Hotels

Cities along the North Coast, especially Trujillo and Chiclayo, have a wide range of lodgings, including large business hotels and converted colonial mansions. The latter, usually called casonas, offer personalized service not found in the larger hotels. In smaller towns, such as Yungay and Caraz, there are no luxury lodgings, but you'll have no problem finding a clean and comfortable room. The highlands have excellent lodges with horse stables and hot springs; you can also find family-run inns with basic rooms. Assume that hotels do not have air-conditioning unless otherwise indicated.

Finding a hotel room throughout the coastal and highlands areas ought to be painless throughout the year, although coastal resorts like Máncora and Punta Sal are often jammed in summer and during holiday weeks. Sports enthusiasts head to Huaraz and Cajamarca in summer, so make reservations early. Plan at least two months in advance if you want to travel during Easter week, fiestas patrias (Peruvian Independence Day, the week of July 28), or Christmas, when Peruvians take their holidays.