Cusco Facts

Location

Cusco is located in Huatanay River Valley, in the southeasts Andes of Peru, in the jurisdiction of province and region Cusco, its high is 3,399 m.a.s.l., it’s located at 13º30’45’’ south latitude and at 71º58’33’’ west longitude from Greenwich Meridian.

Reference Time

The Peruvian hour is similar to the EST hour (Eastern Standard Time) in the United States and it’s located at 5 hours from GMT (Greenwich Meridian Time).

When in Peru it’s 12:00, in Santiago and Caracas it’s 13:00; in Río de Janeiro and Buenos Aires it’s 14:00, at New York it’s 12:00 and in Tokyo it’s 02:00 of the following day.

Weather

The weather on April to October is very comfortable, warm and dry. The temperature in this season goes from 5.0º to 20º Celsius.

This rainy season starts on November and it lasts until May; at the beginnings of this season, the rain is light and as the season continues the rain becomes more intense during the months of January through March.

Cusco, it’s under the influence of macro-climate of huge air masses that come from the southeast jungle, as well as the Peruvian-Bolivian table winds are colder and drier, just like the winds that come from Patagonia, going into the southeast area and in general, makes climate events to huge scale. In the other hand, the local winds that are made in its valleys and in its plains, have the function of distributing heat and humidity along the day.

The average temperature fluctuates between 10.3ºC and 13ºC (between 50.54º and 52.34º Fahrenheit); but these temperatures fluctuate according the zone.

Population

The number of people living in Cusco is of 304.152 inhabitans and in the entire department there are 1.158.142 inhabitants. Cusco is the seventh city in Peru with the biggest number of inhabitants.

Currency

The official currency of Peru is “El Nuevo Sol” (s/.) divided in 100 cents. Coins as 10, 20 and 50 cents as 1, 2 and 5 Nuevo Sol are in circulation and 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 Nuevo Sol are also in circulation. (Be careful about obtaining bogus coins and notes).

The American Dollar is accepted in the majority of commercial locals, restaurants and service stations along the day. There are Foreign Exchange Office that uses all the kinds of currency, especially with American Dollars and Euros.

Some restaurants, hotels and establishments accept Credit Cards: Visa, Masterd Card, Diners and American Express. The use of Travelers Checks is limited because a few of banks and hotels accept them; ask before to use them to know if they are accepted.

Taxes

When you visit Peru, you have to know that all the services and the sails are taxed with the General Tax to Sails (IGV) that is equivalent to the 19% of the total price, with the exception if your tourism packets acquire abroad. In restaurants and y hotels, a 10% is added for its service.

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