An Oltursa Bus just arrived in Arequipa. Note the hostess helping a passenger.
Bus travel is the most common way to get from city to city and there are many bus companies that travel all over the company. I would recommend you select Cruz Del Sur or Oltursa who have the best safety records. Buses have a reputation for having accidents, especially in the winding mountain roads.
It’s very confortable to travel in one of those big buses, you get served quite decent food during the journey by a bus attendant ( there is also a vegetarian option that you can choose when you buy your bus ticket) and in the best class they have very big reclining seats where you can sleep very well. To keep you entertained they play films, and in first class you might even get a cocktail with Orltursa. On Cruz Del Sur they even play Bingo (in Spanish so learn your numbers!) where you can win a free bus ticket. They are definitely very different from National Express buses in the UK!
LAN Peru, one of several air lines inside Peru
Peru is a big country, so travelling by air is a good idea if you have only a short time to get around the country. I have flown with LAN Peru several times and found they had a very high quality service, their planes were all new (unlike many European companies!) and had fold down flat screen televisions that played ‘Just for Fun’ which is a hidden camera show playing jokes on people. This means that all the way to your destination people are laughing!
There are other airlines like Star Peru and Taca Peru, but I have never travelled with them.
Train from Cusco to Machu Picchu, owned by a British company.
Trains cover just a few routes in Peru, but if you are going to Machu Picchu you definitely will have to take ther train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes (‘meaning ‘Hot Waters’ a little town very close to Machu Picchu with hot spring baths) . This train is operated by Peru Rail, which partly owned by Orient Express company. You can choose from three classes; Vista Dome, Backpacker and the most expensive called Hiram Bingham (the man who discovered Machu Picchu) is a real luxury train.
Taxi in Arequipa, Peru. There are more than 20,000 Taxis in Arequipa.
Inside the cities the most confortable way of transport is by taxi, but you have to be careful to take a safe one that belongs to a large taxi company, hotels can give you information about the safest taxi companies. Licensed taxis have a number often painted on the side and they have ID in the cab so you can ask to see it. If they only have a sticker in the window saying taxi don’t use them. Tourists always attract the attention of taxi drivers, they cannot believe you might want to actually walk somewhere… so they will beep their horn or drive slowly and give you the special ‘do you need a taxi?’ look. My advice is choose your taxi, don’t let them choose you, because some criminals will be pretending to be taxis and looking for people with cameras, cash and luggage. Take your time, check for these details and you will be fine.
In my city Arequipa the most popular taxis are ‘Ticos’ by Daewoo, which are very cheap. Another type of transport inside towns and cities are buses or “Combis” that there are minivans but I wouldn’t recommend one if you are not adventurous 
