San Francisco to Lima (SFO–LIM) — Airlines, Schedules & Connections

US passport holders enter Peru visa-free for up to 183 days. No advance application is needed. Passport must be valid for at least 6 months beyond the date of entry. At Jorge Chavez International Airport (LIM) in Lima, immigration stamps your passport and writes the authorized number of days (up to 183). A return or onward ticket may be requested. An online Tarjeta Andina de Migracion (TAM) form at tam.migraciones.gob.pe should be completed within 48 hours before arrival.

The number of days granted at entry is at the immigration officer's discretion, so if you plan a long stay, have your itinerary ready to show. Extensions beyond the granted period require visiting the Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones in Lima. Machu Picchu requires advance booking: purchase tickets at machupicchu.gob.pe for specific time slots. The daily visitor limit is 4,044 per day across 3 circuits. The train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes (the base town for Machu Picchu) takes 1 hour 30 minutes on PeruRail or Inca Rail.

Direct flights from Miami (MIA) to Lima run about 5 hours 30 minutes on LATAM and American Airlines. New York JFK to LIM runs about 7 hours 30 minutes on LATAM and JetBlue. Houston, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Orlando also have nonstop service. Peru uses the Peruvian sol (PEN), trading at roughly 3.75 PEN per $1. US dollars are accepted at tourist businesses in Lima, Cusco, and other tourist hubs. ATMs are common in cities. Card payments work at hotels and restaurants. Cusco sits at 3,400m elevation: arrive a day early to acclimatize before heading to Machu Picchu. Lima's food scene is world-class: ceviche at a market costs PEN 15 to PEN 30 ($4 to $8), while a full meal at a top restaurant runs PEN 80 to PEN 200 ($21 to $53).

BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) runs from downtown San Francisco (Embarcadero, Powell St.) to the SFO station and then a free AirTrain shuttle to all terminals (30–40 min from Embarcadero, $10.45). BART also connects Oakland and Berkeley; useful for East Bay travelers. Trains run from ~4am to midnight.Taxis from downtown San Francisco cost $40–60. Ride-hails (Uber, Lyft) pick up in the designated area in the garage and are often $30–50 depending on surge pricing. SamTrans buses serve Peninsula cities. Highway 101 and I-280 are heavily congested during commute hours; BART is faster than driving at those times.