Late dinners, the table where South America eats, and the road to Machu Picchu.
Two capitals that take their food and their evenings seriously, then the climb into the Andes — the Sacred Valley first, so the altitude is met gently, and Machu Picchu at the end.
01 — Argentina
Buenos Aires
Boulevards, tango, steak and a city that stays up late.
Buenos Aires is the grand capital of Argentina on the wide Río de la Plata, laid out with Parisian avenues, Italian cafés and a Spanish grid, and lived in with its own passion for football, tango, late dinners and long conversations. San Telmo, La Boca, Palermo and Recoleta are its famous quarters; the pampas and the delta are at its edges.
The Obelisco and the Avenida 9 de Julio
San Telmo
La Boca and the Caminito
Recoleta
Spring, September to November. Mild, sunny and jacaranda-purple in November: the pleasantest season for walking the city.
02 — Peru
Lima
A capital on the cliffs above the Pacific, and the table where South America eats.
Lima sits on cliffs above the grey Pacific, a colonial capital with a baroque centre, the ruins of earlier cultures inside its suburbs and the restaurants that have made it a destination on its own. Most visitors pass through on the way to Cusco and Machu Picchu; a couple of days here are well spent.
The Plaza de Armas and the historic centre
The Larco Museum
Miraflores and the malecón
Barranco
Summer, December to April. Warm, sunny and dry on the coast, with beach days and clear evenings over the sea. The pleasant season in Lima itself.
03 — Peru
Cusco
The Inca capital in the Andes, and the road through the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu.
Cusco was the capital of the Inca empire, and the Spanish built their churches and mansions on its stone foundations, so the walls of the old streets are Inca below and colonial above. It sits high in the Andes at the head of the Sacred Valley, whose villages, terraces and ruins lead to Machu Picchu.
Machu Picchu
The Plaza de Armas and the old streets
Sacsayhuamán
The Sacred Valley
The dry season, May to September. Clear skies, cold nights and the clearest conditions for the trails and the ruins. The high season, with Inti Raymi in June; book far ahead.
