One week is short time, I suggest you to go to Cuzco as soon as you arrive to Lima. You will find a lot of beautiful places near Cuzco, including Machu Picchu, also fun and parties in the discos (in Cuzco too).

Of course there are travel agencies in Lima, I think in the airport you can find some of them.

If there’s something else I can do, let me know.

Regards
Paul

I was in Peru for a week in January and was able to book a 2 day trip to Machu Picchu through a local travel agency for $300. The agency is called Viajes Club and is located in the Jockey Plaza mall. The service was excellent. The tour was all-inclusive except for meals. It included the customary stuff (air fare, hotel stay, all transportation and entry fees) plus guided tours of 5 principal Cuzco sights on the first day(the Cathedral, the Koricancha or Temple of the Sun, and the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, Puca Puccara and Quenqo), the train to Machu Picchu and a 2 hour guided tour (in English) the following day. A word of warning: don’t forget to take your immigration form with you when you go to Cuzco (given to you after you clear customs) Hotels may charge a 19% tax if you don’t provide it. As for deserts—Lima is surrounded by them on all sides!! A drive south to Paracas will show you a lot of it, and some beautiful turquoise seas too.

Well, Lima is almost a desert itself and the whole coastline of Peru is desert, so there’s no issues there. If you can pay the $300 deal above, I would say go for it. It’s a 1 hour flight from Lima to Cuzco vs about 13hrs on a bus (or more from memory). I am not sure about the 19% tax described above (me thinks someone got a little shafted by the locals ;)

Within 3 hours of Lima, you have Chincha which is the Afro-Peruvian heart of Peru. You can read a bit about it here:

http://realtravel.com/chincha_alta-journals-j3007999.html

The word from my friend who lives in Lima and has been to Machu Picchu several times is not to book tours with an agency. If you want to save money, wait until you get to Cusco and deal directly with the tour guides and never pay the first price they offer. According to him, if you work it right, you should be able to do much better than $300. Of course, if time is also tight, you might not have the flexibility necessary to get the best deal…

BTW, the food in Lima is fantastic. Be sure to get a taste of the local dishes, such as aji de gallina or any seafood plates, including ceviche. Yum!! It’s my second night in Lima on this trip and the food has been outstanding, as it was on the first trip.

Good luck,
mario