budget Archives - Page 3 of 4 - In Search Of Umami

How much does it cost to travel in Panama? Our budget and tips

In Panama we spend 1070 euro for 24 days so 22.30 euro per person per day. Although it's not visible in the budget, it's not a cheap country compared with Colombia or other South American countries. But we saved a lot of money by volunteering for 2 weeks.

Where did we go?

In Panama we visited Bocas del Toro region, Valle del Anton and Panama City.

How did we travel?

Long distance travel we did by buses but in Panama City we used mostly Uber both for transport and a nice conversation 🙂 in the area of Bocas we had to use boat taxis. All of that fun transport costed us 92 euros.

Example: Bus from Almirante (mainland next to Bocas del Toro) to Panama City costed 13.9 dollar (round 12 euro) per person and it was an overnightbus. Uber taxi from our hostel in Panama City to the Canal (which was the most expensive fare ever because we stopped in a few places and saw the Canal from a lot of viewpoints) was 16.11 dollars (around 14 euro) and a ride from our hostel to the city center or other parts of the city was about 3-5 dollar (around 2.8 - 4.4 euro). Boat taxis in Bocas were around 3-5 dollars (2.8- 4.4 euro)

Where did we stay?

On accommodation we spend 296 euro spending 4 days in a private room on Bastimentos (Bocas del Toro) and
the rest in cosy dorms in El Valle and Panama City.

Examples: private room on Bastimentos was 45 dollar (around 39 euro) per night per room and a bed in dorms were around 15 dollar per night (around 13 euro) although we volunteered for two weeks so we didn't pay for our cosy bed during that period.

What did we eat?

As usual we mostly cooked ourselves but really good food, we are not instant noodles type of people:) that's how we spend 343 euros. Unfortunately fresh vegetables and fruit is not cheap in Panama, it also didn't help that the closest supermarket in Panama City was kosher.... (yep it was a shock for us too).

On Bastimentos we didn't have a kitchen so we had to eat out and we also treated ourselves with a nice meal in Panama City so all of that resulted in 266 euros. Few of those euros came with ice cream so necessary in such a warm country:)

How expensive are museums, tours etc?

On tourism we spent 66 euro taking a tour on Bocas del Toro to an idyllic beach of Isla Zapatilla. Except for that we did mostly hikes and the nature we saw was for free:)

What else did we spend our dollars on?

6 euros went on peeing in public toilets and putting stitches on JD's head.

Our tips to save money in Panama:

Cooking on your own is the best way to save money. It's healthier, often more delicious and almost always cheaper
If you don't want to use public transport in Panama City, use Uber! It's easy, fast and very safe. And it's not very expensive especially if you travel with the 2 of you or more.
Volunteer! We did that and it not only saved us some money but it gave us the opportunity to meet incredible people and stay longer in places. We used workaway to volunteer in El Valle in Panama.

P.S. Exchange rate used for the overal budget 1 USD= 1.11EURO
If you have any questions or you would like to take a look at our spreadsheet, let us know:)

Pain, sweat and smiles on the way to the Lost City

The Lost City is the Machu Picchu of Colombia. The Tayrona people left it in the jungle, after being conquered by the Spanish, to be forgotten till the 1970s when it was rediscovered by grave robbers. Still we were hesitating if we should go to see it as the pictures of the main square didn't look like anything more than just circles, stone rings. In the end we got convinced by a big discount that I got for translating during the tour as obviously the guide spoke only Spanish 🙂
And there we were walking in a world of pain to the Lost City. It was 1 pm when we started the walk through the mountains without any trees or clouds. The sun was excruciating and we were sweating like pigs. The sweat was literally dropping even from my hands. It was so hot that even mosquitoes were not interested in their walking prey. I was already thinking that I seriously underestimated this hike as I thought after Salkantay and Choquequirao this would be a walk in a park. Only the indigenous kids were full of energy and motivated to pose for sweets from tourists. Obviously I didn't join that tradition, I don't want them to be teethless from that everyday- Halloween- sugar. Although there are three tribes living in the area we mostly saw Kogis, indigenous people who are directly descended from the Tayrona people or so they claim. They live in traditional huts made of wood and palm leaves but cell phones and pesos are already well known wealth that tourism brought to them. So it's hard to say how much of their tradition is still really alive. Along the way we heard about other Kogis communities living higher in the mountains, that are isolated from the foreign money and culture but since we haven't seen them, we can't judge.
Apart from the communities along the way we also saw some spectacular views, high mountains, rivers, natural swimming pools and dense jungle. Our campsites were not a part of that spectacular scenery but they were OK. The main rules were: to take a shower before going to bed and not to put any backpacks on the bed. All of it to keep the beds as clean as possible because no one will change the sheets after every person...or 2nd or 3rd... Or maybe ever. Every time I went to sleep I could smell sweat from the sheets and I was hoping that no bed bugs were in there waiting for me. Gladly I was lucky. Also because I didn't get hardcore food poisoning during the hike. Judging by the look of the toilets (got almost sick from looking) and sinks (of course people vomit there, why would they do it on the grass??!!) at least half of the people got very sick. Some didn't even see the ruins. Well at least not live... Thankfully JD and I were doing quite okish and so we were able to climb those 1200 stairs to reach the top. And it was worth it. The ruins were just breathtaking!! Huge, stone constructions, arising from the jungle. I can imagine it was hidden and forgotten for so many years. And the mystical atmosphere surrounding it. We could hear the birds and the nature was truly singing. We were not alone but the few people that were there got spread through the ruins and disappeared between the terraces. Just us, the ruins, nature and... a few young soldiers with huge guns. Good that it's all safe now because if someone would like to kidnap us (and it happened already in 2003 with a group of tourists and their guide) I don't know if those tiny boys with big guns would know what to do actually.
The Lost City left us thinking what else might be hidden in the dense rainforest in Colombia or maybe in the Amazons. Maybe there are still civilizations to be discovered... It would be history rising in front of our eyes.

Practical tips and info:

The Lost City can be visited only with a guided tour and there are 5 agencies who do them: Turcol, Expotur, Magic Tour, Wiwa Tour and Guias y Baquianos Tour. All of them offer the trek for 700 000 COP and the price doesn't change if you do it in 5 or 6 days instead of 4. All of the agencies are equal, same food, same sleeping conditions, same level of chaos in their organisation. The only difference is maybe that Wiwa sends you with an indigenous guide.
If you speak Spanish you can get quite a deal on the price depending on the level of desperation of the agency. I wrote to all of them a few days before and ended up going with Turcol for 200 000 COP
Bring: repellent (although not too much, it's still not the amazon out there), alcohol to disinfect your hands, electrolytes for those moments when you will be hugging the toilet, toilet paper, small money for water, chocolate and gatorade, a headlamp and a swimming suit for those many natural pools. Don't forget to bring soap and shampoo as there are showers on each campsite:)
The first camp has electricity so you can still charge your camera, later on it's not possible
Don't bring too much clothes, they will all stink anyway!! Bring your own sheets or very light sleeping bag to sleep in your own sweat!!

Colombian paradise- San Andres and Providencia

To prepare ourselves for Christmas we decided to start December with a vacation. As ridiculous as it sounds, as some people think we have been on vacation for 10 months already. But this time we wanted an oasis of peace, stuff booked, no searching, just chill, relax and diving. Miraculously (as December-January are super busy, summer months when everybody has vacation) we found cheap flights to Colombian islands just off the coast of Nicaragua...San Andres y Providencia.
San Andres was well... Busy, a bit too party style and definitely it did not look as anything even close to a paradise, well maybe after few piña coladas... Diving was also not really anything special, it was more a search for a reef then admiring it. But from there we took an organised trip to Cayo Boliviar which is a tiny island only reachable by those trips or a private boat. We still haven't won any lottery so there was only one way to get there. To say adventurous is an understatement. Boat was jumping up and down, hitting the water so hard that I was sure it was our last trip. Even more dramatically, everyone was screaming possibly because some of the beauty queens were trembling for their make-up. But after an hour we arrived in paradise.... 50 shades of blue water, sandy beach, perfect place to snorkel and even the crowds when spreaded were not that bad. While snorkeling we even saw some nurse sharks, only because they were fed by the guides but still beautiful too see. But the best was yet to come... Providencia.
Providencia is a smaller island, close by San Andres. The only way to get there is by boat or by plane from San Andres. Many think it's too big of a hassle so there are not that many tourists and the island is more virgin in every way. Own language, Creole is omnipresent. It's a weird version of English. And the cuisine is just superb, only place in the world where we ate only lobsters, crabs and fish and all delicious, fresh and ridiculously cheap. The island has also an amazing architecture, traditional wooden houses painted as cheerful as possible. The sight immediately lifts the spirit if the views or diving doesn't do it.
To get there we decided to go by boat, we both love the sea, waves and cheaper options:) but on that catamaran we couldn't see anything as the waves were hitting all the windows constantly. But the worse was the puking party. There were bags with content flying everywhere. Even a special vomit master appeared to take care of the content and make sure new bags were ready so that no other passenger was endangered by the flying liquids. And like that for 4h. All worth it. The island was what I had in mind thinking about paradise. Unbelievable sea, shades of blue, food, architecture and polish vodka on the shelves of the shops (!). Thank god there is even one hostel on the island otherwise we would need to sleep on the beach which could be painful as there are sooooo many crabs walking at night. Actually the island closes their roads twice a year for a crab migration. Basically first they have to close the roads because of black crabs coming from the mountains to lay their eggs and later when the little crabs come out they have to close them again to make sure they can go safely to the mountains.

But going back to our the hostel it's worth saying that it was not a real hostel. I mean it was actually just one of the huts rented from a resort and I could easily see that concept of sharing space by 6 foreigners seemed absurd to them. White people who are not rich enough to rent a whole hut and need to share it? Weird:) But thanks to that little hut we met an amazing Swiss guy Nico and a one of a kind Canadian- Gabe. We immediately became friends and to my surprise soon our group was joined by another polish living in Amsterdam- Natalia. And so the days went on diving, eating crabs, lobsters and the evening went by with rum, polish singing and long discussions. It all felt like a true vacation, vacation in paradise. And the diving made it all really special... Sharks, sting rays, coral reefs, variety of fish... all there. And underneath a few pics from paradise to make you all guys feel jealous in the European winter.

How much does it all cost?

To get to San Andres you can buy pretty cheap flights from all bigger Colombian cities- we went from Medellin and we paid around 100 euro per person (return ticket) with checked in baggage (flying with Viva Colombia)
To get to actual paradise, so to Providencia there are two options: catamaran (164 000 colombian pesos for return so around 47 euros), plane (162 000 colombian pesos one way so around 47 euros)
For entering the islands you need to buy a tourist card at the airport which costs 49 000 pesos (around 14 euro)
There is one hostel on Providencia which costs 45 000 colombian pesos (around 13 euro) per bed per night, there are actually plenty of other, affordable accommodations that can't be found online but the locals will make sure you find them as soon as you get off the catamaran/plane
Diving is actually not that expensive- 160 000-180 000 pesos (around 45-51 euros) for a two tank dive (you go to the spot with a boat)
Eating out: on San Andres we actually had a kitchen in the hostel so we cooked but on Providencia we had to eat out and there is something for every budget. Main meals are between 18 000 (around 5 euros) and 60 000 (around 17 euros) colombian pesos and 60 000 being a lobster with salad etc at the best restaurant. Actually the cheaper food was also pretty yummi and good quality.
It's good to rent a Kawasaki Mule, or motocycle to drive around the whole island and to go to Santa Catalina which is a tiny island joined with Providencia by a colorful bridge. To rent a motorcycle or scooter is around 50 000- 70 000 pesos (around 14- 20 euros) per day and a mule is around 110 000 pesos per day (around 31 euros)

Best diving spots:

Manta's Place- quite shallow dive (up to 12 m) but absolutely beautiful and we saw a few big sting rays over there, that I'm not going to mention the coral and the variety of fish
Piedra Tortuga- an amazing place, full of sharks (but sharks are literally everywhere on deep dives around Providencia), beautiful coral, actually we went between two walls of coral which was stunning
Felipe's Place- great canyon dive, again lots of sharks and fish
Tete's Place- similar to Manta's Place, also a shallow dive with lots of coral and fish and some sting rays

The bridge connecting Providencia and Santa Catalina

How much does it cost to travel in Peru? Our budget and tips

Peru is a country of contradictions so also the spendings are extreme from really cheap dorms to expensive restaurants. In Peru we really wanted to do everything possible just because for us it wasn't a country that we would LOVE to come back to. Let's say people over there were not our favorite part of Peru. And so we stayed for 70 days spending a total 5227 euro so 37 euro per day per person. That includes fancy dining and also a new laptop and some clothes:)

Where did we go?

In Peru we saw a bit of everything. We started around Lake Titicaca which we didn't like at all so we moved quite fast to Cusco. There we stayed for a long time to explore all the surrounding ruins. When all the Inca constructions and mummies started to look alike we hit the road again to get to Lima. The city itself didn't take our breath away (not even with the amount of pollution in the air) so we left it after a few days to see a bit of Peruvian coast. And so we ended up in Huanchaco, a tiny town on the coast. From there we went for the adventure- The Amazon, visiting Tarapoto, Yurimaguas, Lagunas and Samiria- Pacaya National Park. Afterwards on the way out of Peru we passed by Chachapoyas.

How did we travel?

By kayak, by local buses, on foot:) spending 458 euros on transport (including bus to Guayaquil in Ecuador)
Example of bus ride: Bus from Lima to Trujillo was 75 soles (around 21 euro) and it took around 20 hours.

Where did we stay?

In tents, on the floor in the jungle, in dorms and sometimes in private rooms.

On accommodation we spend 828 euro spending 21 days in private rooms and the rest in dormitories, tents and on the floor. Generally the prices in dormitories didn't vary that much per city but the private rooms were a different story. In cities they were way more expensive than in the Amazon or close to Lake Titicaca.

Examples: a bed in dorm in Cusco was a cost of around 6-9 euro. Going to the Amazon for 15 euros we already had a private room with private bathroom.

What did we eat?

From shitty imitation Chinese food to high quality food in fancy restaurants- in Peru we wanted to try everything, it's highest and it's lowest just because it seems to have the best food of South America (Peruvian dreamers even say world's best). We did have some amazing food but as a cuisine I wouldn't say it was anywhere near Asian, French , Italian or even Spanish.

We spend 538 euros cooking on our own. Buying ingredients without saving in the supermarkets and local markets (no dry rice or instant noodles unless on a hike). 1039 euros was invested in various eating out experiences, some fancy and some on the edge of poisonous (our dinning experiences in Lima)

How expensive are museums, tours etc?

On tourism we spent 1722 euro of which around 843 dollars went for a 5 day Salkantay trek to Macchu Picchu (for the two of us). The rest went for different hikes that we did (Choquequirao trek), excursion through the Amazon, entrances to museums and ruins.

What else did we spend our "soles" on?

In Peru we finally bought a laptop- tired of trying to post and write and do everything with a smartphone. We also bought some clothes. All of that falls into the category "equipment" which cost us 393 euros.

In miscellaneous (249 euros) we placed hairdresser failures, liters of mosquito repellent, washing our clothes etc.

Our tips to save money in Peru:

Hike on your own, renting equipment and buying food is way cheaper than going with an agency and the exact routes can be found online
To avoid spending money on withdrawing cash just send money to yourself via Azimo. You can send up to 800 euros in local currency or in dollars and you pay only up to 3 euros for the transfer
Always check buses before buying, the price varies insanely depending on the company, comfort of the seat and time.
On short distances try to use local buses
If Machu Picchu is too expensive, think of an alternative trek. For example Choquequirao- cheaper, more adventurous and less crowded
Don't go to Iquitos or Manu for a jungle experience, those are already pretty touristic so prices are already adjusted to heavy wallets. Choose mostly skipped Lagunas from where a local guide and a whole excursion will cost you veryyyyy little

P.S. Exchange rate used 1 EUR = 3.56 PEN

If you have any questions or you would like to take a look at our spreadsheet, let us know:)

In the Peruvian Amazon

Going to the Amazon region in Peru we didn't know what to expect, except for mosquito bites and sweating like in a sauna. We also heard that people were way nicer than in other parts of Peru, warmer and more welcoming. The sweating part started already in the bus to Tarapoto which took 18 Peruvian hours (27 European hours). The change in people never came.
Arriving at the hostel we realized we were one of very few that came for the nature and not to take drugs (Ayahuasca ceremony is a tradition in the amazon but also a main tourist attraction for those who like to fly away). In Tarapoto except for close meetings with insects of all kind we managed to see monkeys, amazing butterflies and huge, hairy spiders. Obviously it wouldn't be me if I didn't fell somewhere and killed one of those hairy spiders with my hand...

From Tarapoto we traveled till the end of the road so till Yurimaguas, a tiny town where there is nothing special except for a cargo boat that would take us to Lagunas from where we would reach our goal Park Pacaya Samiria- the biggest protected area in Peru, second biggest in the Amazon region (20 000 km²). The cargo boat was just amazing, cargo and hammocks hanging everywhere, nice people, nice views, heaven. Only the sanitary of the boat was to say the least rustic. After 13 hours we arrived in dark, dark Lagunas as they only have electricity for a few hours a day...
To go to the park we had to have a guide so we asked around already in Yurimaguas for prices and there was one typical Peruvian answer from everyone we asked: they have an association of guides and that's why they all charge 150 soles per person per day..."But for you my friend 100 (or 110 soles) but in secret". On the next day after arriving in Lagunas we started our trip with our guide Alberto and his wife Jady. Married for 20 years, so they got married when she was 15 and he was 32... On my question of how they met, they only smiled...
With them we spend 8 pretty fun days enjoying the nature around us. We saw 5 types of moneys, birds, a sloth, otters, an anaconda and much more. Finally on that trip I started enjoying fishing. I remember when I was a kid and I was going fishing with my dad we were waiting hours in silence to catch ANYTHING. Here in the jungle, as soon as anything hits the water it is attacked by piranhas and other creatures which makes fishing extremely easy and fun for everyone. And with a stick and rope... That I'm not going to mention our fishing techniques like just throwing a spear or just swinging a machete blindly in the water. Even the net which had more holes than net was so successful that already while spreading, there were fish in it. Obviously we had a mainly fish diet those days with rice, pasta and the main ingredient in the amazon- banana. Many different kinds of it. But my absolute favourite was suri- delicious larvae from bugs taken from the inside of a palm fruit. Mmmm...
Normally everyone who wants to see the jungle goes to Iquitos, where one has to pay serious money and everything is organised. The locals call the kind of tourism that goes from Lagunas "tourismo de aventura" (adventure tourism). Couldn't be more true, starting from sleeping on the floor in huts (floor and huts are both an overstatements) and finishing on taking a shower on our canoe (because going to the water could mean the last shower ever) taking water from the river with a bucket and having manyyyy crocodiles looking at us. Alberto was also a man of adrenaline and so he took us multiple times to watch caimans at night when they are the most active. Totally living on the edge considering that I read wikihow, before going, to find out what to do if attacked by a caiman and there first fundamental advises were: don't go where you know there are caimans living and 2nd if you have to go then don't go into the water, no canoe. And there we were in our canoe, at night staring at them. Our dear Alberto spotted a hugeee black caiman of around 6 m, a beast and we started following him. At some point the beast stopped but we didn't because Alberto really wanted to go as close as possible (or rather impossibly close) to the point where the crocodile started hissing at us. At that point we were already begging him to paddle away, I was already seeing us being eaten with pleasure. We definitely had more luck than brain and the crocodile ran away, splashing water and fish at us. Wet and happy to be alive we continued to look around when Alberto caught one of the small crocodiles with his bare hands, he placed him between his knees and paddled further as he saw another one. Possibly he wanted to catch the other one as well but it was bigger than he assumed and when Alberto approached he got scared and ran away leaving us wet for the second time that night. And then I felt something was walking on top of me, touching it I realized that Alberto let the caiman that he had between his legs go and now he was running through me till the end of the boat. After some time I realized that I had a lamp with me which I switched on to see our caiman scared out of his mind. Alberto went like if nothing happened till the end of the canoe, grabbed the crocodile and said "foto??". And so we took pictures with this nice, not so little friend who decided to go against his nature and not bite us. On the last day of our trip maybe to redeem himself Alberto had a little suprise for breakfast. A crocodile.... In my mind I was just hoping it wasn't the same, friendly one that we met a few nights before...

How to get to Pacaya Samiria Park and how much does it cost?

Visiting Pacaya Samiria from Lagunas is a way cheaper alternative when compared to Iquitos. But it´s also a bit more adventurous when it comes to accommodation and sanitary which has it´s charm:)

The whole journey starts in Tarapoto. From there we went by shared car to Yurimaguas (20 soles each, 2.5 hrs). From there we took a cargo boat called Eduardo to get to Lagunas (30 soles each (around 8 euros), 13 hrs) . It was a pleasant trip and we were mostly chilling out in our hammocks. Except for those, there are other cargo boats going to Lagunas which are cheaper (20 soles p.p. (around 5 euros)) but it´s rather hard to say which one will leave the port that day. There is always a boat leaving everyday but the time is unknown:) there are also speed boats going in 6 hrs for 40 soles (around 11 euros)

Also accommodation in Tarapoto, Yurimaguas and Lagunas is cheap and there are quite some options to choose from even if for the last two villages there are not that many places online. Double room with private bathroom costs around 30-50 soles (around 8-14 euros).

When it comes to the trip, you can take a guide for as many days as you want, 2 days or 30 days all is possible. The park is huge so it´s good to have as many days as possible and the more days you go the cheaper price per day you can expect. Going for 8 days you can expect 100-110 soles (around 28-31 euros) per day per person but going above that you can expect 80-90 soles (around 22-25 euros) per day. Those prices include sleeping on the floor, food and guide.. all except for the park fee which is 20 soles (around 5 euros) per day per person. For multiple day stay there are discounts so for example going for 7 days you pay only for 6. Obviously for the park fee you don´t need to bargain, it´s set in stone. Which I can´t say about the prices of the guides (prices above are prices after negotiation).

Trek to Choquequirao

Going to Choquequirao, the Inca city, I was expecting amazing nature. At least tarantulas around me, condors above me and cacao trees next to me. Big nothing when it comes to that. The nature was not getting more exotic than horses passing us by. But reaching the first campsite at least I got an exotic "toilet", no words can explain how "different" the toilet was, only a picture (posted under). And the way to it was also an adventure on it's own.... The woman from the campsite wanted us to take a shower as well... It was a bucket of water and walls could be made with foil stretched between a few sticks... The funniest part was that the shower was just under the campsite so that you could see the person showering from your own tent... Free show. Obviously we passed on that entertainment.
Further trek was rather disappointing until we reached the check point in Choquequirao. Immediately we saw the ruins scattered on the mountains and we went flying to the campsite closeby to build our tent and start exploring. Firstly we went to extensive terraces and water temple just next to us. By far more impressive than Machu Picchu. Choquequirao has been known since at least the 17th century by the Spaniards and it has been mentioned many times. Also Bingham visited it before he discovered Machu Picchu and still the site was not excavated until the 1970s. Now only 30-40% has been excavated and that is already bigger than Machu Picchu. And we felt like in an Indiana Jones movie, all alone on the ruins and on each terrace we could see further buildings and terraces overgrown by vegetation. Incredible!!! Super excited we barely could sleep waiting for the next day to come to explore the ruins up on the mountain above us. And so on the next day we were busy exploring temples, squares, priest houses, workshops and most impressive: hugeeeee terraces with figures of llamas on them. On few terraces there were small llamas with mama llamas. All of it just partially uncovered.... No wonder Peru wants to build a cable car as an alternative to a two day trek to attract more tourists and more dollars... Making it a new Machu Picchu. Now it is only visited by few, maybe 20-30 people a day. Choquequirao was everything for us that Machu Picchu wasn't: mystical, without people trying to sell you cheesy gifts, big Americans with their huge cameras and fat wallets. Simple, beautiful and unforgettable.
And so was our trek back... We needed to go exactly the same way as we came and waking up early we already started walking back at 5.30 a.m. At around 10 a.m. we were already what seemed to be half way. There cheered by a local guide we decided to walk up the mountain to do the whole route in one day. According to him we would be done within 4 hours leaving him our big backpacks that he would take up by horse... After 4 hours we were nowhere near the end. We were almost in tears, covered in sweat and bites in full son walking up a mountain... Ready to give up... After 7 hours we finally reached the top and promised ourself never to trust Peruvian time estimations...

Mini guide for those who would like to do the trek:
1. The whole trek cost us a total of 658 soles so around 189 euro for two of us for 4 days. Most of it we spend on:
-250 soles (around 68 euros) on transportation to the view point from Cusco and back (on the way back we overpaid to get to Cusco faster which cost us around 50-60 soles more)
-135 soles (around 37 euros) on food - nuts, noodles, milk in powder, pasta etc.
-190 soles (around 52 euros) Renting equipment- tent for two people, two sleeping bags, sleeping pads, little kitchen with utensils, walking sticks
-56 soles (around 15 euros) on entrance ticket to the ruins (37 normal ticket, 19 with student discount)

2. First day we left Cusco at 5 a.m. and we arrived to the viewpoint at 10 a.m. (first taking a bus to Curawasi, then shared taxi to Ramal, then private taxi to the viewpoint). From there we walked to Playa Rosalina in 3.5 hours and then 2.5 hours to Santa Rosa Baja where we stayed for the night. Second day we started walking around 6 a.m. and it took us 2.5 hours uphill to get to Marampata. From there it was an easy 1.5 hour walk to the Choquequirao campsite where we stayed one and a half day. The forth day we left the camp at 5.30 a.m. and walked to Playa Rosalina (4.5 hours) and then we walked all the way to the view point (6.5 hours) without our big backpacks. Not recommended to do that in one day. We were destroyed in the end of it.

3. We didn't buy water, we had purifying pills but if you want there are plenty of places selling water (2.5 ltr water bottle for 12 soles, so around 3 euros)

4. From the viewpoint you can rent horses for the whole way, we didn't, we walked with our backpacks except for half a day, the last day, when we paid 20 soles (around 5 euro) for bringing our bags to the viewpoint

5. For navigation we used Maps.Me and GPS in our smartphones

6. We had plenty of bug spray which didn't help us but we are afraid to think how we would look like if we didn't have it

7. On all of the campsites you can buy water, inka cola, cola and snacks and often also cooked meals. Only on the Choquequirao site there was nothing to buy

8. To camp on most of the sites you need to pay 5 soles (a bit more than 1 euro) per tent, except in the Choquequirao campsite where it's free. The campsites are Chiquisca, Playa Rosalina, Santa Rosa baja, Santa Rosa alta, Marampata and Choquequirao so plenty to choose from.

9. You really need at least one day to explore the ruins because they are huge and quite far away from each other

If anyone would like to do it and something is not clear or there are unanswered questions, let us know:)

You can download the map here Choquequirao.kml or here Choquequirao.kmz.
You can use Maps.Me to open the files on your smartphone or google my maps on your PC.