Peru Day 6 – Cusco to Puno with Peru Rail Titicaca

Where and When: Cusco to Puno – Peru, 31 May 2023

0615: At Wanchaq Station to start our 10 hour journey to Puno with Peru rail Titicaca. After Machu Picchu this was what I had been looking forward to most on our trip. After our luggage is checked in we are shown into the waiting room. Waiting room is luxurious with high back chairs, fresh flowers and has coffee and Coca tea.

0700: Our tickets are checked by PeruRail staff and they escort us on to the train. There is a welcoming band playing music as we board the train.

We are shown to our seats in the dining car. The dining car is beautifully appointed and decorated in the same style as the British Pullman train cabins. There are only 16 passengers in a 35 seat car are so there is ample space to stretch out.

0710: Train departs on time. In addition to the dining car, there is an open air observation car, bar car, kitchen carriage, luggage car and the locomotive to pull everything.

Over the next 10 hours, we will be travelling to Puno across the Andean high plateau.

0810: For the first hour or so, the train travels through Cusco and its suburbs.

After Cusco, the train travels parallel to the Urubamba River and the scenery is exquisite – and all the more enjoyable for seeing it from the observation car at the back of the train.

0945: Passengers are invited to the bar car for  welcome drinks, snacks and entertainment. The band who greeted us upon embarkation is with us on the train and provide some great music and traditional Andean dancing.  Passengers are invited to join which we do with great fun.

There is also a fashion show, much like the one yesterday on Perurail Vistadome from Machu Picchu.

1200: 10 minute stop at La-Raya. This is the highest point in the journey at 4319m. There is a small church and a textiles market, aimed at tourists.

1210: Journey resumes and lunch is served as the train goes over the Andean high plateau. Food is delicious and beautifully presented and made from local ingredients.

1500: After lunch, there is more music and traditional dancing. There is also a demonstration of how to make Pisco Sour which I got to take part in. I greatly enjoyed it given my penchant for a good cocktail. And let me tell you, you haven’t poured a cocktail until you have done it on a train moving forwards and side-to-side, all at the same time.

1600: Going through centre of Juliaca town. It is rush hour and the town is really busy. Juliaca’s central market is located either side of the railway tracks. And when the train approaches, twice a day, the market hurriedly tidy up and step away from the tracks. Some of the goods are left as is in the middle of the tracks as the train passes over them.

1615: Afternoon tea is served in the dining car.

As I watch the immense Andean landscape strech behind us, I reflected on how lucky we were to be able to make this journey. The train harks back to golden era of travel, and represents the epitome of luxury and comfort. The service is impeccable  and the PeruRail staff catered to our every need. The food was delicious and the entertainment made the time fly by.

As of three weeks before our departure date, the tour company had informed me that PeruRail was not operating this service on Wednesdays (it had only partially resumed the timetable after the strikes earlier in the year) so I had resigned myself to making the journey by car. However, we were very lucky that PeruRail did resume the full timetable by the time we arrived. The road does run parallel to the railway line for much of the way so you would see a lot of the same scenery in a car, but it would not have had the same comfort, luxury and the fun we had on the train.

Tip: If you are travelling to Peru, I would highly recommended this train journey. For me it was one of the most enjoyable days on the trip.

1729: Arrival at Puno Station. The lovely train staff make a little guard of honour at our exit from the train and clap. 

1745: Our guide picks us up at the station. He is a little late but very apologetic. We are taken to our hotel – Hotel Jose Antonio out of town on the bank of the lake Titicaca.

Puno is a busy town and situated at 3800m. It is the biggest town near Peru’s border with Bolivia, so a lot of commercial trade from Bolivia to Peru comes through Puno. It is also situated at the meeting points of two Andean cultures – those who speak Quechua and those who speak Aymara. We will be exploring Puno and surroundings tomorrow, so more on that later.

Have you taken (or plan to take) any epic rail journeys? What was you favorite/least favorite thing about travelling by train? Leave a comment below, and let me know.