used Gorilla glue and duct tape on the trail)